Paul's Prison Epistles - Lesson 5: Paul and the Philippians

you [Music] you when soldiers face the uncertainties of war their minds often turn toward thoughts of death they look for ways to find comfort for themselves the comfort loved ones back home often they write letters of thanks and advice encouraging their loved ones to carry on bravely to live in ways that will bring them honor well in many ways Paul's epistle to the Philippians is like a letter to home from a soldier anticipating that he might die Paul wrote Philippians at a time when he was suffering greatly at a time when he wondered if he might soon be killed and he wrote to people he loved and so his words to the Christians in Philippi were heavy but caring sad yet consoling appreciative but bittersweet from Paul's perspective they could well have been his final words of advice and heartfelt thanks to his faithful friends this is the fifth lesson in our series Paul's prison epistle and we have entitled this lesson Paul in the Philippians because we will be examining Paul's letter to the church in Philippi in this letter Paul wrote to encourage the Philippian who were worried about the sufferings he was enduring as he anticipated the possibility that he might soon die Paul wrote a letter of hope and encouragement for the times of persecution and distress he and the Philippians faith we will divide our study of Paul in the Philippians into three parts first we will survey the background of Paul's letter to the Philippian second we'll look closely at the structure and content of Philippians and third we will explore the modern application of this letter let's begin by looking at the background to Paul's letter to the Philippians as we have said throughout this series it's always important to know something about Paul circumstances and those are the people to whom he wrote knowing these details helps us orient ourselves properly to Paul's message and to receive it as Paul intended so as we approach Paul's letter to the Philippians we need to ask questions like who are the Philippians what was happening in their lives and in Paul's life and why did Paul write to them the answers to questions like these will help us to understand Paul's authoritative teaching in this letter and to apply it to our own lives as we investigate the background to Paul's epistle to the Philippians we will focus our attention on three matters first we will consider Pulse relationship with the Philippians second we will mention some details of Paul's suffering in prison and third we will explore the conditions in Philippi at the time Paul wrote to them let's begin by looking at the relationship between Paul and the church in Philippi Philip I was an important city in the Roman province of Macedonia an area that now lies in modern Greece it lay along the Via Ignatia the main road connecting the city of Rome to the eastern provinces of its empire and it possessed a special status with Rome so that it had the same rights as a Roman colony in Italy and even provided the citizens of Philippi with Roman citizenship Paul had planted a church in Philippi during his second missionary journey somewhere around the Year AD 50 before he reached Philip I'd he had been ministering in Asia but then he received a vision of a man begging him to bring the gospel to Macedonia in response to this vision Paul sailed for Macedonia landing in the appleís but moving quickly inland to the city of Philippi about 10 miles northwest of Neapolis [Music] many of Paul's activities from Philip I are recorded in Acts chapter 16 verses 12 through 40 for example it was in Philippi that Paul gained his first convert in Europe the merchant woman Lydia and it was in Philippi that he was jailed for an exorcism he performed on a slave girl this was also where the well-known Philippian jailer professed faith in christ because he was so moved by Paul's compassion for him Paul's ministry and Philip I was so successful that even when he left the city the Philippian Christian supported Paul sending him monetary gifts at various times when he was in financial need listen to Philippians chapter 4 verses 15 and 16 where Paul wrote about their generosity when I set out from Macedonia not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you only for even when I was in Thessalonica you sent me a de ghin and again when I was in need the church and Philip I loved fall and they regularly helped him with financial gifts according to Philippians chapter 4 verses 10 and 18 the Philippians also sent Paul a gift close to the time that he wrote his letter to them listen to Paul's words there at last you have renewed your concern for me indeed you have been concerned but you had no opportunity to show it I am amply supplied now that I received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent although there were some Philippian believers who appear to have been financially secure the church as a whole was exceptionally poor so they were not always able to help Paul financially but when they had the opportunity they gave to him generously and just as the Philippians loved Paul II felt strong affection for them as well he loved them for their commitment to the Lord and for the way they had been his partners in gospel ministry they were his close friends people who scholarship he enjoyed and his presence he missed listen to the way he spoke to them in Philippians chapter 1 verses 4 through 8 in all my prayers for all of you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now I have you in my heart I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus in fact in Philippians chapter 2 verse 12 and chapter 4 verse 1 Paul referred to the Philippians as his dear friend using the Greek word agape Tov agape toss is the term Paul commonly used to describe his closest co-workers and beloved friends such as ticketed it Pafford Philemon a Nessman and Luke Paul's love for the Philippian church appears to have been more particularly specific than his love for many other Church and it was manifested not only in feelings of belonging and familiarity but also in a continuing vibrant friendship and this should not be surprising after all it isn't hard to imagine that there would be a close bond between Paul and Lydia his hostess or between Paul and the jailer whose life he saved and perhaps even between Paul and the slave girl can be rescued from demon possession in all of them Paul had grown to love the believers in Philippi and they had the same feelings toward him now that we have seen the caring supportive relationship between Paul and the Philippians we should turn to the details of the Apostles suffering in prison what was Paul enduring at the time he wrote to the Philippians throughout his long ministry Paul often suffered greatly he was repeatedly whipped beaten with rods and hunted by assassins he was imprisoned many times and once was even stoned and left for dead and he did not always bear up well under these hardships at times he was depressed even despairing for instance during his third missionary journey he wrote these words in 2nd Corinthians chapter 1 verse 8 we do not want you to be uninformed brothers about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia we were under great pressure far beyond our ability to endure so that we despaired even of life here Paul described his feeling of being defeated of temporarily losing hope because of the terrible conditions and circumstances he faced Paul knew that life is never truly hopeless the God is able to rescue us from any trouble but he was also a human being he had weaknesses just like ours and the truth is that sometimes knowing and trusting in God's sovereignty doesn't keep us from despair even Paul struggled even Paul wanted to give up even Paul felt abandoned and as we read the details of his epistle to the Philippians it seems that he might have been struggling with similar feelings at the very time he wrote this letter his theology anchored him in the truth encouraged him that God was working for good even for suffering but Paul's heart was still heavy and to sorrow was profound in his letter to the Philippians Paul did not disclose all the troubles that weighed on his mind but he did speak of some of them and he revealed the collective impact all his troubles were having on his state of mind for instance he spoke frequently of death