Philippians 01

Salutation

1:1 From Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and deacons.

The Greek word for "Paul" is Παῦλος (pails), meaning small or little. Paul was an apostle called by God to evangelize the Gentiles. 

The Greek word for "Timothy" is Τιμόθεος (timotheos), meaning honor of God. Timothy was the son of a pagan father but also the son of a Jewish mother who taught him the Scriptures when he was young. He was a faithful traveling companion of God. Paul led him to Christ and mentored him to be a pastor of the early church.

The Greek word for "slaves" is δοῦλος (doulos), meaning bond-slave. In Corinthians and Galatians, Paul introduced himself as an apostle, because he had to defend his apostleship against enemies inside and outside of the church. He does not have to do this with the Philippians. They loved Paul and knew exactly who he was in Christ. Instead, Paul introduced himself as a bond-slave. A bond-slave was one who was set free by his master, but because he loved his master so much, he decided to stay in slavery to his master for the rest of his life. The bond-slave would have an awl pressed through his ear to demonstrate his love and loyalty to his master. An earring was placed in the ear to outwardly demonstrate this bond between owner and slave.

The Greek word for "saints" is ἅγιος (hagios), meaning those who are different from the world because they were called out of the world to experience an agape-love salvation relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. There are only two types of people in the world--the saints and aints. Saints are those saved by Christ. Aints are those who are left in their lost position. They will never believe in Christ, unless the Holy Spirit regenerates their hearts.

The letter was written to the saints in Philippi, meaning that the audience was believers in Christ. Philippi was located in the European part of the Roman Empire. Paul visited this church on his second missionary journey. Paul attempted to go into Asia at this time, but the Holy Spirit changed his route.  

The Holy Spirit gave Paul a dream in which he saw a man from Macedonia calling out for the gospel. Paul visited Macedonia, but he did not meet a man, but a woman named Lydia holding a prayer meeting by the river. Lydia became his first convert in Europe. The Philippian church was founded. Paul was placed in jail, but then he led the jailer to the Lord. These events triggered deeper missionary trips into Europe. Without this trip, many Europeans would still be pagans today.

The Greek word for "overseers" is ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos), meaning elders who watched out and protected the flock. The Greek word for "deacons" is διάκονος (diakonos), meaning servants who carry out the plan of the church. The church at Philippi was already a mature church that contained both elders and deacons. When Paul wrote the Corinthians and the Galatians, he had to condemn them because of their immaturity. He does not have to do this with the Philippians except for two women in chapter four), because they are a sound Bible church that was teaching sound Bible doctrine.

1:2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

The Greek word for "grace" is χάρις (charis), meaning the kindness of God. God loves to give supernatural gifts to His children because He is so kind and nice. This was the Greco-Roman greeting. Most of the Roman world still spoke Koine Greek, because of the hellenization political plan of Alexander the Great.

The Greek word for "peace" is εἰρήνη (errancy), which comes from the Hebrew word שָׁלום (shalom), meaning peace with God. This was the Jewish greeting. A believer must have grace from God before he can have peace with God. The grace was God opening up the mind of the believer so that he could understand the gospel. After the believer heard and believed the message, he was given peace with God as a gift These two greetings in Greek and Hebrew portray the salvation process through election and predestination.

The grace and peace came from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Notice that Paul did not mention the Holy Spirit. Why is this? Wasn't Paul a Trinitarian. Yes, Paul was a Trinitarian, but he did not need to mention the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit was alive and active in the Philippian believers.

Prayer for the Church

1:3 I thank my God every time I remember you.

Paul began his letter with praise. Paul loved the Philippians. Every time he thought about the Philippians, he thanked God for them. After all, it was God who had actually produced this church through Paul. Paul was only the instrument in God's hand. The Philippians loved their pastor and their pastor loved them.

