THE BOOK OF PHILIPPIANS

From Beatings to Imprisonment: A Study in Joy |

The subject or theme of this letter is Jesus Christ and his availability for coping with the problems of life. The church at Philippi to which Paul wrote was not beset with serious doctrinal problems but only the normal, usual problems of everyday, commonplace existence---Christians who did not get along with one another, and incipient divisions within the church created by certain persons who were trying to mislead others with ideas not quite in accord with the Christian faith. To deal with these problems, Paul designed this epistle as a guide for ordinary living. It faces the normal problems a Christian has, and proclaims the victory which a Christian can appropriate in overcoming these problems. The recurring theme, running throughout the letter, is that of joy and rejoicing. This four part study looks deeper into Pauls reason for writing this letter to the Philippians, the setting for this letter and ultimately, this study hopes to give Christians a better understanding on how to have joy in their lives, regardless of circumstance.

Philippians Bible Study Lesson 1

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1. Who were the Philippians?

2. Read verse 1. Who was Timothy?

3. Who is this letter written to?

4. What does Paul thank God for? Verses 3-6 5. What do you think is meant by partakers with me of Grace? Verses 7,8

6. Why do you think Paul loved the Philippians so much?

7. What does Paul pray for the Philippians? Verses 9-11 8. What does the word sincere imply? 9. What does without offense mean? 10. Read verses 12-14. Has being in prison hindered the Gospel? 11. How can we become confident by Pauls chains? 12. Read verses 15-18. What do you think Paul is saying here?

13. What gives Paul his confidence while in prison? Verses 19,20 14. What was Pauls biggest expectation and hope? 15. What is meant by: For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain? Verses 21-26
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16. What does Paul want the Philippians to do? Verse 27 17. Why does Paul warn the Philippians that he may hear of their affairs? 18. What else does Paul want them to be? Verse 28 19. What is meant by the term perdition?

20. What was the Philippians conflict? Verses 29-39

Philippians Bible Study Lesson 1

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1. Who were the Philippians? Established by Philip II in 356 BC and abandoned in the 14th century after the Ottoman conquest. The present municipality Filippoi is located near the ruins of the ancient city and it is part of the periphery of East Macedonia in Greece. The church in Philippi was founded by Paul some eleven years before this letter, on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:11-40). This was the first church established on the continent of Europe. Philippi was a diverse Roman city on the main highway (The Egnatian Way) from the eastern provinces to Rome. This particular church is noted of its diversity by mentioning an Asian, A Greek and a Roman. One was a business woman who sold purple cloth; one was a slave girl and the third, a jailer. Three different races mentioned, and note that they probably had three different religious views before coming to Christ. (Acts 16: Lydia is a wealthy Asian (Thyatira); the slave girl is an oppressed Greek, and the jailer was a middle class Roman.) 2. Read verse 1. Who was Timothy? Timothy was a young believer and Pauls protg from Lystra that had accompanied Paul during his second and third mission trips. (Acts 16:2,3) His father was Greek and his mother and grandmother were godly Jewish women (2 Tim 1:5) Paul refers to Timothy as a true son. This gives legitimacy to timothy as a son, who possessed all the rights and privileges of a natural son. In Pauls second letter to Timothy, he urges him to come quickly to Rome as he was soon to die. If Timothy did do quickly, he would have acted as a true son in Pauls final days. 3. Who is this letter written to? Paul addresses the letter to three groups: To all the saints in Christ Jesus: This means all the Christians in Philippi. All Christians are saints, but only in Christ Jesus. To the bishops: In a general sense, this speaks of those with leadership responsibilities. To the deacons: Those who have a recognized position of service.

4. What does Paul thank God for? Verses 3-6 Paul was thankful for the Philippians because of their fellowship in the gospel. The idea is that the Philippians partnered with Paul in his spreading of the gospel through their friendship and financial support, and they did so from the first day until now. They didnt wait to see if Paul was a winner before they supported him. They got behind Paul and his ministry early. Refer to Acts 16:15, 16:32-34 and 2 Corinthians 8:1-7, 9:1-4, and 11:9
Philippians Bible Study Lesson 1
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5. What do you think is meant by partakers with me of Grace? Verses 7,8 They stood beside him in his trials for the gospel, and they received the same grace he did. 6. Why do you think Paul loved the Philippians so much? He loved them because they adhered to him in his bonds, and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel: they were as ready to appear in their places, and according to their capacity, for the defense of the gospel, as the apostle was in his; and therefore he had them in his heart. Fellow sufferers should be dear one to another; those who have ventured and suffered in the same good cause of God and religion should for that reason love one another dearly: or, because you have me at heart They manifested their respect for him by adhering firmly to the doctrine he preached, and readily suffering for it along with him. The truest mark of respect towards our ministers is receiving and abiding by the doctrine they preach. ~ Matthew Henry 7. What does Paul pray for the Philippians? Verses 9-11 Paul did not want the Philippians to have a blind love, but a love that had knowledge and discernment. He rebuked the Corinthian church for having a love that had no discernment or knowledge. The Corinthians were puffed up.

