Joyful Courage

This sermon was preached for Capital Pres Fairfax on Sunday, January 25, 2026, as a part of our Winter series through Philippians titled “Resilient Joy” This is our third sermon in our series “Philippians: Resilient Joy.” The book of Philippians, a letter written in prison by the Apostle Paul, encourages us to locate our deepest joy in Jesus — not in our circumstances. This week we’ll consider joyful courage as we meditate on Philippians 1:18b-30. A video recording of this sermon was made available in lieu of a winter storm cancelling our gathering. You can watch the sermon here, or listen to a recording of it on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again. 

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have. (Philippians 1:18b-30)

We are in our third sermon from the apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians. If you’ve been with us so far this series—and even if you haven’t, just based on our Scripture passage today—it’s pretty obvious that Paul is an intense guy. We can all recognize that. He’s clearly all in on what he believes. He has centered his whole life on Jesus and follows him with intense determination. 

This passage shows us one particular way Paul is intense: his courage. It takes a lot of courage to say in the middle of his circumstances “No seriously, I am rejoicing and will continue to rejoice whatever comes my way.” The question for us is, Is Paul’s courage unique to him? Is he just a particularly brave guy? Paul says, “No!” He wants every Christian to share in his courage—and he genuinely believes you and I and every other Christian has equal access to becoming like himself. 

If you’re looking for a sermon in a sentence, here it is: We find courage when Christ is our life. We’ll explore that idea with these three points. First, the occasion for courage. What circumstances require us to have courage? Second, the source of courage. Where do we find courage? Third and finally, the life of courage. What does it look like to live courageously? 

The occasion for courage 

What is the apparent need for Paul to have courage as he writes this? Just as a refresher, let’s remember Paul’s current circumstances. There’s three pretty big factors. First, Paul is under arrest and currently chained to Roman guards. Second and related, soon Paul will face trial where if he’s found guilty, he will face the decision to renounce his faith or die. All the while rivals are trying to undermine his position in the church. 

In the face of all that, there’s really one thing Paul identifies as the occasion for his courage. It’s in verse 20, he says “it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed…[and that] Christ will be honored.” Let’s unpack that a bit. 

That phrase “Not be at all ashamed” is a bit awkward. A better way to phrase that would be “I will not be put to shame.” That’s a phrase common in the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms. If you’re “put to shame,” that means your enemies have won out over you—defeat, rejection, embarrassment. So last week, the Bills were put to shame by the Broncos (sorry to any Buffalo fans out there). In this case, Paul “being put to shame” would mean him being found guilty by Rome and his rivals being proven right. 

But again, Paul’s primary concern isn’t about himself; it is about Christ being dishonored. We’re not given the exact charges Paul is being tried for, but we do know from the Book of Acts what it could be. It could be disturbing the peace and causing riots, which often happened when Paul preached the gospel. It could also have been treason, attempting to overthrow Caesar by declaring that Jesus is Lord. Paul wants to make it clear that none of those accusations are true. Paul makes it clear Christians are to live peaceably with their neighbors, and he follows Jesus’ teaching in rendering to caesar what he is owed; he’s not overthrowing Rome because Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. A guilty verdict would reduce Jesus to the misconceptions of Paul’s enemies. 

And if Paul is found guilty, his opponents would feel justified in discrediting his whole ministry. But Paul’s ministry is Jesus’ ministry, Christ specifically called and empowered Paul as an apostle to establish his church. So again, Paul’s primary concern in this circumstance is that Christ be honored. Paul is single-minded. This is his one focus in life. 

What does this have to do with you and me? Well, you know how it’s dangerous to pray and ask God for patience, because he’ll end up giving you occasions to practice patience? When it comes to courage, we don’t have to wait for occasions to practice it. We’re constantly facing situations where we could be “put to shame” and Christ could be dishonored. 

When have you been tempted to dishonor Christ? Maybe it was when you chose to ignore a fellow Christian’s sin instead of lovingly calling them out of it. Maybe it was to abandon your morals to join friends in indulging in that dark show or that extra drink? Here’s one I think we can all relate to: staying silent when you had a chance to claim the name of Jesus. 

It can be really easy when you’re hanging out with non-Christian friends or coworkers, if they start criticizing Christians or they talk about really bad church experiences they’ve had, to say nothing or just go along with it. Sometimes you might even want to affirm those things, because we recognize that we Christians aren’t perfect people! You might want to apologize for someone’s church hurt and say “It shouldn’t be like that.” That can show a degree of humility and relatability—but don’t leave it there! You are still a Christian for a reason and you hope that they would experience Christianity the way you have! This is an opportunity to redeem the name of Jesus. But to take that extra step requires courage. 

Coming back to Paul: In the face of this particular occasion, Paul’s courage shines through. Paul is convinced he will be found innocent (see v25 “I know that I will remain and continue with you all”). Here’s the real crux: it isn’t a sure thing. There’s a real possibility he’s sent to be executed. 

