I CAN DO ALL THINGS (PART IX)

“From Paul, With Love”

By Akin Ojumu

From his spectacular encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus in AD 34 all the way to his beheading by Nero in Rome in AD 67, Paul’s thirty-three-year ministry remains one of the productive years of life any man would spend in service to God’s kingdom.

During this span of time, which, coincidentally, happens to be the same number of years the Lord Jesus Christ spent on earth, Paul crisscrossed the length and breadth of the Roman empire preaching the Gospel. He embarked on multiple missionary campaigns to all the Roman provinces establishing vibrant Churches in nearly all the prominent cities of the empire, including in places such as Ephesus, Galatia, Lystra, and Derbe in the Asia Minor and Phillipi, Thessalonica, Berea, and Rome in Europe.

If Paul were to choose his favorite among these various Churches that God birthed through him, I think he would have chosen the Church at Philippi without hesitation. That Paul had deep affection for the Philippians is reflected in his letter to this congregation. Before we explain the reason for Paul’s special relationship with the Church at Philippi, let’s do a deep dive into the history of the congregation.

Christianity made its way to the western half of the Roman empire during Paul’s second missionary campaign. The first city in Europe to be reached with the Gospel was Philippi which is in present-day Greece. Paul was told by God in a vision to go to Macedonia, a Roman province comprising Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea.

Acts 16:9-12

“And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days.”

Incidentally, the first Christian convert in Europe happened to be a woman. Her name was Lydia, a wealthy merchant dealing in expensive purple dyed goods. She was originally from the city of Thyatira in the Asia Minor province. It’s likely that the Philippian church initially met in her spacious home.

Acts 16:13-15

“And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.”

Not long after Paul started preaching the Gospel in Philippi, satanic opposition arose in the person of a demon-possessed, fortune-telling slave girl who followed Paul and his companions around screaming in a loud and annoying voice that they were servants of the Most High God. When an exasperated Paul couldn’t take the demonic shenanigans anymore, he rebuked the demon and cast it out of the girl and she immediately lost her fortune-telling abilities.

Acts 16:16-18

“As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.”

Enraged that Paul had, as it were, knocked out the goose that laid their golden eggs, girl’s masters stirred up a mob against Paul and Silas. They dragged them before the city’s magistrates with the accusation that they posed a threat to Roman customs. As a result, Paul and Silas were severely beaten and put in jail.

Acts 16:20–24

“And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.”

Providentially, though, Paul and Silas’ imprisonment would result in the conversion of the city jailer and his entire household. This followed an earthquake which shook the foundations of the prison and caused the prison doors to be opened and chains on the prisoners broken. Thinking the prisoners had all escaped, the jailer wanted to kill himself, but Paul stopped him, preached to him, and led him to Christ.

Acts 16:25-34

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.”

Paul apparently visited Philippi twice during his third missionary journey, once at the beginning (cf. 2 Cor. 8:1–5), and again near the end (Acts 20:6). About four or five years after his last visit to Philippi, while a prisoner at Rome, Paul received a delegation from the Philippian church. The Philippians had generously supported Paul in the past (4:15, 16) and had also contributed abundantly for the needy at Jerusalem (2 Cor. 8:1–4). (The MacArthur Bible Commentary).

You can’t read Paul’s epistle to the Philippians and not feel a tug in your heart. Right from the opening chapter, you find the outpouring of phrases expressing his profound appreciation for their friendship, fellowship and partnership. While it’s true that you find in the epistle to the Philippians the apostle’s customary “grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” as well as the usual “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you” that Paul used in his other letters, reading these words in the letter to the Philippians felt to have a much greater depth of fondness.

Philippians 1:3–8

“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.”

In actual fact, the Philippians’ epistle was a thank you letter. Paul wrote it to express his profound appreciation to the congregation at Philippi for their support over the years since the very first time he came to their city and established the Church. He wanted them to know that he was extremely grateful that they, yet again, had sent him provisions during his current confinement in Rome.

Philippians 4:14-17

“Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit.”

Because of the generosity of their hearts and deep love they had for Paul, the moment the Philippians heard he had been imprisoned in Rome, the Church immediately mobilized to raise a substantial sum of money from their members to support Paul. Unfortunately, all their efforts to get the collected funds to Rome must have failed because Paul did comment in his letter that they had no chance to do so.

Philippians 4:10

“I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity.”

 

Eventually, they were able to send Epaphroditus, one of their Church members, with the monetary gift which they hoped Paul could use to cover his rent, feeding, and other living expenses during his house arrest. Additionally, the Church had also commissioned Epaphroditus to stay behind to minister to Paul’s personal needs. 

As you can imagine, Paul was effusive in his praise for the generous gift, describing it as a “fragrant offering,” an “acceptable sacrifice,” which is “pleasing to God.”

Philippians 4:18

“I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.”

It was this fragrant offering that prompted Paul to tell the Philippians in his thank you letter that he could do all things. This popular phrase actually flowed from a heart that was overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of his friends who had always stood by him through thick and thin.

Philippians 4:13

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

As I write this, I’m trying to imagine what went through Paul’s mind the very moment Epaphroditus handed him the gift of money, and he opened it to discover how substantial it was. It’s not unlikely that he held back tears as the money must have come when he needed it most. His heart must have been full of praise and gratitude to God for, once again, coming through for him in his time of need and making a way when there seemed to be no way. Yesterday, he didn’t know how he was going to pay his defense lawyers or the rent for his apartment. But the next day God had enough money to cover rent and feeding for several more months.

Philippians 4:13 is not about personal empowerment. It is not a promise that you can become anything you want when you grow up if you want it badly enough. It certainly isn't an assurance that you’ll win an athletic contest or find success in your job. Quite the opposite is the case. In Philippians 4:13, the Apostle Paul models contentment in whatever circumstances he finds himself, whether things are going well or poorly. Moreover, the focus of this verse isn’t on you or me…or Paul for that matter. The focus is on Christ who strengthens for contentment. (Source: Kindle Afresh).

We’ll expand on this deeper meaning of Philippians 4:13 next time.