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Dickson Teacher’s Bible1 Philippians

Dickson Teacher’s Bible, www.africainternational.orgPhilippians - Roger E. Dickson, ©1982, 2006, 2016: Africa International Missions, Hutchinson, Kansas U.S.A., Cape Town, South Africa

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PHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANS

Roger E. Dickson

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PHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSPHILIPPIANSWRITER

The apostle Paul wrote this letter to the disciples in Philippi who were con-verted by himself, Luke, Silas and Timothy (See “Writer” in intro. to Rm.) It was apersonal letter of thanksgiving that was written by Paul because of their care forhim.

DATEWith the letters to the Colossians, Ephesians and Philemon, this letter was also

written from Paul’s first Roman imprisonment of A.D. 61-63 (See At 28:30). Thereare some students who believe that the letter could have been written during Paul’sstay in the city of Ephesus. If this is true, then the letter would have been writtenaround A.D. 55. However, in the book of Acts, Luke does not refer to Paul’s beingin prison in Ephesus. Some have suggested that the letter was written from Caesareawhile Paul was under custody for two years before traveling to Rome (At 24 – 26).If the letter were written at this time, then it would have been written somewherebetween A.D. 56 and 61. When considering the content of the letter, most studentsbelieve that A.D. 61-63 is the most probable date of writing. It was written as aletter written to the Philippian disciples thanking them for the gift of things that wassent to Paul through Epaphroditus (4:18).

THEMEThere is little question about the theme of this letter. It is expressed in one

verse. “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” (4:4). This is theepistle of joy. Paul wrote to encourage the disciples in the city of Philippi who hadcaptured the spirit of true Christianity from the very beginning. He had many goodmemories about their fellowship in the Lord (4:15,16), and thus, when he wrote thisletter these fond memories permeated the message of the letter. It brought joy toPaul’s heart when he saw Christianity in action in the lives of the members of thePhilippian disciples. It encouraged him to know that his labors were not in vainwhen he saw the spiritual growth of the Philippians.

PURPOSEThis letter was stimulated by the arrival of Epaphroditus in Rome with a contri-

bution of things that had been sent by the Philippians for Paul. Paul wrote to thankthem for their sacrificial sharing with him in his affliction (4:10-18). In writing thisletter of thanksgiving, he took the opportunity to encourage them to live after thenature of the mind of Christ (2:5). Their lives must be conducted in harmony with



the nature of the gospel they received (1:27; 2:16). He exhorted that they seek to beblameless in a perverse generation of mankind (2:15). He warns them concerningthe legalistic judaizing teachers who were working among the disciples by teachinganother gospel (See comments Gl 1:6-9 and intro. to Gl).

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND In 356 B.C., Philip II of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great, changed

the name of the city called Crendies to Philippi, meaning, “pertaining to Philip.” In32 B.C., Caesar Augustus made the city a Roman colony which meant that all thecitizens of the city gained Roman citizenship. Since most of the residents wereRoman citizens at the time Paul visited, the city was primarily a Gentile city ofretired Roman soldiers who were free from taxation. They also had the right to voteand have their own senate and magistrates. Since this all came to them as a free giftfrom Rome, we can understand why the magistrates were so fearful when they un-justly “laid many stripes” on Paul, a Roman citizen, when they were first in Phil-ippi (At 16:23,37-39). The magistrates could have lost all their privileges as aRoman colony since they had unjustly beaten Paul.

On his second mission journey, Paul, Silas, Luke and Timothy answered the callof Paul’s vision to go into Macedonia (At 16:9,10). Their first converts in the citywere Lydia and her household (At 16:14,15). Paul and Silas were beaten and im-prisoned for their preaching, and subsequently, the jailor of the prison and his house-hold, also obeyed the gospel (At 16:26-34). When Paul, Silas and Timothy left thecity for Thessalonica, Luke remained behind in order to train this small group ofdisciples (See comments At 16:9,10; 17:1).

The Philippian disciples are an example of how one’s appreciation for God’sgrace manifests itself in the obedient response of men and women (See 2 Co 4:15).At the beginning of the church in Philippi, the number of disciples was small. Itincluded Lydia, the jailor and their two households. And yet, only after being dis-ciples for a few weeks they sent support for evangelistic efforts that the gospel befreely preached in Thessalonica (4:16). They were a young group of disciples, butbegan supporting evangelists immediately after their obedience to the gospel (Seecomments At 16:12; Ph 4:15,16). The Philippian disciples were not blessed withgreat material wealth, and yet, they contributed to the famine relief for the saints inJudea (2 Co 8:1-4). This was a small group of highly motivated and dedicatedChristians who had captured the spirit of Christianity at the very beginning, andthus, the Holy Spirit has epitomized their Christian behavior for all history throughthe writing of this letter of Paul. The letter was written, therefore, to manifest whatappreciation for the grace of God does in the lives of sincere disciples (See com-ments 1 Co 15:10; 2 Co 4:15).



Greetings

(1:1,2)

GREETINGS1:1,2 Since Timothy was with Paul

in Rome at the time of writing, the lettercame from both Paul and Timothy (See“Writer” in intro. to 1 Tm). Such wouldhave only been natural since Timothyaided in both the establishment and nur-turing of the Philippian church. Luke wasnot with Paul in Rome at the time of writ-ing, or the letter would have also includedhis name. Timothy may have worked asPaul’s stenographer in writing this letter.Bondservants: Evangelists who havededicated their lives to the preaching ofthe gospel are the slaves of Jesus. Theyhave submitted to the necessity of preach-ing the gospel in order to serve theirMaster (Gl 2:20). “Therefore, knowingthe fear of the Lord we persuade men ...”(2 Co 5:11). “For woe is me if I do notpreach the gospel” (1 Co 9:16). Whenone recognizes the fullness of the graceof God that was extended to him throughthe cross of Christ, he is moved to pro-claim to others the free gift of God’sgrace. Evangelists are motivated throughthanksgiving to inspire thanksgiving inthe lives of others (See comments 2 Co4:15). Saints: Of all the inhabitants ofthe city of Philippi, only those who hadobeyed the gospel were sanctified by theblood of Jesus. When one obeys the gos-pel through immersion in water for theremission of sins, he is washed orcleansed of all sin (At 22:16). The sanc-

tified are the people of God among theresidents of any city or region on earth(See 1 Co 1:2). Overseers: In less thanthe time between their conversion aroundthe middle 50s, and the writing of thisepistle around 61 or 62, these discipleshad designated overseers and menser-vants (deacons). The word “overseers”comes from the Greek word episkoposwhich means “to see over.” The over-seers are not overseers in the sense thatthey are designated with authority overthe flock of God in order to bind whereGod has not bound. Their work was tosee over the spiritual needs of the dis-ciples (See comments 1 Tm 3:1ff; Ti1:5ff). In the New Testament, these menare also referred to as elders, pastors andshepherds. There was always a pluralityof these men designated to see over thedisciples in any city (At 14:23; 1 Pt 5:1-4). Menservants: The Greek word here(diakonos) means “servants.” It is aGreek word that was never translated inthe King James Version, but transliter-ated. From the transliteration came theword “deacon.” The gender of the wordhere is masculine, therefore, they weremenservants. Menservants are thoseamong the disciples who have been des-ignated by the members to carry out spe-cific tasks among the disciples (1 Tm 3:8-13). The church in Philippi came intoexistence on the second mission journeyof Paul (At 16). This would have takenplace somewhere in the mid 50s. Thewriting of this letter took place some-where between A.D. 61-63. Therefore,

CCCCCHAPTER 1HAPTER 1HAPTER 1HAPTER 1HAPTER 1



from the time of the first converts andthe time of writing the letter, the mem-bers had designated elders and menser-vants in the city. Grace ... peace: Thisis Paul’s normal greeting in all hisepistles. Its unique use by Paul identi-fies him as the writer of this letter, as wellas other letters of the New Testament.

Rejoicing In Prayer And Ministry

(1:3-30)

Outline: (1) Evangelistic zeal of the church (1:3-

11), (2) Fruit from Paul’s bondage (1:12-18), (3)

Choosing between life and death (1:19-26), (4)

Worthy conduct (1:27-30)

EVANGELISTIC ZEALOF THE CHURCH

1:3-5 Remembrance of you: Thisis one of the unique groups of disciplesof the New Testament. These were Chris-tians who stimulated fond memories inthe mind of Paul when he recalled thegood things that they had done since theirbeginning, which beginning was markedwith the conversions of Lydia, the jailorand their households. In every prayer:The maturity of these disciples had af-fected the thinking of Paul to the extentthat in every prayer to God he made men-tion of them. He even prayed for themwhile he was in prison. In the prayers ofall evangelists there should be the men-tion of disciples who are doing the workof God (Ep 1:16; 1 Th 1:2). In this par-ticular case, Paul was making requeststo God for the Philippian disciples. Insome way, what the Philippians did inbringing relief to Paul in prison may havebeen the manner by which God answered

his prayer for them (See comments 4:10-17). With joy: Those disciples that main-tain their response to the gospel by work-ing to the glory of God will always bringjoy to the hearts of those who have es-tablished them. “I have no greater joythan to hear that my children walk in thetruth” (3 Jn 4; see 1 Th 2:19,20; 2 Jn 4).Paul here begins the book by giving thekey word that expresses the primarytheme of this letter (See vss 18,25;2:2,17,28,29; 3:1; 4:1). This is the epistleof joy. From the time of their beginningin Acts 16 as disciples in Philippi, thePhilippians assumed the responsibility offunctioning as the body of Christ. Theyfinancially supported evangelists(4:15,16). They were benevolent (2 Co8:1-4). They did all one would expect ofa group of disciples in response to thegrace of God. They had captured thespirit of Christianity, and thus, affectedthe lives of thousands of people, includ-ing ours as we study this letter and ap-preciate their example of service. Fel-lowship in the gospel: When one obeysthe death, burial and resurrection of Jesusby immersion, he is added by God to theworldwide assembly of believers (At2:47; Rm 6:3-6). It is upon the basis ofour common obedience to the gospel,therefore, that God blesses us as a partof His family (1 Jn 1:3; Jd 3). We thushave a common purpose and work thathas been designated by Jesus. All Chris-tians, therefore, are partners in preach-ing the gospel to the world. In the workof world evangelism, there are those whoare sent and those who send (Rm10:14,15). This letter is to a fellowship



of believers who assumed their respon-sibility in God’s system of world evan-gelism from the very beginning of theirexistence as Christians. From their verybeginning they sent support once andagain unto Paul for the preaching of thegospel (4:15,16). From the first day: Atthe time of writing, it had been at leastfive years since the conversion of Lydia,the jailor and their households. Whenthey had the opportunity, and knew wherePaul was, the Philippian disciples finan-cially helped Paul in preaching the gos-pel and sending benevolent contributionsto him (4:10).