1:4 I always pray with joy in my every prayer for all of you

 According to the other epistles, Paul had a very large prayer list. Yet in every prayer, the Philippians were always mentioned. These prayers created the maturity structure of the Philippians. Without prayer, a church will be ineffective for Christ. Strong Bible doctrine encourages prayer, because knowledge of the Scriptures produces saints who know how to pray for the right things.

Paul was in prison, but he was filled with joy. He was in the right place doing what God wanted him to do. The only way for a believer to have joy in this life is for him to study and apply Bible doctrine at the deepest level. When this happens, the believer will be mature enough to recognize God's plan in his life and act upon it. Those who do not have strong Bible doctrine will be out of the will of God and find themselves empty in life. They will live and experience an unfulfilled life.

1:5 because of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now.

The Greek word for "participation" is κοινωνία (koinonia), meaning to have fellowship or partnership as a community. It means the community is sharing things of Christ. The Philippians did not have social fellowship like many of the modern churches today. They had fellowship in studying the Word of God. They did this daily, starting on the first day that they heard the gospel. They wanted to know more about the Word of God, so they met daily with others to learn God's word.

Many churches think that fellowship is food, fun, and fellowship. For food, they have unhealthy pizza. For fun, they tell corny jokes. For fellowship, they ask about each other’s business. This is not κοινωνία (koinonia).

Neither should the super bowl parties and softball teams of today be called κοινωνία (koinonia). It is simply just a bunch of baby Christians (who think that the Word of God is too boring) watching a football game or playing in a softball game together. True κοινωνία (koinonia) is the fellowship around serious Bible study. The church is not to be a social program institution. It is not to focus on entertainment. It is not to be a music concert.

Believers would be better off playing softball with unbelievers in an attempt to win them to Christ.  The church is to fellowship around the Word of God. Beware of churches that draw in members through children's playgrounds, music concerts, entertainment, and various other social activities. This is not the purpose of the church. The purpose of the church is to prepare the saints for ministry by teaching them the entire counsel of the Word of God at the deepest level. Mature believers enjoy studying the Word of God. This is too dull for the immature believer, so he gravitates to a more social and watered-down gospel.

1:6 For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

 The Greek word for "sure" is πείθω, (peitho), a perfect active participle meaning that Paul was persuaded of a 100% certainty. This persuasion of certainty began as a onetime completed action of the past, but that persuasion of certainty will continue forever. 

The Greek word for "began" is ἐνάρχομαι (enarchomai), an aorist middle active participle, meaning that God emphatically himself began a work in Paul. The work was a onetime completed action of the past. Paul was baptized by the Holy Spirit and sealed for eternity at the time of his Damascus conversion. This entire salvation experience was a onetime completed action of the past.

The One who began this good work in the Philippians was the Lord Jesus Christ, the same One who had begun a good work in Paul at the Road to Damascus.

The Greek word for "perfect" is ἐπιτελέω (epiteleow), a future active indicative verb, meaning that it is a prediction that God will complete the process that God started. The process is to make the Philippians Christ-like. 

The Christ-like transformation of the Philippians will be completed at a future event called "the Day of Christ". The Day of Christ is not the same as the Day of the Lord. The Day of the Lord is a seven year period of judgment which will come upon an unbelieving world. The Day of Christ is the Rapture, when the spirits and souls of the dead in Christ will be rejoined with their new transformed body. This transformation will happen moments before those "who are left alive at his coming".

1:7 For it is right for me to think this about all of you, because I have you in my heart, since both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel all of you became partners in God’s grace together with me.

It was good for Paul to be thinking about the Philippians all of the time. Paul was imprisoned, so he had lots of time to think. Many of his thoughts were about how God was working among the Philippians, who had been extreme pagans at one time. Paul had defended the gospel. This defense confirmed to the Philippians that Paul was speaking the truth. This defense led them to becoming partners with Paul. All of these events occurred because of God's kindness to both Paul and the Philippians.

