Aug 6, 2011

Philippians Bible Study- Intro


The study of any book of the Bible reminds me of an adventure that surprises us and keeps unfolding as we dig in. The more we learn, the deeper we connect with what’s going on in the story. There’s so much that can be tapped into. When we don’t dig in to God, we dig in to other stuff that never really satisfies or anchor’s us like Jesus can. He’s the solid Rock. He’s our anchor in life that centers us when all the storms are raging. He is the one that keeps us so we won’t drift away…and he keeps us through His word.

(Hebrews 6:19 “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters into the inner place.”)

As we study God’s word it builds our foundation for knowing who God really is. As we know who God really is, we love Him more and our lives don’t look the same….We don’t want to sin, we want to love Him and obey His word because it’s in our heart. We come to the understanding that He has given us everything we need for this Christian walk and if we rely on His power and not our own ability, we have the ability not to sin.

(Psalm 119:11 “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”)

We find out who God is by studying his word through His word. Why study the Word of God? Is it to be more religious or smart? Is it to prove something? No. It’s to know Him more, to be a strong woman that doesn’t waver in her faith like a wave tossed around by the sea. Its so we can live lives of victory rather than regret, sin, confusion, or fear. I don’t want to be a weak woman who’s all over the place and doubts like crazy.

I want to be strong in Christ.

(James 1:5-8 “ If any of you lacks wisdom, LET HIM ASK GOD, who gives generously to all without holding back, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind….he is a double minded man, unstable in all his ways.)

We have a whole lifetime to get to know him.

There’s no pressure, any desire you have right now was placed there by God Himself…because he has set his love upon you.

Reading the word of God is to affirm us in our faith. We need to be affirmed in what has already been established.

2 Timothy 3: 14-20

16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

John 1: 1-4, 14

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Philippians isn’t just Paul’s letter…It was inspired by God because it’s His Word.

PHILIPPIANS

KEY VERSE:

Philippians 1:21

“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Observation:

Who:

Philippians is one of Paul’s most autobiographical letters. Writing to a church he founded and loved, Paul described his situation in prison (possibly home imprisonment where he may have been anticipating his own execution.) He warned his readers of potential theological dangers to the church.

(Wait, what’s Theology?- The study of the nature of God. The foundation of the church-- “Is it based on man and his ideas or the cross of Christ?”)

It was written to the Christians in the Roman colony of Philippi.

Where/When:

It was a letter written from Rome, and he sent it to the church in Philippi (or the Philippians). He wasn’t necessarily in prison, but he was under house arrest at this point, after being in prison in Caesarea. Paul was basically a rebel in hiding, and he knew he was probably going to die soon. But he was cool with it (Phil 1:21). Philippians was written in Rome at about 61-62 A.D. (After he was put in prison by Herod the Great in Caesarea in 60 A.D.) Obviously Paul had been through quite a bit at this point in his journey.)

Paul called himself a prisoner, yet we have no evidence to show that he was imprisoned in Ephesus. On the other hand, Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea (A.D. 58-60). Since Rome had not declared Christianity illegal at this time, Paul had committed no crime. He was imprisoned for Christ’s sake.

Philippi:

Philippi was the first city in present-day Europe where Paul established a church.

The first person that believed in Christ was Lydia, a seller of purple goods, and women continued to have a prominent role in the Philippian church (4:2). Philippi was the site of a key military victory by Augustus Caesar, and as a result it was declared a Roman colony.

What/Why:

Philippians is unified by its joyful, almost exuberant mood (the words for “joy” or “rejoice” occur more than a dozen times).

At the core of the letter lies a theology of the cross that unites and encourages Christian unity and joy.

The key theme of Philippians is ENCOURAGEMENT in their faith in Christ. Paul wants to encourage the Phillipians to live out their lives as citizens of a heaven, as shown by a growing commitment to service to God and to one another.

The letter is far more than a thank-you note, Timothy and Epaphroditus were mentioned because they were solid in their faith and exemplified the Christ-centered, gospel-focused life Paul wanted the Philippians to live.

Paul himself wanted to encourage the Philippians in their faith, and his imprisonment meant he could do that only through writing a letter. Even a house imprisonment could have been a source of great anguish.

Paul had more than one reason for writing this letter. For one thing, he wrote the letter to thank the church for their material help. The church had sent Epaphroditus to assist Paul while in prison.

Pauls purpose goes even further…

He is above all concerned that the Philippians continue to make progress in their faith (1:25). While there were no doubt conflicts within the church, can they just sit back & relax? Paul’s answer is “NO.” The world is too perilous, and the gospel too glorious, for them to be content with past achievements. They must follow Paul’s example and “press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (3:14).

Paul explains what spiritual progress will look like. Christian maturity does not come through special mystical insights only available to the few. The supreme model for progress in faith is Jesus himself, and the centerpiece of Philippians is the amazing “hymn of Christ” in 2:5-11. Jesus willingly let go of the privileges of divine glory to take up the form of a servant, and he even embraced the ultimate humiliation of the cross, in order to liberate the world from sin.

Those who follow Christ have the hope that God will also free them from blame, guilt, and doubt and they can rejoice! They can also be confident that God will not leave them alone to make their way through the world as best they can. They progress spiritually by knowing that it is God who works in them.

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