Anno Domini 2009
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Introduction
In Philippians we come to what is arguably one of the sweetest books of the Bible, by which I mean it’s a book which is full of tenderness and affection. It contains some material that is mildly corrective in tone, but it’s mostly a letter of thanksgiving, praise, and commendation of the Philippians. The church in Philippi is Paul’s pride and joy.
Philippians is one of the most personal letters of Paul. It contains some autobiographical information about him that we do not find anywhere else in Scripture. It helps us to come to know him better, not only in terms of his background—his personal history—but also his psychology. He shows us what motivated him before and since he came to know Christ.
Location of Philippi
The city of Philippi was one of the leading cities in the Roman province of Macedonia. It has the distinction of being the very first city in Europe to receive the ministry of an apostle.
Philippi was originally a Greek city, but was defeated by Marc Antony in 42 b.c. and brought under Roman control. It was later re-founded as a Roman colony by the emperor Augustus, and populated with retired army veterans. Its special status as an imperial colony exempted the city from significant forms of taxation and gave it certain other privileges not shared by most other cities in the empire.
Founding of the Church at Philippi
Paul founded the church at Philippi on his second missionary journey which is recorded for us in Acts . The account of his ministry in Philippi is given in -40. This would most likely have been in the year a.d. 50.
Let me briefly recount the events leading up to this.
1.) Paul went on his first missionary journey with Barnabas in Acts 13-14. They went first to the island of Cyprus, and then to the mainland, to the very heart of what is now the country of Turkey. At that time, it was known as the Roman province of Galatia. A good number of Jews, and an even larger number of Gentiles, came to believe.
2.) A controversy quickly arose as to how to handle the Gentiles. There were some in the church (mainly from the party of the Pharisees, who were very zealous for the laws of Moses) who said that unless the Gentile Christians were circumcised and adopted all the customary Jewish practices, they could not be saved. In Acts 15 Paul took part in the council of Jerusalem, which was convened for the purpose of looking into this Gentile question. Not there was any doubt in Paul’s mind… (explain)
3.) When the Council had made its decision, Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch.
4.) At the end of chapter 15 we find Paul saying to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are” (Acts ). There was a strong disagreement between them on the suitability of taking John Mark with them again since he had deserted the work on their first missionary journey. Barnabas, who was a cousin to Mark, wanted to take Mark along and give him a second chance. Paul said, “No way. He’s proved himself too unreliable for so important a work.” And the disagreement was so sharp that they ended up going their separate ways. Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus; and Paul took Silas and took the inland route to the cities of Galatia. While in Galatia, he was joined by one of the young locals, young Timothy, who became one of Paul’s most devoted co-workers.
Afterward he was directed by the Spirit to cross over the Aegean Sea to Europe, and the first city he preached in (in Europe) was Philippi (Acts 16:11-40).
Afterward we find that the church at Philippi had a very deep affection for Paul, and that Paul had a very deep affection for the church. They appear to have had a very special relationship. In fact, a good part of the reason why Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians was to thank them for being mindful of him by sending him a financial gift. Paul was a prisoner in Rome when he wrote the letter, under a kind of house arrest (cf. Acts 28:30-31). And while he was there, the Philippians sent a financial contribution to help him with his needs. Paul writes Philippians, then, as an acknowledgement and a thank you. This would probably have been in the year a.d. 62, or about 12 years after he established the church there.
So Paul is under house arrest, as it were, and the church at Philippi sends him an offering by the hand of Epaphroditus (-20); and his letter is a letter of thanks and is filled with expressions of tender affection. Unlike First and Second Corinthians and Galatians, which are almost entirely letters of correction and rebuke, Philippians is a letter filled with encouragement. It’s not without some warning and correction, but these are few and far between, and for the most part very mild, compared with these other letters.
Selected passages
1:1-3 “overseers and deacons”
“Overseers” is another word which is used for elders. The word elder describes what is generally true of those who hold the office. They are older men. The word “overseer” describes the work of an elder. An elder is to “oversee” the flock of God.
Deacons are “servants.” This is the literal meaning of the word. They carry out the practical ministries of the church.
1:3-14 Note the deep affection Paul has for the church and the joy he experiences when he thinks of them
2:3-11 High Christology
2:19-30 Personal matters
3:1-16 Paul disavows all trust in his own righteousness in favor of possessing the righteousness of Christ
4:1-13