as a welcome relief from his suffering for example in Philippians chapter 3 verse 10 he wrote these words I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the Fellowship of sharing in his sufferings becoming like him in his death in this verse all revealed that his present suffering was so great that his best hope for escape was death and he saw his present sufferings as the means to his death and in Philippians chapter 1 verse 20 Paul explained his perspective in this way I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body whether by life or by death paul lacked courage at this point but he hoped that he would gain it before he was tested his concern was to honor christ either by withstanding a test gracefully or by dying with dignity and resolve not abandoning his confession of faith and immediately after this paul expressed his desire to die with these words for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain if I am to go on living in the body this will mean fruitful labor for me I'm torn between the two I desire to depart and be with Christ which is better by far at the time he wrote this Paul wanted to die but usually he wanted to live and to preach to carry the gospel to new places and people's to bring salvation to the world now under normal circumstances Christians should not want to die yes at our deaths we will be with the Lord and we should look forward to this but not so much that we embrace death as a friend we were created for life and the Scriptures teach that death is a curse Paul himself called death an enemy in first Corinthians chapter 15 verse 26 but at this point in Paul's life his circumstances were so oppressive that the benefits of being with Christ outweighed his desire to continue in ministry as well as his hatred for death itself but Paul did not just imply his troubled state of mind through his desire for death he also stated it explicitly in several different places for example in Philippians chapter 2 verses 27 and 28 he spoke of a afroditi PSA's recovery from illness in these terms and Pafford Dittus was ill and almost died but God had mercy on him and not on him only but also on me despair me sorrow upon sorrow therefore I am all the more eager to send him so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety and papri died as his death would have added more sorrow to the sorrow Paul already felt and even though app afroditi PSA's returned to Philip I would reduce Paul's anxiety it would not eliminate it perhaps the best explanation for Paul sorrow and anxiety and for his statements about death is that at this point his life was in serious jeopardy as we saw in a prior lesson he may have written this letter from Rome or from Caesarea maritima if he wrote from Rome it may be that he expected Caesar to condemn him and if he wrote from Caesarea maritima he may have been worried about the Jewish plan too fascinate him but whatever the impending threat Paul seems to have been contemplating the real possibility that he would die soon for instance in Philippians chapter 1 verse 20 he wrote hopefully Christ will be exalted in my body whether by life or by death and in chapter 1 verse 22 he indicated that he might have a choice of dying writing if I'm to go on living in the body this will mean fruitful labor for me yet what shall I choose in chapter 2 verse 17 he spoke of the possibility that he was being poured out like a drink offering and in chapter 3 verse 10 he suggested that his current sharing and sufferings of Christ might well lead to Paul becoming like Christ in his death but Paul was not absolutely convinced that he would die elsewhere in this letter he expressed the hope that he would survive for example in Philippians chapter 1 verse 25 he wrote I know that I will remain indicating an expectation that he would live to continue ministering to the Philippian Paul was not absolutely sure what would happen to him on the one hand he knew that his death was a real possibility and so he tried to prepare his friends and Phillipi for the worst on the other hand he had some level of expectation that he would survive and so he encouraged them to hope for the best but whatever the future held for him at the time he wrote this letter he was suffering greatly so that he struggled with sorrow and apprehension having looked at Paul's relationship with the Philippians and is suffering in prison we should now explore the conditions that existed in Philippi at the time of Paul's letter to them what circumstances did they face that required Paul's attention and exhortation Paul addressed many conditions in the church in Philippi but we will focus on just two matters the Philippian church's concern for Paul and the internal and external problems that existed for the church in Philippi let's begin by mentioning the philippians concern for paul as a whole the church in Philippi had a strong loving relationship with the Apostle Paul and when they heard about his sufferings in prison they were dismayed and worried about him so as soon as they were able they demonstrated their concern by sending a gift to meet Paul's earthly needs and by dispatching a Pafford itís to deliver the gift to Paul and to minister to him in prison Paul mentioned this gift in Philippians chapter 4 verse 18 writing this note of faith I have received full payment and even more I am amply supplied now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you said they are a fragrant offering an acceptable sacrifice pleasing to God as we have mentioned the Philippians were not wealthy so this gift constituted a significant sacrifice on their part but they sent it eagerly because they were so concerned about Paul's well-being and as we read in Philippians chapter 2 verse 25 the Philippian church also sent a Kaffir Titus to minister to Paul in prison listen to Paul's words there it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus who is also your messenger whom you sent to take care of my need apparently at Aphrodite's also delivered a report to paul expressing the philippians fears that paul is being persecuted by other believers and that a threat of death hung over his head and in his letter to them paul confirmed that the philippians had properly understood his circumstances and he expressed appreciation for their concern for example in Philippians chapter 1 verses 15 through 17 he admitted that certain preachers of the gospel were troubling him he described the situation with these words some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry out of selfish ambition not sincerely supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in change in fact one of the reasons Paul felt so sorrowful was that so few of the believers around him including Christian leaders truly dedicated their hearts to gospel ministry listen to his words to this effect in Philippians chapter 2 verse 21 everyone looks out for his own interests not those of Jesus Christ in short the Philippians were justified in their concern for Paul at this time Paul's troubles were great and his support was thin but the Philippians weren't simply concerned about the fact that Paul's suffering they were also worried that he might die whether through assassination or public execution and these fears were justified as we have seen in Prior lessons the Jews had attempted to assassinate Paul more than one and the crime of which he was accused was punishable by death so out of deep concern for the Apostle the Philippians devoted themselves to prayer on Paul's to have Paul thanked them for their prayers in Philippians chapter 1 verses 19 and 20 with these words of encouragement I know that through your prayers and the help given by the spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance I eagerly expect and hope that Christ will be exalted in my body whether by life or by death paul was grateful for the philippians prayers and he assured them that even death would be a welcomed form of deliverance from his suffering having considered the philippians concern for Paul's well-being we should now look at some of the problems that existed for the church there stemming from a variety of sources the church in Philip I face at least three types of problems first they appear to have faced persecution from those outside the church second they were threatened by the possibility of false teaching similar to