Colossians 3:18-25 - The House and Home of God

Colossians 3:18-25

The Christian Home (cf. Eph. 5:21—6:9)

18 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.

20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.

21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.

22 Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. 23 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. 25 But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.

After putting our focus on the kingdom of God within us and His house in our relations with one another in the church and the world, we are pointed toward the home and the relationships established there in the Garden of Eden between man and wife.  The wife as co-equal helper (Genesis 2:18, 21-22, 1 Corinthians 11:8-9, 11-12) and heir of eternal life (1 Peter 3:7) in Christ.  In the roles imposed by the Lord God due to creation as well as resulting from the fall of mankind () into sin, the wife is called to willingly submit to the husband in his role to lead the family just as the husband is called to love the wife as Christ loved the church (Ephesians 5:24-25, 33) and sacrificed Himself to deliver from sin’s penalty.  Children are likewise told to obey their parents in the Lord to please God and honor the order He has established for the home as part of the house of God’s kingdom and its spiritual foundation.  Fathers as the leaders of the household are therefore to honor the honor and respect given by their children in return.  This means loving them as Christ loved the church as well, not provoking them to lash back in anger is mistreated in word or action.  Even household servants (who were quite different than modern day chattel slaves or white slaves as trafficked today) were called to be willfully obedient to their masters as to Christ and go further to be sincere in their duties and not just do as they are told for outward appearances.  The bottom line for all is to fear God and heartily serve Him in the role in which we are called with our hearts and eyes set on the inheritance we all have in the heavenly kingdom to come.  We also need to acknowledge that we reap what we sow if we do not do what is right and fight against the callings in which we have been given.  God shows no partiality and neither should we as our actions and attitudes in the home and among all of the kingdom of heaven must reflect in sincerity of serving and submitting to one another (Ephesians 5:21) in service to the Lord and each other.  This is the guide for the house and home of God in Christ. 

Colossians 3:1-17 - A Change of Mind

Colossians 3:1-17

Not Carnality but Christ

1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, 7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.

8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.

Character of the New Man

12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. 15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

A change of mind is needed when we put on Christ.  If we truly have died to ourselves and have been made alive in Him by faith in His word and work and are found in Him, then we should be looking for and earnestly seeking the heavenly things of His kingdom from where He reigns sovereignly over us all.  Our lives have been bought back from the spiritual death of sin’s bondage and we are now tucked away in Him as alive from the dead in our spiritual resurrection by grace.  We are confident also that when He returns bodily that we shall also be raised bodily with incorruptible bodies in that resurrection of all the dead 1 Corinthians 15:21-22) and then be with Him forever in His glory before His face and throne of grace (Revelation 22:3-4) where we will worship face to face apart from the very presence (Romans 8:20-21) of sin!  We need a change of mind to focus on what is to come as well as what we should pursue until that day with this end in mind.  The list of things to put off and put on (Ephesians 4:22-24) as we are being transformed in body and soul by God’s work in us (Romans 12:2) to be conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29, Philippians 3:21), which is the original image of God in which mankind was created (Genesis 1:26-27) to be before sin entered the world.  Some of these called out here are most troublesome and are identified as sexual immorality, misdirected desires, moral impurity, and the idolatry of coveting instead of exhibiting godliness with contentment (1 Timothy 6:6) as the true value to be gained for eternity.  We are to desire what God desires (1 John 2:15-17) and pursue what makes us acceptable to Him and not our own misdirected desires in sin; we should aim the direction of our lives (Philippians 3:8, 10-11) to be more like Him as demonstrated in His Son come to live among us and show us how we should be.  We do well to remind ourselves that these ungodly pursuits are the mark of the lost sons of disobedience among whom we once walked side by side but have been rescued by Christ from the penalty of that life of sin and should do all we can to avoid repeating those offenses against our Savior.  The attitudes we are to put off include rage, fierce anger, ill-will to others, slander against those we don’t like or disagree with (such as politicians!), obscenities, and lies.  These do not reflect God’s character and therefore should not be part of our own.  What are we to do then?  We are told to put these off by His Spirit (Romans 8:12-13) and put on the godly traits and actions in mind and deeds that reflect the image of God recreated in us at our new birth.  This means we do not compare ourselves with others and imagine we are any better because of race or nationality or career or even gender.  In Christ we are all equal because He lives in each of us and loves us the same, just as we are to do with each other.  There is no discrimination or prejudice in God’s kingdom since we are equally accepted and acceptable in the Beloved.  The list of attitudes and actions we are to clothe ourselves with are enumerated here for us to dwell on and work into our lives.  We are called to humbly put on peace, compassion, and forgiveness with each other as we consider how Jesus loved and forgave us and continues to forgive us (1 John 1:9) when we fail in our sin.  Above all these things, love holds them all together as we let Christ rule our hearts and guide our responses and intentions.  If we allow the peace of God to be our sovereign and not our own desires, we will live pleasing lives with thankful abandon.  This means we need to daily put God’s word in our hearts and minds that we may gain a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:11-12) as we minister to one another.  Our worship times together should reflect this putting on of godliness and thanksgiving by our hymns of grace that exalt our Lord as one people saved by grace and seeking harmony in growing in the faith of the Lord Christ.  As this passage summarizes, we should do everything in His name with thanksgiving together as sinners saved by grace and pursuing perfection that we will only fully attain in eternity.  This all starts with a change of mind as we put on Christ and put off our old man’s thoughts and actions to learn new habits fit for the kingdom we all inhabit. 