1:6 Being confident: Paul had greatconfidence in the Philippians. They hadproven themselves to be faithful work-ers for the preaching of the gospel(2:12,13; 4:15; 2 Co 8:1-4). Since theyhad been such faithful workers in thepast, he commends them for what heknows they will do in the future. It wasGod who was working in and throughthem to carry out the goal of preachingthe gospel to the world. They were a vi-tal part of the organic function of the glo-bal body (Rm 10:14,15). Any disciplewho does not support the preaching ofthe gospel outside his local region hasnot assumed his responsibility to preachthe gospel to the world (See Mk16:15,16). Those who obey the gospelthat was made possible through the sac-rifices of others who sent an evangelistto them are obligated to return the favor.They must make sure that the gospel issent forth from them in order that othershave an opportunity to hear the gospel.If this system of reaching the world

breaks down with any group of disciples,then others will not have an opportunityto hear the gospel. The day of JesusChrist: This would be the last day, theday in which Jesus will come to finalizeall things with this world (2:16; Jn 6:44;1 Co 1:8; 2 Th 1:7-9; compare 2 Pt 2:9;3:12).

1:7 Defense and confirmation ofthe gospel: The word “defense” is fromthe Greek word apologia. It is a wordthat refers to a verbal defense of thatwhich one believes. Confirmation hererefers to God’s miraculous work in orderto confirm the spoken word of Paul (Mk16:17-20; Hb 2:3,4). Therefore, Paul ver-bally defended the good news of Jesusby referring to Old Testament prophecythat Jesus had fulfilled as the Prophet andMessiah of God (Dt 18; At 17:1-3). Godconfirmed Paul’s preaching through mi-raculous works. He confirmed him to beHis messenger who was sent forth withthe good news. It is upon the foundationof the verbal defense of the gospel thatwas backed by the miraculous confirma-tion, that the gospel was believedthroughout the world. Today, we havethe record of both the message and con-firmation (See comments Jn 20:30,31).Through the inspiration of the New Tes-tament, we have an inspired record ofJesus’ fulfillment of prophecy that Hewas the Prophet and Messiah of Israel.Through the record of the confirmingmiracles of God, our faith is based on thetestimony of those who personally expe-rienced God’s confirmation of the mes-sage. Partakers of grace with me: Godhas extended His grace to all men. Both



Paul and the Philippians had respondedto the free gift of God’s grace by theirobedience to the gospel. Therefore, bothpartook of the blessings of the gospel,and thus, were motivated to work to-gether in order to preach the grace of Godto the world (See comments 1 Co 15:10).

1:8 Long for you: Prison was cer-tainly a lonely place. The good memo-ries that Paul had with the Philippian dis-ciples in years past were sweet thoughtsupon which he could dwell during timesof great trial. He had become as Jesus inreference to affection for the church.Jesus loved the church and gave Himselffor her (Ep 5:25,26). With the same loveand affection Paul had given himself forall the members of the body of Christ.

1:9 Your love may abound: Love isa growing process. It is a process thatbegins in Christ because God first lovedus through Christ. “We love because Hefirst loved us” (1 Jn 4:19; see 1 Jn 4:10).God’s love toward us is the spark to be-gin a life process of developing the sameunconditional love of others in our heartsthat God manifested toward us throughJesus (Jn 3:16; Rm 5:8). In knowledgeand all discernment: As one grows inlove, he grows to discern better the loveof God. “He who does not love does notknow God, for God is love” (1 Jn 4:8).Such is true of all graces of Christianity.One grows to understand the patience ofGod by being patient. One grows to un-derstand the mercy of God by exercisingmercy toward others. The more one de-velops the nature of godliness, the morehe discerns the God to whom he has givenallegiance. Therefore, Christians must

“grow in the grace and knowledge of ourLord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pt3:18). Through knowledge of God theFather, Son and Holy Spirit, we are ableto make better decisions. We are able tounderstand better the purpose of life, andthus, able to make better judgments inlife. The greater our knowledge growsof God, the better we will make the rightdecisions in our lives.

1:10 By understanding the purposefor which all things exist, we can be con-tent to accept the work of God in andthrough all things (See Rm 8:28). Chris-tians must understand all things throughthe purposes of God. In order to under-stand all things from the viewpoint ofGod, we must be students of God’s word.Sincere and without offense: When oneunderstands God’s purposes for allthings, then he will make decisions in har-mony with the work of God. Instead ofworking against God, he will work sin-cerely and without offense in agreementwith God’s eternal purposes (See Rm2:18; 12:2). Those who have their mindson the things of this world cannot dis-cern the things of God (See comments 1Co 3:1-3). Men with transformed mindsunderstand the purpose of God in allthings, and thus, they conduct their livesin harmony with such purposes.

1:11 Filled with the fruit of righ-teousness: Fruit metaphorically refersto that which is produced from seed thathas germinated and grown. The righ-teousness of God produces such in thelives of those who have submitted them-selves to the word of God (2:12,13). Fruitalso refers to harvest. Fruit is produced



for the purpose of harvest. Therefore,the righteousness of God produces fruitwithin the hearts and lives of those whohave responded to the grace of God (1Co 15:10; 2 Co 4:15). When Jesus comesagain, the fruit will be delivered to Jesus.It will be delivered to Jesus in the sensethat both the spiritual fruit of one’s char-acter, and the results of one’s life in thelives of others, will stand as a testimonyto the sonship of the saints (See com-ments 2 Co 5:10). Paul is here picturingthe final harvest day wherein the fruitsof all Christians will be reaped (Ep 2:10;compare Mt 13:36-40; Gl 6:4-10; Cl 1:6).

FRUIT FROM PAUL’S BONDAGE1:12 In order to answer the concerns

of the Philippians, Paul wants them toknow that his imprisonment has becomean opportunity for preaching the gospel(Compare 2 Co 11:23-30). He does notsay that his misfortunes have been thework of God in his life. We would as-sume that they were not. What has hap-pened is that Satan’s work in the lives ofevil men in Jerusalem has accomplishedGod’s purpose of sending Paul to Rome(vs 17, see comments At 23:11). Wewould understand from this statement,and the theme of the documents of Actsand Luke, that Paul was in prison inRome for the defense of Christianity be-fore the highest court of the world (Seecomments in intro. to At).

1:13,14 The whole Praetorian: Thiswould be the Praetorian guard of Rome.Paul’s imprisonment led to the conver-sion of Roman palace guards. Even someof Caesar’s household were converted

(4:22). To all the rest: All of the palaceguard knew that Paul was in prison forpreaching Jesus. All the brethren alsoknew that he was there for the sake ofthe cross. Confident by my chains:When leaders lead with boldness, theflock follows. In this case Paul preachedwith boldness even though he was inprison (See comments Rm 1:16). As aresult of his not being ashamed of thegospel, many of the local disciples wereencouraged to also speak with boldness.The environment of Rome was certainlyan intimidating environment in which thedisciples had to live. However, the in-fluence of only one bold man in the midstof such an environment encouraged therest to be bold for Jesus.

1:15 Envy and strife: Some werepreaching Jesus with a jealous heart to-ward Paul. They preached to generatedisagreement. Their motives may havebeen what Paul stated in 2:3 as a warn-ing to the Philippians that they do noth-ing out of selfish ambition and conceit.There may have been some who harboredsuch ungodliness, and thus, theypreached out of selfish motives. Whatmay have been happening in Rome iswhat often happens when the disciplesare intimidated by the political environ-ment in which they lived. Rome pre-sented a very intimidating environmentin which to be a Christian. There wereChristians there who were trying to liveat peace with the worldly environmentof Roman society. At the same time,they sought to maintain a form of Chris-tianity that was often diluted by theircompromises with the social pressures of



the politics. Paul would not be intimi-dated to conform his behavior to aworldly society, and thus, compromisehis Christian values and behavior withthe heathen environment of the Romansociety. Rome was certainly a politicalenvironment. However, Paul would notbow to such in any effort to compromiseChrist. Those Christians in Rome whowanted to maintain a good public imagefor the church spoke against Paul whowas in prison on charges of preaching thekingship of Jesus. Their selfish ambi-tion motivated them to be willing to sac-rifice Paul for the benefit of giving them-selves a good public image in a politi-cally sensitive society. They lost theirown distinctiveness as Christians in theirefforts to remain politically correct by theunbelieving community. Good will: Incontrast to those who preached out ofenvy and strife, there were those whowere sincere in their preaching of the gos-pel. These were those who were bold inorder not to be ashamed of the gospel(Rm 1:16).

1:16 I am appointed for the defenseof the gospel: We must not underesti-mate the significance of this statement.The calling and ministry of Paul was notsimply to select an apostle to the Gen-tiles. Paul’s calling to be a “chosen ves-sel” was for a greater historical purposethan preaching the gospel throughout theGentile world. His calling was an ap-pointment for the apologia of the deathand resurrection of the Son of God. TheGreek word apologia here refers to a ver-bal defense of that which one believes.Paul was in Rome, therefore, for a rea-

son that was certainly beyond the think-ing of those brethren who were seekingto make themselves politically correct.He was there through the work of God inHis life that he stand before kings in thehighest court of the world in order to de-fend the truth of Christianity before theworld (See intro. to Lk and At). He wasnot there to deal with the trivialities ofchurch politics. His destiny was greaterthan the political games men were play-ing with his imprisonment. God wantedhim there in order to defend Christianitybefore the highest court of the world.Therefore, in knowing his destiny, Pauldid not allow himself to digress in think-ing or behavior to the preaching of envi-ous men who were driven by selfish am-bition, conceit and political prominence.When great spiritual men are in town,even in chains, the jealousy and selfishambition of carnal minds is flushed outof the closet by their own speech and ac-tions with which they betray their hearts.

