Phil 1:15-18

"Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice." Phil. 1:15-18

"Hey, he stole my idea! I thought of that. We talked about it and he said it was dumb. Now he presented it to the boss and HE gets the raise and bonus! That's not fair!"

Ever heard words like that before? I have. As a matter of fact, they are most likely a quote of mine from some time in the distant past. We all have had it happen to us. We get a brilliant idea. We share it - usually with the supervising manager. He doesn't like the idea, but it is adopted by the managing director who gives credit to - our supervising manager!

Inevitably, most of our friends share our anger and frustration. They agree that the bonus, the reward, the recognition should be ours. "The boss was wrong! You were robbed!" But, it seems like there is one in every workplace who says, "Don't worry about it. At least the idea was adopted and work will be done better - easier - faster - or whatever purpose the idea presented in the first place.

I have only one question for that guy: "Where do you get such an awful idea?" He probably doesn't know, but I do. It comes from Paul in today's verses. And Paul picked it up from Jesus. If you remember correctly, at one point James and John, the Sons of Thunder, noticed that someone besides their own small group were casting out demons in Jesus' name. (Luke 9:49-50) They were a bit jealous and asked Jesus if they could call down fire from heaven to destroy them! Jesus responded with "he who is not against you is for you." "Let the guy be. He is doing it in my name and is obviously for our side. He is not our enemy. That's what Paul is saying. There were some who preached the gospel for financial or authority gains. Others preached out of love for God and love for sinful man. Who was right? It didn't make any difference - the Gospel was being proclaimed. If this set of verses had nothing else to provide, this would be enough. But there is another application - and it is even better though you may not like what it is. The world is full of many differing Christian denominations and non-denominational groups. It seems that each is at the others' throats.

Yes, we have differing doctrines - but the same Jesus. We have divergent practices, but the same Holy Spirit. We have opposing interpretations, but the same Father. It makes no difference - the Gospel is being preached by all. Let us rejoice in their successes! Let us join forces against the powers of evil that seek to destroy us all. Let us cease warring against each ther and use our skills as a mighty army! Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.