Colossians 2:11-23 - Works Nailed to the Cross

Colossians 2:11-23

Not Legalism but Christ

11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. 18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.

20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— 21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.

Our attempts based on the need to fulfill the Law of works completely to deserve salvation from sin’s penalty always fall short (Romans 3:23) because they are ever imperfect and miss the mark of complete perfection (James 2:10) needed.  Only Jesus Christ was the the spotless Lamb of God as the only sacrifice required to wipe sin away and pay the perfect price by His divine obedience to keep the entire Law for us.  He cleanses our souls to take away the sins of our flesh as a circumcising of the heart which is desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9) an incurable sick with sin in its corrupt state ever since the original sin of disbelief and disobedience tainted the world.  Though the symbolic sign of the old covenant of our works, physical circumcision, cleansed the outside from infection, the cleansing of the heart by Christ cleanses our inner being from sin’s infectious effects (Romans 2:29) perfectly and completely.  Likewise, we who are baptized into Christ are considered dead and buried to our old nature and the curse of the Law and raised up alive from spiritual death in Him who raises us spiritually until the body is also raised incorruptible (1 Corinthians 15:52) to join it at the end of days.  He has forgiven us all our sins against Him that the Law hold us under in bondage to face an eternal death penalty.  In Christ, we find that the written Law of our works as necessary for delivering us from the sentence of divine justice has been taken away from us and put onto God’s Son who was nailed to the cross of our curse (Galatians 3:13) to take such requirements of the Law of perfection out of our way that kept us from God as He kept the Law perfectly and completely (Romans 8:3-4) to do the impossible work for us.  By His sacrifice for our sin, Jesus took away the requirement for us to keep the entirety of the Law to work our way to God by keeping it Himself as He then nailed the requirement to the cross to put it to death and give life to all who obey the gospel by trusting His work as we believe and receive Him who did this for us!  By doing this, Jesus openly defeated the adversary for all to see, the who is out to destroy God’s work and who brought the temptation to sin into the world (Genesis 3:1, Mark 1:13, Revelation 12:17).  This is our triumph in Christ (1 Corinthians 15:57, 2 Corinthians 2:14)!  Because of the work of Christ done for us, we need not fear judgment of those demanding we keep the Law of works for our salvation as we follow His law written on our heart’s willingly as enabled to put these sinful desires to death by His presence in us.  Keeping the sabbath is resting from our works (Hebrews 4:10) and not a ritual to earn God’s grace.  We do not worship angels or statues as some erroneously do in Rome, but we worship in spirit and truth based on the finished effectual work done for us by Christ as our only head and no longer by legalistic efforts or papal demands of modern-day Pharisees.  Our growth is likewise enabled by God’s work in us as we follow in willing obedience by His working in us to transform (Romans 12:2) us from the inside heart to the outside actions and make us fruitful as we grow in our sanctification.  We need this reminder then as the Colossians did then, that we stop pursuing our own legalistic efforts to earn God’s favor and rest in Christ as our Sabbath.  He then works in us against the indulgences of our flesh which we war against daily.  Rules and laws cannot do what God works in us, so why go back to vainly trying to do this?  We may not come from a Jewish background of the Law of Moses, but we do the same thing when we make checklists of rules that are dependencies for grace which has no such requirements because our imperfect works have been nailed to the cross as the curse has been lifted from us and we are now raised in newness of life in our Lord who died for us after keeping the Law for us!  He alone saves and keeps us. 