1:8 For God is my witness that I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

The Greek word for "affection" is σπλάγχνα (splagxna), meaning the internal organs of the stomach. Scientists have found that the inner feelings of man come "from the gut", not the brain. The brain is simply a relay system. When one touches a hot stove, the finger relays the touch through the nerves to the brain. The brain relays a message back to remove the hand quickly, because this hot stove will burn the skin. The "gut feeling" of Paul was that he had great inner feelings for the Philippians.

1:9 And I pray this, that your love may abound even more and more in knowledge and every kind of insight

The Greek word for "love" is ἀγάπη (agape), meaning divine love. Divine love comes from learning the mind of Christ. One can only learn the mind of Christ by studying the Word of God at the deepest level. Paul prayed that this agape love would abound even more in them as they gained more knowledge and insight.

Most Christians do not understand agape love. They think that every message must be sappy, non-offensive, ecumenical, and tolerant of all belief systems, especially those that are inside the local denominations. Jesus was the only one who possessed perfect agape love, but He called the church leaders of His day "sons of the devil" and "offspring of snakes". This meant that the gentle agape-loving Jesus was telling the church leaders of His day that their father was the devil and their mother was a snake.

Where are these types of preachers today? And where are congregations who have enough Bible knowledge to understand the true meaning of agape love? If an individual truly has agape love, then he will speak tenderly to those who want to hear, but he will not be so cowardly that he does not expose evil, even if it is inside local congregations. False doctrine is against the will of God and it is evil. The gospel must be taught in love, but evil must be exposed for what it is.

The devil wants a monopoly on sarcasm, because it is a powerful teaching tool that Jesus, the prophets, and the apostles used to bring down the satanic kingdom. Satan does not want sarcasm used against him or his methods. Therefore, he will attempt to silence those who come against his kingdom using these methods. He will often use baby-Christians as false-teachers within modern local churches to shame others into silence. 

The believer with strong Bible doctrine will use his agape love to point out false doctrine, knowing that the baby Christians will balk and the ignorant theologians will attempt to shame them into silence.  The Greek word for "knowledge" is γνῶσις (gnosis) which is learned knowledge.    ἐπίγνωσις (epignosis), means experienced knowledge which comes from studying the entire counsel of the Word of God at the deepest level via a gifted pastor-teacher.  An individual may read a book about flying a plane, which then becomes knowledge or gnosis.  But when that individual flies the plane, he has experienced knowledge or epignosis.  To become a spiritually mature believer, a Christian must have the intake of Bible doctrine and be able to apply it.  Many baby Christians like to boast that they receive their information from the Holy Spirit. This is true, but the method of the Holy Spirit for maturing a Christian is found in Ephesians 4. The Holy Spirit matures the believer by pastor-teachers who are given the supernatural (spiritual) gift of teaching. The Word of God never commands the believer to read the Bible. It does command the believer to study the Bible via pastor-teachers. This is God's method. Any other viewpoint is human viewpoint and not Biblical.

The Greek word for "insight" is αἴσθησις (aisthaisis), meaning to cut through dark and hazy ethical matters to really size things up. This insight into spiritual matters comes from the study of the Word of God by a gifted pastor-teacher.

Paul prayed that the Philippians would increase their agape love by gaining super-knowledge and deep insights into Scripture. This is the only way to gain agape love. Any other method is human viewpoint and not Biblical.

1:10 so that you can decide what is best, and thus be sincere and blameless for the day of Christ,

The Philippians were commanded to study the Word of God and grow in their Bible doctrine so that they could make better decisions in life.  

The Greek word for "sincere" is εἰλικρινής (eilikrinais), meaning to shine in the sun. The Romans were very brutal conquerors. When they defeated the Greeks, they destroyed many of their works of arts. After a while, they began to appreciate and collect the Greek arts. Unscrupulous dealers would place wax into the cracks of the stone statues and sell them for a fortune. The unsuspecting buyer would place the statue in the garden to shine in the sun. However, the sun would melt the wax and show the cracks of these beautiful statues. Paul was telling the Philippians not to be like these dealers. He was telling them not to be like these statues. When the sun shines on the believers, there should be no melting wax.

