Sermon Tone Analysis

INTRODUCTION

SO MANY LIFE VERSES COME FROM PHILIPPIANS

This overview of Philippians points us to the joy found in courageously living out the Great Commission...with the Grace and Peace from God alone.

BACKGROUND

Phillipi

In 356 BC, Philip II of Macedon seized some gold mines near the site of the colony Krenides in northern Greece that was founded just 3 years previous.

Philip fortified the wall, drained the marshes, constructed a theater, made the city bigger, then renamed it after himself.

You may not have heard of Philip, but perhaps you’ve heard of his son, Alexander the Great - he used Philippi as a base for his conquests.

In the second Century BC, it was conquered by the Romans and Philippi became a Roman outpost.

After the Assassination of Julius Caesar, there was a major battle near Philippi

Paul’s missionary work in Europe began in Philippi as we learned last week in Acts 16

Paul

(formerly Saul of Tarsus) (See Acts 9:3-6; Acts 26:12-18) SaulSaul had learned the Scriptures early from a top teacher Was living the life that everyone expected him to live Was well respected by the established synagogues WAS NOT INTERESTED IN / VIOLENTLY OPPOSED TO HAVING HIS LIFE CONTROLLED BY JESUS or the teachings of Christ which called for living other than the Pharisees Saul was on an assignment from the Chief Priests to root out all of the Jesus followers / Christians.

dramatic encounter with Jesus - Confronted with the person (not the essence) of Christ!

You are headed the wrong direction Your efforts are futile You were created to glorify God

direct encounter with Jesus - Paul’s companions saw a light and heard a noise but only Paul experienced the vision itself.

IMMEDIATELY CHANGED POSTURE,

BLINDED TO EVERYTHING AROUND HIM literally blinded

WORKS IT OUT IN PRAYER

LEARNS THE COST OF GLORIFYING GOD BY PROCLAIMING JESUS

PAUL RECEIVES HIS SIGHT

ROSE - WAS BAPTIZED / IDENTITY CHANGED

​Acts 9:18 it is the first work of the new believer

behold I make all things new

He’s gone from disobeying anything connected to CHRIST to immediately embracing identity with CHRIST

embracing and proclaiming your new identity to the church and the world this would have immediately cost him all credibility with the Pharisees, the High Priest’s office

NOBODY would know this had happened (except these 2) IF HE HADN’T GONE PUBLIC

PROCLAIMS CHRIST - it is his highest joy it is his greatest challenge it is his ultimate destiny it is the path to glorifying Jesus (through a trail of tears) it is what he was made for it will ultimately cost him his health and life

>>>SLIDE - TAKE NOTE OF THIS TIMELINE.

SAUL TO PAUL

Destroyer becomes the Declarer

Prosecutor becomes the Preacher

Terror becomes the Teacher

Misguided becomes the Missional

Foolish becomes Wise

Agitator becomes the Peacemaker

Stiffnecked becomes the Surrendered

The posture OF THE CONVERTED is TOTAL SURRENDER.

What can God do with a life that totally surrenders to the Lordship of Jesus Christ?

Phillipians - the church @ Philippi / this letter

How did the Philippian church begin?

Paul’s submission to the Spirit and evangelistic encounters - Luke tells us of these in Acts 16

When the apostle Paul first shared the gospel in Philippi during his second missionary journey (AD 49–50), he was beaten and imprisoned by its citizens (Acts 16:12–40).

Ten years later, from another prison, he writes to the church he planted there.

His message is one of joy.

He wants the Philippians to know and love Jesus so much that they, too, experience great joy—even when facing suffering.

This is the story of the founding of the church in Philippi: Lydia and her family, along with some other ladies (Euodia and Syntyche?), a slave girl, a jailer and his family, and some new “brothers.”

When Paul left, he received generous and loyal support from this new church (2 Cor 11:7-9; Phil 4:15-16; see Silva, Philippians, 2–4).

He also revisited them on his third missionary journey (Acts 20:1-6).

BIG PICTURE

THE GOSPEL is the chief concern here of Paul.

The word appears here more than in any other epistle (per 100 words).

Philippians contains a higher concentration of JESUS & CHRIST than any other New Testament Letter.

The noun and verbal forms of “REJOICE” & “REJOICE WITH” are used 16x in this short letter.

SUFFERING FOR CHRIST is an often neglected theme of Philippians.

He mentions Christ’s suffering, his own suffering, Epaphroditus’s suffering, the church’s coming opposition and suffering.

He instructs them to regard their suffering, like their faith, as a gracious gift from God.

We will see JOY & PARTNERSHIP flowing out of the Philippians’ response to the Great Commission…but make no mistake - this is not a joint venture for the purpose of community engagement…this is all about

A LIVING RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST at a personal level

A COMMUNITY DRAWN TOGETHER BECAUSE OF JESUS CHRIST

A MISSION THAT CENTERS ON THE PERSON OF JESUS CHRIST

Knowing HIM,

Living For HIM,

and Making HIM Known to our NEIGHBORS and the NATIONS!

Some Helpful summaries on this book:

Henrietta Mears - What the Bible Is All About - Summary on Philippians:

Joy Triumphs over Suffering (Phil 1.1-30)

Joy in Christ (Phil 2.1-11)

Joy in Salvation (Phil 2.12-30)

Joy in Christ’s Righteousness (Phil 3.1-9)

Joy in Christ’s Will (Phil 3.10-21)

Joy in Christ’s Strength (Phil 4.1-7)

Joy in Christ’s Provision (Phil 4.3-23)

It’s beautiful isn’t it?

It reminds me of the acrostic many of us learned in Sunday School: JOY = Jesus (first), (then) Others, and You (at the back of the line)

The Bible Exposition Commentary takes an interesting approach in dividing the text with a look at the mind:

1.

The Single Mind (Phil 1)

2. The Submissive Mind (Phil 2)

3. The Spiritual Mind (Phil 3)

4. The Secure Mind (Phil 4)

Surely the battle for worldviews, for abiding commitment…even joy itself - the battle begins in the mind.

What a fitting approach.

We would do well to remember the need to renew and wash our minds with the Word of God:

Today, we begin with the Greeting…and it won’t take us long to see Christ exalted right before our eyes.

TEXT

Although this is very much a standard way to open a letter - (1) author, (2) recipients, (3) greeting, and (4) thanksgiving/prayer - Paul’s heartfelt greeting is not prepacked, perfunctory way.

Paul had a close relationship with the Philippian congregation.

In the letter’s opening, Paul doesn’t need to declare his apostleship, as he often does when there is a conflict or doubts about his authority.

But notice how Paul takes these 4 categories and exalts Jesus Christ through them.

First, Christ is exalted as the key to understanding the identity of Christian ministers like Paul and Timothy (i.e., “servants of Christ”).

Second, Christ is exalted as the key to unlocking the identity of Christians (i.e., “saints in Christ”).

Third, Christ is exalted as the fountain of grace and peace (“from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”).

Fourth, Christ is exalted as the high point of history and holiness as Paul gives thanks and prays for the purity of the Philippians (“filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ”; 1:11) in light of the final day (“the day of Christ”; Phil.

1:10).

WORDS - that all point to Christ

1. SERVANTS

No status grab here!

Servants of whom?

Christ and His Bride - the church.

Doulos = Slaves / subservient to, controlled by - pertaining to a state of being absolutely controlled by someone or something

SERVANT = more than 800x