THE GOSPEL OF JOY IN ADVERSE CIRCUMSTANCES - PHILIPPIANS - INTRODUCTION

TEXT:  Philippians 1:1-2 (CSB) – “Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus: To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

As we begin this new study – let’s survey the book of Philippians. This letter to the church at Philippi was written by Paul. It bears his stamp of language and style and the setting pictures Paul’s imprisonment.

It was written by Paul in prison in Rome. The Philippians had sent him some gifts and this is his thank-you letter. It is believed to been written around 60 A.D.

The focus of this letter is the Christ-centered life. The hallmark is joy. Written as an encouragement to those who face afflictions. In this letter we see that it encourages us to surrender to Christ – “For to me, to live is Christ…” (1:21) “… Christ will be highly honored in my body, whether by life or by death (1:20).

Christ has laid hold of Paul, and his sole passion is to glorify Christ. He longs for the Philippians to repeat his experience in Christ. He does this by encouraging by:

·      Praying they will abound in love of Christ (1:9)

·      They will lay hold of the mind of Christ (2:5-11)

·      And, they will experience Christ (3:10-11)

Paul’s only motive he tells us is to “know Him” (3:10) – he shares we can do this through Christ (4:13) who is his joy and strength.

Philippi is a city about 7 miles northeast of Thessalonica – it is the entrance to Macedonia. It was named for Philip II the father of Alexander the Great. Paul visited this city on his 2^nd Missionary journey around 49 A.D. It is recorded here that he received what has been called his Macedonian Call (Acts 16:37-40).

In this city, he was thrown into prison, bound and beaten – at midnight sang a hymn with Silas – which led to the jailer coming to receive salvation in Christ. Since that time, the people of Philippi always held a special place in Paul’s heart. Now, about a decade later – again in prison – celebrating the Christian Joy in the Midst of Adverse Circumstances – he writes to them,  “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” Phil. 4:4

So, now without further ado – let’s listen to the voice of the apostle as he speaks to us in this epistle of joy and encouragement in the midst of adverse circumstances. As we prepare to move forward tomorrow in this grand letter, ponder over how do we respond to adverse circumstances today? Do we follow Paul’s example – or the world’s?