The Greek word for "blameless" is ἀπρόσκοπος (aproskopos), meaning to not cause injury to another. Hateful words and false doctrine cause injury to the body of Christ. The Philippians were informed not to participate in this type of speech.

Notice again that the Day of the Lord is not mentioned, because the Philippians will not experience this day of wrath that will come upon the unbelieving world. Instead, the Philippians will experience the Day of Christ, the Rapture, which is to come. The Philippians were not waiting for the Antichrist and the Day of the Lord. Instead, they were waiting for the Lord Jesus Christ and the Rapture of the church. 

1:11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

The fruits of righteousness are the fruits of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit produces these fruits by cleansing and watering and sprinkling the believers with the water of the Word of God. Believers are able to grow as a garden because the Lord Jesus Christ planted them before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. Therefore, the Philippians should speak glory and sing praise to the Gardener who planted them and causes them to grow.

Ministry as a Prisoner

1:12 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel:

Except for a handful of Gentile proselytes, Satan had a monopoly on all of the Gentiles living inside the Roman Empire. He seduced them into the prostitution temples, where he introduced fornication, adultery, homosexuality, lesbianism, sex with animals (beastiality), drugs, demon worship, human sacrifice, and infant sacrifice.

However, Paul penetrated this satanic Gentile kingdom with the truth of the gospel. The ministry of Paul stole converts away from Satanism, which was disguised through the various pagan systems of the Greco-Roman cultures. Satan could not kill Paul, because Paul's days are numbered by God alone. Therefore, Satan had to get permission from God to imprison him. This attempt to silence the gospel actually backfired, as Satan wrote four letters from prison that have been read by millions of Christians for the last 2000 years. Paul recognized this spiritual paradox and reported it to the Philippians. The human viewpoint was that Paul was silenced. The divine viewpoint was that Paul now had time to pray and write four letters that would advance the cause of Christ through many future generations

1:13 The whole imperial guard and everyone else knows that I am in prison for the sake of Christ,

The imperial guards were the guards at Caesar's court. They were part of God's elect. They needed to hear the gospel. However, their job at Caesar's palace kept them away from the missionary activities of Paul, so God brought Paul to the guards. They were saved by listening to a man in chains. They were saved in the palace of Emperor Nero, who would later burn Rome and blame it on the Christians in order to save his hide.

1:14 and most of the brothers and sisters, having confidence in the Lord because of my imprisonment, now more than ever dare to speak the word fearlessly.

Many of the imperial guards became believers and actually died in Nero's coliseums for their faith. When many of the churches heard that Paul was in prison, they realized that no one was taking the gospel to the Gentiles. Therefore, many of them decided to go teach the gospel, since Paul could not. This imprisonment actually increased the number of witnesses and the numbers of new converts.

1:15 Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill.

The preaching of Paul penetrated Caesar's own household. Paul had his congregation chained to him with no way of escape. Many were preaching the gospel because they were envious of Paul's influence and number of converts. They were teaching out of strife because of their jealousy. However, many others were sincere and teaching because of their desire to share the gospel.

There are many Christians today who are envious of the gifts of others. Paul warned the Corinthians about this kind of jealousy. Immature believers desire the gifts of others. Mature believers are thankful that God chose them and gave them a special gift that they can utilize to build the body of Christ. No believer can reach fulfillment in this life without exercising the spiritual gift that God has given to them. Many believers do not know their gift, because their Bible doctrine is not strong enough to recognize it or use it. They think that they can pray to receive their spiritual gift. They must learn how to pray correctly and effectively, study, learn Bible doctrine, and then knowledge of the Scriptures will reveal their spiritual gift or gifts. 