Colossians 2:1-10 - Not Philosophy, but Christ

Colossians 2:1-10

1 For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

4 Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words. 5 For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.

6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.

8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; 10 and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

We understand God’s word and will through the eyes of faith fueled by His Spirit living in us who interprets what we read and hear, and not through the philosophy of man but by Christ alone.  Paul cared for the disciples he had brought to Christ through the preaching of the gospel and reasoning (Acts 17:17, 18:4, 24:25) from God’s perspective as led and enabled by the Holy Spirit and not his own learning or reasoning.  He implored the Colossians and nearby Laodiceans to be encouraged by the truth and knit together in Christ and His love in and through them as they understood the (Colossians 1:27) mystery of Christ come to live in them as their Helper (John 14:15-16, 1 John 2:1) and they in union with Him.  This full understanding is the true treasure we all yearn for to know God and His Christ who hold all wisdom and knowledge for us to seek out in His word by the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:10, 16) in us who is the Spirit who helps us grasp this eternal mystery (Ephesians 3:3-4, 5-6) revealed to we who have been transformed at last!  We are bombarded by the world around us to look elsewhere for answers as the adversity continues to cast doubt on God’s word (Genesis 3:1) in the philosophies and wisdom of mere men who keep trying to deceive us with very persuasive arguments, but we have been told of this and our awareness keeps us focused on the truth as the apostle urged the hearers then and readers now.  We are to remain steadfast and immovable (1 Corinthians 15:58) by the same faith which saved us.  We live in this truth by faith that is rooted in our very souls and fills our minds as we have been taught (Matthew 28:20) as disciples of Christ Jesus and which truth is affirmed by His Spirit in us.  Therefore, we also overflow in faith and confidence in Him and His work according to the Bible given us as His conversation and guidance to live by.  This is why we are to not allow any false teachings or philosophical traditions of faulty reasoning to draw us into the fallen worldview of corruption by sin which doubts God’s word and then changes it to suit what we desire instead of God’s desire for our good and His glory.  In Christ lives the fullness of God Himself who became a man like us (John 1:1, 14), and to follow Him is to follow God who makes us complete in Himself and not in our own man as the world would have us do and pursue.  He is the sovereign ruler (1 Timothy 6:14-15, Revelation 17:14, 19:16) of us all and alone to be worshipped.  The only way to know Him more is through His word and Spirit, not the reasoning of men or women who cannot grasp the truth apart from Him and whose ruler is intent on keeping us from knowing and spreading the gospel truth.  We love not by philosophy, but by Christ. 

Colossians 1:15-29 - The Divine Head of the Church

Colossians 1:15-29

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.

Reconciled in Christ

19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, 20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Sacrificial Service for Christ

24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, 26 the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. 27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. 29 To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.

