Partnership in The Gospel

Sermon Summary:

What holds a community of faith together across decades of change, transition, and challenge? The answer this message points us toward is both simple and profound: the gospel. Drawing from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we are reminded that the word translated as ‘partnership’ carries the weight of genuine fellowship rooted not in personality or program, but in the good news of Jesus Christ itself. Paul’s joy in writing to the Philippians was inseparable from their shared investment in the gospel through giving, praying, and bearing witness to a wounded world. As we reflect on what binds us together as a church community, we are invited to ask ourselves whether the gospel is truly the thread running through everything we do, or whether we have allowed other things to occupy that central place.

Watch The Service Here

Key Takeaways:

• The gospel is the tie that binds Christian fellowship, ministry partnerships, and the life of the local church together across generations
• Paul’s letter to the Philippians uses the word euangelion nine times, with five occurrences in the first chapter alone, making the gospel the central thread of the entire letter
• Partnership in the gospel, as modeled by the Philippians and the Wiles’ ministry, expresses itself through giving, praying, and winsome witness to a wounded world
• The progress of the gospel is not dependent upon any individual messenger; God advances his purposes even through imperfect instruments
• Paul’s call to the Philippians to live as citizens of the gospel — standing firm, striving together in one spirit — remains a timely charge to the local church
• The power of the gospel, as described in Romans 1, is God’s own power unto salvation for all who believe, grounded in the truth of Habakkuk 2:4 that the righteous live by faith
• Long, faithful pastorates are a rare and profound blessing, and the 25-year ministry of Dennis and Cindy Wiles reflects the kind of steadfast gospel partnership Paul celebrated in Philippians
• The church’s labor in the Lord is never in vain, and the work accomplished in a faithful ministry echoes into eternity

Watch other Sermons Here

Scripture References:

Sermon Transcript

Well, good morning, First Baptist, Arlington. Thank you for saying something back in return. It’s a long ways from here up here, isn’t it, Dennis? To down there. And I was just saying to myself, don’t walk too far back.

This is not only a wonderful opportunity to rejoice with Dennis and Cindy and their incredible family, but for Carolyn and for me, it’s something of a homecoming. So we are so delighted to be with you today. And we join the chorus of voices not only with Josh Barrett and Ray Miller. We called him Sugar Ray. He was taught by Dennis, as was Josh.

Introduction to Christian Preaching. And they’re doing remarkable work. But we also say thank you, along with Elijah and along with Chris and Jim. And there will be thanks also extended from President Livingstone, from Executive Director Guari, and any number of others. And I think that here’s the truth.

If we were to take the time, everyone would want a chance in their own way to say thank you. So I like to ask people to stand. It’s one of the things that is quite quirky about me. If you’ve been here the entire time of the Wiles ministry, would you just stand up? Would you just stand up?

My goodness. My goodness.

Okay, that’s good. Okay, you can be seated. And if you have come since Dennis and Cindy have been here, perhaps you’ve come to faith, you’ve been baptized, you’ve joined the church. Your children have come to faith, they’ve been baptized, they’ve joined the church. Would you all please stand so we can see you?

Wow.

Thank you. That’s health all around. Seems about half and half. It’s just stunning to be at a church like First Darlington. And the truth of the matter is, you all have grown accustomed to.

To long pastorates. 25 years, 23 and a half years. Dr. East before Dr. Wade and Rosemary. 25 years. So that’s 75 years of ministry.

You know the average tenure of a senior pastor, don’t you? About four years. About four years. So you all are blessed beyond measure. There you go.

Amen.

In fact, I’m reminded of what Thomas Erskine once said. Thomas Erskine said in the New Testament doctrine here, theology is grace and ethics is gratitude. This is a day that we can be an ethical people by giving God thanks for this remarkable message. Ministry couple and family. We’re so grateful.

