The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown (131 page)

In the Philippian church (see 4:2—3) as well as in our churches today, we often find it hard to get along with one another. Why is this? According to Paul, the reason may be rivalry, conceit, or selfish ambition
—
in one word, pride (2:3). So what is the remedy? Again, it is one word that encapsulates Paul's answer: humility: “in humility…[e]veryone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others” (2:3—4). May God help us to do so, and as we strive for humility, let us contemplate the outcome of Christ's humility:

“For this reason God also highly exalted Him, and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow
—
of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth
—
and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (2:9—11).

B. Body Proper: Exhortation to Unity for the Sake of the Gospel (1:12—4:9)
Paul provided the Philippians with four biographical vignettes in 1:12—2:30. The lives of Paul (1:12-26), Jesus (2:5-11),
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Timothy (2:19-24), and Epaphroditus (2:25-30) serve a hortatory function because they demonstrated humility by putting the needs of others first, even in the face of potential (1:20-24; 2:27,30) or actual death (2:8). The testimony of these lives provided examples for the Philippians to emulate as they sought the greater progress of the gospel amid their own hardships. They served to strengthen the Philippians so that they too could endure the suffering (1:29) they faced at the hands of their opponents (1:28). Paul even referred to this hardship as a gracious gift from God (1:29).

The call to emulation continues in 3:17 and 4:9, but in 3:1—4:9 this call differs in that it focuses on two grave threats against the gospel: (1) false teachers; and (2) disunity among the Philippians. Paul's note of urgency throughout this section reads like a call to mobilize in the fight for the gospel.

The threat from the false teachers was much more serious than the threat posed by the evangelists mentioned earlier by Paul (1:15—17). The evangelists preached the right message with the wrong motives. They preached because they envied Paul and wished to increase his suffering. If they had doctrinal differences with Paul, those were relatively minor so that Paul could still rejoice that they proclaimed the gospel. The present unit makes clear that these false teachers got their message very wrong. It contained disturbing departures from the true gospel that Paul had to confront.
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Paul rebuked their zeal for a false gospel that apparently viewed circumcision and OT dietary laws as necessary for salvation. In a biting irony, Paul turned the tables on the false teachers and demonstrated that their indictment of Gentile believers was in fact a self-indictment. Jews would call non-Jews “unclean,” partly because they ate a forbidden diet, much like dogs who fed on carrion and garbage.
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Paul called the false teachers “dogs” in order to show that they did not belong to the true people of God.

In a play on words, Paul described the false teachers’ circumcision as mutilation, which referred to the pagan cuttings of the body like the self-inflicted wounds of the prophets of Baal (1 Kgs 18:28) that were forbidden in OT law (Lev 19:28; 21:5; Deut 14:1; Isa 15:2; Hos 7:14). Paul's point was that the false teachers’ dependence on circumcision for salvation demonstrated that they did not understand God's grace and were in fact pagans rather than the chosen people of God. Christians are the true circumcision who worship God in the Spirit and forsake confidence in the flesh (3:1—3). In fact, Paul reminded the Philippians that if anyone had reason to put stock in the flesh, it was he (3:4—6).

Yet after his conversion to Christ, he came to relegate those former things (3:7), and indeed all things (3:8), to the loss side of the ledger in comparison with the surpassing value of gaining and knowing Christ (3:8) and being found righteous in him by faith
(3:9). Paul's passion was now knowing Christ in the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings (3:10), so that Paul might eventually follow Christ in experiencing resurrection (3:11).

Paul reminded the Philippians that he had not attained the goal of the resurrection or become perfect (3:12). He intentionally forgot about the qualifications that he once depended on for salvation and now pressed on in pursuit of the heavenly prize (3:12—14). This perspective represented the mark of mature thinking for Christians (3:15), which God would reveal even to those who disagreed (3:16). The apostle presented himself and those who took the same perspective as examples to emulate in contrast to the behavior of the opponents who were enemies of the cross (3:17—19). The apostle drew a stark contrast between their focus on “earthly things” (3:19) and believers’ “citizenship in heaven” (3:20). Paul showed that these contrasting focal points would lead to contrasting outcomes: destruction for the opponents (3:19) and glorified bodies for believers (3:20—21). Believers “eagerly wait” for Jesus the Savior
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(3:20) who will transform them by his almighty power (3:21).