1:17 Add distress to my chains:There were some among the members inRome who were socially minded in ref-erence to maintaining a good social rep-resentation of the church in the commu-nity. These politically minded Christianspreached in a manner not to allow theapostle who was in chains to bring thechurch into disrepute in the community.The position of these compromising re-ligious socialites certainly did not ben-efit Paul’s case before the Roman court.Their selfish ambition and conceit ledthem to preach with little considerationfor the jail house preacher in a Romandungeon. One must not underestimate



the insensitivity of those preachers whoare driven by either social or political am-bitions.

1:18 Christ is preached: Great menof destiny will not allow themselves tobe diverted from their work by the sense-less church politics of envious minds.Paul rejoiced in the fact that Christ waspreached. Though men preached in or-der to add affliction to the chains of Paul,he did not lash out to defend himselfagainst such preaching that came out ofselfish motives. The stature of his char-acter is manifested in the fact that he re-joiced that the name of Jesus was beingproclaimed. He rejoiced without seek-ing to defend his own name.

CHOOSING BETWEENLIFE AND DEATH

1:19 Turn out for my deliverance:Paul was confident that what was hap-pening to him at the time would result inhis deliverance from prison. He was con-fident because of the prayers of the Phil-ippians (Pl 22). His confidence was inthe God who is able to deliver answersto our prayers. Supply of the Spirit:Jesus had promised that one of the worksof the Spirit with the apostles was thatHe would guide them in their defensewhen they stood before courts (See Mt10:19,20). In this case, Paul knew thepromise, and thus, he would rely on theSpirit in his defense before the court.

1:20 Magnified in my body: Paulspeaks of his body in a manner that de-fined the body as not being the real Paul.It was a little dust in which his soul wastrapped. The real Paul would exist be-

yond the death of the body. If he wereexecuted in Rome, then his body wouldhave been used by God to accomplish thepreaching of the cross to the Gentiles.God would thus have used Paul’smartyred body to magnify Jesus.Whether by life or by death: Christianshave presented their bodies as living sac-rifices to God (Rm 12:1; Gl 2:20). Inlife, therefore, their bodies magnify thename of Jesus. In death, the Christian’sbody is sacrificed for the gospel. There-fore, even in death the name of Jesus ismagnified by one’s body (See Rv 2:10).

1:21 To live is Christ: For Paul tocontinue living, it would be of benefit forthe church because Jesus was livingthrough Paul (See 2:5; 3:1; Gl 2:20).When one is doing the work of Jesus,then Jesus is using his sacrificial examplefor His purposes. To die is gain: Paul’smartyrdom would benefit the cause ofChrist in that his faithfulness, even indeath, would be a testimony of commit-ment to many others (See Rv 2:10; 6:9).To die would be a personal gain for Paul,for he would then be with the Lord. Forhim to live would be to live for the workof Christ, but to die would be for his ownbenefit.

1:22,23 Fruit: Paul thought in termsof saving and edifying souls for Christ(See 1 Co 9:19-22; 1 Pt 3:1). If he re-mained alive, then he could win moresouls. His life would also be a benefit tothe global church. I am torn betweenthe two: It was not that Paul did not knowwhich state of existence was the best.Being with Jesus was far better than liv-ing with the struggles of this world (See



comments 2 Co 5:1-8). Being with Jesusin eternal glory is certainly far better thanthe sufferings and trials of this life (Rm8:18). Therefore, Paul’s choice of eitherlife or death was difficult. If he lived,Christ would continue His work throughhis service. However, in death Paulwould personally stop his work for Jesuson earth, but he would enjoy rest fromHis labors. From the statements hemakes here, it is possible that he hadsome choice in determining the outcomeof his case. Be with Christ: From thisstatement we would conclude that whenone dies, his spirit returns to God (Ec12:7). Therefore, he is with Christ inspirit (Lk 23:43; 2 Co 5:8). One doesnot go into a state of unconsciousness.He does not go into oblivion. He is in adisembodied state of being with Jesus(See comments Lk 16:19-31; 2 Co 5:1-8; 1 Th 4:13-18).

1:24-26 Beneficial for you: To re-main alive would be more beneficial forthe Philippians and all the members ofthe body. Therefore, Paul was confidentthat he would live in order to minister tothe members (Pl 22). The news of thisrevelation from Paul to the Philippianscertainly brought great joy to their hearts.Coming to you again: We would assumethat after Paul’s release from this first im-prisonment that he made a journey toPhilippi (See concluding remarks of At).

WORTHY CONDUCT1:27 Worthy of the gospel: The life-

style of all Christians must manifest thedignity and integrity of the gospel bywhich they were called (Ep 4:1; 1 Th

2:12; Cl 1:10). The Philippians mustmaintain Christian behavior, not onlywhen Paul was in their presence, but alsowhen absent. Striving together: Thosewho would call themselves after Christmust focus on maintaining unity with allothers who have done the same (See com-ments 1 Co 1:10; see Jn 17:20,21; Rm15:6; 2 Co 13:11; Ep 4:4-6). Unity issomething each disciple must strive tomaintain. Striving for unity means thatdisciples must learn to protect oneanother’s freedom in Christ (Gl 5:1).They must learn not to bring one anotherinto the bondage of personal opinions andmethods of work. The faith of the gos-pel: This would be the truth of the deathof Jesus for our sins and His resurrec-tion for our hope that must be proclaimedthroughout the world (Compare Gl 1:23;1 Tm 4:1; 5:8; Jd 3). Christians must notonly remain steadfast and united, theymust strive together in order to preachthe gospel (Mt 28:19,20; Mk 16:15,16;2 Tm 2:2).

1:28 The life and work of the Chris-tian must not be determined by the en-emies of the gospel. “And do not fearthose who kill the body, but are not ableto kill the soul” (Mt 10:28; see Rv 2:10).Christians must be confident of their sal-vation. They must be confident that Godis working all things together for theirgood (Rm 8:28). Paul gives as an evi-dence of our salvation the existence ofthose who are enemies of the gospel.When enemies exist, it is evidence thatChristians are doing right. Therefore, theexistence of those who are enemiesagainst Christians should give the Phil-



ippians and all Christians confidence thatthey are going in the right direction, adirection that is opposed to the work ofSatan. Proof of destruction: The factthat the enemies are against those whohave given themselves to God is evidenceof their lost condition. At the same time,it is evidence of the Christian’s salvation.

1:29 Christians have been grantedthe right to suffer with and for Jesus.Therefore, “count it all joy when you fallinto various trials” (Js 1:2; see Mt5:11,12; At 5:41; Rm 5:3). Christianshave been granted, both Jesus in whomthey have faith (Ep 2:8), and the suffer-

ings that come with faith in Jesus (Seecomments At 14:22; 2 Tm 3:12).

1:30 The Philippians had witnessedthe beating of Paul when he first preachedin Philippi (At 16:22-24; see 1 Th 2:2; 2Tm 3:10). They knew that he was nowsuffering and struggling against theforces of evil in Rome on behalf of thename of Jesus. They were also havingthe same persecution for the name ofJesus because of their struggle againstthose who had set themselves againstGod (See Cl 1:29; 2:1; 1 Th 2:2; 1 Tm6:12; 2 Tm 4:7; Hb 10:32; 12:1).

Rejoicing In Christ’s Example

(2:1-18)

Outline: (1) Following after humility (2:1-4), (2)

The mind of Christ (2:5-11), (3) The light of Chris-

tian behavior (2:12-18)

FOLLOWING AFTER HUMILITY2:1,2 Paul now reasons for unity on

the basis of the nature of Christ and Chris-tianity. He reasons that if there is anyencouragement, comfort, fellowship, af-fections and mercy, that are of the natureof Christ Jesus, then all Christians are tobe like-minded (1:27; see 1 Co 1:10;12:13). Those who would be Christians,therefore, must be united because of thevery nature of the universal organic bodyof Christ. Paul’s conclusion is that if onedoes not maintain the principles of be-havior and attitude that he states here,then he is not of the nature of the Christhe claims to follow.

2:3 Rivalry or empty conceit: When

there are those who are seeking eithertheir own glory or hidden agendas, thenthere will be dysfunction in the body (1Co 4:6,18,19; 5:2; 8:1; Gl 5:26; Js 3:14).Selfish ambition and conceit lead one toseek his own ends. He is not considerateof the desires of others. Therefore, be-cause he is seeking his own ends, he putshimself in conflict with the whole body.The primary problem that causes divisionamong members is personality conflictsthat are hidden behind supposed doctri-nal differences. Personality conflicts ex-ist because of pride that is generated fromselfish ambition and vainglory. But it isthe nature of the body to function withthe goal of carrying out the mission ofthe Head. Humility of mind: The truedisciples of Jesus will always seek toexalt their fellow disciples above them-selves (See comments Mk 10:35-45; Rm12:10; 1 Pt 5:5). In doing this, memberssubmit to one another (Ep 5:21). Those

CCCCCHAPTER HAPTER HAPTER HAPTER HAPTER 22222



who have confidence in themselves willhave no problem in building up others.They will have no problem edifying oth-ers because their minds are focused onothers and not themselves. Because self-ish people are always lacking in consid-eration of others, they do little to edifyothers. Those who lack self-esteem orconfidence in themselves will often tearothers down in order to make themselveslook better. But such is not the nature ofthe organic function of the body of Christ.The sign of a member of the body is onewho is functioning as Jesus in order tomake himself the servant of others (Ep5:21). This function is based on lovingone’s neighbor as himself (Mt 22:37-40;Gl 5:14). It is based on loving others asJesus loved us (Jn 13:34,35). Membersof the body who function in unison withall members understand that their pres-ervation in Christ depends on the func-tion of the body. If the body dies, theydie. They are thus cautious to follow theinstructions on how to function as a partof the organic body.