I remember vividly the first time that I heard the name Dennis and Cindy, the names Dennis and Cindy Wiles in conjunction with First Baptist Church of Arlington. Carolyn and I were fortunate enough to be members here from 1995 to 2000. In fact, Dr. Wade coached me through my first funeral, even as he dedicated both of our sons, Samuel and Andrew, to the Lord. And I remember that we had just gone to Gardner Webb’s Divinity School and having served five years at Dallas Baptist, and we were in contact with any number of you in the church. I just saw Dr. Engel in the choir and remember that he was very gentle when he cleaned my teeth.

And so praise God for Doug Engel.

Some of you know what I’m saying. I mean, not all dentists are created equally are. And so we were there and I was in our den, which the previous owners had painted blue. Wouldn’t have been my choice necessarily. I was in an overstuffed recliner and I was chatting and someone was saying, well, you’ve heard, hadn’t you, that Dennis and Cindy Wiles are soon to come to First Baptist Arlington and Dennis is going to preach in view of a call, I said, no, I hadn’t heard that.

But I sure am happy hear that. Because his reputation had preceded him, the work that he had done, that they had done at First Baptist Church of Huntsville. And I knew that although he’s from Alabama, he really did want to get back to Texas.

Just saying.

We can talk about that later, Dennis.

But little could we have known then what we know now. Not only would our lives intersect in this remarkable place, but also through Baylor University, where Dennis has served as a regent. He’s presently serving on the Provost search committee. So also on Monday, I gather he’s going to be back down in Waco teaching a Doctor of Ministry class. Dr. Vaughn and his wife, Lisa Lette are here.

So there have been connections there, but also through the Baptist General Convention of Texas, where Cindy and I were able to serve on the search team that brought our present executive Director of the BGCT, Dr. Julio Guneri. Would you give Dr. Guinari a hand? Are you grateful for Texas Baptist.

And where Dr. Wade, sitting on the other side of the pew, left the church. I know you’re still bitter, but just hang on. To be the executive director of the bgct. So First Darlington has given so much to so many, not least to the work and the witness of Texas Baptist. And we could go on to talk about such things as the Baptist World alliance and Ascent and any number of other things.

And little could First Baptist Church of arlington have known 25 years ago when you called this remarkable ministry couple, that what would have come to pass. I read the Baptist Standard. I do it online. I do it with some degree of bitterness because I actually like a paper. I’m one of these rare ducks who would still prefer to have my fingertips black with Printers Inc.

But anyway, I read it online because I’m told by Eric that the economics aren’t there. And when I was reading my Baptist Standard on Thursday of this week, here is what we were able to read regarding what the Lord has done in and through you all in these last a new counseling center, a lovely redecorated and rededicated worship center, in addition a welcome center, an adjacent property within downtown Arlington, and of course, local and global missions. All of these things are that which has been accomplished by the Lord in and through your life together. I’ve been thinking that is there something that is a through line? Is there a glue that holds all of this together?

Is there in fact the idea of something that is a tie that binds? And even as Elijah and Chris spoke of it, Cindy, in a lovely note that she wrote to Carolyn and to me, spoke of it and I believe it is the Gospel. It’s partnership, fellowship, friendship, and the Gospel is the tie that binds. 1 Timothy 1:11 calls it the glorious Gospel. As we think about the gospel that was proclaimed, the early church came to the conviction that Jesus came from God.

He went about teaching and doing good. You killed him, but God raised him. And the Holy Spirit is present in the church now and Jesus will come again. Therefore repent and be baptized that this gospel is far greater than the euangelia. The glad tidings that Mark the lives of of the Caesars.

The Romans brought a certain peace, but you need the Prince of peace to bring lasting peace. And the gospel is the vehicle, the message, the person through which this is achieved, this is accomplished. The Apostle Paul I knew that you knew that I would get there soon. The Apostle Paul in his letter to Philippian Christ followers, that letter that continues to enamor and to lure us all. This is a little letter where the gospel is woven in from beginning to end.

