Why Philippi?
This week we finish with Paul’s letter to the church of Philippi. If you read the remaining few verses past what we read this morning, you’ll find some words of thanks and some salutations to individuals and to the church at large. But the meat of Paul’s letter basically wraps up in our scripture reading this morning.
Which brings me to this question: What’s the point of it?
In looking at Philippians from beginning to end, he says some nice things about the church, he says a lot of nice things about Jesus, he shares some of his own story with the congregations of the city…
But there doesn’t seem to be much reason for this letter to exist at all.
This isn’t like his epistle to the Romans, where he’s delving into theological and ecclesiastical matters with them. He’s not trying to explain the finer points of Christology or explore the proper relationship between the church and the empire.
And it’s not like his epistle to the churches of other cities, especially the Galatians, where there’s been discord or where he senses that some of the church teachings may be a little bit questionable. So he writes to them to try to steer the ship and correct their course.
The letter to the Philippians isn’t a grand theological treatise. And it’s not a chastisement or word of warning.
By comparison, this letter is basically a Hallmark card.
So why is it important? Why did Paul write it? Why is it included in the scriptures?
Well… for starters… there’s a lot we still don’t know about it. Some scholars, reading the way the style of writing jumps around, think it may be a composite of multiple letters, pieced together after the fact. Others disagree.
Some people think this was written in the months before Paul’s death. Others think it was several years before he died. And we’re not entirely sure where it was written from.
Our best guess, however, is that this letter was written during one of Paul’s multiple times that he was under arrest. Whether in prison or under house arrest – after converting to Christianity and becoming a leader and evangelist for the church, he often found himself on the wrong side of the civil law. During Paul’s lifetime, the early church was a small thorn in the side of Rome, but a thorn just the same. And the Christian church was a much bigger thorn in the courts of Jerusalem.
But we go back to Philippians 1:12-14, where Paul’s tells us of his predicament. He writes, “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me actually served to advance the Gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.”
Now… we don’t know during which of Paul’s imprisonments he wrote this. But I’m not so sure that it matters so much that we know the specifics. Whether it was the first time or the last time; whether he was in a prison cell or under house arrest. No matter which specific circumstance Paul’s writing in, he has to know that the fate of his body, his life, his time on earth, is at the mercy of the whims of his jailors, judges, and courts.
We can imagine him sitting down behind a locked door, bars on his windows, Roman guards keeping watch, as he puts ink to parchment and begins to write.
And what he writes, in this letter to the churches in Philippi, is not a treatise on the finer points of theology, or an admonition to a church in disarray… but a love letter. It’s a love letter to a church he knows well in a city he believes will flourish in faith. And it’s a love letter to Jesus.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to everyone – the Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
That’s a statement of faith. That is Paul telling the church at Philippi – a church which he loves, congregations which are growing, where faith is growing deeper and richer, which he sees good things happening in – that is Paul telling those people – those churches - that the best is yet to come.
He’s not writing to prove a point. Or to settle a score. He’s not writing out of discouragement or admonition. He’s not trying to mediate a dispute or judge a case or anything else like that.
He writes to the church because he loves them. Because he wants to be an encouragement to them. Because even in this dark hour of his own imprisonment, he still holds his head up, still has faith, still trusts in Jesus.
He doesn’t know what his tomorrow will be. If the whims of his captors will lead him to a trial or to a chopping block. He doesn’t know when his physical release from his confinement will happen, or if it will happen.
So he writes of what he does know.
He writes of faith – faith that holds strong even in dark times.
He writes of rejoicing – rejoicing in the Lord even when we’d expect Paul to be filled with fear and sorrow.
He writes of love – love in Jesus Christ that knows no bounds.
This is a love letter. It’s an encouragement. It’s a writing of hope and optimism. And a reminder to all of that no matter our circumstances, no matter how dire our predicaments, that for each of us, through Jesus Christ the best is yet to come.
Please pray with me.