2:4 Look out ... for the interests ofothers: Members of the body bear oneanother’s burdens (Gl 6:2). They seekto do good to all men, especially to themembers of the body (Gl 6:10; see 1 Co13:5; Rm 15:1,2). The body of Christ isa community of people who have oneanother’s interest at heart in order to pre-serve themselves in a world of struggles.They are servants of one another in or-der that they encourage one anotherthrough life. Church is a community ofservants who seek to endure life by themembers help of one another to stand fast

in the faith in a world of trials.

THE MIND OF CHRIST2:5 This verse begins one of the

greatest sections of revelation that revealsthe mission of God to man. In eternity,the Son was in existence in the form ofGod. However, through incarnation Hecame into this world in the form of man.Once the plan of redemption was accom-plished, He was exalted to reign over allthings (Ep 1:20-22). Let this mind be inyou: Paul proposes that if Jesus as Godhumbled Himself in the fashion he isabout to tell us, then certainly every dis-ciple has no right to exalt himself abovehis fellow disciple in Christ. In verses 1-4 he has explained the spirit of Christianhumility. In verses 6-11 he tells us howJesus gave us an example of humility.

2:6 The form of God: Before theincarnation and the manifestation of Godthrough Jesus, Jesus was originally in thetotality of God in being, essence and ex-istence (Jn 1:1; see Gn 1:1,16,17; 2 Co4:4; Cl 1:15-17; 1 Jn 1:1; Rv 1:17,18).Though God has manifested Himself inhistory in three ways, He remains oneGod. We must not confuse the manifes-tation of God through the incarnation ofJesus to propose that there are three Gods.Such a conclusion only betrays our in-ability to understand the essence and be-ing of God, which essence and being wetry to understand. But in our feeble ef-forts to comprehend, we often make themistake of defining God after our ownbeing. In our frustration to comprehendGod, we too often create a god in ourminds that we can understand. We thus



create a god with eyes, ears and a bodilyform as a man. We deny the incarnationthrough our efforts to imagine a god wecan understand according to the flesh.We produce an idol god we can under-stand in order to relate with our createdgod. But what we fail to understand isthat the one true and living God must bebeyond the comprehension of man. Hemust be greater than the definition of ourexperiences and words. Though wewould seek to understand fully the Godof the Bible, we must not confine Him tothe definitions of our vocabulary. Form:The Greek word morphe is used here toexplain the being and essence of Jesusbefore the incarnation. He was in the“form” of God. The “form” of God isspirit (Jn 4:24). However, we must keepin mind that there are no humanly definedwords that would explain this form. Alldictionaries of this world are void of anyconcept that would completely defineGod. Therefore, it is useless to manipu-late our words and phrases in conjunc-tion with our finite deductions in orderto come up with a complete understand-ing of the infinite God. If we think thatwe have defined the “form” of God, thenwe know that one thing is true. We havedefined the wrong god. Equal with God:Jesus was equal with God in essence,being, eternality and work. Since He wasGod, then He could not have existed inany other state of being than what Godis. However, in order to accomplish theredemption of mankind, He did not con-sider His being as God something thatcould not be forsaken for the benefit ofHis creation. Jesus did not consider His

existence as God something to be graspedin view of the state of condemnation inwhich all humanity dwelt. Since Godcreated all things for the purpose of popu-lating heaven, then it was only reason-able that He formulate a plan for the re-demption of fallible man. Before the firstword was spoken by God to create, theplan was in place. Jesus was thus cruci-fied before the foundation of the world(Rv 13:8).

2:7 He made Himself of no reputa-tion: Jesus was willing to lay aside orempty Himself, of His being and essenceas God in order to incarnate in the fleshof man. We must conclude that He gaveup something. Though we do not under-stand all the implications of what He gaveup, we must assume that He did not haveon earth the totality of that which He hadbefore the incarnation. In some way, Hemade a supreme sacrifice in incarnationin order to accomplish the plan of re-demption for the salvation of man. Formof a bondservant: In contrast to lord-ship, He took on slavehood (Is 42:1; Ez34:23; Ze 3:8; Mt 20:28; Mk 10:45; Lk22:27). In contrast to existence in spirit,He took on the physical. In order to be-come the slave of humanity, He had totake on the form of humanity (Hb 2:14).In order to make the divine sacrifice forthe sins of humanity, He had to incarnateinto the form of those for whom Hewould die. We would thus be cautiousabout conceiving God to be in the formof a man. The more one conceives Godto be in the form of a man, the less heunderstands the incarnation of God intothe likeness of man. The incarnation was



more than a mere transformation forJesus. The magnitude of His transitionfrom God to man was awesome and in-comprehensible. Simply because we donot understand the incomprehensibleGod, we should not be move to minimizethe magnitude of the incarnation. Themore we understand the greatness ofGod, the more we understand that theincarnation was an incomprehensibleleap from deity to flesh. Likeness ofmen: In every way, therefore, the Sonof God became flesh as those He had cre-ated after the dust of the earth (Jn 1:14;Rm 1:3; Gl 4:4; Hb 2:17). The conceptof God becoming man is far beyond thefull comprehension of our finite minds.To comprehend that the Creator of allthings (Cl 1:16) would become as thatwhich He created, is a concept that isforeign to any man-made religions of his-tory. This principle of divine sacrificiallove sets Christianity in contrast to thefalse gods and religions that are createdafter the ignorance of men concerningwho this true and living God is. If onecan only capture a small glimpse of whatPaul here explains, then he has more thanenough information to understand thatChristianity originated from nothing thatis of human invention or imagination.

2:8 Found in appearance as a man:John wrote that there were in his daydeceivers who did not believe that JesusChrist, “is coming in the flesh” (2 Jn 7).Many years after the event, John actu-ally used the present tense when he wroteof the incarnation in 2 John 7. ManyBible students have thus affirmed thatJesus was still in the flesh at the time of

John’s writing of 2 John. He was in theflesh of a resurrected body, for we willhave a glorious body as His when we areresurrected (1 Jn 3:2). If this is the case,then the incarnation was permanent, andthus, eternal. When Jesus gave up beingin the form of God, it was forever. Hissacrifice was more than six hours on across outside Jerusalem. It was for eter-nity. Obedient unto ... the death of thecross: In His lowered state of incarna-tion, the Son of God was not only in theform of man, but also in a different rela-tionship with the Godhead than what Hehad before the incarnation. In the formof man, He maintained an obedient rela-tionship to God, the Father (Hb 5:8,9).He voluntarily died on the cross becauseit was the will of God (Jn 10:17,18). Itwas the eternal plan of God the Father,Son and Holy Spirit to bring created be-ings into eternal dwelling.

2:9 Highly exalted Him: AfterJesus’ death on the cross, He was raisedup to reign at the right hand of the Father(See Mt 28:18; At 2:33; Ep 1:20-22; Hb2:8,9; 1 Pt 3:22; Rv 11:15-17; 17:14).Jesus is now in this state of exaltationabove every authority in the heavenlyplaces and on earth. This is not a de-scription of something that is yet to oc-cur in the future. It is a description ofwhat Jesus was at the very time Paulwrote, and at the time we are now read-ing this epistle.

2:10 Every knee should bow: Thisstatement is in the subjunctive mood. Ev-ery knee should bow under the presentkingdom reign of Jesus. But every kneedoes not bow. Nevertheless, though all



men do not submit to the kingdom reignof Jesus does not mean that He is notreigning. All things have been put in sub-jection to King Jesus, though we do notsee at this time all people living in sub-jection to Him (Hb 2:8; see Dn 7:13,14).Though there are presently insurrection-ists in the kingdom of Jesus, the time willcome when all such rebellious insurrec-tionists will be cast into destruction fromthe presence of God (Mt 25:41; 2 Th 1:7-9).

2:11 Should confess: Everyone onearth should confess and submit to thelordship of Jesus (Jn 13:13; Rm 10:9;14:9). But they do not. We live in a timewhen all men should confess Jesus asLord and submit to His will. This is thetime of opportunity for confession andsubmission. However, there is a timecoming when it will be too late to con-fess (Compare Rv 6:15-17). When Jesuscomes again, it will not be a time for con-fession. It will be a time for judgmentand the end of this present world.

THE LIGHTOF CHRISTIAN BEHAVIOR2:12,13 As you have always obeyed:

Obedience to the will of God in responseto God’s grace is essential for the savingof our souls (See 1 Co 15:10; Gl 5:6; Hb5:8,9; compare 2 Co 5:10). It is not thatone obeys in order to be saved. He obeysbecause he is saved by God’s gracethrough his obedience of the gospel. ThePhilippian disciples began their obedi-ence to the will of the Lord when Paulwas in their presence. They were obedi-ent to the gospel in order to be saved by

the blood of Jesus (See comments Rm6:3-6). However, after their initial obe-dience to the gospel, they continued theirobedience when he was not there. Theywere more obedient because of the graceof God that was preached by Paul. Theyresponded to the grace of God by immer-sion into Christ for the remission of sins(At 2:38; 22:16). In appreciation of theirsalvation by the grace of God, they con-tinued to work (See comments 2 Co4:15). Their work for the Lord, there-fore, did not depend on the presence ofthe evangelist. Disciples who assumetheir responsibility to carry out the workof the Lord, without continually beingreminded by others, have understood thenature of being motivated by the graceof God (1 Co 15:10; 2 Co 4:15). It isGod who works in you: God works inus as we have responded to His work forus. He worked for us through the cross.Our sense of gratitude to the work of Godin reference to our salvation, therefore,should move us into action (See Rm 12:3;1 Co 12:6; 15:10; 2 Co 3:5; 4:15; Hb13:20,21). In this way God is living inus (Gl 2:20; 1 Tm 4:16). When we aremotivated into action by the redemptivework of God, then we work according toHis purposes (2 Co 3:5). And when wework according to the purposes of God,it is God who works in us. Christians donot work in order to be saved. They workout their salvation because they aresaved.