The Greek word for strife is ἔρις (erie), referring to demons who stir up trouble. Those who were teaching the gospel for strife were attempting not to share the gospel, but to stir up the church and cause division. These false teachers were led by a demonic conspiracy to discredit Paul.

1:16 The latter do so from love because they know that I am placed here for the defense of the gospel.

Those who were envious of Paul wanted to stir up the church by preaching the gospel in order to belittle and attack Paul. They would go into the pulpits of the local churches, preach the gospel, but then add their attacks of the Apostle. They were stirring up the church under the influence of demons.

1:17 The former proclaim Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, because they think they can cause trouble for me in my imprisonment.

 Notice that the false teachers were not sincere in their teaching. They were ambitious. They were attempting to cause trouble for Paul, even though he was imprisoned. Satan and the demons noticed that Paul's imprisonment had actually backfired on them. Instead of stopping the gospel from going out to the Gentiles, it actually produced more witnesses.

1:18 What is the result? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed, and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, 

Even though these false teachers were teaching out of envy and strife, they were still at least proclaiming the gospel. People were hearing attacks on Paul, but they were also hearing that Jesus saves. 

There are many who condemn home Bible studies and women teachers. Women teachers are unbiblical, but at least they are teaching the gospel. Many teach better than most men in the pulpit. The shame is that there are not enough men who desire to teach the gospel, so women have stepped in and done so, even though some of their doctrine is flawed. Paul rejoiced that at least these false teachers were teaching the gospel and many were saved.

1:19 for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Paul was not speaking about his deliverance for salvation, as some Arminians claim. He was speaking about his deliverance from prison. The Lord Jesus Christ raised up Paul to preach the gospel to kings. Paul had not yet experienced this prophecy from Christ, so he knew that he would have to be released in order to go before kings. Notice that the kings were plural, not singular. Paul would be released from prison to speak to many kings.

The prayers of the saints and the guidance of the Holy Spirit would eventually release Paul from prison. Paul knew this to be a reality yet to come. 

1:20 My confident hope is that I will in no way be ashamed but that with complete boldness, even now as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether I live or die.

There will be many who will be ashamed when Christ returns. Paul will not be one of them. He is going to preach the gospel with complete boldness. Paul will preach this message, even if it causes his execution.

1:21 For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain.

Paul was living in a win-win situation. If he lives, he proclaims the gospel and many are saved. If he dies, then he will be present with the Lord Jesus Christ in heaven. All believers are currently in this same situation.

1:22 Now if I am to go on living in the body, this will mean productive work for me, yet I don’t know which I prefer:

Paul was an apostle with apostolic powers, yet he did not know his own future. He did not know if he would live or die after this prison experience. He did know that he would proclaim the gospel to kings and governors, but he did not know what would happen after these predicted events.

1:23 I feel torn between the two, because I have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far,

The best place for a Christian to be is present with Christ in heaven. This is why funerals should be a celebration, not an act of mourning. Everyone should wear white, not black.

1:24 but it is more vital for your sake that I remain in the body.

The Philippians need to learn some more deep spiritual truths from Paul. Paul, like most Christians, wanted to go to heaven, but not at that moment. When a believer says that he is ready to go to the Lord, this usually means that he is not active in ministry. He is not fulfilled in this life. He has nothing left to leave this world.

1:25 And since I am sure of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for the sake of your progress and joy in the faith,

Paul knew that he would live long enough to assist them in progress of their learning Bible doctrine.

1:26 so that what you can be proud of may increase because of me in Christ Jesus, when I come back to you.

Baby Christians want the Lord to come right now, because they are not fulfilled in life. They are not active in what God wants them to do. Mature believers are like Paul. They want Christ to come, but not at the moment, because they believe their work is unfinished. They want to stay to finish the job that God gave them to do.

