-------------------
The Gospel Observer
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them
to observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:19,20).
--------------------
December 18, 2011
--------------------
Contents:
1) Philippians 1:6-18 (Tom Edwards)
2) News & Notes
-------------------
-1-
Philippians 1:6-18
by Tom Edwards
In our last lesson from the Philippian letter, we closed with the
need to cooperate with God, through compliance to His word, so that
He may truly be working in our lives. And when we do that, we
will be encouraged by our spiritual development. For the more
we grow in the Lord, the more we become Christ-like; and, therefore,
are enabled to know Him at a more personal level. In writing
to the Corinthians, Paul states, "Therefore we do not lose heart,
but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being
renewed day by day" (2 Cor. 4:16). Though the main focus is on
the inner man (that eternal soul that we are striving to conform to
the image of Christ), we also realize that by maturing in that
way, it can help the outer man as well. For instance,
think about many of the harmful and dangerous things that some folks
might have engaged in prior to becoming Christians, but have now
given up -- elicit drugs, drunkenness, tobacco, fornication, and
other things that can often lead to poor health and even
death. Consider, too, the Gospel's instruction for the child
of God to strive to be a peace-maker (rather than a trouble-maker),
to love even one's enemy and pray for them (rather than being
vengeful or retaliatory that can often make the situation
worse). Following the word of the Lord is a healthier way to
live -- physically and emotionally!
In Philippians 1:6, Paul shows that Christians need to continue to
strive to be more like the Lord until "the day of Christ Jesus,"
which is referring to His second coming. So, in other words,
we need to work at developing our inner man as long as we live.
In Philippians 1:7, Paul speaks of the affection he has for the
brethren. He states, "For it is only right for me to feel this
way about you all, because I have you in my heart, since both in my
imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you
all are partakers of grace with me." Paul was truly
dedicated to other people. He had made himself "a slave to
all," so that he "may win the more" to Christ (1 Cor. 9:19-23); and
this he did joyfully: "But
even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice
and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all"
(Phil 2:17).
Paul continues in expressing his regard for the Philippians.
The beginning of Philippians 1:8 in the KJV reads, "For God is my
record, how greatly I long after you...." In 22 of the 24
different Bible versions I looked this up, "witness," which makes it
clearer, is used instead of "record." The NIV renders it as
"God can testify how I long for all of you...."
In that same verse, the KJV also uses the phrase, "...I long after
you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ." That might sound a
little unusual to us. The Greek word for "bowels" is
"splagchnon," which Thayer shows literally means the "bowels" or
"intestines" (and including the "heart," "lung," "liver, etc."); but
he also points out that it has a figurative rendering. For
among the Greek poets "the bowels were regarded as the seat of the
more violent passions, such as anger and love; but by the Hebrews as
the seat of the tenderer affections, especially kindness,
benevolence, compassion; hence our heart (tender mercies,
affections, etc.)" Thayer also refers to it as "a heart in
which mercy resides." James Strong defines the figurative use
of "bowels" to mean the "inward affection" plus "tender
mercy." He shows that this term can also be used to
figuratively express "pity" or "sympathy." According to
Vincent Word Studies, Paul's affection toward the brethren is
"Describing his longing, not as his individual emotion, but as
Christ's longing, as if the very heart of Christ dwelt in
him." This might also remind you of what Paul states in
Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now
live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me
and gave Himself up for me." In this statement, Paul is
figuratively expressing a life that has been given wholly to
God. Paul had truly "crucified" self and lived to serve the
Lord above all. We need to also strive to have the same
dedication.
As Paul continues with his tender regard for the Philippians, he
next points out a special prayer he was making for them: "And this I
pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real
knowledge and all discernment [judgment, KJV]" (v. 9).
Thayer shows the Greek word for "discernment" to mean "1)
perception, not only by the senses but by the intellect 2)
cognition, discernment 2a) of moral discernment in ethical
matters." Or as Zerr puts it, "recognition of what is morally
proper."
In addition to an increase in their knowledge and discernment, Paul
also prayed that their love would "abound more and more." This
is the "agape" love -- the highest form of love -- and the
importance of having it is clearly seen in the Scriptures. For
example, even if Paul could "speak with the tongues of men and of
angels," but did not have love, he would become "a noisy gong or a
clanging symbol." And even if he had the gift of prophecy,
knew all mysteries, had all knowledge, and had all faith so as to
remove mountains, but did not have love, he would be nothing.
And even if gave all his possessions to feed the poor, and gave up
his body to be burned, but did not have love, it would profit him
nothing (1 Cor. 13:1-3). Love was also something we find Paul
specifically praying for the Thessalonians (1 Thess.
3:11-13). Love has many facets. So abounding in it
will result in abounding in various other virtues as well. For
example, consider the definition of love that Paul gives in 1
Corinthians 13:4-8: "Love is patient, love is kind and is not
jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act
unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not
take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in
unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things,
believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love
never fails...."