This look at the Head of the church begins with who Christ Jesus is.  He is God, divine and always existing, the creator of heaven and earth as the living Word (John 1:1-2).  He is no mere created man like we are nor an angel since they were also created through Him and not alongside as equals, for no created being is equal to the divine Lord.  Not only did the Son of God create everything and everyone, He hold all things together as described by the mysterious van der Waals force that is used to describe how atoms inexplicably hold together without flying apart.  Everything in the universe down to the smallest atom and to the largest galaxy is held together in and by Him!  That is the divine power of the Son of God.  This almighty one is the head of the church who is the body and bride of the Lord Jesus Christ.  He even was the first to die and rise again to be the forerunner for us to follow to reveal Himself as the leader who authors our faith (Hebrews 5:9, 12:2) and guarantees our eternal life after a bodily resurrection from death to life which we experience in part already as life to death had taken place in our souls (John 5:24) now.  He did this delivering work for us by sacrificing Himself on the wooden cross as the eternal Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7) whose lifeblood poured out in our place for our just due saves us from eternal judgment of the destroyer who punishes sin, just as the foreshadowing of the sacrificial lamb covered the wooden doorposts of the Israelites as they were delivered in Egypt out of the bondage (Micah 6:4, Romans 6:6, 17, 22-23) of slavery symbolizing sin’s death grip on all Adam’s (Romans 5:12, 18) descendants.  This is the reconciliation with God the Father through God the Son worked by the faith given us by God the Spirit.  Once the enemies of God because of our inherited and ongoing sin, now in Christ we can be made right with God as reconciled sons and daughters of the Most-High God!  This is the work of God in Christ and not anything we could possibly do that would be sufficient to earn this grace in which we stand before God’s judgment throne where we are seen in the righteousness of Christ and not our own.  He calls and makes we His children holy, blameless, and above reproach in His sight if we truly come to believe and receive the Son and His work for us and are then transformed by Him into this standing.  This means God sees the holiness of Jesus when looking at us, He sees us as innocent of our forgiven sins in Him, and He sees us as ones who cannot be called into to account for our sin, not able to be accused (Revelation 12:10) anymore by our adversary, blameless in God’s sight when we are seen in Christ!  This is the mystery from the beginning of time, revealed to we who are called out in Christ as the glorious mystery is unveiled to us which is the hope of glory, Christ now living in us because we are now found in His righteousness!  This is the Lord Christ (Colossians 3:24) we present in the gospel for all who have ears to hear the deliverance bought for them and who perfects (Philippians 1:6) us in sanctification until His return.  We bear witness of God’s work in Christ by His powerful working in and through us as we labor to serve in this great commission (Matthew 28:19-20) entrusted to each one of His children.  He alone is the divine head of the true church, not any man or institution, whom we follow. 

Colossians 1:1-14 - Deepening Understanding of Grace

Colossians 1:1-14

1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colosse:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Their Faith in Christ

3 We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; 5 because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth; 7 as you also learned from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, 8 who also declared to us your love in the Spirit.