that which had infiltrated other church and third they struggled with conflicts between one another in the church Paul mentioned the persecution they were undergoing in Philippians chapter 1 verses 27 through 30 writing these words stand firm in one spirit intending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you for it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ to suffer for him since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had and now here that I still have some years earlier just after he had planted the church in Philippi Paul had encountered great resistance from Jews in the neighboring Macedonian city of Thessalonica and as we read in Acts chapter 17 verses 5 through 13 these angry Jews accused Paul and the other believers of violating Roman law as a result Paul was forced to flee the city by night to avoid further persecution by Jews as well as arrest by the civil government these Thessalonians ooz were so zealous that they pursued Paul even to the city of Berea so it is reasonable to think that these same Jews or others like them also trouble the church in Philippi and perhaps arouse the local government against the church as well but whatever the specific nature of the persecution in Philippi it is at least clear that the church was truly suffering at the hands of unbelievers a second problem faced by the Philippian church was the threat of false teaching now it appears that false teaching had not yet deeply influenced the church in Philippi so Paul did not confront it directly but he did prepare the Philippians to reject any false teaching that might reach their city consider Paul's words about circumcision in Philippians chapter 3 verses 1 through 3 it is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again and it is a safeguard for you watch out for those dogs those men who do evil those mutilators of the flesh for it is we who are the circumcision Paul was concerned that false teachers who advocated abuses of circumcision might trouble the Philippian church he also condemns false teaching in Philippians chapter 3 verses 18 and 19 many live as enemies of the cross of Christ their destiny is destruction their God is their stomach and their glory is in their shame their mind is on earthly thing Paul's language here might describe any number of false teaching including such things as dietary asceticism and improper use of Old Testament dietary laws now these types of false teachings might have come from two sources on the one hand Paul may have been concerned about the heresies that had threatened the churches in kalasa and the other cities of the Lycus Valley as we mentioned in a prior lesson these false teachings in the Lycus Valley combined Christian teachings with elements from Greek philosophy asceticism and corruptions of Jewish law for example Paul specifically associated this false teaching with an abusive use of circumcision in Colossians chapter 2 verses 11 and 12 as well as with dietary asceticism in Colossians chapter 2 verses 20 through 23 on the other hand he may have been worried about Christian Judaizers from Jerusalem such as those he had written against long ago in Galatians chapter 2 verses 11 through 21 and more recently in Romans chapter 4 verses 9 through 17 it is possible that he also ran into conflict with them during the trip to Jerusalem that resulted in his present imprisonment like the false teachers in the Lycus Valley the Judaizers also abused circumcision and diet forcing Gentile believers to adhere to outmoded forms of adherence to the Old Testament law lastly besides troubles with persecution and false teaching the Philippians struggled with conflicts among believers within the church Paul addressed these conflicts in general terms in Philippians chapter 2 verses one through three with this exhortation if you have any encouragement from being United with Christ if any comfort from his love if any fellowship with the spirit it's any tenderness and compassion be like-minded having the same love being one in spirit and purpose do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility consider others better than yourselves and in Philippians chapter 4 verse 2 he exhorted two women who seemed to have been unable to resolve their differences writing these words I plead with you O Tia and I plead with cinta k who agree with each other in the Lord now the internal conflicts in Philip I did not warrant harsh discipline still they were disruptive unproductive and sinful self-centered unloving conflict is never acceptable in the church so Paul spent a substantial amount of space emphasizing the importance of unity and love in the church now that we have looked at the background to Philippians we are ready to consider our second topic the structure and content of Paul's canonical letter to the church in Philippi as we consider the structure and content of Paul's letter to the Philippians we will divide the letter in five main sections the salutation in chapter one verses one and two a section of Thanksgiving in chapter one verses three through eight Paul's prayer for the Philippians in chapter one verses nine through eleven the main body of the letter in chapter one verse 12 through chapter four verse 20 and Paul's final greetings in chapter four verses 21 through 23 let's begin with the salutation in verses 1 and 2 the citation in chapter 1 verses 1 and 2 identifies Paul as the primary author of the letter and states that the letter also comes from Timothy throughout this letter Paul consistently referred to himself in the singular using words such as I rather than we and in Philippians chapter 2 verses 19 and 22 he referred to timothy in the third person the salutation of Philippians is somewhat different from those and most appalls other letters because it does not mention Paul's Apostleship only first and second Thessalonians and Philemon share this distinction but all three of these other letters do mention pulse apostolic Authority outside their salutations only in Philippians do we find an entire letter in which Paul never calls explicit attention to his apostolic authority now this does not imply the Paul's letter to the Philippians lacks apostolic Authority rather it is the testimony to his relationship with the Philippian to their high regard for Paul and to their eagerness to please the Lord not once did Paul have to remind them of his office and authority following the salutation Paul moves to a section of Thanksgiving in Chapter 1 verses 3 through 8 this move from salutation to Thanksgiving is consistent with the form Paul followed in most of his other canonical letters Galatians and Titus being the only exception the first part of Paul's Thanksgiving found in Philippians chapter 1 verses 3 through 6 presents a fairly standard statement of thanks speaking of the joy the Philippians had brought to Paul and of his expectations for their ultimate salvation but Philippians chapter 1 verses 7 and 8 are rather unique in Paul's Thanksgivings emphasizing the depth of his love for the Philippian listen to his words there it is right for me to feel this way about all of you since I have you in my heart God can testify how I longed for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus these verses indicate that Paul's relationship with the Philippians was deeply personal and heartfelt following his Thanksgiving Paul offered a prayer for the Philippians in chapter 1 verses 9 through 11 this prayer is fairly brief but it is packed with statements that reflect the emphasis of the entire letter essentially Paul prayed that the Philippians would express their Christian love by living in ways that honor God first he prayed that they would have the discernment necessary to make proper judgment second he pray that this discernment would lead them to perform good works and to persevere in faith and practice until Christ's return in judgment finally he prayed that the Philippians would bring glory and praise to God through their good works in persevering after his prayer all turned to the main body of his epistle to the Philippians found in chapter 1 verse 12 through chapter 4 verse 20 this section has been outlined in various ways by different scholars but in this lesson our outline will primarily follow the logical flow of Paul's encouragement and instructions to the Philippian church when Paul wrote to the