Philippians 3:10 – Richard Sibbes

[page 129 of volume 5]

And the fellowship of his sufferings.

The apostle having showed his desire of Christ’s righteousness, now comes to shew his desire also of having communion with Christ in his sufferings; showing that whosoever brags of justification, he must shew it in his sanctification. He must shew that he hath his part in the fellowship of his sufferings, if he meaneth to shew he hath his part in the power of his resurrection. Water is not alone, but water and blood must go together. Now Christ’s sufferings are either for us as Mediator, or with us as being our head, and we his members. As Mediator he suffered death, which was only for our good. We can have no trust in our death as to deserve anything thereby as he did; for by his death he appeased God’s wrath, and got his favour to us which we lost, and by it he sanctifies our sufferings and pulls out the sting of all our afflictions; as it is with the unicorn, who having put his horn into the water, discharges all poison thereout, so as the beasts may freely chink without hurt (2). So it is with us: we may suffer and endure afflictions without hurt, seeing Christ hath purged them of all poisonous nature that was in them.

But there are other sufferings that we and Christ suffer jointly, he as our head suffering with us his members; for as if the foot be grieved the head is grieved, so the Christian’s sufferings are called Christ’s sufferings, and a Christian must look to suffer if he be a lively member of the body of Christ. Yet is not every suffering of affliction Christ’s suffering, for a man may suffer justly for his deserts. Notwithstanding even then, when a man suffers for his faults, after repentance Christ may be said to suffer with him; and therefore the fathers called the death of the repentant thief a martyrdom. For in all our sufferings Christ is in us, teaching and helping us to bear them with patience, and as a sanctifier of all of them to a blessed end, and as one that frames us to bear all of them, even as he himself did.

Use 1. This ought to teach us to conceive aright of the estate of a Christian, that he is not alone when he seems to be alone. Christ leaves them not in misery. No. For in misery he is most near and present. It is therefore a good estate, though misery in itself be not desirable, for Christ desired to die and not to die, and so we in several respects may do. For if we regard death as a destroyer of nature, so is it not to be desired; but considering it as the will of God my Father, so are we to desire it and yield ourselves to it. And accordingly we desire not afflictions for their proper natural good, yet in regard they are a means to prepare and fit us for heaven, we say with David, ‘It is good for us to be afflicted,’ Psalm 119:67.

Use 2. In the second place, this will teach us that we are not to fear anything that we shall suffer, because there are more with us than against us. Joseph in the dungeon, Israel in Egypt, Daniel among the lions, the three children in the fire, Paul in prison, feared not danger; for what cared they so long as they knew God was with them; and therefore they rejoiced. If we have Christ we have all, if we want Christ we want all.

Use 3. Thirdly, This may serve to daunt Christ’s enemies. They cannot hurt the least of his little ones but they hurt him. ‘Saul, why persecutest thou me?’

Use 4. Fourthly, This should teach us to take part with God’s children. What though they suffer affliction. Moses chose the better part, that did choose to be with the afflicted people of God before the court of Pharaoh. Wicked men may bite and kick, but they can do no hurt, lingua malorum est lima bonorum.

Being made conformable to his death.

This conformity here meant is not in regard of the end, that as Christ died for sin so should we, but in the manner of suffering. As he did suffer and die, so must we suffer and desire death. Secondly, As he died patiently and meekly, so must we suffer patiently and meekly. Thirdly, As he had, so must we have, sweet comforts to sustain and support us; and fourthly, As he had, so must we endeavour to obtain the same issue of our affliction; that is, eternal glory. Briefly, We are to be conformable to Christ in grace, in suffering, and in glory. All these are inevitably linked together, and our head having led us an example, we are to follow. Every Christian must therefore die to sin, as Christ died for sin.

But how shall we know whether we die to sin or not?

A dead man does no harm, hath no power; contrarily, are we strong to commit sin, and do we earnestly intend it? Surely we are not mortified. Secondly, Dead men’s senses are not delighted with fair and sinful objects. If we be dead with Christ, let the sinful objects be never so delightful, they will not move us or affect us one whit; nay, they will be distasteful to us. Most are of a contrary mind. Offer them good discourse and occasions, they cannot away with them; offer any fleshly pleasure: like tinder, they are soon set on fire. Such as these, as they have no heart to suffer for righteousness, so if for vain glory they would, neither would God honour them so much as to suffer them. For grounds of this doctrine.

First, It is honourable to be like Christ our captain, our head, our husband.

Secondly, It is not proportionable for the head to be crowned with thorns, and the members to be clad delicately; that the natural son, in whom there is no blemish, should suffer, and the adopted sons, who are the causes of all offence, should go free. It is equity, that we having taken Christ for our husband, he should be accompanied by us in sickness and in health, in dishonour as in honour.

Thirdly, It is long ago decreed of God, and predestinated, and therefore cannot be avoided. Romans 8:7, 9, ‘Whom he did foreknow, them he predestinated to be conformed to the image of his Son.’ Fourthly, It is equal, that if he were conformed to us, we should be conformable to him. Now he was conformed to us, in that he suffered that which we should have suffered, and did that for us which we were to do and could not. He having drunk deep of the cup prepared for us, let us therefore, at the least, taste of it. Yea, let us suffer anything with an undaunted courage when we are called thereto for Christ. He will come with comforts, he is not empty, he will make us like him, he will prepare us hereby for glory. Fear not, therefore. God will turn all thy troubles to thy good. And thus we do fill up the measures of the afflictions of Christ in our flesh, Col. i. 24. And are made partakers of Christ’s sufferings, 1 Peter 4:18. We have the like exhortations hereunto, 1 Peter 2:21; 1 Peter 3:14-18. Thus did Paul, 2 Corinthians 4:10, he carried the dying of Christ about with him. Let no Christian therefore promise to himself immunity from crosses. He that will be a Christian must be conformable to Christ, and he that will be like to him in glory, he must be like to him in drinking the cup he drank of while he was here in the flesh.