The Apostle Paul is not perfect and never claims to be but says he does one thing that we should imitate: forget what is behind, strain toward what lies ahead, press toward the mark. There is no backwards to the Christian walk. Sometimes it feels like running a race, other times it feels like going uphill into the wind. Press on. There are enemies of Christ but we are citizens of heaven.
The title kind of says it all. As we begin Philippians 3, Paul considered everything he had gained as loss, equating it all to garbage compared to the value of righteousness and eternal life in Christ Jesus.
Everyone needs one, two or three friends that will move heaven and earth, so to speak, in times of need. Paul had Timothy and Epaphroditus in Philippians 2 and a few others mentioned in other letters.
“Work out your own salvation” doesn’t mean you need to figure it out yourself. Paul is writing to believers who already have the Holy Spirit inside of them. It is God who works through us. So keeping doing that; searching for God’s will, doing his works that please him, and shining light into this dark world so that others may find him too.
Paul’s directions are clear in Philippians 2: Have the same mind as Christ. That sets the bar pretty high. Striving together in one faith, serving others in humility, acting in one accord are all secondary to thinking and acting like Jesus. He humbled himself so that God could lift him up. The goal for believers: do the same.
“To Live is Christ, to die is gain.” Well known statement in Philippians 1:21, but what exactly does it mean?
“All things work together for good” in Romans 8:28 is also a Paul quote. His observations in Philippians 1 is a good example of how that works sometimes.
This is part 1 of a series in Philippians.
Letters were written to individuals and churches for a number of reasons. Who were the Philippians and why was Paul writing to them?
Advent is the invention of something new or the appearance of something for the first time. The incarnation describes God becoming flesh and walking among us. Epiphany is the celebration of Jesus, the Christ, God incarnate, revealed to the Gentiles. The shepherds were near, the wise men were far off.
And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. -Ephesians 2:17-18
Jesus never works alone. From before his birth, through his earthly ministry, the establishment of the New Testament church and beyond Jesus has always been a real team player.
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