Philippians he was suffering greatly and his very life was in jeopardy as a result he was beset by troubles and anxiety we might even describe him as despairing and it was from this mindset that he wrote to the believers in Philippi Paul knew these might be his final words to them so he expressed his deep feelings for them letting them know how much he loved them and how thankful he was for their friendship and ministry and he also offered final words of wisdom teaching them to deal with adversity in ways that would honor God keeping in mind this overarching perspective on Philippians we can discern the following order to his thoughts in the body of this letter first a description of Paul's perseverance in prison in chapter 1 verses 12 through 26 second his exhortations to the Philippians the persevere in chapter 1 verse 27 through chapter 4 verse 9 and third Paul's affirmation of the Philippians perseverance in chapter 4 verses 10 through 20 we will take a closer look at each of these sections beginning with Paul's perseverance in prison in Chapter 1 verses 12 through 26 Paul persevered in prison not by denying his suffering and not by embracing it but by finding reasons to be joyful despite his suffering and he took the time to explain and defend his joy in order to encourage the Philippians stop worrying about him he appreciated their concern but did not want them to be distressed about his circumstances in this section of the letter he focused on three sources of the joy he found in the midst of his sorrow the success of this present ministry in verses 12 through 18 a his hope for future deliverance in verses 18 B through 21 and his anticipation of future ministry in verses 22 through 26 I'll explain that by focusing on these good things he was better able to endure his hardships for example in verses 12 through 18 a he explained that even though he was suffering in prison he was happy that his present ministry continued to thrive listen to his account in Philippians chapter 1 verses 17 and 18 some preach Christ out of selfish ambition not sincerely supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in Chains but what does it matter the important thing is that in every way whether from false motives or true Christ is preached and because of this I rejoice in Clark all suffered because spiteful evangelists created trouble for him but even though they harmed him personally he rejoiced in the fact that they preach the true gospel I also found joy in his hope for future delivering which he described in verses 18 B 421 he focused on the possibility that he might eventually be released from prison but as we have said during this time all suffering was so severe that even death would have been a welcome relief and so he was encouraged by the hope that his suffering would be relieved whether by his acquittal or by his death he described his perspective in Philippians chapter 1 verses 18 through 21 yes and I will continue to rejoice for I know that what has happened to me will turn out for my delivery whether by life or by death or to me to live is Christ and to die is gain in one sense the threat of death troubled Paul greatly but in another sense he was able to see past his death to the joy that would be his in the presence of Christ in heaven and by focusing on release and heaven Paul was able to find a degree of joy in the midst of his troubles in much the same way in Philippians chapter 1 verses 22 through 26 I'll also look to the possibility of a future ministry to the Philippian as a source of joy listen to his encouragement since Philippians chapter 1 verses 25 and 26 I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me the Philippians loved Paul so they would have been relieved to hear that he still hoped to live and he loved them too and took comfort and satisfaction from the thought of their prosperity in Christ after using his perseverance in prison to encourage the Philippians not to worry about him Paul included a long section of exhortations to persevere in Philippians chapter 1 verse 27 through chapter 4 verse 9 here Paul instructed the Philippians to remain faithful to Christ and to live exemplary lives even in the midst of distressing circumstances our treatment of Paul's exhortations will discuss the following four main topics the importance of perseverance in chapter 1 verse 27 through chapter 2 verse 18 the helper perseverance that ministers provided in chapter 2 verses 19 through 30 caused an example of perseverance in chapter 3 verses 1 through 16 and finally his instructions regarding challenges to perseverance in chapter 3 verse 17 through chapter 4 verse 9 first let's look at what Paul said about the importance of perseverance in Christian faith and practice in Philippians chapter 1 verses 27 through 29 paul acknowledged the philippians struggle with hardship and encouraged them with these words stand firm in one spirit contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you for it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ to suffer for him the Philippians sufferings were distressing and painful but they were not beyond God's control on the contrary God himself had planned their suffering as a means of blessing them and therefore it was vital that they persevere through these difficult times both by maintaining their faith and by living righteously as we have seen in other lessons Jesus work of suffering will not be finished until he returns in the meantime he completes his appointed suffering through the church because believers are in union with Christ when we suffer Jesus suffered and from Paul's perspective this was not just a means of completing Christ appointed suffering it was also a badge of honor as we just read in Philippians chapter 1 verses 27 through 29 God had not just permitted the Philippians to suffer he had granted them to suffer Paul unpack this idea in Philippians chapter 2 verses 5 through 9 where he wrote these words your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus he humbled himself and became obedient to death even death on a cross therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name Jesus willingly endured suffering and mistreatment in order to benefit the church and his reward for the sacrifice was immeasurably great in the same way believers should humbly endure suffering in this treatment in order to benefit the church and when we do our reward will also be great this was why Paul could write these words in Philippians chapter 2 verses 17 and 18 even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith I am glad and rejoice with all of you so you too should be glad and rejoice with me Paul did not just want the Philippians to endure their appointed sufferings but to rejoice in the midst of it because of the blessings it produces moreover he wanted them to rejoice in the blessings that would result from his own sufferings just as he rejoiced in the blessings that flowed from their suffering palling Kurds believers to focus on the rewards of suffering in order that they would have the strength and courage to persevere in space and holy living even under great direct after all if they did not endure they would not gain the blessings suffering could provide after stressing the importance of perseverance and inspiring them with its blessings Paul offered the Philippians practical help for perseverance by sending ministers to care for them Paul knew that his letter would teach the Philippians how to handle suffering but he also understood that it is much easier to endure suffering when we have real people helping us on a daily basis and suffering right alongside us so Paul determined that along with his letter he would also send his friends to minister to the Philippians in their time of need first Paul planned to send at afroditi the Philippians own messenger who had originally come to minister to Paul it is likely that a Pafford itis was the one who actually delivered Paul's letter to the Philippians as we learn in Philippians chapter 2 verses 25 through 30 the church in Philippi was worried about a coffered itís because he had fallen ill and it Pafford itis was concerned because they were so worried so Paul sent at Aphrodite's back to them in order to ease their mind as well as to minister to them next all plan to send timothy to philip i for the time being he remained with paul in prison