Philippians

“And they passing by Mysia came down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul…a man of Macedonia…saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavored to go into Macedonia” and after brief stops, they arrived at Philippi.

It is here that Luke (the Macedonian man?) appears to join Paul’s party and personally witnesses his activities. Their stay amounts to only “certain days,” but it is a significant stay.

Background

Philippi derived its name from Philip of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great. The name means “warrior,” which was appropriate for the ecclesia in that city, for it comprised a warm-hearted, generous company of warriors for the faith.

In B.C. 42, Caesar Augustus granted the status of a Roman colony to Philippi (cp. Acts 16:12) so that the inhabitants enjoyed the rights of Roman citizenship (Acts 16:21). Thus Philippi had its own senate and magistrates.

Philippi was a military colony, the settlers being “mainly Italians, discharged Antonian soldiers.” There were but few Jews there, and no synagogue; only a proseuche or legal “prayer place” (Acts 16:13).

The first convert of Philippi was a woman: Lydia, the seller of purple. The preaching of the Truth commenced peacefully enough, with her baptism, but developed into the most stormy experiences culminating in the imprisonment of Paul and Silas, and the subsequent conversion of the jailor (Acts 16:12-40).

Typically warm-hearted, the breth­ren of this ecclesia always showed a keen interest in Paul’s labors, and frequently assisted him materially.

In prison

Following Paul and Silas’ miraculous release from prison, the Philippian jailer and his household were baptized.

Perhaps there were already brethren in that area (Acts 16:40), but in any case, the ecclesia may have increased by Lydia, her household, other women ,the formerly possessed damsel and the jailer and his household, all in a matter of days. Three different circumstances of conversion were represented: those sought out by Paul, those following Paul for good or ill and those thrown in contact with Paul by circumstance.

Again in chains, Paul writes to the ecclesia at Philippi. See Phil. 1:7,13,14,16. This establishes the time of writing as one of his imprisonments at Rome. In verse 13, the KJV refers to the “palace, and in all other places.” The Greek for “palace” is praitorio. The Diaglott renders the verse, “all the pretorium, and in all other places,” with a footnote, “or ‘in all the Pretorium Camp.’ It was either within or near to this fortress that the Apostle dwelt with his own hired house” (Diaglott, pg. 663). The Philippian brethren and sisters, “waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear” (1:14). His conduct in bondage motivates them and his possible release further encourages them. “Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith” (1:24,25). Even in bondage in Rome, Paul preached: “All the saints salute you, chiefly they of Caesars’ household” (4:22).

Be content

The Philippians had always given their support to Paul and his companions. “In the beginning…no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only…in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity…I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you” (4:15-18).

But had they not sent unsolicited help, Paul would have accepted his circumstances uncomplainingly. “I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”

Paul emphasizes the point by laying out circumstances of extremes: “abase” and “abound;” “full” and “hungry;” “abound” and “suffer need.” The Greek underscores the contrasts: e.g. “full” is from chortazo, which means to gorge, to have food in abundance, while “hungry” is from peinao, which means to be famished, to pine away, to crave from need. And “abound” is from perisseus, meaning to super abound, to be in excess, excel, superfluous; “suffer need” from hustereo, meaning to be deficient, to fall short, to lack.

Paul could accept any situation without complaint, knowing the “peace of God” and trusting that he could “do all things through Christ which strengthened him” (4:7,13). While Paul could be content with his circumstances, the Philippian brethren could not. They knew of and felt his affliction; Paul was under tremendous pressure whether or not it affected his behavior. The joy, the beauty and wonder of the Truth is that trials give us all an opportunity to prove our worth: those who are enduring the trial and those in a position to lighten the burden. They could have ignored his problem. But they could not do so if they were truly his brothers and sisters. They “fellow shipped” his suffering. They felt it, shared it, responded to it and in measure relieved it.

Do we take advantage of those opportunities to help others? Do we “fel­lowship” in the suffering of others? Have we learned to be content in whatever circumstances we find ourselves from one day to the next? Do we find comfort in the peace of God, the strength of Christ, the comfort and concern of our brothers and sisters?

Press on

Paul had everything a good Jew could want: strong family background, good position in the community, respect and authority, but he gave it up for something better. To Paul, what he gave up was incidental compared to what he stood to gain. “I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord.” When everything about his circumstances may have shouted out, Paul kept on running the race though his muscles were strained and he drew in breath after breath, extending himself toward the goal, fixing his mind on his Lord to the end.

At one time, Paul persecuted the ecclesia with all vigor. Now he expended no less energy in striving to build God’s house. Paul had learned to channel his whole being into following Christ, recognizing the greatness of his calling. Shouldn’t we follow his example? The way will be made easier if we sharpen our perception of the goal as did the apostle Paul.