2:14 Without grumbling and dis-puting: It is the nature of the Christianto be a willing worker. God willinglyworked for the Christian and the Chris-



tian willingly works for others. Thosewho work simply to do what they feel istheir duty to do, will digress to murmur-ing and complaining concerning their re-sponsibilities (1 Pt 4:9; compare Nm11:1; 16:41; 1 Co 10:10). They will begrudging givers (2 Co 9:7). The com-mandments of God will be a burden (1Jn 5:3). The word “disputing” here re-fers to arguing or questioning (Rm 1:21;14:1; 1 Co 3:20; 1 Tm 2:8). Those whoare working only to fulfill their duty usu-ally work as little as possible to satisfytheir own conscience. When asked to domore, they feel that their sense of dutyhas been attacked, and thus, resort to allsorts of defensive arguments and accu-sations. But those who work for God inappreciation for all that God has done forthem, never feel as though they have ac-complished enough. They know that theyowe more than what they can repay.

2:15 Shine as lights in the world:In contrast to the rest of the world thatworks while complaining and disputing,Christians work with a spirit of appre-ciation and joy. The Christian shouldnever allow the demeanor of a morallytwisted and perverse environment inwhich he lives to affect either his atti-tude or behavior. He must never allowhis light to grow dim from the influencesof darkness, nor allow the preserving saltof his behavior to be destroyed by world-liness (Mt 5:15,16; Ep 5:8). When onebecomes an active member of the organicbody of Christ, his light shines forth tothose who are in darkness. The demeanor

of his life and attitude become evange-listic to those who are seeking a waythrough this life.

2:16 Holding fast the word of life:It is the responsibility of each disciple toremain faithful. The salvation of Paul inthe end did not depend on the Philippi-ans’ faithfulness (See comments 1 Co3:12-15). However, Paul does exhortthem to be faithful to the word of Godand to let their light shine forth from theirlives in order that he may rejoice overtheir faithfulness (2 Co 1:14; 1 Th 2:19).If they were not faithful, then his effortsto establish them as the church of God inPhilippi would have been in vain (Gl 2:2).But as with the disciples in Ephesus, Paulhad commended them to the word of Godthat was able to build them up (See com-ments At 20:32). We would assume,therefore, that when disciples lose theirknowledge of the word of God, they willlose their way (See Hs 4:6).

2:17,18 Sacrifice and service: A cupof wine (drink offering) was offered withsome Old Testament sacrifices (Nm 15:1-10). Paul here rejoices that his sacrificesand toil have been poured out as a drinkoffering in conjunction with the sacrificeand service that has resulted from thePhilippians’ obedient faith (See com-ments Rm 12:1). Since the Philippianshad also poured out their cup of sacri-fices, then they could rejoice with Paulin his sacrifice and service for the Lord.They were disciples of Jesus because ofhis sacrifice to preach the gospel of God’sgrace to the world.



Rejoicing In God’s Servants

(2:19-30)

VISIT OF FELLOW WORKERS2:19 Timothy: Timothy had arrived

in Rome and was at this time with Paul(See “Writer” in intro. to 1 Tm). Paulsent Epaphroditus to Philippi with thisletter. After they had received the letter,he wanted to send Timothy to the Philip-pians in order that they know of his con-tinued condition in prison. AfterTimothy’s arrival, and stay with the Phil-ippian brethren, he was to return to Romein order to report concerning the state ofthe Philippian church.

2:20 In the life of every evangelistthere are usually one or two people withwhom the evangelist establishes an emo-tional and spiritual bond that surpasseshis relationship with others in general.It is a lifetime bond that can endure themost trying circumstances this world canoffer. It is a relationship that neither timenor distance can weaken. Paul had thistype of relationship with Timothy, andwe suppose Timothy had the same withPaul (1 Co 16:10; 2 Tm 3:10).

2:21-24 Timothy was one who hadgiven himself totally to the work of God.He had an unfeigned faith that moved himto unselfishly be the slave of the church(2 Tm 1:5). Such is the nature of goodevangelists. You know of his provenworth: Timothy had proven himselfamong the disciples that he was a sacri-ficial worker. He did not work for money.Preaching was not a job or career to him.His labors for the Lord resulted fromknowing the God of grace who had ex-

tended Himself to the cross for his sins.All the disciples with whom Timothy hadcontact throughout his ministry knew ofhis good reputation (See comments At16:1-3). Served with me: Timothy wasa servant of the Lord by being a specialservant to Paul (1 Co 4:17). He was ini-tially Paul’s assistant to take the gospelto the Gentiles. I hope to send him: Paulplanned to send Timothy on ahead toPhilippi. Paul trusted in the Lord that hewould be released from this first impris-onment in order to follow Timothy toPhilippi (See Pl 15; see comments At28:31).

2:25 Epaphroditus was Paul’sbrother in the Lord. He was a represen-tative sent from the Philippian disciplesto be a fellow worker and soldier whoministered to Paul’s needs. Your apostle:The Greek word here is apostolos.Epaphroditus was a church-sent apostle.He was sent out from the Philippianchurch in order to minister to the physi-cal needs of Paul (See 2 Co 8:23). Christ-sent apostles had the specific duty of wit-nessing to the resurrection of Jesus (Seecomments Lk 24:48; At 1:8). Church-sent apostles did not have the gift or re-sponsibility of Christ-sent apostles. Theywere apostles sent out by other disciplesto accomplish the work of the church topreach the gospel to the world. Christ-sent apostles were personally sent out byJesus to initiate the preaching of the gos-pel to the world as the special witnessesof Jesus. Since Epaphroditus was theirsent out evangelist (missionary), wewould assume that the Philippians werea missionary sending fellowship. From



the time of conversion in the middle 50s,to the time this letter was written aroundA.D. 61,62, the Philippians had main-tained their responsibility to send outevangelists (See 4:15,16). In referenceto church-sent apostles, we must keep inmind that they were not local workers.They were sent out. If one would be achurch-sent apostle (missionary), then hemust go forth from those who send him.

2:26,27 Epaphroditus almost diedbecause of some sickness he had whilein Rome. If Epaphroditus was sick untodeath, some might wonder why Paul didnot work a miracle in order to heal him.The fact that Paul did not miraculouslyheal him helps us understand the purpose,if not the duration of confirming miraclesin the 1st century. They were not for theselfish gratification and benefit of Chris-tians. Miracles were a sign to the unbe-lievers (Mk 16:17-20; Hb 2:3,4). Wecould assume that in this case, God didnot allow Epaphroditus to die, though amiracle was not worked by Paul to healhim. Paul said that God did not allowhim to die for his benefit. Therefore, hisrecovery was the result of God’s initia-tive. Paul did not heal him because thepurpose of miracles was not for the mem-bers of the body. Trophimus was alsosick in the presence of Paul (2 Tm 4:20),as well as Timothy who suffered fromstomach problems (1 Tm 5:23). Thesecases help us understand the purpose forwhich the gift of miracles was given. Thegift was not given for personal gratifica-tion or the benefit of the saints. Miracleswere given for the purpose of confirm-ing the message of God’s evangelists in

the 1st century. We must also take intoconsideration that Epaphroditus’ visit toRome took place around A.D. 61 or 62.The fulfillment of Paul’s prophecy con-cerning miraculous gifts in 1 Corinthians13:8-10 was coming to pass. The giftswere passing as the consummation ofnational Israel was about to happen withthe destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.All truth by A.D. 70 had been deliveredto the church in fulfillment of Jesus’promise to the apostles (See commentsJn 14:26; 16:13). It was a time for a trans-fer of emphasize from confirmingmiracles to the inspired word of God.

2:28-30 Once Epaphroditus had re-covered, Paul hastily sent him to Phil-ippi in order to report concerning his ownsituation, as well as the physical condi-tion of Epaphroditus. The Philippianshad great anxiety concerning the situa-tion of Paul, but also concerning theirapostle they had sent to Paul. Hold suchmen in high honor: It is the responsi-bility of the church to give honor to thoseevangelists who have risked their livesfor the propagation of the gospel (Rm13:7). Christians who ignore evangelistswho have made great sacrifices to takethe gospel to all the world are Christianswho have forgotten their mission, andconsequently, have forgotten who theyare. They have forgotten their Lord Jesusbecause they manifest no respect for theservants of Jesus who have gone forth inthe name of Jesus (See comments 3 Jn 5-8). They are no longer disciples of Christwith the mission of their Master. Theyare simply religious people without pur-pose or a relationship with Jesus and His



mission. For the work of Christ: Menmust arise among us who are willing tomake all necessary sacrifices for thepreaching of the gospel (At 15:25,26).Men as Epaphroditus did not determinehow many things of the world to whichhe could cling, and at the same time, be aslave of Jesus as an evangelist (See com-ments Lk 14:25-35). To supply: ThePhilippian disciples had sent a contribu-tion of things to Paul by the hand ofEpaphroditus (See 4:10-18). They hadrecognized their responsibility to supportPaul, and thus, had sent the contribution

of things in order to express their loveand concern for Paul. Christians whohave not forgotten who they are, and whatthey are to be doing as God’s sons, willcontinually support the preaching of thegospel throughout the world. Becauseof their close relationship with Jesus, theyseek the work of Jesus to preach the crossto the world for whom Jesus died. Anyfaithful individual Christian who claimsto be a disciple of Jesus will seek in hislife to complete the mission of his Mas-ter (See Mt 28:19,20; Mk 16:15,16).

Rejoicing In God’s Call

(3:1-21)

Outline: (1) Gaining the excellence of Christ (3:1-

11), (2) Pressing on (3:12-16), (3) Heavenly citi-

zenship (3:17-21)

GAINING THE EXCELLENCEOF CHRIST

3:1 Rejoice in the Lord: In the midstof any environment, or at any time inone’s life, rejoicing should be the natureof the Christian’s spirit (4:4; 2 Co 13:11;1 Th 5:16). Emphasis here is on the gen-eral nature of the Christian character. Be-cause of their positive attitudes, Chris-tians have a rejoicing spirit. To write thesame things: Christians need to be con-tinually reminded of the fact that they arein the Lord, and thus, should rejoice inthis fact (2 Pt 1:12-15). They should con-tinue to study concerning the work of theLord in order to have occasion for rejoic-ing.