ministering to the Apostle during his distress but as we read in Philippians chapter 2 verse 19 Paul expected to be able to send him to help the Philippians in the near future [Music] finally Paul hoped that eventually he himself would be released from prison and would come to minister to the Philippians he expressed this expectation in Philippians chapter 2 verse 24 where he wrote these words I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon the Greek word pet Python here translated confident is probably better rendered persuaded Paul was hopeful about his release but he was not certain of it in all events Paul knew that sympathetic human beings would be extremely valuable to the church and Philip I as it struggled under the weight of hardships so he set out a schedule that would provide them with skilled and loving ministers on a regular basis in the next section of exhortations found in Philippians chapter 3 verses 1 through 16 all offered himself as a positive example of perseverance in the faith both with regard to his mindset and his behavior specifically Paul explained that when he had come to faith in Christ he had cease to rely on earthly standards to gain God's favor and blessing and had begun to rely solely on Christ but this was not because he failed to measure up to earthly standard on the contrary by earthly standards Paul should have been among God's most highly favored listen to the description of his credentials in Philippians chapter 3 verses 4 through 6 if anyone else thinks he has reasons to put 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 in regard to the law a Pharisee as for zeal persecuting the church as for legalistic righteousness faultless if any mere human being could have merited God's blessings by keeping the law it was Paul but the truth of the matter is that no fallen human being can be good enough to merit God's blessings of salvation and eternal life and so Paul refused to rely on his earthly merits and dependent only on Christ's merit which God credited to him by means of faith at the same time he also made it clear that merely professing faith is not sufficient to guarantee our salvation on the contrary we must also persevere in faith in order to obtain eternal life we must maintain our faith and we must live holy lives or else we prove our faith to be false this is why he placed so much emphasis on perseverance in Philippians chapter 3 verses 12 through 16 writing about salvation in Christ in these terms not that I have already obtained all this or have already been made perfect but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus only let us live up to what we have already attained professing faith is not enough we must prove our faith by persevering and if we do not persevere to the end maintaining our faith in Christ for our salvation and remaining faithful to him and godly living we proved that our faith was false Paul's final exhortations pertain to the challenges to perseverance which he addressed in Philippians chapter 3 verse 17 through chapter 4 verse 9 these exhortations are primarily applications of his exhortation that the Philippians follow his example of perseverance in addressing the challenges to perseverance Paul encouraged the Philippians not to allow false teachers or conflict within the church or personal hardship to cause them to falter in their faithfulness to God and he began by focusing on the ways that false teaching could invade the church and threaten its perseverance listen to Philippians chapter 3 verses 18 and 19 where he wrote this harsh condemnation many live as enemies of the cross of Christ their destiny is destruction their God is their stomach and the glory is in their shame their mind is on earthly things clearly these enemies of the cross of Christ were not believers nevertheless they were in a position to threaten the church perhaps because they spoke persuasively or because they were influential in the church in any case Paul insisted that believers reject the false teachings of Christ enemies persevering and pure Christian faith and practice the desire to avoid trouble and suffering was not a sufficient reason to lose faith in the gospel and persuasive arguments were no substitute for the power of the Lord but Paul also warned that true believers within the church could present challenges to the perseverance of other believers as one example of this he mentioned a problem that existed between Euodia and cinta Kang listen to his words in Philippians chapter 4 verses 1 through 3 therefore stand firm in the Lord dear friend I plead with you Oh dia and cyntha k to agree with each other in the Lord loyal yoke fellow help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel by this conflict Euodia and cinta k were failing to stand firm in holy living and by their influence they also threatened the perseverance of other believers in Philippi and lastly Paul exhorted the Philippians not to allow individual hardship to hinder their perseverance he encouraged them to adopt a joyful perspective and not to allow anxiety to discourage them his thoughts are represented well by these words from Philippians chapter 4 verses 4 through 7 rejoice in the Lord always I will say it again rejoice do not be anxious about anything but present your requests to God and the peace of God will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus Paul's practical instruction was that believers should ask God to relieve their anxiety in some cases God might do this by eliminating the troubling circumstances but it would appear that in most cases all expected the change to be one of heart and mind of attitude and perspective finally in chapter 4 verses 10 through 20 all closed the body of this letter with a few words affirming the Philippians perseverance and faith and Christian living especially through their continued ministry to Paul himself in this section Paul thank the Philippians for the money they had sent to relieve his suffering in prison Paul thank you note assured them he had received the money and that it had helped to improve his conditions but the greatest value of the money had for Paul seems to have been emotional listen to his words in Philippians chapter 4 verses 12 through 14 I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation whether well fed or hungry whether living in plenty or in want yet it was good of you to share in my troubles the money probably alleviated some of Paul's suffering but his contentment came from God the real value these funds had was in touching Paul's heart through their sacrifice on his behalf these impoverished Christians had let Paul know how much they truly loved him the Philippians could not have demonstrated their love for Paul a better time at this point Paul's imprisonment was weighing heavily on him he was suffering and despairing imagine how comforting it must have been for him to be reminded that so many people loved him and wanted to share in his sufferings when even has to wonder if it was the Philippians that helped Paul conquer his despair was it their concern that restored his hope was it their love that inspired his decision to rejoice in the midst of his terrible circumstances was it their friendship that reminded Paul that he was neither forgotten nor alone one thing is sure Paul loved the Philippians with all his heart so their gift could not have done anything but encouraged him lastly the letter closes with Paul's final greetings in Philippians chapter 4 verses 21 through 23 this section is fairly standard although one aspect of these final greetings deserve special comment specifically in Philippians chapter 4 verse 22 Paul sent greetings from the Saints who belong to Caesars household in the ancient world Caesars household included his family members and servants whether or not they lived in the palace with him and the servants were not limited to labour they also included his personal bodyguard as well as many civil servants now the mention Caesars household has caused many Bible interpreters to conclude that Paul wrote from Rome where Caesar lived and governed an actual household but we should not draw this conclusion too hastily the fact is all of Caesars civil servants and guards around the Empire were reckoned as part of this household including those stationed in Caesarea maritima whatever the case the mention of believers