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The first church that the Apostle Paul planted in Europe was a church in Philippi that would eventually come to his aid while under house arrest in Rome. The book of Philippians is Paul's letter to that church, which we've been studying for the past several weeks.
It is our joy today to hear this whole letter from beginning to end when we understand the text. This is when we understand the text. My name is Pastor Gabe Hughes. Good to be along with you as we conclude our study of the book of Philippians.
Around 62 AD, the Apostle Paul was placed under house arrest in Rome for sharing the gospel. Though Paul couldn't go anywhere, people could still come to him and he continued to preach the gospel to all who entered his home.
The Philippian church, some 800 miles away, heard about Paul's arrest and took up a collection to help him with his ministry. The money was sent with Epaphroditus, who almost died on that journey. Upon receiving the Philippians offering, Paul wrote a letter to thank them for the gift and also to encourage them in their faith and the advancement of the gospel.
The letter, co-written by Timothy, was sent back with Epaphroditus and read to the entire assembly. He instructed them to rejoice in all circumstances, to behave not as Roman colonists, but as citizens of a heavenly kingdom, and to worship Jesus Christ as Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
We've spent the last seven weeks studying through Paul's letter to the Philippians and today, as we conclude this study, we're going to read the entire letter from start to finish, hearing it the way the Philippians would have heard it.
Of course, they would have heard it in Greek and I'll be reading from the English Standard Version of the Bible. And before starting into this text, why don't we come to the Lord in prayer? Our gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you once again for this letter, for that wonderful relationship that Paul had with the Philippians, that the Philippians cared enough for Paul to take up this offering and send it to Paul to encourage him in his ministry there in Rome.
And that Rome, so loving the Philippians, wrote back to them to encourage them with these words that we have read, that they might be an encouragement to us as well. The Holy Spirit continues to speak these words to the disciples of Jesus Christ even 2 ,000 years later.
And so Lord, Lord, we write these things upon our hearts, we receive them and we pray that you would continue to work these things into us. As we have expositionally considered Philippians over the past several weeks, I pray that we're able to see the whole thing today in context and it is growing us more and more with joy as we read this again, and we pray this in Jesus name.
Amen. Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi with the overseers and deacons, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all, making my prayer with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
It is right for me to feel this way about you all because I hold you in my heart for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.
And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment so that you may approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.
I want you to know brothers that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel so that it has become known throughout the whole Imperial Guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill.
The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment.
What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not at all be ashamed.
But with full courage, now as always, Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me.
Yet which shall I choose? I cannot tell. I'm hard-pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.
Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus because of my coming to you again.
Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or I am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel and not frightened in anything by your opponents.
This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ, you should not only believe in him, but also suffer for his sake.
Engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have. So, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from his love, any participation in the spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interest, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence, but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure.
Do all things without grumbling or disputing, so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God, without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ, I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. Likewise, you also should be glad and rejoice with me. I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you, for I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare, for they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.
But you know Timothy's proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill.
Indeed he was ill, near to death, but God had mercy on him, and not only him, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. I am the more eager to send him therefore that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious.
So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me. Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord.
To write the same things to you is no trouble to me, and it is safe for you. Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh, for we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus, and put no confidence in the flesh, though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also.
If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more. Circumcised on the eighth day of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the law, a Pharisee, as to zeal, a persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under the law, blameless.
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss, because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ, and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible, I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Not that I have already obtained this, or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own, but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained. Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example that you have in us, for many of whom I have often told you, and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.
Their end is destruction, their God is their belly, and they glory in their shame with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject all things. to himself.
Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved. I entreat Iodia, and I entreat Sintesh, to agree in the Lord. Yes, I ask you, true companion, help these women who have labored side by side with me in the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord, always. Again, I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things, what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me.
Practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity.
Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I've learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.
I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble, and you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only.
Even in Thessalonica, you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. I have received full payment and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.
And my God will supply every need of yours, according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father, be glory forever and ever. Amen. Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you.
All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Our gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you again for these words. And I pray that as we have received this letter once again, from beginning to end, seeing in context what it is that Paul wrote to this church, to the Philippians, I pray that the Spirit continues to speak these words to us even now.
There is no great mystery behind these things. It has been revealed to us in the Spirit. The natural man cannot understand spiritual things, but if we have the Spirit of Christ, then we can understand these things.
And they have eternal value, because it's not just in a moment where we read and heard this letter, but it is something that is being written on our minds and hearts, transforming us to be more like Christ, a reflection of Him, worshiping His great name, the name that is above every name.
And Lord, may we conduct ourselves in our lives in such a way that we hold that name in high esteem, and a person is able to look at us and see that we know Jesus Christ as Lord. Let our very lifestyle, our actions, be a testament of the gospel that we cling to.
But as the gospel means good news, it is news that must be taken to the world. So Lord, embolden us and give us courage, just as the Philippians were encouraged to hear what had happened to Paul, just as others in the household of Caesar had been filled with courage.
Knowing that Paul had been placed there for the advancement of the gospel, I pray that we also would find courage in our lives to be able to go out with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us not be ashamed, but knowing that it is the power of God for salvation to all who believe in it.
We pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. In Acts 16, Paul and Silas were preaching in Philippi, when after rebuking an annoying girl and casting out her demon, they found themselves tried, beaten, and thrown in prison.
The jailer was ordered to keep them safely, so he locked them up and fastened them into stocks. That night, Paul and Silas were singing hymns to God, when suddenly there was an earthquake so great that all the jail doors flew open.
When the jailer ran in and saw the doors, he drew his sword to kill himself, thinking the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried out, Do not harm yourself, for we are all here. The jailer asked them, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
And they said, Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household. So we just believe, and then we're saved, right? And believe what exactly? That Jesus existed? That he died and rose again?