Preeminence of Christ

9 For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

The believers in the city of Colosse heard about Christ as the head of the church in contrast to the letter to the Ephesians that focused on the body of Christ, the church.  The chosen apostle (messenger) of Jesus Christ made it clear as in other letters to the church that it was the will of God who chose him and not his own will to know or make Christ known as an apostle in his own effort or choice.  This is yet another aspect of God’s sovereign election, of His free will to choose whom He will to come to Himself for deliverance from sins penalty and to choose who would serve Him with particular gifts and calling as 1 Corinthians 12:7, 11 makes clear to us.  This one spoke for God as an apostle, a calling of which Paul was the last one needed, to complete the writing of God’s word into scripture for our edification and guidance to live accordingly as he initially addressed to the Colossians.  These believers were each faithful saints as proclaimed by God to be holy in the righteousness of Jesus Christ and not by the decree of Paul or any other apostle or man or institution as some erroneously would have us believe.  All who are in Christ are saints and should continue in faithfulness as called In the Grace of God’s calling which gives us peace (Romans 5:1-2) with God forevermore by the act of God’s will and not our own (John 6:44).  The beloved messenger wrote to encourage these believers with thankful prayer because of their faith in Christ and love for each other in Him as a proof of their conversion (1 John 4:7, 10-11, 12, 20) and reminder of the eternal hope of heaven awaiting them because they believed the gospel and received the Lord (John 1:12) by divine faith (Ephesians 2:8-9).  This word of truth which they accepted as they took God at His word was the faith desired from the beginning of creation instead of doubting His word and wanting to reason God’s will by man’s will and wisdom (Genesis 3:5-6, 11) instead of hearing and observing what was told us in Eden’s Garden.  This word bears fruit in those regenerated by God’s word of grace as in these believers as in we as well who have joined them since then.  Our love in the Spirit is the fruit we bear as marks of true Christian men and women, therefore.  Because we are His, this prayer for of Paul for the Colossians is also for us that that we be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding so that we may live worthy of the Lord as called.  We are to be fruitful and grow in our pursuit of knowledge and understanding to put into practice as we put off the former sins of the old man and put on the character of Christ.  We then find our strength in His power and understanding and have a foundation for patient suffering for His sake and the gospel’s.  As heirs of eternal life with all the other saints, we have been qualified by this grace in which we stand.  We also realize that we have been irrevocably delivered from the power of sin and this world’s kingdom of darkness; we are now standing in the kingdom of God’s light!   We have been forgiven forever because we have been redeemed by the blood of His sacrifice as the only Son of God and sacrificial Lamb.  This is the hope in which we stand and are called to understand deeper each passing day to be truly thankful as part of His body in love for Him and one another to fulfill the foundational commandments of the Lord God (Mark 12:30-31) in Christ by faith in pursuit of Him.  We therefore pray this for both new believers as we teach them all things (Matthew 28:19-20) and build up one another (Ephesians 4:12-13) in Christ Jesus.  This is the deepening understanding of grace of our sanctification. 

Philippians 4:10-23 - Serve with Generous Abandon!

Philippians 4:10-23

10 But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity. 11 Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: 12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

14 Nevertheless you have done well that you shared in my distress. 15 Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but you only. 16 For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. 18 Indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God. 19 And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Greeting and Blessing

21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you. 22 All the saints greet you, but especially those who are of Caesar’s household.

23 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

The letter to the church at Philippi ends after commendations for their likemindedness in the things of Jesus Christ and the gospel and after their admonition to focus their thoughts on the things of God.  It ends with more thankfulness for their generosity to care for the one ministering to them and sharing in the suffering for the gospel with him.  Paul had great joy in their expression of their care for him to sustain his ministry of the gospel which is a pattern and powerful example for us to meet the needs of our pastors, elders, deacons, missionaries, and other servants of the Lords who work together for the kingdom of God in Christ in fulfilling the great commission.  We are called to make disciples of all nations and peoples, not just bearing witness of the gospel message to salvation and gathering them into the local body of Christ, but also laboring with love in the sanctification process by teaching them all things (Matthew 28:19-20) that were written by the apostles and prophets before and after Jesus came to deliver His own from sin and its eternal penalty.  The scriptures here remind us all to serve one another in contentment and in need as we trust the Lord Christ to meet our needs and equip us with enabling strength and grace in trying times.  We truly can do all in ministry through Christ who strengthens us!  We do not spiritualize the suffering of others, however, but share in the distressing moments and rejoice in the successful times just as well.  By giving to missionary servants as well as our own shepherds, we multiply the kingdom to fill the earth (Genesis 1:28, 9:1, 22:16, 18) with the glory of the Lord (Habakkuk 2:14, Isaiah 11:9-10) through the preaching and teaching of the good news of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Such sacrifice is pleasing to the Lord and gives Him more pleasure in meeting all our own needs in like manner.  We give God our Father the glory in Jesus Christ the Son by the enabling power of His Spirit in us and through us as we greet on another in Christ and share in His grace of which we all partake (1 Corinthians 9:13, 10:17), just as the messenger and servant of the Lord has given us the example here to imitate.  May we serve with generous abandon as well. 