within Caesars household demonstrates that Paul's imprisonment had not hindered his gospel ministry on the contrary Paul had continued to gain disciples even among his jailers having explored the background to Paul's epistle to the Philippians as well as its structure and content we are now in a position to consider the modern application of Paul's teachings in this letter needless to say the Epistle to the Philippians can be applied to our modern lives in many different ways but in this lesson we have focused on Paul's attempt to encourage others as he faced what might have been his last days on earth from this perspective one theme comes to the foreground Paul's encouragement to the Philippians to persevere to continue walking faithfully before God as we consider what Philippians means for us today a we will give our attention to this aspect of his letter as we think about the implications of Paul's epistle to the Philippians for modern Christian life we will explore three aspects with Christian perseverance first we will address the nature of perseverance second we will deal with the mindset of perseverance and third we will discuss the church's Ministry of perseverance let's turn first to the nature of perseverance in Philippians Paul's teachings on perseverance are most easily understood in terms of three main factors the definition of perseverance the necessity of perseverance and the assurance of perseverance so let's begin by looking at Paul's definition of perseverance Paul concede the perseverance in terms of the twin ideas of true faith and righteous living on the one hand perseverance is maintaining our faith in the gospel of Christ relying on his merit alone for our righteous standing before God Paul wrote of this in Philippians chapter 1 verse 27 where he expressed his hope for the Philippians with these words stand firm in one spirit contending as one man for the faith of the gospel as believers we must remain steadfast in our commitment to the gospel never giving up our beliefs this is what we mean when we speak of persevering in faith true faith in the gospel of Christ can be described in many ways but listen to one central focus of Christian faith as Paul described it in Philippians chapter 3 verses 8 and 9 I consider everything rubbish 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 is through faith in Christ the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith in this passage Paul indicated that all his human status and good work were useless for obtaining true righteousness and salvation the only thing that could gain salvation for him was the righteousness of Christ applied to Paul by means of faith as long as we continued to rely solely on Christ's merit for our righteousness we are persevering standing firm in our faith now this is not to say that perseverance never admits to doubts rather the point is that persevering faith never utter ly and finally denies the truth of the gospel moreover having true Christian faith does not mean that we have perfect theology we may have many many errors in our theology and still be faithful to the fundamental tenets of the gospel but once we no longer believe the central truth that we are saved by Christ and Christ alone then we truly fail to persevere in addition to defining perseverance in terms of true faith Paul also spoke of perseverance as righteous living as persistence in doing good and praiseworthy works for instance in Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 and 13 he spoke this way therefore my dear friends as you have always obeyed continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose here Paul talked about continuing in good works acting in ways that accord with salvation now perseverance and good works does not mean that we live perfectly we will never reach perfection in this life and sometimes we stumble in serious ways rather we persevere in good works when we strike obey Christ faithfully now Paul did not want believers to understand just a definition of perseverance he also wanted us to understand the necessity of perseverance both in faith and life in order to obtain salvation so that we would actually be motivated to persevere listen to Paul's words in Philippians chapter 3 verses 8 through 11 I consider everything rubbish 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 is through faith in Christ and so somehow to attain to the resurrection from the dead simply put Paul taught that if we fail to maintain true faith we will not be found in Christ so that we will not be resurrected to a life of eternal glory in other word perseverance and state is necessary for our final salvation similarly in Philippians chapter 2 verses 14 through 16 he offered this exhortation regarding righteous living do everything without complaining or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing by avoiding complaining and arguing that is by living righteously the Philippians could become blameless and pure so that Paul would have reason to boast in his ministry but if they fail to persevere they would demonstrate that they were not children of God that they did not truly trust in Christ and they would not be saved on the last day and the same is true for us if we do not persevere in righteous living we prove ourselves to be unbelievers and we will not be saved too many of us Paul's teachings on the definition and necessity of perseverance might sound daunting or even harsh but Paul's doctrine also had a third aspect that is quite encouraging namely assurance of perseverance and in light of assurance Paul's teachings on perseverance are not a threat to believers but a comfort Paul assured the Philippians that every true believer will certainly persevere in both faith and righteous living so that our salvation is guaranteed it is still true that many falsely professed faith and actually do fail to persevere but these are people who never truly had saving faith in the first place those whose faith is true on the other hand possessed the Holy Spirit who works in them to guarantee their perseverance listen to Paul's words in Philippians chapter 1 verse 6 I am confident of this that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus Paul was certain that if God had begun to save the Philippians he would also finish saving the Philippian he would not allow any of them to perish but would cause all true believers to persevere until the day of Christ Jesus and Paul confidence should be our confidence - if we truly believe there is no way that we can fall from faith or from gray Paul confirmed this idea in Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 and 13 where he gave this encouragement continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose the fear we are to have is not the terror that we might finally fall from grace but overwhelming all at the realization that God Almighty is working within each of us to ensure that we think and do what he want he controls our hearts and minds for his good purpose which includes our perseverance so that there is no way we can fail to stand firm until the end now that we have investigated the nature of perseverance we are in a position to discuss the mindset of perseverance that believers should adopt in our discussion we will focus on three aspects of our mindset that Paul emphasized in his epistles to the Philippians humility optimism and joy let's look first at Paul's idea that our mindset should be based in humility as an authoritative apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ Paul had every opportunity to be arrogant God had supernaturally trained Paul for leadership he had chosen Paul above all others to carry the gospel to the Gentiles and he had performed many miracles through him as well in churches all over the world Paul was revered as a hero so when he was suffering in prison he could have been tempted to think why is God letting this happen to me of all people I have been utterly faithful to him and yet he refuses to bless me I deserve better but challenging God's goodness is foolish and wrong but Paul knew that in truth he had every reason to be humble before God and by accepting this fact he prepared himself to be built up by God and to persevere through the hardships he faced in this regard Paul patterned his own mindset after the mindset of Jesus the willingly humbled himself in order to obtain