According to 1:15-18, some were preaching Christ “because of envy and strife” and “out of rivalry.” In particular, they were in rivalry with Paul. Those who preached Christ in this way were the Judaistic believers, believers in Christ who held to the Jewish religion and who were bringing certain aspects of Judaism into the church life. Their holding on to the things of Judaism caused them to preach Christ in rivalry with Paul, who renounced Judaism with its law, rituals, traditions, and practice of circumcision. Since the Judaistic believers still held to these religious things, they were preaching Christ out of envy and strife. Nevertheless in 1:18 Paul could say, “What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is announced, and in this I rejoice, yes, and I will rejoice.” Paul admitted that even those who preached because of envy and strife and out of rivalry were still preaching Christ. He could rejoice in the fact that Christ was announced. Whereas Paul preached Christ with God’s economy, others preached Christ with Judaism. Thus, there were two different ways of preaching Christ.
The same is true today. Many Christians are preaching Christ, but they are not preaching Christ with God’s economy concerning the church. In Paul’s time, the Judaistic believers preached Christ out of a concern for Judaism, not out of a concern for the church. In a sense, they even preached Christ for Judaism. Paul, however, preached Christ for the church, the Body of Christ.
Paul was persecuted not mainly for simply preaching the gospel, but in particular for defending the gospel and confirming it. In 1:7 he speaks of “the defense and confirmation of the gospel” and in 1:16 he says that he was “set for the defense of the gospel.” The Judaistic believers, on the contrary, were perverting the gospel and distorting it. The gospel is not for Judaism, and it should not be preached for the purpose of bringing unbelievers under the law and to the practice of circumcision. To preach the gospel in this way is a perversion and distortion of the gospel. In his defense of the gospel, Paul made it clear that the goal of the gospel is to bring forth the Body of Christ, not to cause anyone to bear the mark of circumcision. As Paul preached the gospel in a positive, divine way, he also defended it and confirmed it. Paul’s way of preaching the gospel was very different from that of the Judaistic believers. Therefore, at the time the book of Philippians was written, the gospel was preached in two different ways.
Today we are also preaching the gospel in a way that is different from that followed by many in organized religion. Many are preaching the gospel, but not in the way that is in line with God’s economy. Whenever we preach the gospel according to God’s economy, as Paul did, we are opposed by the religionists. Because of the different ways of preaching Christ, persecution comes from the religious “dogs.”
Another aspect of the background of this book concerns a matter that is very positive, the participation of the Philippian believers with the apostle Paul in the furtherance of the gospel (1:5-7; 4:14-19).
I am concerned that some among us still hold to an understanding of the gospel which is not adequate. The preaching of the gospel includes more than the fact that Christ is our Savior and that by believing in Him we shall have forgiveness of sins, salvation from hell to heaven, and regeneration. Actually, the whole book of Philippians is a definition of the gospel. The gospel is the proclamation of the move of God on earth according to His economy. This means that the gospel is the preaching of God’s economy. Thus, the gospel includes the matter of magnifying Christ and living Christ. It includes every aspect of the experience of Christ covered in this book. For the Philippian believers to participate with Paul in the furtherance of the gospel meant that they were partaking in the move of God’s economy on earth.
God’s economy is not simply to have a group of people who are forgiven of their sins, justified, washed by the blood of Christ, regenerated, saved from hell, and destined for heaven. Such things are just part of God’s salvation for the carrying out of His economy. The gospel includes the economy of God in its entirety. We should not try to define the gospel by taking a few phrases from Paul’s writings out of context. We need to consider the whole book of Philippians with all the major points. If we put these points together, we shall have the totality of the gospel, and we shall see that the gospel involves God’s move according to His economy. How blessed were the Philippian believers to participate in the furtherance of such a gospel! The gospel in which they had a share was not the low, narrow, superficial gospel preached by many Christians today. The Philippian believers had the privilege of sharing in the spread and furtherance of the gospel that is according to God’s economy.