8. What does the word sincere imply? Being sincere speaks of our own, inner righteousness. The word eilikrineia, which we translate sincerity, is compounded of eilh, the splendour of the sun, I judge; a thing which may be examined in the clearest and strongest light, without the possibility of detecting a single flaw or imperfection. Be so purified and refined in your souls, by the indwelling Spirit, that even the light of God shining into your hearts, shall not be able to discover a fault that the love of God has not purged away. Our word sincerity is from the Latin sinceritas, which is compounded of sine, without, and cera, wax, and is a metaphor taken from clarified honey; for the mel sincerum, pure or clarified honey, is that which is sine cera, without wax, no part of the comb being left in it. Sincerity, taken in its full meaning, is a word of the most extensive import; and, when applied in reference to the state of the soul, is as strong as the word perfection itself. The soul that is sincere is the soul that is without sin. ~Adam Clarke 9. What does without offense mean? Speaks of outer righteousness that can be seen. Neither offending God nor your neighbour; neither being stumbled yourselves, nor the cause of stumbling to others.~ Adam Clarke
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10. Read verses 12-14. Has being in prison hindered the Gospel? No, in fact, Paul says that the gospel is being spread, not just to the prisoners, but of the palace guard as well. People are seeing that he was an emissary of Christ. 11. How can we become confident by Pauls chains? Pauls imprisonment gave the Christians around him - who were not imprisoned greater confidence and boldness. This was because they saw that Paul had joy in the midst of such a trial. They saw that God would take care of Paul in such circumstances. They saw that God could still use Paul even when he was imprisoned. 12. Read verses 15-18. What do you think Paul is saying here? People preached the gospel more energetically, motivated by Pauls imprisonment. Some were motivated in a good way, some were motivated in a bad way, but nonetheless they were motivated - and Paul could rejoice in that! Remember that Pauls concern here is not with the gospel that is being preached, only with the motives behind those who preached. Paul objected if he thought a false or distorted gospel was preached, even if from the best of motives (Galatians 1:6-9). Pauls attitude went like this: If you preach the true gospel, I dont care what your motives are. If your motives are bad, God will deal with you - but at least the gospel is preached. But if you preach a false gospel, I dont care how good your motives are. You are dangerous and must stop preaching your false gospel, and good motives dont excuse your false message. If Pauls imprisonment could not hinder the gospel, neither could the wrong motives of some. Gods work was still getting done, and that was cause for rejoicing.~ David Guzik 13. What gives Paul his confidence while in prison? Verses 19,20 Paul knew that the Lord was in control of all events, even though his imprisonment and impending trial before Caesar Nero made the situation look pretty bleak. How can Paul be so confident? Because he knew the Philippians prayed for him. His deliverance in the present situation was connected to the prayer of the Philippians. 14. What was Pauls biggest expectation and hope? He believed that God will not cause him to be ashamed or that God will not turn against him in the matter. Paul had the confidence that he was in the center of Gods will. He knew God was not punishing him by the adversity he found himself in at the time. Paul also trusts that Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. Paul admits to the Philippians that he may not be released from this present imprisonment, but it may instead result in his martyrdom.
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15. What is meant by: For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain? Verses 21-26 Paul knew that death is not a defeat to the Christian. It is merely a graduation to glory, a net gain for the Christian. Pauls death at the time would be a gain in two senses. First, his death for the cause of Christ would glorify Jesus, and that is gain. Second, to be in the immediate presence of the Lord was gain for Paul. The idea that Paul could consider death a present gain argues against the idea of soul sleep. This false teaching says that the believing dead are held in some sort of suspended animation until the resurrection occurs. It argues against the idea of purgatory which says that the believing dead must be cleaned up through suffering before coming into the presence of God. 16. What does Paul want the Philippians to do? Verse 27 Paul wanted the Philippians to work together for the cause of the gospel. Conduct means literally, to live as a citizen. Paul tells the Philippians to be good, patriotic citizens of the kingdom of God. This is a theme he will draw on again in Philippians. 17. Why does Paul warn the Philippians that he may hear of their affairs? Paul wanted the Philippians to know they were accountable before him. He would check up on them. 18. What else does Paul want them to be? Verse 28 Paul wants the Philippians to be bold before their adversaries. In the ancient Greek language, terrified is a vivid term, unique in the Greek Bible and denoting the uncontrollable stampede of startled horses. (Martin) In the face of this kind of opposition, Paul wanted the Philippian Christians to have the same kind of boldness he had. 19. What is meant by the term perdition? When Christians are not in any way terrified by their adversaries, that in itself is proof of perdition - meaning destruction - to their adversaries. Perdition (the ancient Greek word apolia) means destruction, wasting, or damnation. The word is also used in places like Philippians 3:19 and 2 Peter 2:1. Both Judas (John 17:12) and the Antichrist (2 Thessalonians 2:3) are called the son of perdition. The destruction of Gods enemies is certain and a foregone conclusion, but when Christians stand strong against intimidation against the world, the flesh and the devil, it shows those spiritual enemies that their ultimate destruction is certain.
Philippians Bible Study Lesson 1
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When our spiritual enemies fail to make us afraid, they have failed completely, because they really have no other weapon than fear and intimidation. When we fail to be not in any way terrified by your adversaries, we give hope and confidence to our spiritual enemies, even though it is a false hope and confidence, because their destruction is still assured. David Guzik 20. What was the Philippians conflict? Verses 29-39 Their conflict concerned the difficulty walking right with the Lord and proclaiming gospel when persecuted and under attack. Conflict is the ancient Greek word agon, which described a place where athletic contests were held, and later came to refer to the contest itself. We get our words agony and agonize from this Greek word. If the Philippians had Pauls kind of conflict, they could also have Pauls kind of joy and fruit in the midst of it.

Philippians Bible Study Lesson 1

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