God's blessing for himself and for us in fact it was in support of his exhortations to be humble that Paul included his famous Christ hymn found in Philippians chapter 2 verses 6 through 11 some scholars have suggested that these verses constitute him that's known in the church even before Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians others suspect that Paul wrote these verses specifically for this occasion but whatever their source the meaning of these verses is clear Jesus is humble and we are to pattern ourselves after him this passage describes Christ during three stages of history his pre-incarnate state his humiliation and his exaltation first Paul spoke of Christ's condition before he took on flesh at that time Christ existed as god the son living in perfect union with the father and the holy spirit being equal to them in power and glory Paul described Christ pre-incarnate state in Philippians chapter 2 verse 6 where he wrote these words Christ being in very nature God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped this first tells us at least two things about crying first before he became a human being Christ was glorious or as Paul put it Christ had the nature or form of God the Greek word Paul used was morphe which generally refers to one's outward shape now of course Paul did not just mean that Christ looked like God rather his outward appearance testified to the underlying reality that Christ actually was God second Paul indicated that Christ was humbled even before he demonstrated this humility the pre-existent son made it known by his willingness to take on an additional form or nature that of our humanity specifically Paul wrote that Christ did not consider equality with God something to be grasped here Paul use the word Esau's to refer to Christ equality or sameness with God his meaning was that Christ's form or outward glory with the same as the glory exhibited by God the Father but that Christ was willing to let go of the glory of his rightful heavenly standing in order to please the father and purchase our salvation next Paul described Christ's humiliation which is the period of his earthly life beginning with his conception and Mary's womb and extending to his death on the cross listen to Paul's words about Christ's humiliation in Philippians chapter 2 verses 7 and 8 Christ made himself nothing taking the very nature of a servant being made in human like and being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself and became obedient to death even death on a cross corresponding to Paul's words about Christ's pre incarnation these verses tell us at least two things about Christ during his state of humiliation first Christ's humiliation was inglorious that is son of God put aside his divine glory in order to take the nature or form of a human being again Paul used the Greek word morphe a to indicate that Christ had exchanged his outward form so that he no longer exhibited divine glory but instead exhibited the plain exterior of a human being now Justice Christ's divine form indicated that he was truly and fully divine his human form indicated that he was truly and fully human but it is important to realize that in becoming human Christ did not give up any of his divine attributes rather he simply added a complete human nature to his complete divine nature so that he is rightly said to be both fully human and fully divine second Philippians chapter 2 verses 7 and 8 confirm that Christ was humbled just as he had been willing to put off his glorious form during the pre incarnate period he actually did put off this form during the time of his humiliation in fact his humility was so extreme that he permitted himself to be murdered by the very creatures whose form he had taken as his own lastly Paul described Christ during the stage of his exaltation which began with his resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven and continues now in his rule over creation Paul wrote of Christ's exaltation in Philippians chapter 2 verses 9 through 11 describing it in these terms God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name 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 again Paul indicated at least two very important things about Christ during this stage first Christ regained his glorious form being exalted as the ruler of the universe to whom every creature bowed in submission and worship second Christ continued to be humble even in this exalted glorious state of universal sovereignty after all even his rule over creation was not intended to glorify himself but to bring glory to the Father now Paul presented these ideas in Philippians because he wanted believers to follow Christ's example after all if the Son of God willingly submitted to such debasing humiliation certainly his servants should be humble as well and if Christ's humility helped him persevere through his suffering and death then humility can help us persevere - and this was precisely Paul's point from Philippians chapter 2 verses 2 through 4 for he wrote these instructions be like-minded having the same love being one in spirit and purpose do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility consider others better than yourself each of you should look not only to your own interest but also to the interests of others humility helps us persevere and righteous living and in fame on the one hand and enables us to be like-minded to create unity to love and honor others and to minister to their needs and on the other hand it helps us remember that the father deserves our trust and loyalty even when our circumstances are miserable even when we are persecuted even when we are martyred besides encouraging humility and believers is a means to perseverance Paul emphasized the value of optimism that is a positive and hopeful outlook online in the modern world it is not uncommon to hear people speak of optimism as a foolish endeavor one that doesn't grapple with the real world but simply pretends that things are better than they are but pause optimism wasn't like this his optimism was realistic he did not ignore the bad things in life in fact he felt threatened by them at its heart Paul's optimism was simply a conscious decision to focus his attention on those things that were truly good and not on those things that were truly bad it was borne out of his faith in God's provision and blessings in the present world and out of his hope for the redemption and rewards that God will give us in the future for example during his suffering in prison while he was being troubled by insincere preachers of the gospel he chose to focus on the blessing that Christ was being priest even though the preachers had evil mode [Music] listen to his account in Philippians chapter 1 verses 17 and 18 the former preached Christ out of selfish ambition not sincerely supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in change but what does it matter the important thing is that in every way whether from false motives are true Christ is preached and because of this I rejoice Paul's emotional state was complex on the one hand he was suffering but on the other hand he made a conscious decision to focus on the good things rather than on the bad thing and this choice helped him endure the sufferings of prison as well as his mistreatment at the hands of these preachers and Paul's advice to the church in Philippians chapter 4 verses 6 through 8 was consistent with this attitude consider his words there do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and petition with Thanksgiving present your requests to God and the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus finally brothers whatever is true whatever is noble whatever is right whatever is pure whatever is lovely whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things thinking optimistically and fighting against anxiety and discouragement is a means of calling upon God to guard our hearts in mind and therefore it is also a means of persevering finally in addition to humility and optimism Paul also taught that the mindset of joy is a great help in Christian perseverance for one thing Paul himself concentrated on finding joy in order to persevere through his distressing circumstances and by his example he encouraged the believers in Philippi to do so as well for instance in Philippians chapter 1 verses 18 through 20 