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The Who

“Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus . . . ”—Philippians 1:1a

Authored by the apostle Paul, with assistance from Timothy
Describes himself as a “servant[ ] of Christ Jesus”

Contra 1 Corinthians 1:1a (“an apostle”); 2 Corinthians 1:1a (“an apostle”); Galatians 1:1a (“an apostle”); Ephesians 1:1a (“an apostle”); Colossians 1:1a (“an apostle”); 1 Timothy 1:1a (“an apostle”); 2 Timothy 1:1a (“an apostle”); Titus 1:1a (“a servant . . . and an apostle”); Philemon 1:1a (“a prisoner”)

No descriptors used in either 1 or 2 Thessalonians

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The Where

“To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons . . . ”—Philippians 1:1b

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The Where (continued)

Originally founded in 360 BCE by Greek settlers
Conquered by Macedonian King Philip II (father of Alexander the Great) and renamed in his honor in 356 BCE
Battleground between Caesar loyalists Octavian and Marc Antony on the one hand and Caesar assassins Brutus and Cassius on the other, circa 42 BCE
Resettled with veterans by Octavian after he defeats Marc Antony at Actium in 30 BCE

As a result, the city has a governing Latin culture with a Greek subculture

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The When

After the Jerusalem Conference in 59/60 CE, Paul wanted to retrace his first missionary journey . . .
. . . but the Holy Spirit had other plans and eventually diverted Paul to Philippi
Paul initially converts a God-fearing Greek woman named Lydia
Paul then exorcises a demonically-possessed girl . . .
. . . but that results in her losing her powers of divination, much to the financial loss of her masters, who have Paul thrown in prison . . .
. . . but that results in the conversion of the jailer and his entire household!

Read Acts 16:6-40

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The When (continued)

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The When (continued)

During his third and final missionary journey, Paul “decided to go back through Macedonia” (Acts 20:3). Although not mentioned by name, Paul would have almost certainly passed through Philippi.
After his third missionary journey, Paul is arrested. He spends roughly two years under house arrest in Rome. During this time, he writes four epistles from prison: Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, and Philippians.
He likely writes Philippians last, circa 61/62 CE.

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The Why

Paul wrote many of his epistles to respond to a crisis. E.g., Galatians 3:1 (“You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?”).
In these verses, what does Paul reveal about the reason he is writing to the church at Philippi?

What are some things that Paul is thankful for about the church at Philippi? What does that tell us about Kingdom work in general?

“Partnership” = koinon, “fellowship”

Read Philippians 1:3-12

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The What

What three benefits does Paul identify as a result of his imprisonment? What does this reveal about a Christian’s priorities?

“Imperial guard” = Praetorian Guard. Roughly 9,000 handpicked soldier who served as bodyguards to the Emperor. They also protected imperial prisoners, and they did so by chaining the prisoners to their own bodies.

Read Philippians 1:12-18

What are wrong motives for preaching the Gospel? What are right ones?

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The What (continued)

Paul notes several things that he is confident in. What are they?

“Deliverance” = soterian, “salvation.” Typically denotes the Lord’s final deliverance of the believer.

Read Philippians 1:19-30

Paul also calls us to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ. The Greek better translates as a command to conduct ourselves “as citizens” in a manner worthy of the Gospel. (Paul uses the verb politeuesthai, which generally means “live as citizens.”)

Paul’s language is intentionally countercultural. Philippi was a Roman colony. Its citizens owed their allegiance to the Emperor. Yet Paul says that the church is a heavenly colony who ultimately owes its allegiance to Jesus. What characteristics does Paul note make us worthy citizens of the Gospel?

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