1:27 Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ so that – whether I come and see you or whether I remain absent – I should hear that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, by contending side by side for the faith of the gospel,

The Greek word for "conduct" is πολιτεύομαι (politeuomai), a present middle imperative verb, meaning a command that the Philippians should emphatically live as a citizen of heaven on the earth. The Philippians are not only citizens of heaven, but they were also ambassadors for Christ and soldiers as well. Many Christians fail to recognize that they are soldiers and they are commanded to fight against powerful spiritual demonic forces that are invisible to them. This is why the church is supposed to be a training ground. Pastors are drill sergeants, the congregations are the soldiers, and the Bible was the weapon of the warrior.

When and if Paul visits, because he is unsure of his future, he hopes to see the Philippians standing firm in one spirit, which is the baptism of the Holy Spirit at conversion. He hopes to see them in one mind, which is the mind of Christ, which can be psychoanalyzed by studying the Scriptures. 

The Greek word for "contend" is συναθλέω (sunathleow), meaning to join together with others in an intense athletic or battle situation. The Philippians were an army that was not to compromise with the enemy.

1:28 and by not being intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of their destruction, but of your salvation – a sign which is from God.

The Christian soldiers of Philippi had the Holy Spirit on their side, so they could not lose. A physical battle is not a loss to the Christian soldier, because the worst thing that can happen to them is to die, which means they will live with Christ forever. On the other hand, any soldier of Satan will eventually die and be thrown into the Lake of Fire. Therefore, the Philippians were not to be intimidated by their enemies. The outcome had already been decided by God's sovereignty. The enemies will be destroyed in eternity but the Christian soldier will live eternally with Christ in heaven, no matter the outcome of any physical battle.  

1:29 For it has been granted to you not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him,

The Greek word for "granted" is χαρίζομαι (charixomai), an aorist passive indicative verb, meaning that God gave certain gifts to the Philippians. The verb is passive, meaning that God gave the gift and the Philippians received it. It is aorist, meaning that the gift was given as a onetime completed action of the past. The mood is indicative, meaning that this is a 100% statement of fact.

God gave two gifts to the Philippians. The first gift was that they would be able to believe in Christ. Man is totally depraved and evil. Man would never choose God, so God chose man.  The gift was the ability to understand the gospel, which caused them to believe in Christ. This was a supernatural experience, because they cannot hear or understand the gospel without divine intervention. Even after they hear and understand the gospel, the Holy Spirit must change their personality so that they will believe it.

The second gift was that the Philippians would receive the honor of suffering for Christ. Satan leaves baby Christians alone. He will keep them prosperous and satisfied with the word. This makes them ineffective to the gospel of Christ. However, Satan will cause a mature believer to suffer, because he is a threat to his satanic world’s kingdom.

Prosperity preachers teach that Christians are called to prosper materially on this earth. They misapply the Old Testament Scriptures that were given to Israel, not the church. Israel was given a conditional covenant called the Mosaic Law. If the Israelites would keep the Mosaic Law, then they would prosper materially. If they did not, then God would vomit them out of the land. God has vomited the Israelites out of the land three times. The first time was the Babylon Captivity, which was a completion of the Assyrian Captivity. The ten northern tribes were removed at the Assyrian Captivity. The other two tribes were removed at the Babylon Captivity. The second deportation was when Titus sacked the Jerusalem Temple in 70 A.D. This event happened one generation after the Jews rejected Jesus as their Messiah. The third deportation will come during the Great Tribulation, when many Jews will leave Israel while fleeing from the Antichrist.

1:30 since you are encountering the same conflict that you saw me face and now hear that I am facing.

Suffering for Christ is a blessing. Christians are called to suffer. Paul had suffered because he was preaching the gospel. The Philippians had suffered also, because they were preaching the gospel. If a Christian is not suffering, then it may be because he is too carnal and God will not allow him to do so until he matures. Maturity, according to Ephesians 4, comes from study of the Word of God by a gifted pastor-teacher.

In conclusion, the divine viewpoint of Christ is "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."