Philippians 4:1-9 - Likeminded and Thankful Meditations

Philippians 4:1-9

1 Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, beloved.

Be United, Joyful, and in Prayer

2 I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Meditate on These Things

8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.

This chapter opens with a passionate call to remain steadfast in the Lord with the confidence previously expressed as they pressed into the kingdom of heaven in Christ.  The apostle yearned to see them again because they gave him joy as they followed the Lord and were a crown of reward for his own faithful work in the gospel for their sakes and the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.  He implored two women who were at odds with each other using the authority and love of Christ to reconcile them into the mind of Christ in true unity in the essentials of their common faith as it appears.  He also prayed that the one he wrote to would help these two co-laborers in the gospel along with his other fellow workers for the Lord.  He identified them all as being true followers of Christ as evidenced by the fact that God had written their names in the Book of Life as preordained and chosen to be His from the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34, Ephesians 1:4).  To all these who were His Paul called them to rejoice in triumph (Romans 5:11, 2 Corinthians 2:14) for the calling and election of God to record their names for eternity (Revelation 21:27) in His ledger of eternal ownership.  And because they and we are called as His, we are to live with the gentleness of graciousness forbearance in spirit and truth for all to see and experience because we know the Lord is there to see all and is coming back soon to reward (1 Corinthians 3:14-15) our faithfulness.  We are also called along with these to be content and put aside worry about tomorrow as we take all concern to God in prayer with thankful hearts that care to pray for others and not just our own needs.  When we pray before the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16) in this manner, we find God’s peace wash over our troubled minds in a way that defies the logic of the pressing situations that we face. This supernatural peace covers our hearts and minds with the assurance of grace and goodwill to us as a guard set over us to keep us safe and secure from all alarms as the old hymn reminds us.  The summation of this passage in verses 8-9 helps us focus our thoughts on what is true and honorable, rightly just and pure, good to be heard as a testimony of grace, things which are morally good and commendable in the sight of God to His praise and glory by honoring Him in our thoughts and deeds.  We are to consider these things and mull them over continually to do what pleases God as we are taught by this His word and then the peace of God will flow over us and keep us through all trials and tribulations.  These are likeminded and thankful meditations which we can share as the body of Christ in our fellowship and witness to the world. 

Philippians 3:12-21 - Pressing into the Kingdom

Philippians 3:12-21

Pressing Toward the Goal

12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

15 Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.

Our Citizenship in Heaven

17 Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern. 18 For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things. 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