Nine times is the term euangelion gospel mentioned five times in the initial chapter. Glad tidings, good news. It is the thread that ties that little letter together. From the get go of Philippians, Paul gives God thanks for the partnership, the koinonia that he has had with the fellowship in the Gospel from the first day until now. And he and his are confident.

They are radiant in the hope. That’s a line from George Truitt. I’ll give him credit. Radiant in the hope that the God who began a good work in their midst would be faithful to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. So their partnership in the Gospel is a tie that binds Paul and the Philippians together.

And he speaks of this partnership in such a way that there is an affection, an affinity. Paul says, it’s right for me to hold you in my heart, for I love you with the compassion of Christ Jesus. So it’s this gospel that binds past and present Christ followers together.

Paul can say to the Philippians, thank you. Some scholars have wondered why he waits to say thank you. Well, he intimates that he’s grateful for the gift that they’ve sent in his Roman imprisonment. But when he gets to the end, he says that, I’m grateful that your concern for me has blossomed again. Not that you lacked concern, but you lacked opportunity.

And my God is able to supply all of your needs according to his riches and glory. They were engaged, in the first instance, in giving. But it didn’t stop there. The congregation was also engaged in. In praying.

Lord, listen to your children praying. And in Philippians 1, Paul can say to the Philippian Christ followers in verse 19, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, that this will turn out for my salvation, my deliverance, and it is my eager expectation and hope that I shall never, ever be put to shame, but that with full courage, now and always, Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. And then you know those famed lines. Philippians 1:21. For me to live is Christ and to die is gained.

I’ve sometimes thought, before these words were ever spoken to the scribe of Philippians, that they were already on Paul’s heart, something as a motto, literally rendered, for me to live Christ, to die gain. So the Philippians were giving and they were praying, but they were also offering, even as First Baptist Darlington has and is and will win some witness to a wounded world that is much beloved by God. And we see that Paul can say that they shine like lights in the firmament, giving glory to God and living for the good of the other. So Paul thanks God for the Philippians, for their partnership in the Gospel, but not only for the Gospel’s partnership, but also for the Gospel’s progress. Paul in prison captivity, likely in Acts 28, as he is now chained to one of Caesar’s guards.

And Paul at this point says, counterintuitively, the Gospel has progressed. It’s weaseled its way into the praetorium. That’s Caesar’s secret service. And at the end, he’s almost giddy when he says, please tell Caesar’s household hello. They send their greetings.

So the gospel is this force that continues to go forward in the world, not contingent upon any messenger. Thanks be to God. Because Paul can say, some preach the gospel out of envy and rivalry. And then he says, it really doesn’t matter as long as Jesus is being proclaimed in this I will rejoice. And in this little letter where Paul employs the word joy, rejoice with and joy no less than 16 times, he says that the greatest joy is in Jesus Christ and the gospel.

Or as one of my seminary professors said about those that might preach the gospel, God can hit a good lick with a crooked stick.

I’m not saying that Dennis is crooked. You know that partnership in the gospel, the progress of the gospel. And then Paul’s called to the Philippians and by way of extension to us to continue to persevere, to prioritize the gospel. At the end of the first chapter, Paul can say, here’s the thing. I need you to know this, this one thing.

He says, live like citizens of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you, that you are standing firm in one’s spirit with one’s mind, striving like athletes for the faith of the gospel. Later in the letter, he can remind them that their citizenship is in heaven from where they await a Savior who shall change the body of our humiliation into the body of his glory by the power that he has to subject all things even unto himself. And he reminds them in chapter four, verse five, in those three fortunate words, the Lord near. The Lord is near from now to then and at all points in between.

Although our friend Dennis wiles a self effacing auburn loving, ambidextrous golfing. He’s made three hole in ones. How does this happen? I gather he plays too much golf. Ambidextrous golfing.

Watch this. Mountain Dew drinking in the green room. You’re just going to have to take my word for it. James, so good to see you in the green room. This guy has Mountain Dew in the refrigerator.