3:2 Beware: Paul uses descriptive

metaphors here that define legalisticjudaizing teachers who were going aboutamong the disciples in order to recruitmembers to their teaching (Gl 4:17). Themetaphors leave no question as to howserious Paul considered such teaching tobe a threat to Christian liberty (See com-ments Gl 1:6-9; 5:1). He is stern in hiswarning about those who seek to bringagain into bondage to their legal systemof religion those who have been set freein Christ (See comments Gl 5:1,2). Thefalse circumcision: This seemingly de-rogatory term is here used by Paul to re-fer to the Jews’ practice of circumcision.There were those Jews who were seek-ing to bring the Gentile disciples underthe bondage of law (See At 15:10). Indoing this they were binding on the Gen-tiles circumcision and ceremonies of theSinai law (At 15:1,2; see comments inintro. to Gl). They were thus bindingwhere God had not bound, and by doingsuch, were causing confusion among the




disciples (Rm 16:17,18).3:3 We are the true circumcision:

Paul refers to those who are the true sonsof Abraham by faith. They are sons ofAbraham by faith, not by physical lin-eage and circumcision (See Rm 2:28,29;9:6; Cl 2:11; see Gl 3:26-29; 6:15). Wor-ship God in the Spirit: Those who aresons of Abraham by faith worship Godin spirit and truth (See comments Jn4:24). In contrast to legalistic Judaismthat emphasized ceremonial worship ofGod after the performance of man, Chris-tians worship from the inner spirit, notthe outward performances of religiousconcerts. If reference in this passage isto the Holy Spirit, then reference wouldbe to the Spirit-directed worship of the1st century church which Paul describedin 1 Corinthians 12 & 14. However, inthe context here he seems to place em-phasis on worship that is in contrast tothe outward ceremonial performancesthat were promoted by the judaizingteachers. Have no confidence in theflesh: Reference here could refer to oneof two things, or both. The judaizingteachers trusted in their physical heritagefrom Abraham as an advantage in theirrelationship with God. But Paul says thatone can have no confidence in any fleshlylineage from Abraham (See Gl 3:26-29).Secondly, the judaizing teachers empha-sized performance of law and meritori-ous deeds as conditions for salvation.The Judaizing teachers believed that theyneeded to add circumcision and merito-rious deeds to the grace of God. But Paulsays to have no confidence in the abilityof the flesh to perform religious rituals

in order to claim justification. Those whoare sons of Abraham by faith do not trustin meritorious performance of the fleshin order to be saved. By faith they trustin God’s grace (Rm 5:1,2).

3:4-6 There were those who wereboasting about their Jewish heritage andSinai law. But Paul argues that if any-one could be saved because they wereIsraelites and descendants of Abraham,he could argue his personal case better.He was once a militant and religiouslyfanatical Jew who lived according to thelegal requirements of Judaism (See com-ments Gl 1:13,14). He was devout, evento the point of persecuting those Jewswho had converted to Christianity (At8:3; 22:4,5; 26:9-11). When it came toconsidering one righteous according tothe law, he was blameless in the sensethat he did all in good conscience beforeGod (1 Tm 1:12,13). No one could findfault with Paul concerning his perfor-mance of what the Jews considered obe-dience to the law. And yet, concerningall that he had done in reference to law,he knew that he could not justify himselfbefore God (See comments Gl 2:15,16;3:11,12). Therefore, when he discoveredthe grace of God through the cross, heworked harder than when he lived underlaw (1 Co 15:10; 2 Co 4:15).

3:7 Loss for Christ: In the Jewishhierarchy, Paul had gained great fame andposition. Nevertheless, while under thelegal system of Judaism that the Jews hadconstructed after their traditions, Paulknew that something was wrong. Heknew that his performance was alwayslacking. Neither he nor anyone else could



perform law and good deeds in a mannerby which they could save themselves(See comments Rm 3:20; Gl 2:16).Therefore, when grace and truth were re-vealed through Jesus (Jn 1:17), Paul andthe other Jews by faith realized that gracewas the only answer to their problem ofsin. Paul was willing to sacrifice allpower, positions and possessions for thegrace of God that was revealed throughJesus (Lk 9:23; Ti 2:11).

3:8 Count all things loss: There isnothing of this world that can be consid-ered greater than the salvation that comesthrough Jesus. In comparison to the eter-nal salvation one receives in Christ, allpower, possessions and pomp of thisworld are considered worthless. Countthem refuse: In order to emphasize theuselessness of the things of this world incomparison to eternal life, Paul uses anextreme illustration. The Greek word forrefuse here is “dung.” Paul’s point isclear. Those who would consider theirworldly or religious performances as ad-vantageous in reference to putting Godin debt to award one with salvationshould reconsider what Paul here saysconcerning his past accomplishments. Inhis previous religious life, he tried tomake a trade with God by offering hisaccomplishments of law and good works.However, he finally realized that what hewould receive costs more than what hecould earn. The glory that God will re-veal to us is far beyond any possible ac-quisition by the works of man (See com-ments Rm 8:18).

3:9 Not having my own righteous-ness: Neither Paul nor anyone else can

keep law in a manner to be self-justifiedbefore God. Most men know this. How-ever, in a world of misguided religiosity,men often create their own conditions forjustification. They form a system of righ-teousness by which to justify themselvesbefore God. And such the Jews soughtto do in an attempt to justify themselvesbefore God at the time Jesus was in theworld. “For they [the Jews] being igno-rant of God’s righteousness and seekingto establish their own righteousness, havenot submitted themselves to the righ-teousness of God” (Rm 10:3). When re-ligious men establish the conditions fortheir own righteousness, either after re-ligious traditions or performances, theywill often reject the righteousness of God(See comments Mk 7:1-9). The problemwith establishing our own righteousnessby which we would be judged is that weremove God from His judgment seat. Wedo so by establishing our own standardof judgment. Our standards usually re-volve around our traditions or personalmeritorious deeds. Both standards arehumanly devised, and thus they are stan-dards by which we judge ourselves ei-ther righteous or condemned before God.Faith of Christ: The article is notpresent, and thus the Greek text here lit-erally reads “faith of Christ.” Faith onthe part of two parties is necessary forour salvation. First, the faith and faith-fulness of Jesus was necessary for Himto go to the cross on our behalf (See Rm3:22,26; Gl 2:16,20; 3:22; Ep 3:12). Sec-ond, faith on man’s part in response tothe revelation of grace on the cross is nec-essary in order to move us to depend on



the cross (Ti 2:11). The righteousnessthat comes from God comes through faithin Christ (Rm 5:1,2). Justification couldnever come through meritorious perfor-mances of law or good deeds (Rm 3:20;Gl 2:16; 3:11,12). In reference to man’spart, therefore, we must respond to thegrace of God that was revealed on thecross through the faithful work of Jesus(See Hb 5:8).

3:10,11 It was the goal of Paul toknow Christ. Such should be the goal ofall Christians. There is more to knowingJesus than intellectual knowledge of whoHe is and what He did. Our intellectualknowledge of Him must move us into arelationship where our lives are con-sumed with His will (See comments Gl2:20). Knowing Jesus is to know thepower of God that was unleashed in or-der to raise Him from the dead (Rm 1:4;Ep 1:20). Knowing Jesus is to fellow-ship in His sufferings as one lives theChristian life (At 14:22; see commentsMt 5:3-12). Being like Him in Hisdeath: By obedience to the gospel, therepentant believer conforms to the deathof Jesus in order to be raised from thewaters of baptism to walk in newness oflife (See comments Rm 6:3-6). One mustconform to the death of Jesus on the cross(Rm 6:5). When we crucify ourselveswith Christ, we die with him. We aredead until we are raised with Him fromthe tomb of water. There will be no res-urrection to life unless one has been cru-cified with Jesus on the cross of repen-tance, and raised with Him in a resurrec-tion from the grave of water. Paul’s ar-gument in this verse is that we cannot

know Jesus until we have gone to thecross with Him. We cannot be like Himunless we die with Him and are resur-rected to walk with Him in newness oflife. Only in this way will one attain tothe resurrection from the dead whenJesus comes again. No greater statementcould have been made concerning thenecessity of one going to the cross ofdeath (repentance) with Jesus and beingresurrected with Him from water (bap-tism) in order to be resurrected to lifewhen He comes again.

PRESSING ON3:12 Though Paul was a Christ-sent

apostle with a strong religious back-ground in Judaism, he still had muchroom for both growth in the knowledgeof Jesus, as well as, spiritual growthwithin his heart. There will be a timewhen we all come to a greater knowledgeof Jesus in the heavenly realm. Whilewe are in this world, however, our knowl-edge and relationship with Jesus will al-ways be limited. Our understanding ofJesus will excel only when we have beentaken from the confines of this world intothe next to be in the presence of Jesus. Ipress on: The motivation for pressingon lies in one’s realization that he doesnot yet fully know what he desires toknow of Christ. When one realizes thatgreat spiritual growth will occur in thepresence of Jesus, then he desires to bewith Jesus. Paul, as well as all Chris-tians, press on to acquire that for whichwe have been called. Therefore, thisworld is not our home. We are waitingfor our transition into the eternal dwell-



ing for which we were created.3:13 Laid hold: The emphasis of

the Greek word here means “to lay holdof.” In this life, the Christian cannot layhold of that for which he strives. As longas we are in this temple we are separatedfrom that realm which is just beyond thephysical world (See comments 2 Co 5:1-8). The greater one grows in the knowl-edge of Christ, the greater his desire todepart and be with Jesus (1:23). Becauseof his confidence in life after death, Paulwould rather be present with the Lord(See 2 Co 5:8). Forgetting those thingsthat are behind: We do not allow thethings of this world to detract us fromour goal of eternal dwelling. Christiansmust never turn back to the things of thisworld (Lk 9:62).