What then? Paul still says in v20 “Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.” In other words, Paul is saying “I am very confident I’m going to be found innocent. But even if by some off chance I am found guilty and put to execution, that won’t break my confidence. It won’t even disrupt the main goal. And I’ll still rejoice.” Most probably none of us have been in a situation where Christ’s honor was life-or-death for us, but it is for Paul and he stands firm. How? What could source a courage so unshakable even death poses no threat? 

The source of courage 

He immediately tells us in verse 21 “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Paul says “my entire life is Christ. My identity is Christ. My chief pursuit, my ultimate aim, my highest delight is Christ. If I have Christ, I have life. If I don’t have Christ, I have no life.” That’s what I mean by saying Paul is single-minded. 

This cuts against the grain of common experience, because in our normal lives, if death brings anything, it brings loss. If to live is anything other than Christ, then to die is loss. One of my old pastors put it this way: 

If to live is your family, then at death you will lose them. If to live is your career, then at death you will be separated from it. If to live is to obsess about your appearance, then at death you will lose it all and the worms will be sure of it. If to live is influence, then death will bring loss. But if to live is Christ, then death will bring gain. Why? Because at death you will gain an eternal measure of that which you have most longed for: that is, Christ himself.¹ 

This is so important for us to hear, especially us Christians, because so often, our faith is important to us—church is important, and Jesus is important—but it’s not the main thing. It’s really an accessory to that other thing we’ve put at the center of our lives. Let’s think about those occasions for courage again: what’s really going on in our hearts behind our fear? 

When it comes to not calling out our brother or sister, we want to keep the peace, and we fear we’ll lose that peace if we call out our brother or sister in Christ. That’s a pretty fragile peace. When we go along with our friends against our morals, we want to keep our friendships, and we fear we’ll lose that intimacy and security if we refuse. We want to keep our reputation as a “normal person” and “not one of those Christians” so we don’t stand up for Christ when he is slandered. 

Friends, this passage—really this whole letter, and in fact, all of the Christian life—will make no sense to you unless you share in Paul’s single-mindedness. Christianity doesn’t work as an accessory. It must be the center of gravity for your identity. You know what I mean by “center of gravity”? Like when you’re trying to carry groceries in and it knocks you way off balance? That’s why you have to put the grocery bag on your shoulder rather than carrying it way out to the side. It has to be at your center of gravity. If you try to carry your faith off-center, it will wreck your whole balance, and you will not know peace until Jesus takes center. He refuses to be an accessory. 

What does it take to make that happen? How are we supposed to recalibrate our hearts to make Jesus our center? The answer is the gospel. It’s not by trying extra hard, it’s not by conjuring enough strength of will or courage within yourself, it’s not by following the right 10-step program or completely separating yourself from any occasion for courage. No! It’s by realizing that for Jesus, verse 21 reads very differently. Again, one of my old pastors put it this way: 

Jesus says, “For me, to live was you. The reason I came to this earth, empty as a servant, was to redeem you. It was to rescue you from the prison of your own sin which separated you from me. And for me, to die was also you. I didn’t just hang on a cross to draw attention to myself. I faced execution to bear the full weight of all your sins, all your failures, all the ways you have dishonored me—I faced the ultimate dishonor in your place. I bore the wrath you deserved out of love. I died so that you might live forever. It was my Father’s will and glory to send me to you. For me,” Jesus says, “to live was you and to die was you.” That’s the heart of the gospel.² 

Because that’s true, because Paul has tasted and seen the heart of Christ for him, that’s changed everything for him. The only thing that can recalibrate our hearts and give us courage is being overwhelmed by the love of Christ for you, personally. Not just a one time event, but a constant focus—a single-minded captivation with the gospel. When you wake up in the morning and remember, “Oh yeah, I am waking up in the infinite love of Jesus.” When you go to work and realize, “Jesus still loves me. He loved me enough to die for me.” When you find yourself in one of those occasions for courage, and the thought of Jesus saying “For me, to live was you and to die was you.” That, and nothing else, is what sources our courage. That’s what leads us to think “You know what, Jesus is my center. He is my life, and so I’m gonna live for him.” 

The life of courage 

See how Paul invites the Philippians into this same approach to life. In verses 27-28 Paul introduces a new imperative: “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.” The first thing to note about these verses is that the life of courage is also the life of unity with fellow Christians. Courage and unity go hand-in-hand. 

We as a church need to remain committed to being on the same team. We might have different interests, different cultural background, different preferences for how we worship, different perspectives on who to vote for. All those are good things to have convictions about, they’re good things to carry, but ultimately they’re accessories. We have to keep the main thing the main thing. We are of one mind because for all of us, Christ is our life. Jesus is our center. Wherever Jesus leads, we follow. We all stand firm as one on whatever Jesus is firm on. 

