God’s Word for You
Philippians 1:20 To be permitted to serve
by Pastor Timothy Smith on Tuesday, February 24, 2026
20 according to my eager expectation and my hope that I will not be ashamed in any way. On the contrary, that with all boldness, as always Christ will be exalted in my body even now, whether by life or by death.
What had happened to Paul (this is how the sentence began in verse 19) was for Paul’s spiritual benefit and also that he would not “in any way” be ashamed. In this context of eager expectation, Paul is thinking of the progress of the Gospel by any and every means. He knew that he himself had been a strong actor in this goal. He was the tool God has used to carry the Gospel into Europe and to the Gentiles.
Paul had been converted personally by Christ in about 32 AD; he learned from Christ in the wilderness of Arabia and then returned to his home of Tarsus (Acts 9:30). He briefly visited Jerusalem but then went north to Syria and Cilicia where he preached the Gospel.
From 46-48, Paul travelled to the island of Cyprus and preached the gospel “all through the island” (Acts 13:6). He traveled from there to the southern seaport of Perga in Asia Minor, and traveled up into the central region, preaching from synagogue to synagogue. At first Paul was successful, but he met opposition from jealous Jews and had to move on to another city. There the opposition was so harsh that Paul was stoned and left for dead (Acts 14:19). But he retraced the stages of his journey and strengthened the Christians, and returned to Antioch in Syria (Acts 14:26). This was Paul’s first missionary journey.
After this there was a special conference in Jerusalem in about 50 AD about how to handle the large number of Gentiles who were now coming into the Christian church. James, the brother of the Lord Jesus (Matthew 13:55) was what we would call the chairman or president of this council, and in his judgment, “We should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God” (Acts 15:19). There was a caution sent out about idolatry and sexual immorality, and the group sent Paul on another journey to the Gentiles to the east.
From 51-52, Paul traveled into Asia Minor once again, and then he sailed to Macedonia (this is when he first arrived in Philippi). This was when he wrote to the Thessalonians, since his time with them had been cut short (Acts 17:10). This was Paul’s second missionary journey.
With hardly any rest, Paul returned to Asia Minor and to Greece where he preached in Athens and in Corinth. Returning to Asia Minor, he spent almost three years there in Ephesus, teaching mostly in the lecture hall of Tyrannus (Acts 19:9-10). At this time, he wrote his great letters to the Corinthians and also to the Romans. This third missionary journey had gone on from 53-57 AD, and as soon as he returned to Jerusalem, Paul was arrested and imprisoned for two years in Caesarea (Acts 23:23-26:32), then was taken by ship toward Rome, shipwrecked (Acts 27:1-28:16) and then imprisoned in Rome for about three years (59-61, Acts 28:16-31).
This had been Paul’s ministry so far, with five years seemingly lost in prison. Perhaps he took comfort in the accounts of Jeremiah’s three imprisonments (Jeremiah 32:2-33:1, 38:6-13a; and 38:13b-39:15). But Paul can say with joy, “Christ will be exalted in my body.” That means that no matter what happens to Paul, more time in prison, or release from prison, or whipping, or beating, or stoning, or another shipwreck, or even if is he killed, it is to the glory of God.
In all, as far as we know, Paul spent about seven years of his thirty years of ministry in prison. That’s 23 percent of the time. And he did nothing at all to deserve his prison time. I have known of pastors in this and in other countries who spent months in jail or a year in prison, or just days in custody, and often over some minor matter that anyone might be guilty of doing, or saying. And I’ve often said or thought, “If it weren’t for the grace of God, that could be me.” And yes, we can think of ministers of the gospel being held to a higher standard, as James says (James 3:1), and Peter (1 Peter 5:2-4), and as Job implies: “Test him every moment” (Job 7:17). For if such testing is for everyone, how much more isn’t it for those with the care of the flock in their hands?
The law being preached here is the burden of service, which tests us when it does not seem to go the way we think it should. But the gospel is the forgiveness of this temptation, and the marvelous example set by Paul to see that whatever happens, when we remember Jesus’ place in our lives, then Jesus is given glory, and so is the Father, and we can be content and joyful that we have been so honored as to be permitted to serve.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm, Minnesota. To receive God’s Word for You via e-mail, please visit the St. Paul’s Lutheran Church website.