3:14 I press toward the mark: Godhas set before the Christian the mark of afinal rest for which all men were created.The goal is the new heavens and earthwherein dwells righteousness (2 Tm 4:7;Hb 3:1; 6:1; 2 Pt 3:13). The power ofthis hope in the life of the Christian keepshis life focused on Jesus. When one’shope for heaven is strong, then he willsubmit his life to the narrow way ofChristian living (See comments Cl 3:1-4).

3:15 As many as are perfect: Ref-erence here is to those who are mature inChrist. These are those who are focusedon Jesus and the final goal for which weare being prepared (Mt 5:48; 1 Co 2:6).The mature Christian will have his mindfocused on those things that will endurethe passing of this material world (Cl3:1,2). His maturity is identified by the

fact that he does not consider this worldhis home. His treasures are laid up inheaven and not on this earth (Mt 6:19-34). Those who are striving to grow spiri-tually, but have not yet set their mindscompletely on those things above, mustremain confident that they will continueto grow in spiritual maturity as they dis-card their focus on things of this world.They must remain in fellowship withstrong Christians in order to be influ-enced by those whose minds are set onthings above (See Gl 6:1,2).

3:16 Paul wants the Philippians tolive up to the spiritual nature of the gos-pel after which they were called (1:27).They have spiritually come to the pointto which they were at the time of Paul’swriting of this epistle. They must con-tinue to grow (2 Pt 3:18). By the samerule: If Christians will continue to al-low the word of God to direct their lives,then they will press on to greater spiri-tual heights. They will be able to do suchbecause it is through the word of Godthat the Holy Spirit communicates thenature and character of God after whomwe are to pattern our lives (Compare At20:32). Obedience to the same rule as-sumes the same mind. When Christianssubmit to the gospel, they have giventhemselves over to the one head and Kingof all things. They are thus brought intofellowship with one another and are fo-cused in the same direction (See com-ments 1 Co 1:10).

HEAVENLY CITIZENSHIP3:17 Followers together of me: “Be

imitators of me, even as I also am of



Christ” (1 Co 11:1; see 1 Co 4:16; Ep5:1; Ph 4:9; 1 Th 1:6; 2:14). The HolySpirit places Paul as an example to befollowed. The example: What they wereto follow was the Christian behavior ofhow Paul put into action the principlesof Christ in his own life (See Ti 2:7,8; 1Pt 5:3). The teaching here is that novicedisciples should continually be in thepresence of those who are strong in thefaith. It is not that those who are strongin the faith have any control over thenovice disciples. Paul’s point is that thenovice disciples should observe the be-havior of the stronger disciples insofaras they follow Christ.

3:18 Enemies of the cross: Refer-ence here is to those who were preach-ing the other gospel about which Paulspoke to the Galatians (See comments Gl1:6-9). They were teaching the gospel,plus works. Judaizing teachers wereteaching a legalistic religious system ofmeritorious law-keeping and good deeds.In their systematic theology, God’s gracethrough the cross had to be supplementedwith the legal works of law (See intro. toGl; see Rm 16:17,18; Gl 1:17; 2:21). Byteaching such a doctrine, they were ac-tually enemies of the grace of God thatwas revealed on the cross.

3:19 Whose end is destruction: Thisdestruction refers to the eternal conse-quences to which their teaching wouldlead. “You have been severed fromChrist, you who seek to be justified bylaw. You have fallen from grace” (Seecomments Gl 5:4). Since eternal exist-ence is only in the presence of the eter-nal God, to be estranged from Christ

would result in one’s final destruction (2Co 11:15; 2 Th 1:7-9). Paul is not com-plimentary of these religionists who haveset themselves against all that God wasdoing through the cross. They were thosewho lived after the performance of theflesh in order to glorify themselves afterthe flesh. That in which they glorifiedthemselves was actually shameful in thesight of God. It was shameful in the sensethat the meritorious works of the fleshminimize the greatness of grace. If oneassumes that his performance of law andmeritorious works are the foundationupon which he is to be judged, then graceis set aside and the cross is marginalized.

3:20 Our citizenship is in heaven:In contrast to the worldly nature of thosehe has just described, Paul states thatChristians have their minds set wherethey have their citizenship (Ep 2:6,19; Ph1:27; Cl 3:1-3; Hb 12:22; 13:14). Be-cause their citizenship is in heaven, theirlife is a journey through this world. Theylook forward to the return of Jesus in or-der to come to the end of their journeyand to be at home with Jesus (At 1:11; 1Co 1:7; 1 Th 1:10; Rv 22:20). Since theircitizenship (membership) is in heaven, itcan never be transferred from one groupof disciples to another. Christians placedtheir membership in heaven when theywere added to the church by God, andthus, they never change their member-ship. Neither is their citizenship inheaven determined by those with whomthey assemble on earth. Nowhere in allScripture is the concept of placing one’smembership with a particular group ofdisciples, and by doing such, excluding



oneself from other disciples who as-semble at other locations.

3:21 Transform our lowly body:The spiritually minded seek to be clothedwith a spiritual body (See comments 2Co 5:1-8). We do not know the nature ofthis spiritual body that is yet to be re-vealed. However, we do know that wewill be like Jesus in His present bodilyform (1 Jn 3:2). We could make a verbaljourney through endless speculation con-cerning the spiritual and immortal bodywith which our spirit will be clothed in

eternity. However, our imaginations cannever take us beyond the confinement ofour dictionary. Therefore, we thus con-tent ourselves to trust in God whose busi-ness it is to clothe us with our habitationfrom heaven (See comments 1 Co 15:50-58; Cl 3:4). We do know that the sameGod who worked through the resurrec-tion of Jesus, and subsequent subjectionof all things to Jesus, is able also to trans-form our lowly bodies to conform toJesus’ present glorious body.

Rejoicing In The Philippians’ Love

(4:1-23)

Outline: (1) Joy and peace (4:1-9), (2) Partner-

ship in world evangelism (4:10-23)

JOY AND PEACE4:1 In view of the preceding facts

about which Paul has encouraged thePhilippians, they must stand fast in theLord (1:27; Ep 6:10ff). My joy andcrown: The stephanos (crown) was thecrown that returning victors wore after avictorious war. The faithfulness of thePhilippians brought joy to Paul’s heart,but they were also a symbol of victorythat he had over the forces of evil in thecity of Philippi (See 2 Co 1:14; 1 Th2:19).

4:2,3 In giving instructions concern-ing these two sisters, who evidently hada personality conflict, Paul did not takesides over that about which they were atodds with one another. He lays the re-sponsibility for reconciliation on theshoulders of both Euodia and Syntyche.

They must sort out this problem andmove on (See comments Mt 5:23ff;18:15-18). Loyal companion: Paul doesnot identify the one who is to function asthe third party in helping to sort out theabove disagreement. He does want thisfellow laborer to help these two womento come to an agreement because theyworked close at his side in the preachingof the gospel. Names are in the book oflife: The personality or work disagree-ment that these two sisters had did notlead to their names being blotted out ofthe book of life (See Rv 3:5; 20:12;21:27; compare Is 4:3; Ez 13:9). We mustnot be too quick to judge and condemnour fellow brethren with whom we maydisagree. We must remember the warn-ing the Holy Spirit gave through the handof James: “For judgment will be withoutmercy to the one who has shown nomercy. And mercy rejoices over judg-ment” (Js 2:13).

4:4,5 Rejoice: Paul’s emphasis hereis to define the nature of the Christian




life. One rejoices over specific incidents.However, the demeanor of the Christianlife-style is one of rejoicing (Rm 12:12;1 Th 5:16; Js 1:2; 1 Pt 4:13). If a dis-ciple has a cantankerous demeanor, hemust repent. Let your forbearance beknown: One result of the rejoicing lifeis gentleness or forbearance toward oth-ers (Js 2:13). Every Christian shouldhave a reputation for being a patient andlongsuffering person toward the faultsand weaknesses of others (Cl 3:12-15).If one is not forbearing, then his joy willbe stolen away by his own impatiencewith others. In areas of opinion, Chris-tians should bear with one another’s dif-ferences (See comments Rm 14). TheLord is at hand: Paul may be bringingthe omnipresence of the Lord to theirminds in order that they be sober mindedabout the things he has just mentioned.There is a certain soberness in under-standing the presence of the Lord. How-ever, this letter was written at a time whenthe Jewish rebellion and tension withRome was intensifying. In six to eightyears from the time of the writing of thisletter, God brought down judgment onnational Israel through the consummationof national Israel in A.D. 70. In thissense, therefore, the judgment of the Lordon national Israel was near (See com-ments Mt 24; Js 5:7,8).

4:6 Christians should put their trustin God, for it is He who is working allthings together according to His purposes(Ps 55:22; Pv 16:3; Mt 6:25-34; Rm 8:28;1 Pt 5:7). Christians must not worry, forto worry is to doubt God’s ability to takecare of all things and to work all things

together for the good of the Christian. Inorder not to worry about the environmentand events that are happening, Paul statesthat Christians should communicate withGod in prayer. Supplication is offeringpetitions to God for help. Prayer andpetitions are to be made in a spirit ofthanking God for all that He has done inour lives. Thanksgiving should be themotivation that encourages one to pray(2 Co 4:15). The ungrateful feel that theyhave nothing to ask of God for they haveassumed that their own performance hasbrought about all physical and spiritualblessings they have in their lives. Theungrateful man is not driven to makeprayers and petitions to God for he hasassumed that he has control over his owndestiny. He is trusting in his works, andthus finds little need to trust in the helpof God.

4:7 The peace of God: The resultof one’s prayerful communication withGod that is based on faith (Js 1:6), is aninner tranquility that cannot be expressedin words (vs 9; Cl 3:15; see Is 26:3; Jn14:27). It is the peace of God that pro-tects one’s heart and produces consis-tency in one’s thoughts. When ourprayers are offered to God upon the ba-sis of faith, and knowing that God willwork in answer to our prayers, then wewill gain an inner peace of heart andmind. Disciples must have faith in thefact that God answers prayer.