Paul spoke of his joy in this way I will continue to rejoice for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance I eagerly expect and hope that Christ will be exalted in my body whether by life or by death Paul legitimately feared that he might be put to death and yet rather than focusing on the negative aspects of his death he focused on the positive outcome his death might bring he was optimistic and as a result he was able to rejoice notice that in this case Paul's joy was not a naive denial of pain and suffering or even an overwhelming emotion of happiness on the contrary as we have seen there was much sadness and suffering mixed into Paul's feelings as well but despite his troubles Paul truly was able to look at the good things in life and to rejoice over them he could think about honoring Christ through a courageous death and be satisfied even pleased a Christ's exaltation and that satisfaction and pleasure constituted joy Paul did not feel only joy but he did feel true joy and this joy provided him with a desire to press onward and it gave purpose to his suffering Paul encouraged his friends and Phillipi to adopt a similar attitude so that their joy would help them persevere as well listen to his advice to them in Philippians chapter 4 verses 4 through 6 rejoice in the Lord always I will say it again rejoice the Lord is near do not be anxious about anything Paul encouraged the Philippians to be joyful because the Lord was near whether as their help in time of need or as the king who had returned to bring his reign of peace to all the earth in either case joy would motivate and enable the Philippians to fend off anxiety and therefore it would prepare them to persevere until the Lord's return by patterning our mindset after Paul's by focusing on humility and optimism and joy we can strengthen ourselves against anxiety and despair it is inevitable that hardship will come and that we will suffer sometimes greatly so when we do we need to remember Paul's example and advice we need to temper our suffering with a humble spirit and to remain hopeful by thinking about the many good things we have in this life and the next and we need to overcome the troubles of our condition by making a conscious decision to rejoice over those things in our lives that are still worthy of joy in these ways we can be strengthened with God's help to persevere now that we have explored the nature and mindset of perseverance we're ready to turn to our third concern the church's Ministry of perseverance express through our actions toward one another Paul recognized that the philippians ministry to him had helped him to persevere at many stages of his ministry including his present imprisonment at many different times they had supported him financially and emotionally and they had even sent at afroditi to minister to him in prison we can summarize their ministry to Paul in terms of material support encouragement and physical presence in each of these ways the Philippians bolstered Paul's spirits and empowered him to greater perseverance for instance listen to Paul heartfelt words in Philippians chapter 4 verses 13 and 14 I can do everything through him who gives me strength yet it was good of you to share in my trouble in some ways these simple verses represent the heart of the philippians ministry to paul and of his feelings about them before Pafford itit's had come bearing the philippians gift Paul the Apostle had been drawing strength from the Lord to persevere but he had not had much moral support from others and as a result his optimism and his joy had faded he was persevering but it was hard work but the Philippians gift provided material support that somewhat alleviated his suffering so that persevering became a bit easier and their concern for him expressed through the gift and the sending of a Pafford itis provided encouragement and helped him recover his optimism enjoy and of course the physical presence of the coffered itís not only ministered to Paul's earthly needs but provided him with companionship and friendship to help him persevere all the more and so it was with the most heartfelt thanks that Paul told the Philippians it was good of you to share in my trouble Paul really and truly appreciated their ministry and it gave him great comfort and joy to count them as his friends so that he was encouraged and helped to persevere Mikey Estates strong and by living in ways that honored crying and Paul intended his ministry to help the Philippians persevere through their own trial as we read in Philippians chapter 1 verses 3 and 4 he prayed for them he also wrote his epistle to them to teach them how to persevere and more than this he sent at Aphrodite's to minister to them probably as a leader in the church in the modern church we can learn much from the way the Philippians ministered to Paul by providing material support there are multitudes of Christians throughout the world who have great material needs some are so poor that finding food and clothing is the constant challenge others are oppressed by evil people in the world some are even sold into slavery and severely abused and of course there are many other real but less dramatic material needs dealt by Christian in every part of the world and one way we can minister to these believers one way we can give them hope and help them persevere is by meeting their material needs we can also learn a great deal from the way the Philippians ministered to Paul through their love and encouragement they did not just send money to Paul they also sent their love through a Pafford itis they communicated to Paul that they were thinking about him and that he was in their hearts just as they were in his modern Christians also need encouragement to persevere we can offer words of encouragement in church or over the telephone or through a letter or a messenger or in many other ways but the point is that we should go out of our way to let people know that they are loved and that they are not forgotten beyond this we can spend time with people in person simply sitting by them being with them and helping them with their physical needs just as the Philippians sent at afroditi Stu Paul even in the church many people are lonely many need a friend and many others need help with simple things like shopping and cleaning or caring for themselves and their family being physically present with believers is another good way to help them persevere and we can also learn much from the ways Paul ministered to the Philippian we can teach them how to persevere through sound doctrine and practical advice if we are in positions of authority in the church we can lead the church in ways that are encouraging and responsible that communicate by word and by example that perseverance is both godly and possible and no matter who we are or where we are we can always pray so that in response to our request God Himself will give other believers strength to persevere in this lesson we have explored tall's canonical epistle to the philippians including the background that forms the historical and social context of the letter the structure and content of the letter itself and finally the modern application of this letter in the life of the Christian Church Paul's epistle to the Philippians has many rich and wonderful truths to teach us about standing firm and a Christian faith and about living righteously before our holy God even during times of suffering and distress as we submit ourselves to Paul's teachings we will realize how utterly important perseverance is and we will be greatly encouraged to dedicate ourselves to this awesome task and most importantly as we succeed in our own perseverance by following Paul's advice and as we help others to persevere as well we will bring glory and honor to our exalted Lord Jesus Christ [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music]

Channel: Thirdmill

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Keywords: For the World, Third Millennium Ministries, Mission, Christian Theology, Study, Apostle Paul, Free, New Testament, Missions, Prison Epistles, Truth, Theology Matters, Ministry, Seminary, Scripture, Biblical Education, Prison Letters, God, Bible, Education, Theology, Paul, Third Mill, Reformed, Jesus, Reggie Kidd, Holy Spirit, Philippians

Id: 1cg78AyDrDI

Length: 92min 18sec (5538 seconds)

Published: Fri Jun 23 2017