Most holy and loving God, we give you thanks for the example of your servant, Paul. We pray that your faith may grow within us as it grew in him. And that our lives may be living testimonies to the peace, love, and joy we can only know through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
This week we finish with Paul’s letter to the church of Philippi. If you read the remaining few verses past what we read this morning, you’ll find some words of thanks and some salutations to individuals and to the church at large. But the meat of Paul’s letter basically wraps up in our scripture reading this morning.
Which brings me to this question: What’s the point of it?
In looking at Philippians from beginning to end, he says some nice things about the church, he says a lot of nice things about Jesus, he shares some of his own story with the congregations of the city…
But there doesn’t seem to be much reason for this letter to exist at all.
This isn’t like his epistle to the Romans, where he’s delving into theological and ecclesiastical matters with them. He’s not trying to explain the finer points of Christology or explore the proper relationship between the church and the empire.
And it’s not like his epistle to the churches of other cities, especially the Galatians, where there’s been discord or where he senses that some of the church teachings may be a little bit questionable. So he writes to them to try to steer the ship and correct their course.
The letter to the Philippians isn’t a grand theological treatise. And it’s not a chastisement or word of warning.
By comparison, this letter is basically a Hallmark card.
So why is it important? Why did Paul write it? Why is it included in the scriptures?
Well… for starters… there’s a lot we still don’t know about it. Some scholars, reading the way the style of writing jumps around, think it may be a composite of multiple letters, pieced together after the fact. Others disagree.
Some people think this was written in the months before Paul’s death. Others think it was several years before he died. And we’re not entirely sure where it was written from.
Our best guess, however, is that this letter was written during one of Paul’s multiple times that he was under arrest. Whether in prison or under house arrest – after converting to Christianity and becoming a leader and evangelist for the church, he often found himself on the wrong side of the civil law. During Paul’s lifetime, the early church was a small thorn in the side of Rome, but a thorn just the same. And the Christian church was a much bigger thorn in the courts of Jerusalem.
But we go back to Philippians 1:12-14, where Paul’s tells us of his predicament. He writes, “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me actually served to advance the Gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.”
Now… we don’t know during which of Paul’s imprisonments he wrote this. But I’m not so sure that it matters so much that we know the specifics. Whether it was the first time or the last time; whether he was in a prison cell or under house arrest. No matter which specific circumstance Paul’s writing in, he has to know that the fate of his body, his life, his time on earth, is at the mercy of the whims of his jailors, judges, and courts.
We can imagine him sitting down behind a locked door, bars on his windows, Roman guards keeping watch, as he puts ink to parchment and begins to write.
And what he writes, in this letter to the churches in Philippi, is not a treatise on the finer points of theology, or an admonition to a church in disarray… but a love letter. It’s a love letter to a church he knows well in a city he believes will flourish in faith. And it’s a love letter to Jesus.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to everyone – the Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
That’s a statement of faith. That is Paul telling the church at Philippi – a church which he loves, congregations which are growing, where faith is growing deeper and richer, which he sees good things happening in – that is Paul telling those people – those churches - that the best is yet to come.
He’s not writing to prove a point. Or to settle a score. He’s not writing out of discouragement or admonition. He’s not trying to mediate a dispute or judge a case or anything else like that.
He writes to the church because he loves them. Because he wants to be an encouragement to them. Because even in this dark hour of his own imprisonment, he still holds his head up, still has faith, still trusts in Jesus.
He doesn’t know what his tomorrow will be. If the whims of his captors will lead him to a trial or to a chopping block. He doesn’t know when his physical release from his confinement will happen, or if it will happen.
So he writes of what he does know.
He writes of faith – faith that holds strong even in dark times.
He writes of rejoicing – rejoicing in the Lord even when we’d expect Paul to be filled with fear and sorrow.
He writes of love – love in Jesus Christ that knows no bounds.
This is a love letter. It’s an encouragement. It’s a writing of hope and optimism. And a reminder to all of that no matter our circumstances, no matter how dire our predicaments, that for each of us, through Jesus Christ the best is yet to come.
Please pray with me.
Most holy and loving God, we give you thanks for the example of your servant, Paul. We pray that your faith may grow within us as it grew in him. And that our lives may be living testimonies to the peace, love, and joy we can only know through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.