Philippians Part 8, Chapter 1:27-2:2
I. Conversation—walk, not our talk! (v. 27)
A. Paul uses politeuesthai –signifies condition of life, of a citizen; citizenship.
B. In Philippians 1:27-2:4, Paul exhorted his readers to unity, steadfastness, and humility.
The Philippians were to live well, work together, suffer courageously, and have
high regard for one another.
C. Conversation – Nowadays this is misleading. To us conversation means talk; but it is
derived from the Latin word conversari which means to conduct oneself. In the
17th Century a person’s conversation was not only his way of speaking to other people;
it was his whole behavior. (WB pg 29)
Actions speak louder than words. It is our walk, not our talk.
“I would rather see a sermon than to hear one any day.”
D. Conversation was used to refer to membership in a society and to the life-style
Demanded of all members of the society.
E. To behave as a citizen, live conduct later—manner of life.
1. Remember: Philippi was a Roman colony.
2. They were citizens of Rome, but they were also citizens of heaven. Phil. 3:20
a. Citizens of Rome – Caesar
b. Citizens of Heaven – Christ
II. Stand fast (stekete)
A. A metaphor of a soldier. Christians were not to retreat, yield to circumstances,
or cower before their enemies
B. Hold your ground! Ephesians 6:10-18
C. The greatest weapon against the devil is a godly life. And a local church that practices
the truth, that behaves what it believes is going to defeat the enemy. (WW pg 44)
III. One mind, one spirit – unity 1 Cor 1:10, 2 Cor. 13:11, 1 Peter 3:8-13
A. The unity which Paul desired for his readers did not consist of uniformity of beliefs or
opinions, but in identity in a supreme purpose of love. Spirits and mind have only
one meeting place, and that is in the object of a great love. Let the union of hearts
be complete, and spirits and mind will be united. (RFR pg 52)
B. The closer the stones lie, and the better they are squared to fit one another, the stronger
is the building. (MH)
C. In Church life, it is of course necessary that each should preserve his individuality.
Each stone in the foundation of the New Jerusalem must flash with its own luster.
Each star must shine with its own glory; each ray in the prism must be itself, or the
pure beam of light cannot be produced. The very glory of our common church life
is in the play and temperaments, dispositions, and character. A dull uniformity is
much to be feared.
D. If the believers had Christ’s Spirit in their lives—and Paul assumed that they had—they
would have a strong bond of unity. Christ’s life is in the life of each Christian, and
that life is diffused through all the members of the church. The life of the vine is
present in each branch. If the church’s spiritual life is one, then unity aids its growth
and discord checks it growth. (RFR pg 54)
E. The church is one body, and all Christians are members of it. All the members are
animated by one life, and each contributes to the good of the whole. Thus unity is
the ideal; but selfishness, egotism, and pride in the believers create division.
F. In essentials, Unity. In nonessentials, Freedom, In all things, Love.
IV. Causes of Disunity
A. Selfish Ambition
1. There is always the danger that people should work not to advance the work
but to advance themselves.
2. Selfishness
a. Is an undue regard for one’s interests regardless of others’ interests.
It is the essential principle of sin in that it is the assertion of one’s will
as opposed to submission to God’s will.
b. If a man is forever concerned first and foremost with his own interests,
he is bound to collide with others. If for him life is a competition
whose prizes he must win, he will always think of other human beings
as enemies or at least as opponents who must be pushed out of the way.
Concentration on self inevitably means elimination of others; and the
object of life becomes not to help others up but to push them down.
(WB pg 32)
3. Personal Prestige
Prestige for many people is an even greater temptation than wealth. To
be admired and respected, to have a platform seat, to have one’s opinion
sought, to be known by name and appearance, even to be flattered, are for
many people most desirable things.
Not self display but self obliteration.
4. Party spirit – factions (RFR pg 56)
Christians are factious when they are concerned:
a. to establish their opinions rather than truth.
b. to advance their party rather than the gospel of Christ.
c. to add to their importance rather than to preserve the peace of the church.
Parties are for themselves rather than the state (church); -- paralysis ensues.
A party spirit fragments any local expression of the body of Christ; power
struggles in a church mean a powerless church. (RFR pg 59)
Oneness in spirit and purpose allows Christ to empower His people.
Philippians 4:1-3 Euodias and Syntyche
B. Pastors must confront wrong doings appropriately.
C. Those who teach by their doctrine must teach by their life, else they pull down with
one hand what they build up with the other. (Matthew Henry)
V. More Causes of Disunity – Sociological
A. Living Generations in America
1. G. I. 1901-1924
2. Silent (Great) 1925-1945
3. Baby Boomers 1946-1963
4. Buster (Gen X) 1964-1981
5. Millennial 1982—
Only by the Holy Ghost can these “Living Generations” function together as one in
the church, a Holy Generation.