Some commentators take Philippians 1:9 to mean that the Philippians
had love, but lacked in knowledge; so while Paul encourages them to
abound even more in love, he wants them to also have that
proper balance of knowledge. The need for that right coupling
of knowledge and love can be inferred from 1 Corinthians 8:1:
"...Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies."
Paul then goes on to show the purpose for their abounding in love
and knowledge: "so that you may approve the things that are
excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of
Christ" (v. 10). The Greek word for "approve"
("dokimazo") is defined as "to test (literally or figuratively); by
implication to approve..." (James Strong). Thayer shows that the
word first means "to test, examine, prove, scrutinize (to see
whether a thing is genuine or not), as metals" and, secondly, "to
recognize as genuine after examination, to approve, deem
worthy." Naturally, one of the characteristics of mature
Christians is the ability "to discern good and evil," which they
have trained their senses to do through practice (Heb. 5:14).
Having this "knowledge and discernment," so that we "may approve the
things that are excellent," is also necessary so that we may be
"sincere and blameless" (Phil. 1:10). And though
salvation is not based on mere sincerity alone, still it is part of
the means whereby we can approach God: "...let us draw near with a
sincere heart in full assurance of faith..." (Heb. 10:19-22).
It is also needed in our relationship to one another: "Since you
have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere
love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart" (1
Pet. 1:22). One of the reasons God has given us commandments
is that we will develop "love from a pure heart and a good
conscience and a sincere faith" (1 Tim. 1:5). Concerning his
own conduct, Paul speaks of it as not being that which stems from
fleshly wisdom; but, rather, that which is characterized with
"holiness and godly sincerity...in the grace of God" (2 Cor.
1:12). Even in the Old Testament times, God required sincerity
from those who would serve Him: "Now, therefore, fear the LORD and
serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your
fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD"
(Josh. 24:14). Note, too, that sincerity alone is not
enough. For this passage shows that it was to be coupled with
the truth of God's word -- and that principle is still true today.
Philippians 1:11 points out what Paul's prayer for the Philippians
would also lead to: "having been filled with the fruit of
righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and
praise of God." If a man is striving to be righteous,
according to the gospel, he will then have the fruit of the Spirit
abundant in his life (Gal. 5:22,23). In understanding how the
Christian is to be righteous today, Psalm 119:172 sets forth a
helpful principle: "Let my tongue sing of Thy word, For all Thy
commandments are righteousness." Therefore, the commandments
of God in the New Testament for the Gospel Age are also
righteousness and must be complied with (cf. Rom. 1:16,17).
This can also be inferred from Romans 10:3: When Paul says of some
Jews, "For not knowing about God's righteousness and seeking to
establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the
righteousness of God," it does not mean that these individuals did
not know that God was righteous. Rather, it was His righteous
plan of salvation, as set forth in the gospel, that they were not
accepting. Furthermore, righteousness is to be practiced by
submitting to the teachings of the gospel. As John states,
"Little children, let no one deceive you; the one who practices
righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who
practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the
beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might
destroy the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices
sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he
is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the
devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not
of God, nor the one who does not love his brother" (1 Jn.
3:7-10).
Paul next goes on to say in Philippians 1:12 the following: "Now I
want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out
for the greater progress of the gospel[.]" What
"circumstances" does Paul have in mind here that helped promote the
gospel? He shows specifically in the next verse, "so that my
imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout
the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else" (v. 13). The
KJV renders this as, "So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all
the palace, and in all other places." Note the word "palace"
-- instead of the "praetorian guard," which the NASB uses.
Concerning this, Jamison, Fausset, and Brown write:
"literally, 'Praetorium,' that is, the barrack of the Praetorian
guards attached to the palace of Nero, on the Palatine hill at Rome;
not the general Praetorian camp outside of the city; for this was
not connected with 'Caesars household,' which Phi. 4:22 shows the
Praetorium here meant was. The emperor was 'Praetor,' or
Commander-in-Chief; naturally then the barrack of his bodyguard was
called the Praetorium." The Greek word for "palace" (KJV) or
"praetorian guard" (NASB) is "praitorion," so "praetorian" appears
to be a transliteration. Thayer defines the general meaning of
this word as, "1) 'head-quarters' in a Roman camp, the tent of the
commander in chief 2) the palace in which the governor or
procurator of a province resided, to which use the Romans were
accustomed to appropriate the palaces already existing, and formerly
dwelt in by kings or princes; at Jerusalem it was a magnificent
palace which Herod the Great had built for himself, and which the
Roman procurators seemed to have occupied whenever they came from
Caesarea to Jerusalem to transact public business 3) the camp
of the Praetorian soldiers established by Tiberius."
