Verses fourteen through eighteen of chapter two are the concluding segment of a section which began in chapter one and verse twenty-seven. If the section were to be viewed as a sandwich, these verses are the other slice of bread. They bring us back to the admonition begun at the latter end of chapter one.
The church at Philippi, indeed all the churches throughout the empire, is beginning to experience opposition. Paul sees this and, knowing that if they are not united around a singular purpose they will fall before the opposition coming, urges them toward unity of purpose. That purpose is the gospel.
In this informal study of these verses we emphasize the purpose of the New Testament church in this age and seek to unite with those first century Christians. Their purpose, the purpose to which God called them, is ours as well.
Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.--Philippians 2:14-16 (ESV)
One of the things I point out in this study is that in these verses, purposely or not, Paul is making numerous allusions to the Old Testament. Did he purposely compare the Old Testament Church, the Church in the Wilderness, to the Philippian church? Or is Paul so saturated in the Hebrew Scriptures that he just naturally speaks this way? In the end it doesn't matter. What we have is a vivid and wonderful picture of what we, as Christians, are to be in this fallen world.
I hope that you will take the time to listen to the audio from this informal study of these verses. My prayer is that you will be blessed and drawn closer to Christ.
To listen, click here: Philippians 2:14-18
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