The direction of the Christian’s life must be pressing to enter the kingdom of heaven with Christ.  We acknowledge the fact that we are not perfect yet also understand that our sanctification worked by God in us is perfecting us all the while we journey through life in Christ and in His righteousness.  We must make choices to put on holiness by putting to death the sinful works of this corrupt flesh in thoughts and actions as we learn to keep in step with His Spirit living in and guiding us to that upward call of God in Christ.  It is not a journey of simply “letting go and letting God” do everything while we just sit back and watch.  He is looking for loyal hearts of willing obedience that rely on His knowledge of good and evil taught to us (Hebrews 5:14) as we are attentive to His leading (Isaiah 30:21) toward the goal of this heaven-bound race which leads us to fall before Him in the New Jerusalem and worship our Lord God face to face (Job 19:25-27).  We run the race to obtain what He has obtained for us, eternal pardon from sin and a new life in and with Him now and forever in this kingdom in which we stand.  We are implored to keep running and not grow weary (Galatians 6:9, 2 Thessalonians 3:13) or give up because we need to keep the end in sight as we look forward and not back at either our past failures or even successes.  We reach forward as if to put ourselves over the finish line tape to win the exhausting run of life to gain the prize at the finish line.  This prize is the call of God in Christ to Himself and not an earthly treasure (Luke 12:34, Hebrews 11:26) which we run the race of life in the direction of Jesus Christ Himself to gain as our great reward in pleasing Him.  If we are mature in our faith in Christ, we will acknowledge these things and pursue this life with all our heart and mind and soul.  We cannot force others to run beside us but we can encourage them by word and example to take the baton as we run and relay these truths.  We are to be likeminded in the race and not condemning or judgmental.  Our example must be as the apostle’s here, to urge one another to run together toward our Lord into the fullness of the kin when God steps down onto earth to stay this time.  We are not to be the bad example that leads others away from this pursuit or suffer the consequences; there are many false believers who pull others away through immorality and idolatry of false promises and false teaching that focuses on self-destruction and self-glory.  These worldly agents we are to expose (Ephesians 5:11) as enemies of the cross of the gospel of Jesus Christ as we show the true value is in following Christ and emphasizing our heavenly citizenship over the transitory nature of this earthly one that fades in the winds of time into worthless dust (Matthew 6:19-20).  Do we listen and lay up treasures in heaven instead of temporal pleasures?  How can we when we know we will be resurrected into perfected bodies at the end of time that we might be like our Lord and enjoy Him forever in presence and in worship?  He is sovereign over all that is here now and all that will be, so we should live in the direction of Him and His Kingdom and not entangle ourselves (2 Timothy 2:4, 15) with the things of this life that do not last.  Our lives here must be heavenly good as we live and bear witness to the Lord Jesus Christ and the gospel of hope and life and truth.  May we consider all these truths and determine to press into (Luke 16:16) the kingdom by running a straight and true race with our gaze set on the goal, pressing into the Kingdom as we run the race to see our Lord face to face.  Amen! 

Philippians 3:1-11 - Certain Confidence Gained

Philippians 3:1-11

All for Christ

1 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe.

2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation! 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh, 4 though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: 5 circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; 6 concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Our confidence is gained in our gaining Christ.  This is cause for our great rejoicing and happiness as we greet each other in knowing and pursuing Him together!  That is why we should remind one another of this confidence we share without ever thinking it to be tedious to do so as Paul wrote here to remind us all.  We are also to heed his warnings which are God’s through his quill put down on parchment long ago to a certain church assembly meant to be read among all others and through time to us just as he wrote to the believers in Colosse (Colossians 4:16).  We must look out for those who try to pervert the gospel requirements as the Judaizers did by requiring Jewish believers to keep the Law as a means of continuing to require works of man to supplement the already fully completed and sufficient work of Jesus Christ.  These had demanded the believers continue to circumcise according to the covenant of works, missing the point of that act was cleansing that pointed to the real cleansing of the heart in Christ (Romans 2:28-29, Colossians 2:11), making such physical cleansing rituals unnecessary and misleading.  We are free in grace by the work of Jesus Christ in our soul-cleansed state in His righteousness to worship God in our spirit instead of through symbolic rituals of the Law meant to point to the real (Galatians 3:23-23) cleansing of forgiveness through justification by faith earned by Jesus and not by our inadequate efforts.  We therefore should never put any of our confidence in the efforts of our flesh of our ancestors like the Jews nor in our faulty adherence to our works, but in Jesus the Christ alone and nothing or no one else.  Even Paul, the great Pharisee of such lineage, admitted that all that had no standing in the sight of God, even though according to that outward show he was considered blameless and righteous by man’s standards.  He put all his upbringing, education, and nationality of his chosen nation in proper perspective; it was all a wash in eternity!  He gave us the example to imitate by telling us that we should also find no redeeming value in ourselves or our striving for holiness to be acceptable to God because that is only possible in the work and person of Jesus Christ.  We can likewise count all our own achievements as garbage also compared to having Christ alone and His righteousness through faith alone.  By faith we know and have apprehended faith and holiness as proven by his resurrection promised to us as well as we suffer for the gospel’s sake and die daily to self (Mark 8:34-35, 1 Corinthians 15:31, Galatians 6:14) until we rise on that day apart from the presence of and striving against sin forever.  This is our certain hope (Romans 5:5, Hebrews 10:23) and confidence gained of faith’s solid (Hebrews 11:1-3) proof inscribed in our souls by the Spirit of God who lives there. 