The second threat to the gospel is disunity. Philippians 4 begins with a charge to stand firm in the Lord (4:1). Paul continued his charge by urging two prominent women in the church to “agree in the Lord” (4:2). Disunity obviously threatened “partnership” in the gospel, so Paul asked the Philippians to help these women who contended for the gospel at Paul's side like Clement and the rest of Paul's coworkers (4:3). Rejoicing in the Lord
(4:4)
, prayer
(4:6)
, and the heart-guarding power of the peace of God (4:7) represent the cure for disunity. Paul concluded by urging the Philippians to concentrate on excellent things (4:8) and to emulate Paul's teaching and lifestyle (4:9).

C. Closing: Thanksgiving for the Philippians’ Partnership in the Gospel (4:10—20)
Paul rejoiced with thanksgiving for the Philippians’ present (4:10,14,18) and past (4:15—16) financial gifts. He did not rejoice in the gift itself so much as in what the gift represented: the Philippians’ partnership with Paul in the gospel. The apostle testified that Christ's strength enabled him (4:13) to be content in every circumstance (4:11), whether poverty or abundance (4:12). He reminded the Philippians that their gifts to Paul were in reality sacrifices of praise to God (4:18), who would supply all their needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus (4:19). Therefore, Paul closed with a fitting doxology in which he gave God all the glory (4:20).

III. Conclusion: Final Greetings (4:21-23)

Paul urged the Philippians to greet all the believers in Christ Jesus. He also reminded them that all the believers sent their greetings, including the brothers who were with Paul. Among those in the category of “all believers,” Paul especially highlighted “Caesar's
household” (4:22). Paul followed these greetings with the grace benediction: “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit” (4:23).

THEOLOGY

Theological Themes

The Gospel and Its Implications
Paul's theology in Philippians is essentially a gospel-centered theology. This focus on the gospel grounds Paul's concern for the important practical and ethical implications that flow forth from the gospel. This connection is seen in its most comprehensive form in Paul's exhortation in 1:27: “live your life
[politeusthe]
in a manner worthy of the gospel.” Believers have become citizens of heaven through the gospel, and therefore their conduct must match their citizenship. The same theme surfaces again in 3:20: “our citizenship is in heaven.” The political nuance of these two texts is an important reminder that the believers’ heavenly citizenship made Philippi's status as a Roman colony pale in comparison. Acts of personal and practical obedience—unity, humility, rejoicing, not grumbling or being anxious—not only arose
from
the gospel but were also necessary
for
the gospel and its further progress.

As noted in the unit-by-unit analysis, the whole letter can be understood in its relation to the gospel. Paul's opening thanksgiving centers on the Philippians’ partnership in the gospel (1:5). As partakers of grace with Paul in his defense and confirmation of the gospel (1:7), they must not only “fight together for the faith of the gospel” (1:27, author's translation), but also emulate the examples of Paul (1:21—26), Jesus (2:5—11), Timothy (1:19-24), and Epaphroditus (1:25-30), because they put the needs of others in front of their own for the sake of the gospel. Likewise, Paul addressed false teachers (3:2—21) and disunity (4:2—3) among the Philippians because they represented threats to the progress of the gospel. The letter concludes with a thanksgiving for their partnership in the gospel (4:10—20) in that their financial gifts helped further the progress of the gospel.

The Person and Work of Christ
This central concern for the gospel of Christ springs from the centrality of Christ in Paul's thought, which is another major theme that characterizes the theology of Philippians. Philippians reflects an exalted view of the person and work of Jesus Christ. The most obvious and outstanding passage concerning Christology is the exquisite “Christ hymn” in 2:6—11.
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The glory of the gospel is seen in (1) the glorious height of Christ's preexistent state (2:6); (2) his humble obedience to the Father in every respect, from taking on the limitations of human flesh to the culminating act of the humiliating and excruciating death on a cross (2:7—8); and (3) the exalted position of the resurrected Christ as the one to whom every knee will bow and whom every tongue will confess as Lord (2:9—11).