4:8 Think on these things: Paul liststhe things upon which Christians mustmeditate. He exhorts the Philippians tobring their minds into control. They mustfocus on that which is true (Ep 4:25).



They must focus on that which is noble(2 Co 8:21). They must concentrate onthat which is right (1 Th 5:22; Js 3:17).They must keep their minds on the pure,lovely and admirable things of life (1 Co13:4-7). If one will only meditate onthese things, then his thoughts will beoptimistic about life. There is no roomin the Christian mentality for pessimis-tic thinking. When one understands thatall things are under the control of the Godwho can do all things, then he sees thebest things of life. His focus is on thatwhich is good and after the nature of Godwho is working all things together forgood (Rm 8:28). This is the life aboutwhich Jesus said, “I have come that theymay have life, and that they may have itmore abundantly” (Jn 10:10).

4:9 Paul manifested in his life a posi-tive view of all things. He thus exhortsthe Philippians to follow the demeanorof his life (1 Co 11:1). The brief time hehad with the brethren in Philippi wasenough for them to recognize the godlynature of his behavior and spirit. Theywere thus to follow his response to thework of God in his life (1 Th 5:22).

PARTNERSHIPIN WORLD EVANGELISM

Paul concludes this letter by explain-ing the true mission-mindedness of thePhilippian disciples who had captured thespirit of Christ. In this historical sectionof the letter, he begins with the arrival ofEpaphroditus in Rome who had broughtto him the contribution of the Philippiandisciples. By referring to the time of hisfirst visit to Philippi, Paul reviews the

contributing fellowship of these disciplesas a result of their thankfulness to Godfor their salvation (See 2 Co 4:15).

4:10 Concern for me: Christianswho conform to the nature of Jesus carefor those who have gone forth for the sakeof the name of Jesus (See comments 3 Jn5-8). Again: These Christians onceagain sent support to Paul as they haddone before (2 Co 11:9). When Paul,Silas and Timothy left Philippi on Paul’ssecond mission journey, and after beingin Philippi for only a few days, they hadsent support once and again to the mis-sion team in Thessalonica (vss 15,16).However, after the third journey, they hadlost contact with Paul in his travels. Wordfinally came to Philippi that Paul was inprison in Rome. The Philippians imme-diately made a collection of things whichthey sent to Paul by the hand ofEpaphroditus (vs 18; 2:25). They hadlacked the opportunity to give until thistime because they did not know wherehe was.

4:11 In whatever state ... to be con-tent: Paul is not making these statementsin order to plead for their continued help.He did not ask for the support they hadjust sent. The contribution that they gavecame as a spontaneous desire on their partto express their love for Paul and theirevangelistic spirit of freely giving thegospel to others as it had been freelygiven to them (1:5; Mt 28:19,20; Mk16:15). The reason Paul did not ask orneed to ask was that he had learned to befinancially content with those things hehad. Learned: It is a process of learn-ing to be content with the things one has.



Contentment is not an attitude of mindwith which one is born. It is not some-thing one learns from ungodly material-istic neighbors. It is not something wecan learn in institutions that focus onteaching us how to make money. It is anattitude of mind that one develops byfocusing on that which is above this ma-terial world (See comments Cl 3:1-4).

4:12 Be in need: Paul had learnedhow to be poor without complainingabout his circumstances. He knew howto go without food and shelter (1 Co4:11). Most men are continually greedyfor more money, regardless of their fi-nancial state of being. Regardless ofwhether one is poor or rich, most mencontinually seek to acquire more thingsof this world. Those Christians who arepoor must learn not to complain and mur-mur about their situation and blame oth-ers for their predicament. Contentmentof mind must be learned by those whoare poor. Know how to abound: At timesin his ministry, Paul had plenty. In thosetimes he learned how to possess moneywithout money possessing him. There-fore, the rich must also learn to be con-tent with their own financial well-being.They must learn not to allow money tobecome the idol of their lives.

4:13 Paul explains in this verse howone learns to be content in poverty andin wealth. It is only in Christ that oneunderstands the purpose of all things.When in poverty, it is Christ who givesstrength to overcome discouragement anddespair. When in riches, it is Christ whogives strength to overcome the controlof money. In any circumstance of life,

therefore, the Christian has the power toendure because of Christ who works inhim (See 1:12,13; Jn 15:5; Gl 2:20).

4:14 You have done well: The well-doing of the Philippians was in their workof sending support for the purpose ofpreaching the gospel. This Spirit-in-spired commendation has been writtenfor all history in order that God’s peopleknow what He considers to be a well-doing disciple. The Philippians weredoing well by sending support to evan-gelists in order that the gospel bepreached (Rm 10:14,15; see comments3 Jn 1-8). Shared: The word here isfrom the Greek word koinonia which re-fers to joint partnership. This church wasthus having fellowship with Paul in hissufferings, which thing they had donebefore in their contribution to the fam-ine-stricken victims of Judea (See com-ments 2 Co 8:1-4). In other words, theywere willing to go without things in or-der to contribute things to Paul (1:7).

4:15 The beginning of the gospel:Paul now takes their minds back severalyears to the time he first visited Philippion his second missionary journey (Seecomments At 16). On that first visit, Paul,Silas, Timothy and Luke baptized Lydiaand her household and the jailor and hishousehold. When Paul, Silas and Timo-thy went on to Thessalonica, Luke wasleft with the small group of disciples thatconsisted of two households (At 17:1).According to 2 Corinthians 8:1-3, theywere evidently poor. At the time Paulleft Philippi, the church had two wageearners, Lydia, an expatriate business-woman who traded in purple, and the



jailor, who had a government job. WhenPaul left for Thessalonica, these house-holds had been disciples for only a fewdays (At 16:12). Nevertheless, this small,poor and young group of disciples finan-cially sent support once and again to Paul,Silas and Timothy for the continuationof their mission trip to other areas. Theseyoung disciples had thus captured thespirit of Christianity, that is, freely theyreceived; freely they gave. It was onlynatural that they support the preachingof the gospel to other areas because it hadbeen freely preached to them. They hadfreely received the gift of God’s grace,and thus, they were motivated to freelydeliver the grace of God to others. Fromtheir very beginning, they were Chris-tians who understood the nature of Chris-tianity.

4:16 You sent once and again: ThePhilippians did not give a onetime con-tribution to relieve themselves of a feel-ing of guilt. They continued sendingsomeone over to Thessalonica and intoAchaia with a contribution in order thatthe preaching of the gospel continue.Though they could not give much, theycheerfully gave what they could on a con-tinuing basis. Paul worked to supporthimself by tentmaking wherever he went.However, other Christians as the Philip-pians sent contributions to make up whathe lacked (See comments 2 Co 11:9).

4:17 Not ... desire the gift: Paulwanted to remind them that he was notpreaching for money. Preaching was nota job. It was his compulsion. Those whoare men of God will preach regardless ofsupport. Hirelings preach in order to get

paid. God’s men preach without consid-eration of how they are supported, eitherby the church or by making tents. Thosewho make their tents and preach are trulydedicated men of God who have a com-mitment that must be praised and ad-mired. The fruit that abounds to youraccount: The fruit of Paul’s labors inThessalonica, and other places wherepeople were converted, went to the spiri-tual account of those who supported him.Therefore, the Philippians were gainingfruit in other areas by sending financialsupport for the preaching of the gospel.The fruit went to their account, not theaccount of the supported evangelists.When evangelists support themselves,they get the fruit. However, when otherssupport them, the supporters get the fruit.When the Christian works as a laborer ata job in the world, the contributions hemakes to support evangelism brings fruitto his account. His job in the world,therefore, is a work for the Lord. Thereare those who are supported and sent inGod’s system of world evangelism.There are those who send (Rm 10:14,15).Therefore, it is a partnership between thesent and the senders that accomplishesthe work of world evangelism.

4:18 I have all and abound: ThePhilippians had contributed a great dealto Paul on this occasion. He thus letsthem know that he is now abounding asa result of their contribution. The things:He had received the things that camethrough Epaphroditus. Their contribu-tion was more than money. The wordhere refers to material things that couldhave included blankets, food, shoes or



possibly clothing. Contribution is notconfined to the giving of money. Dis-ciples have liberty to contribute anythingto the work of the Lord (See commentsAt 4:32-37). God does not restrict thatwhich is to be contributed. From a cheer-ful heart, one must contribute whateverhe can and how much he can. A fragrantaroma: From the Sinai law animal sac-rifices, Paul metaphorically explains thatthe contribution that the Philippians sentwas an aroma to God which is consid-ered by God to be a sacrificial commit-ment to Him. The sacrifice was wellpleasing to God. When brethren contrib-ute to the preaching of the gospel, it iswell pleasing to God. Such sacrificessend a message to God that brethren loveHim and have captured the spirit of HisSon who came as a missionary fromheaven to them with the gospel of Hisgrace (2:5-8).

4:19 Supply all your need: Empha-sis here is not on material needs, but onriches in glory. God did not make thePhilippians physically wealthy becauseof their contribution. Contribution mustnot be given out of selfish motives. Con-tribution is not a capital investment. TheChristian does not selfishly give in orderthat he receive in return more things of

this world. The reward of the Christianis not in things of this world, but in theglory that will be revealed to us (Rm8:18). The Christian is motivated to givebecause of what God has given throughHis grace that will be realized in theworld to come. In this sense, therefore,the Christian has already received morethan he can ever expect to earn throughhis contributions.

FINAL GREETINGS4:20-23 To God all glory must go.

All glory must go to Him because it wasin the plan of God to redeem us from sinand death through the sacrificial offer-ing of His Son on the cross. Those ofCaesar’s household: There were differ-ent brethren with Paul at different timesduring his Roman imprisonment. Thesebrethren are mentioned in Ephesians,Colossians and Philemon. However, onlyhere does he mention the result of hisevangelistic work among the royal fam-ily of Nero. The godly influence, repu-tation and boldness of Paul reached eveninto Caesar’s household through thepreaching of the gospel. We must neverunderestimate the power of the gospel tochange the lives of men (Rm 1:16).

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