03.01. LESSON 1

LESSON 1 In Acts 16:1-40 is found a graphic account of Paul’s founding at historic Philippi, about A.D. 52, the first church in Eu­rope. According to the book of Acts, when Christ attacks one of Satan’s heathen strongholds, Satan bestirs himself in opposition. After unsuccessfully resisting the gospel beachhead on the continent of Europe by trying to have men think that “a maid having a spirit of divination” was in alliance with Paul, he turned to persecution, and beat and imprisoned Paul and Silas. This second method of opposi­tion failed so miserably, however, that Paul’s jailer became a Christian, and probably with Lydia and the maid formed the nucleus of the church in Philippi.

Inasmuch as there can be no alliance or compromise be­tween God and Satan, Paul refused true testimony when it was given by Satan’s instrument. Likewise, Christ re­buked demons when they declared who he was (Luke 4:34-35). Neither Christ nor Paul would suffer such profana­tion of truth. “The prince of this world,” the father of lies, never speaks truth unless the circumstances are such that God will be dishonored and man duped, for as Christ said, “there is no truth in him” (John 8:44). The adage, “Take truth and good wherever you find them,” because of its strong appeal to human pride and sufficiency, has been disastrously used by Satan from Eden onward. Men cannot discern between fundamental truth and error, be­tween ultimate good and evil. Their only safety lies in following “the good Shepherd,” who can so discern, and in knowing “not the voice of strangers.” “The way of man is not in himself” (Jeremiah 10:23).

Philippians Is Autobiographic

Philippians is more peaceful than Galatians, and more personal than Ephesians. Instead of being largely an an­swer to questions like 1 Corinthians, or a treatise of the­ology like Romans, it contains much intimate, personal matter like 2 Corinthians. There is a world of difference, however, between these two letters. In 2 Corinthians, Paul is forced, much against his preference, to talk about him­self in order to maintain his apostleship against envious “false apostles” toward whom he has no cause for grati­tude, while in Philippians he is pouring out spontaneous, fatherly affection upon his dearest children, upon his kind­est and best-loved church; in the two letters, he tells his experience for altogether different reasons. Paul knows that he is God’s spiritual laboratory where greater things are being wrought than any alchemist could ever discover in a physical laboratory. From his Roman prison, there­fore, he tells the Philippians by what means he has be­come the Christian he is, hoping that they also may be moved to try the Christian experiment fully. “Brethren, be ye imitators together of me, and mark them that so walk even as ye have us for an example” (Php 3:17) may be called the key verse of the book. O how much we all need Christianity as Paul understood, taught, and lived it!

Blemishes To Be Corrected

Although Paul does less chiding in Philippians than in letters to other churches, he hopes to correct two ugly blemishes in Philippi, the first of which is disunion. In thJe first chapter, after saluting “all the saints,” he uses the word “all” with the same import several times in such expressions as, ‘I long after you all,” as if he could not bear to think of them as being divided among themselves. In the same chapter, in order to show that he thinks of them as one in grace and service, he writes: “Stand fast in one spirit with one soul striving for the faith of the gos­pel.” The second chapter begins with a strong personal plea for unity: “Make full my joy, that ye may be of the same mind.” Then in Php 4:1-23, still more personal­ly and earnestly, he beseeches: “I exhort Euodia, and I exhort Syntyche, to be of the same mind in the Lord.” What can all this mean but that Paul, though likely no doctrinal differences and open breaches existed, looked with anxious eye and grieved heart upon some personal differences that were gnawing at the peace and usefulness of the church? The second blemish that he hopes to correct is despon­dency. The church, founded in bitter persecution, has con­tinued “to suffer in his (Christ’s) behalf” throughout its existence of some ten years—ample time after “the first sprightly running” for an Ephesian drift from “first love” (Revelation 2:4). But Paul exhorts, “in nothing affrighted by the adversaries” (Php 1:18). Moreover, Paul’s long imprison­ment and longer absence so depresses them that he is con­strained to write: “So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”; for though I am absent, God, “who began a good work in you,” is still present and “worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure” (Php 2:12-13); therefore “Rejoice in the Lord always again . . . rejoice” (Php 4:4). The word “all” as the opposite of disunion, and the word “rejoice” as the opposite of despondency are used so re­peatedly throughout the book that they may be called keywords. It is said that the devil upon being asked by his imps why he depended so much on despondency as a wea­pon against God explained that it was easy to discourage Christians, and that when once discouraged and despondent they made his best, especially undercover, workers. And thus the enemy sows “tares also among the wheat.”

Skeletal Outline of Philippians Theme: Rejoicing in the Lord always.

1.    Rejoicing in evangelism and in facing death. Php 1:1-30.

2.    Rejoicing in lowly service and in brotherhood. Php 2:1-30.

3.    Rejoicing in imperfections and in heavenly citizen­ship. Php 3:1-21.

4.    Rejoicing in anxiety and in privation. Php 4:1-23.

Christ’s name (not counting pronouns) occurs about fif­ty times in the 104 verses of Philippians. According to the book, Christ lives in each one of us who can say with Paul, “For me to live is Christ” (Php 1:21). In the four chap­ters, Christ, successively, is our life, our example, our object, and our strength. The rich cream of Paul’s long personal experience with Christ rises in this prison epistle. May we all remember ever that no faith can live itself out in our lives that is not sustained and renewed by memory, experience, and hope.

QUESTIONS

1.    Relate, according to Acts 16:1-40, the circumstances of the found­ing of the church at Philippi.

2.    Why did Satan “tempt” Christ personally in the wilderness, and later relentlessly oppose his church?

3.    Name two methods that Satan used in opposing the estab­lishrnent of a Christian beachhead in Europe.

4.    Where and in what condition was Paul when he wrote Philip­pians?

5.    What interpretation did Paul put upon his persecution by Jews and Romans, and upon the hostility of his false brethren?

6.    Contrast, in general character, Philippians and Galatians; Philippians and Ephesians; Philippians and Second Corinthians.

7.    Name two faults in the church at Philippi which Paul hoped to correct by this letter.

8.    State the general theme of Philippians, and tell what particu­lar phase of it each chapter treats.