Now here’s what’s dangerous. Dennis Wiles with a Mountain Dew, right? Does he need Mountain Dew? I would have thought not. I would have thought not.

Mountain Dew loving Mexican food loathing. When you invite Dennis to dinner, no offense, but you’re better off if you’ll go Southern. All right, go Southern Sweet tea. You’re in for the win. Rosemary was telling me recently that she cooked some chicken and dumplings and didn’t stay for a while.

There you go. I’m just trying to help you when you invite your pastor along for dinner. He’s also, as it happens, an aw, shucks, lower Alabama kind of guy. But here’s the truth. Here’s the truth.

He’s sneaky smart. He doesn’t want you to know it, but he’s sneaky smart. And he’s got a PhD in church history. I don’t think they give him away. And one of the things I love about Dennis is he always is learning.

And so he could tell you probably better than I, because he’s been to Rome 20 times, literally 20 times. And I gather you’re going again in February. So if you’re not signed up, you better get signed up, because it may be too late before long. But, oh, but wait, you can wait till the next year. So.

But he could tell you better than I that Paul would meet his grisly fate in Rome during Nero’s reign of terror, that even as Paul was beheaded as a Roman citizen was afforded the privilege, Peter was crucified upside down in that same frame of time. So he could tell you that Paul was executed in Rome. But here’s the interesting thing. There’s this old epigram by T.R. glover that I love, and it says glover does.

The day would come when men. Sorry, we would say. And women and parents. But he said the day would come that men would name their dogs Nero and their sons Paul. And so it’s true.

But you can forgive the Philippians for worrying. In fact, my friend Paul Holloway thinks that Philippians was written as a letter of consolation because they weren’t so sure about the stability of the gospel if the apostle were to pass off the scene. But Paul never ever countenanced the idea that the gospel would rise and fall predicated upon his witness. Because, yes, Paul was grateful for the Philippians partnership, and he was absolutely joyful about the progress of the gospel. And he calls them to persevere in.

In the gospel and to prioritize the gospel. But it’s all because of this. Paul believed in the power of the gospel. He knew full well, as he wrote to Romans, Jesus followers, that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, to all who believe, to the Jew first and also to the Greek, for it stands written in holy scripture. Habakkuk 2, 4.

If you’re looking, that the righteous ones will live by faith. So the glorious Gospel is the tie that not only binds the wiles in this congregation together, but it’s the thread that runs through their entire life and ministry. It was Churchill, wasn’t it? Brad who is a World War II aficionado, the first gent of Baylor who said that to war torn Britain that it’s not the end, it’s not even the beginning of the end, but it is the end of the beginning. And John Newton, that one time slave trader could say, when We’ve been there 10,000 years, bright shining as the sun, there’s no less days to sing God’s praise than when we first begun.

So between now and then, the gospel will continue to hold us and to bind us. If I can reframe what was Glasgow’s Reformation slogan for First Baptist Darlington this morning, Let First Baptist Arlington flourish. Let the Wiles family flourish by the preaching of the Word of God and by the praising of his name. Be steadfast and movable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. Knowing.

Knowing that your labor in the Lord, it’s not in vain. It lasts a good long time because that’s what eternity is. Our Lord and our God. We’re grateful. We’re grateful for Dennis and Cindy, for Charles and Rosemary, for the folks that call themselves members and attenders of this remarkable fellowship serving as a beacon of light and of hope right in the center of this city for many, many years now.

155 unless I miss my count. We’re so grateful for this church and God. We’re so grateful for your love that you’ve demonstrated towards us and that while we were still rebels, Jesus died for us and a love that not only gives to us, but a love that holds us so that no one anywhere can separate us from the love of God in Christ. And we’re grateful, Lord, that you not only love us, but you give us the capacity to love one another. And on this day, which is a love feast, let us be reminded that you call us to love you with every fiber of our being and to love the other even as we love ourselves.

So, God, we’re grateful. We’re grateful. We’re grateful through Christ our Lord. Amen.