Here’s a few examples especially relevant for us in our context. Jesus is firm on the beauty and purity of sex. One man and one woman within the commitment of marriage. Jesus is firm on the sanctity of all human life, especially the most vulnerable—that includes the terminally ill, the mentally or physically handicapped, and the unborn. Jesus is firm on not usurping his name for our own political interests. 

When we are firm on those things, we should expect persecution. When people persecute us for those things, it’s a sign that they have made something other than Jesus their center of gravity—their own desires, their own politics, whatever it might be. Paul diagnoses that as “a sign of their destruction” because as we said, if we make anything other than Jesus our center of gravity, it’ll ruin us and leave us under God’s judgement. 

How are we supposed to respond to persecution? We can grieve persecution and the fact that we live in a broken world which opposes our Lord Jesus. Scripture gives us tons of examples, including a whole book titled Lamentations, to cry out when we’re persecuted. We can admit that persecution is real. Paul doesn’t have to sugarcoat his imprisonment and pretend “These chains aren’t all that heavy, the bed is comfy and the food is pretty good!” We can be honest about our suffering. We can pray for our persecutors; Jesus tells us to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us. What we can’t do is fear. 

I’m reminded of the Psalms and how they teach us to approach our fears. Think of Psalm 56, which opens with these verses: 

Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me; 

all day long an attacker oppresses me; 

my enemies trample on me all day long, 

for many attack me proudly. 

When I am afraid, 

I put my trust in you. 

In God, whose word I praise, 

in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. 

What can flesh do to me? (Ps 56:1–4) 

See that turn, from “when I am afraid” to “I shall not be afraid”? When we recenter ourselves on the Lord, our fear loses its power. If we can have courage in the face of death, then how much more can we have courage in the face of the normal circumstances we face? 

One last story I’m borrowing from my old pastor’s sermon. Ahead of preaching his sermon, he had grabbed lunch with someone on staff at the Falls Church Anglican. They had just lost their appeal to keep their building and all the resources—things they had lost because as a church, they were committed to standing firm with Jesus on a biblical view of marriage. An article from that time records just how devastating that was: 

The lawsuit has taken nearly everything from the church: staff offices, prayer books, sound equipment, the rectory that has housed the pastor and his wife for 33 years, and $2.8 million that was in the church accounts at the time of the split. Church staff even had to count and leave every single Bible the church had owned. A locksmith changed the locks behind them. For the next several months the Anglican congregation is bouncing between school auditoriums and Columbia Baptist Church in Falls Church.³ 

What was this staff member’s response? He smiled and said “Jesus is worth it.” The article opens with this paragraph: 

Instead of a soaring room flooded with natural light, they took their places in a cramped, fluorescent-lit auditorium. Instead of the sounds of a pipe organ, they heard the drone of a temperamental air conditioner. Instead of pews fitted with fabric kneelers, congregants filed into rows of theater-style folding seats. But in their first Sunday worship away from their 280-year-old historic property, the members of The Falls Church Anglican congregation in Falls Church, Virginia were too busy laughing and greeting one another to notice the new inconveniences.³

For them, their building wasn’t the main thing. Their resources weren’t the main thing. I know for our church, a fluorescent-lit auditorium and temperamental air conditioner is our historic home (which I’ve actually grown quite fond of). My prayer is that for Capital Pres Fairfax, if there ever comes a day when we have to choose between standing firm with Jesus or bending under fear, whether that means losing a future building or not ever having one or even losing our place here in Woodson, we choose Jesus every time. More than that, my prayer is that each of us as individuals will keep Jesus as our life in whatever occasion for courage we find ourselves in. 

Conclusion 

We find courage when Christ is our life. Here’s something to think about while you’re snowed in. What does it look like to carry your accessories with Jesus as your center of gravity? How does the love of Jesus equip you with courage with regard to the other things you carry? 

Here’s a few categories to think through: 

• What does it look like to carry your job or studies with Jesus as your center of gravity? 
• What does it look like to carry your relationships—marriage, kids, friendships, family—with Jesus as your center of gravity? 
• What does it look like to carry your convictions—political, social, even moral—with Jesus as your center of gravity? 
• What does it look like to carry your suffering with Jesus as your center of gravity? 

Chat with your family or roommates about that this week. Friends, no matter what the occasion, we can stand firm with courage in the love of Christ.  

______________

¹ Rev. James Forsyth, “Realistic Joy- II.”, Sermon preached at McLean Presbyterian Church, 15:30-16:00. 

² Forsyth, “Realistic Joy- II.”, 17:48-19:36

³ Alicia Constant, “The Costly Faithfulness of The Falls Church,” Gospel Coalition, May 24, 2012. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/the-costly-faithfulness-of-the-falls-church/