Philippians 2:12-30 - Work Out Your Salvation

Philippians 2:12-30

Light Bearers

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

14 Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.

17 Yes, and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 For the same reason you also be glad and rejoice with me.

Timothy Commended

19 But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be encouraged when I know your state. 20 For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. 21 For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. 22 But you know his proven character, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel. 23 Therefore I hope to send him at once, as soon as I see how it goes with me. 24 But I trust in the Lord that I myself shall also come shortly.

Epaphroditus Praised

25 Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, but your messenger and the one who ministered to my need; 26 since he was longing for you all, and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick. 27 For indeed he was sick almost unto death; but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 Therefore I sent him the more eagerly, that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less sorrowful. 29 Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness, and hold such men in esteem; 30 because for the work of Christ he came close to death, not regarding his life, to supply what was lacking in your service toward me.

We are called not just to be saved as an escape from judgment on our sin but also from continuing in sin.  Instead of living as we had been before our transformation, we are called to continually be transformed (Romans 12:2, Ephesians 4:23-24, ) in our thoughts and actions.  This is why Paul challenged the believers in the worldly bustling city of Philippi to keep on obeying God’s word with fear and trembling, with reverent awe and solemn responsibility, as they followed Christ.  The call was to work out their salvation, not to work to earn what they already had nor to work to ensure they did not lose what could never be taken away.  What they gained in Christ they could not lose.  Neither can we.  We work out this sanctification of grace from the moment of our transformative salvation from sin’s consequence of punishment until we are more like our Savior day by day (2 Corinthians 3:18) until we see Him at last (Job 19:26-27) face to face!  He continues His transformative work in each of His children whom He has called to Himself that we might do more and more of what pleases Him for glory, honor, and praise as our sovereign Lord deserves.  Our part is to work it out, to apply ourselves to putting off our ungodly acts and thoughts of the heart and mind in this mindset of living to please Him and not ourselves with reverence and responsibility (Luke 17:10) as motivated by the loving grace of forgiveness shown us.  To do this, we need be content (1 Timothy 6:6) and stop complaining and arguing against the call to holiness towards God and with one another.  We have been called to be blameless and harmless, not offending God or man by our words or actions, faultless in such a corrupt world of sin against Him.  We have the message of the light of the world (Matthew 5:14, John 8:12) to shine with our lives into this present darkness as we hold fast to the word of the gospel and hold it out for others to see and hear.  If we are to honor our salvation we need to take these things to heart and live sacrificially as we daily die to self as if nailed to the cross (Romans 6:6, Galatians 2:20) with our Savior.  We need to be like faithful Timothy with the track record of a proven character who acted on the apostle’s behalf as a messenger of these truths of the gospel and coworker of that gospel, like-minded of the things of God and seeking His works and not our own.  This means we sincerely care for the spiritual wellbeing and sanctifying growth in our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.  We see also the example of Epaphroditus who was a faithful servant, brother in Christ, and fellow soldier in the battle who fought the good fight for the good news with Paul and the others.  He showed us faithful ministering even in the face of illness and suffering to support God’s work for the gospel.  Do we give of our so willingly and with such commitment?  If we live for our Lord, this should be our aim to lead the chat or rout the supplies to the front lines as we are able.  This is another way we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.