Notice, too, the effect Paul's imprisonment had upon the majority of
the brethren, according to Philippians 1:14: "and that most of the
brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far
more courage to speak the word of God without fear." Paul's
imprisonment had emboldened them in their own teaching of the gospel
and quelled their fears. Zerr expresses the good that came out
of this with the old phrase that "evils are often blessings in
disguise." This can also be seen in the case of Paul and Silas
who were wrongly imprisoned and mistreated in Philippi, but it led
to the conversion of the Philippian jailer and his household.
There are various other examples, too. And now Paul is in Rome
-- though an innocent man, yet under house arrest and chained to
different guards for 2 years -- but, in spite of that, he will still
be able to make good out of that situation by continuing in his
service to God.
It is quite possible that the brethren who knew of Paul's
imprisonment might have initially thought that he would now be
hindered from preaching the gospel, that his work as a gospel
preacher must now cease; but Paul assures them that that is
certainly not the case. First, there were those many
non-Christians who made up the praetorian guard whom Paul would be
able to teach. Concerning these, Robertson's Word Pictures
states that "There were originally ten thousand of these picked
soldiers, concentrated in Rome by Tiberius. They had double pay and
special privileges and became so powerful that emperors had to court
their favour. Paul had contact with one after another of these
soldiers." According to J. W. Shepherd, Caesar's household was
composed of not only guards, but also attendants, courtiers, and
officers. Some of these became obedient to the faith. We
can see this from the way Paul ends this epistle in Philippians 4:22
(the second to the last verse): "All the saints greet you,
especially those of Caesar's household." And, in addition,
there were the Christians who were strengthened in the faith because
of Paul's imprisonment. He was such a wonderful example to
them that they could now fearlessly face their own difficult
challenges with more courage. From Acts 28:15, we see a
switch: When Paul first came to Rome, along with Luke, he was
strengthened by the brethren who had met him there; and he thanked
God for them. Now, however, the table is turned; and the
majority of the Christians are being strengthened by the way the
apostle Paul is able to endure his imprisonment and continue with
teaching the gospel.
Paul then goes on to say in Philippians 1:15, "Some, to be sure, are
preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good
will." This might seem a little bewildering to us, but that is
probably because the Bible doesn't reveal those who were actually
doing this. Some believe they were those Christians who were
still inclined toward Judaism, though they would still preach Jesus
as the promised Messiah of the OT; others are of the opinion that it
is Christians in Rome who were given to envy and strife and viewed
themselves as "leaders" of the church in Rome, but are now
over-shadowed by Paul's success in winning many to the Lord -- even
as a prisoner. But all of this is speculation, for the Bible
doesn't say who these men specifically were. We would,
therefore, be better off not to guess. One thing we do know,
though, is that those who preached from envy and strife were
motivated by selfishness and had sought to do Paul harm. For
notice what Paul goes on to say in Philippians 1:16-17: "the latter
do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of
the gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition
rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my
imprisonment." Our first impression of those who preached out
of envy and strife is probably, "These men certainly did not have
the Spirit of Christ in their lives." For their hearts are
corrupt and their intents are filled with malice. Something
else we can infer from this, however, is that the power to save, as
Romans 1:16 shows, is truly in the word of God and not in man.
For here were men with selfishness, envy, strife, all this
corruption in their hearts; yet, when they declared the gospel, that
message could still save lost souls and strengthen brethren.
What is really outstanding is the way Paul reacts toward those who
sought to do him harm, as seen in Philippians 1:18. Paul says,
"What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth,
Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will
rejoice[.]" Rather than retaliating or voicing a complaint
against those who sought to do him wrong, Paul rejoiced that Christ
was being proclaimed. Having the Lord magnified, His word
declared, people brought to salvation in Jesus, and Christians built
up in the Lord were much more important to Paul than having his own
name vindicated. Paul truly did put Christ first, others
second, and himself last.
We will consider more of Paul's letter to the Philippians in our
next installment.
-------------------
News & Notes
-2-
Let those of us who are Christians be praying for the following
people:
* Shondra Kyle and family.
Shondra lost her baby before the C-section was performed. She
also developed some serious complications, which required
hospitalization, but is now doing somewhat better.
* Mike Dubose is now being
treated for cancer.
* Geneva Wilson has not
been able to be with us at church for several weeks, due to her
health.
* Cheryl Crews has been
having some chronic ailments.
--------------------
The Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation
1) Hear the gospel,
for that is how faith comes (Rom. 10:17; John 20:30,31).
2) Believe in the
deity of Christ (John 8:24; John 3:18).
3) Repent of sins
(Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in
Christ (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts 8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water
for the remission of sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4;
Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet. 3:21).
6) Continue in the faith;
for, if not, salvation can be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10; 2 Pet.
2:20-22).
--------------------
Park Forest
CHURCH OF CHRIST
9923 Sunny Cline Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70817
Sunday services: 9:00 AM (Bible class); 10 AM & 6 PM (worship)
Tuesday: 7 PM (Bible class)
evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520
Tom@ThomasTEdwards.com
http://ThomasTEdwards.com/go (Gospel Observer website)
http://ThomasTEdwards.com/audioser.html (audio sermons)