Philippians 1:15 Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will:… I. THE ELEMENTS FORMATIVE OF IT. 1. An imperfect apprehension of Christ's mission. 2. A total absence of Christ's Spirit. 3. Thought and sympathy, narrowed by early prejudice and preconceived ideas. 4. Christ made subservient to the doctrines, ritual, and history of a system. II. THE RESULTS INSEPARABLE FROM IT. 1. The cross degraded into a rallying point for party strife. 2. The basest spirit indulged under the pretence of fulfilling a sacred office. (1) "Envy" — displeasure at another's good. (2) "Strife" — selfish rivalry which seeks to gain the good belonging to another. Christ preached merely to advance a party. 4. Zeal for propagating a creed, greater than to save a lost world. III. THE GERM OF IT. 1. May exist in those who zealously preach Christ. 2. Consists in a moral contradiction between the heart of the preacher and the theme of his discourse — contentiousness and Christ. 3. Produces impurity of motive in Christian work — "not sincerely." 4. Biases the judgment to expect results which are never realized — "supposing." 5. Inspires aims which are unchristian — "to add affliction." (G. G. Ballard.) Parallel Verses KJV: Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will:WEB: Some indeed preach Christ even out of envy and strife, and some also out of good will. |
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