In this Christological hymn Paul clearly affirmed the deity of Jesus, describing him as having eternally existed in the very form of God, fully equal to God,
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and yet refusing to use his equality with the Father for his own selfish advantage. Emphasis on Jesus’ exalted status is especially prominent in the conclusion of the hymn where Paul insisted that Jesus possessed “the name that is above every name” (Phil 2:4), avoiding mention of God's name. In the NT era, Jews so reverenced the name of God, Yahweh, that they refused to utter this name. It was generally pronounced only by the high priest on the Day of Atonement and by local priests who pronounced the priestly blessing. For any other person at any other time in any other place to speak the divine name was considered blasphemy, a crime punishable by death.

The Jews referred to God using substitutions for the divine name. Approved substitutions were called
kinnuyim.
The common substitutions were “Lord”
(Adonai);
“the Name” (Hb.
Hashem);
“the Separate name”; “God's own name”; and “the name of four letters” (
tetragrammaton).
In Phil 2:9 Paul used the
kinnuyim
“the name” (with the definite article in Greek) and further described this name as that “above every name.” Every Jew in Philippi who heard this phrase would automatically recognize these words as an allusion to the divine name. Paul identified this supreme divine name in the confession “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Since the Greek title “Lord”
(kyrios)
was the translation of the name “Yahweh” in the OT and since the description “name above every other name” is a clear example of
kinnuyim
, Paul explicitly identified Jesus as God who possesses the very name of God.
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Paul confirmed this identification by also applying the description of worship of Yahweh in Isa 45:23 to Jesus. Paul's promise that every knee would bow before Jesus and every tongue would confess that Jesus is Lord clearly alluded to the promise, “Turn to Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God and there is no other.…Every knee will bow to Me, every tongue will swear allegiance” (Isa 45:22—23). Paul's application to Jesus of a text describing homage to Yahweh demonstrates that he saw Jesus as far more than a mere man or a great religious teacher. He viewed Christ as deity who had come to the earth in the form of a human servant.
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However, Paul's depiction of Christ's journey from heaven to earth, earth to grave, and grave to heaven in 2:6—11 must not cause one to neglect the many other passages in Philippians that testify to the centrality of Christ. Few Pauline passages can compare with 1:21—23 and 3:7—11 in terms of expressing Paul's all-consuming passion to honor Christ and to know Christ more fully in this life and the life to come.

What is more, references to Christ saturate the entire letter from beginning to end.
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Further evidence comes from the frequency of phrases such as “in Christ,” “in him,” or “in the Lord” throughout Philippians. These expressions can convey union with Christ (1:1,14,29; 3:9; 4:21) or stress an action that takes place in response to or on the basis of Jesus’ person, work, and lordship. This includes confidence abounding in Christ (1:26); encouragement in Christ (2:1); having the mind or attitude as in Christ (2:5); hoping in Christ (2:19,24); receiving others in the Lord (2:29); rejoicing in the Lord (3:1; 4:4, 10); glorying in Christ (3:3); pressing on toward the call of God in Christ (3:14); standing firm in the Lord (4:2); living in harmony in the Lord (4:3); guarding hearts and minds in Christ (4:7); or supplying needs according to God's riches in Christ (4:19). The letter ends with a benediction concerning the “grace of the Lord Jesus Christ” (4:23).

Christian Unity
Paul repeatedly stressed the special relationship he had with the Philippian church. In 4:15, he wrote that “in the early days of the gospel…, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone.” In the opening thanksgiving, he expressed his gratitude for the Philippians’ “partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” and noted his confidence “that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (1:5—6).

Yet apparently all was not always well in the Philippian church. Not only were there threats from without in the form of false teachers (see 3:2), but there was also internal disunity that had the potential of dividing the church. This problem was epitomized by Euodia and Syntyche (4:2) and the fact that Paul named them indicates the seriousness of the rift between them. Interestingly, Paul said that both women “have contended for the gospel at my side,” together with “the rest of my co-workers” (4:3).