B. Bible Generations
1. Generation of Vipers Matt. 3:7
2. An Evil and Adulterous Matt. 12-39
3. Wicked Generation Matt. 12:45
4. Faithless and Perverse Matt. 17:17
5. Untoward Acts 4:40
6. Chosen 1 Peter 2:9
C. Upbringing (Raising)
1. Experience of dealing with parents of students. Personality of parent is reflected
tremendously in some children.
2. Birth order
a. First Child –Dominate
b. Middle Child – Insecure, Overlooked
c. Last Child – Baby, Accustomed to attention.
3. Family ties can produce factions with party spirit using their power to influence
the body.
D. To disrupt the fellowship of Christ’s people is a serious matter. In any church, differences
of opinion will arise, but to let these grow into bitterness and hostility is to contribute
to a fragmented fellowship. Love does not insist on its own way; it negotiates in
kindness in a real attempt to determine and do God’s will. We are called on to exercise
our gifts, not to get our way or to wield power in order to win in our game-playing.
Loveless Christianity is a grotesque contradiction.
VI. The Cure for Disunity
A. The fact that we are all in Christ should keep us in unity. Relationship with brothers
and sisters may indicate a person’s relationship with Christ.
B. The power of Christian love should keep us in unity. 1 Cor. 13 A victory of the will.
C. The fact that they share in the Holy Spirit should keep Christians from disunity.
1 Cor. 12:13
D. The existence of human compassion should keep men from disunity.
E. Paul pleads his personal joy that the Christians at Philippi should be keep from disunity.
Philippian 2:2
1. What Paul envisions here is a community of believers who model their personal
relationship with each other in Jesus.
2. If you and I have this attitude (mind in Christ) toward our brothers and sisters in
Jesus, there will be Christian unity. And we will truly be one, in spirit and
purpose. We, like Jesus, will live to serve. And in serving we like Jesus, will find the way to exaltation. (Teacher’s Commentary pg 935)
VII. Terrified—(frightened) (v. 28)
A. used to describe the behavior of a horse when it became scared, sprang aside, of dashed
off wildly. Opponents may have been trying to strike fear into the Philippians.
B. Christians should be ashamed to faint under less trials, when they see others bear up
under greater, and do not know how soon they may meet with greater themselves.
C. “If we have run with the footmen and they have wearied us, how shall we contend
with the horses? If we be wearied in a land of peace, what shall we do in the
swelling of Jordan? Jeremiah 12:5
D. Suffering for Christ is not the exception, but the common experience of Christians.
E. Suffering is universal. All believers will or do suffer.
Philippians Part 9, Chapter 2:3-2:5
I. Nothing Done through Strife (v. 2:3)
A. Strife
1. According to faction
Proverbs 20:3 “every fool will be meddling”
Proverbs 26:17 “taking a dog by the ears”
2. 2054 éris – literally quarrel, strife; properly, a readiness to quarrel (having
a contentious spirit), affection for dispute.
B. Vainglory
1. 2754 kenodoksía – "a state of pride which is without basis or justification –
'empty pride, cheap pride, vain pride' " (L & N, 1, 88.221), used only in Phil 2:3.
2. There is no greater enemy to Christian love than pride and passion. If we do thing
in contradiction to our brethren, this is doing them through strife; if we do them
through ostentation (showy display) of ourselves, this is doing them through
vain-glory: both are destructive of Christian love and kindle unchristian heats.
Christ came to slay all enmities; therefore let there not be among Christians a
spirit of opposition. Christ came to humble us, and therefore let there not be
among us a spirit of pride.
C. Lowliness 1512a tapeinophrosuné: lowliness of mind, humility; self-abasement
Christ washed the disciples’ feet that he might give an instance of His own
wonderful humility, and show how lowly and condescending he was, and let all the
world know how low he could stoop in love to His own. (MH)
D. (v. 2:4-5) This is but a practical application of sentiments and dispositions already enforced.
The vain-glorious spirit is fussily and uselessly concerned with the affairs of others; but
love, the faculty of soul sight, looks at others' endowments and virtues and appreciates
them: at others' privileges and rights, and defends them; at others' blessings, and
rejoices in the possession of them; at others' sorrows, and weeps over them; at others'
wants, and would supply them. And further, what Paul would have the Philippians do
Christ Jesus had done (ver. 5, etc.). The life of Jesus is a perfect exposition of the text.