That he is God? Because even the demons believe that and tremble. Well, the story doesn't end in verse 31. After Paul and Silas said believe, they gave the jailer and his household the word of the Lord.
Because as it says in Romans, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. But there's yet another verse that helps us understand belief, and it appears three chapters earlier in Acts 13 -48.
Paul and Barnabas preached at Antioch, and when the Gentiles heard the gospel, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord. And as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. Whoa! So when we read whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life, we know belief is not our work, but God's when we understand the text.
You know, in the ruins of Philippi, there is actually a place, this crypt, a small prison room that was over a cistern or this basin that held water. And the later church actually designated in the ruins of Philippi that as the approximate holding place of Paul and Silas when they were thrown in prison.
Paul and Silas went into Philippi, would have been about 49 -50 AD. And the first person that they witnessed to was a woman named Lydia who was selling fine purple fabric. And it says in Acts chapter 16 that the Lord opened her heart to receive the message that Paul and Silas were sharing.
You've heard it said, I stand at the door and knock, you know, and that's Revelation 3 -20. People have taken that verse and have misapplied it saying Jesus is knocking at the door of your heart if you just open up and let him in.
Jesus is not knocking on the door of your heart. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that. It's taking Revelation 3 -20 out of context. He stands at the door of no one's heart knocking. The Lord opens your heart.
You don't open the door. God is the one that opens the door. I hope that if you have never known Jesus Christ as Lord before, then over the course of this devotional series as we've been talking about these things and studying through Philippians, the Lord has opened up your heart that you have received the message of the gospel, that you've called upon the name of Jesus Christ as Lord, confessed your sins, and asked for forgiveness.
And we are promised in scripture that the Lord will give it to us. 1 John 1 -9, if we are faithful to ask forgiveness for our sins, God is faithful and just to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. All of us are sinners.
All have sinned and gone astray. As it says in the book of Isaiah, we are like sheep who have gone astray. Every one of us has gone his own way. We've done our own thing. We've pretended like we're our own shepherd.
But the Lord has laid upon him, the good shepherd, the iniquity of us all. God took our sins upon himself on the cross. The Father crushed him and Jesus appeased the wrath of God. He came to this earth.
He lived the perfect life that we could not live. He died the death that we were supposed to die. And God poured his wrath out upon him on the cross and crushed him. All of our sins were placed upon him on the cross.
He became sin who knew no sin that we might become the righteousness of God. So with all of our sin upon Christ, he took the sin of all of his people upon himself and God crushed him. Jesus died in our place.
He was buried in a tomb and three days later came back again from the grave signifying that God had received his sacrifice. It was finished. It was fully paid for and Jesus showed that he had the power over the grave by coming back again from the grave so that all who are baptized into Christ's death now share also in his life.
If you are in Christ Jesus, you have received eternal life with Jesus Christ our Lord. Eternal life isn't something that you get when you die. It is something that you have now if you are a follower of Christ Jesus.
Rejoice in this. You have received a little bit of the kingdom of God now the kingdom on earth in you because of the life that you have in Christ Jesus. And so now we celebrate. We are victorious. It's like walking out on a football field knowing that you have already won the game.
And so you don't have to labor in the game thinking that it is all dependent upon you to win it. No, the victory has already been claimed in Christ Jesus. We play for the team that we are on victorious.
We are celebrating with every play that we are in the game. We are celebrating that Christ Jesus has declared the victory. So the rules that we play by that we follow, the commands that we obey in the name of Christ is just more in this declaration of being on the winning team.
Hey, celebrate y 'all. We have claimed victory in Christ Jesus. And so we know that when the day comes and Jesus judges the living and the dead, we will be on the winning side. But as the apostle Paul said, I speak now with tears of those who walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.
So we also should consider the same of those who are not in Christ Jesus. With tears we labor. We desire for them to know the gospel of Jesus Christ so that they will not perish. They will not face that eternal judgment, those who do not know Christ when that day comes, the day of the Lord comes.
It's a day of wrath for those who do not know Christ. It's a day of victory for those who do. So that the full number of the saints might be realized, we go out with the gospel of Jesus Christ and declare it to the world desiring that none should perish, but that all would come to repentance.
So know this gospel. Know this word. Store it in your heart. Be confident in the words that are declared here so that we might be able to speak the same word to others, giving an answer for the hope that lies within us.
Commit yourself to the study of the word of God. It is part of the fruit of salvation that should be developed in you because you are a follower of Christ Jesus. This declaration of victory in Christ is not something that you claim once.
It's something that you live according to every single day. Commit yourself to regular prayer in the Lord that you might subject your heart and mind daily to God. Being transformed in your heart and mind to be more and more like Christ Jesus.
Submitting yourself as a living sacrifice and this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind and in doing so you might see God's good, pleasing, and perfect will.
This is Romans 12, 1 and 2 that I have quoted to you, by the way. So regular spiritual disciplines are necessary in the life of a Christian. We commit ourselves to prayer. We commit ourselves to the regular study of God's word.
And folks, we commit ourselves to the gathering of the saints in Christ Jesus. Do not neglect the gathering of the saints as some have done, but regularly we need to be together in the body of Christ so that we might be filled more and more with the hope of this gospel message and the coming of the kingdom of God.
We need to be fellowshipping with the saints. I'm glad that you listened to this podcast, but this does not supplement regular church attendance. You need to be in the church. You need to be growing with the saints, being filled with the word of Christ and teaching and admonishing one another in the body of Christ.
Continue in these things always and let your hearts be restored with the hope of the gospel, the power of salvation for all who believe. Our Lord Jesus, thank you again for this word. Encourage us in these things all the more as we go from this.
And we pray this in Jesus name. Amen. A new series next week. God bless.
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