Flemming Self-Giving Love

The Book of Philippians
1. Auflage 2021
ISBN: 978-1-68359-449-9
Verlag: Lexham Press
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 96 Seiten

Reihe: Transformative Word

'Have this mind among yourselves...' Everyone needs examples. We all need mentors we admire and after whom we can pattern our lives. Without them, we will not mature. Philippians is a letter full of good examples. Paul, Epaphroditus, and Timothy are all portrayed as exemplars. But none is more important than Jesus himself. In Self-Giving Love, Dean Flemming shows how Jesus and the story of his self-emptying love are the very heart of Philippians. This ultimate example provides a lens for clearly seeing the rest of the letter. By emulating Jesus' radical love, we will become mature, foster unity, and find joy. Self-Giving Love presents the message and themes of Philippians in a concise and accessible guide, with probing questions for reflection and discussion.

Dean Flemming is professor of New Testament at MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, Kansas. Dean has pastored churches in Ohio and Japan and taught in various countries throughout the world as a missionary educator for over twenty years. Dean is the author of several books, including Contextualization in the New Testament, winner of a 2006 Christianity Today book award; Philippians: A Commentary in the Wesleyan Tradition, which received a Smith-Wynkoop book award; and Recovering the Full Mission of God.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Flemming

Flemming, Dean

Leseproben

1 INTRODUCTION “Tell me a story!” I can’t tell you how many times I spoke those words when I was a child. I directed them to my mom, my dad, my grandmother, my teacher at school—anyone who would listen. These days, my mind still stands on tip-toe when I hear a meaningful, well-told story, whether from a preacher, a teacher, a favorite novelist, or a biblical writer. As human beings, we are wired to love stories. Stories are basic to who we are and how we interpret the world around us. Even in his letter to the Philippians, Paul, in effect, tells a story. But this is not just any story. For Paul, it is the story of stories, the story that is at the heart of everything God is doing in the world. The story of Christ that Paul narrates in chapter 2 not only becomes a key to understanding the message of Philippians, but it also has the potential to shape the character of our Christian lives today. I invite you to join me in listening to the story that emerges from Philippians, a letter that has profoundly enriched and challenged my own life in Christ. Overview Paul’s Letter to the Philippians has been called a “small gem.”1 Although one of the shortest of Paul’s letters, it remains one of the most beloved by the church. Surely this is partly due to the letter’s joyful, affectionate tone. In contrast to letters such as 1 Corinthians and Galatians, Philippians addresses a church with which Paul enjoys a warm, enduring “partnership in the gospel” (Phil 1:5). Near the beginning of the letter, he assures these Christians, “God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus” (1:8). Paul became this congregation’s “spiritual father,” founding it on his second missionary journey. But now his situation has changed. He writes this letter from prison, probably in Rome. In part, Paul writes to thank the Philippians for generously caring for him through their representative, Epaphroditus (4:10–20), and to assure them that his present imprisonment in no way hinders the progress of the gospel (1:12–26). WHERE WAS PHILIPPI? Ancient Philippi was situated in the northeastern corner of the Roman province of Macedonia (in present-day Greece). It held a strategic position on a major trade route, the Via Egnatia, which linked Rome with the East, as far as Byzantium (present-day Istanbul). Further, the busy port of Neapolis lay only ten miles (16 km) away. These factors made Philippi an important center of trade and travel, both by land and by sea. Acts tells us that Paul first crossed by ship from Asia Minor (present-day Turkey) to the region, in response to a vision of a man from Macedonia (Acts 16:9). Paul headed immediately to Philippi and established the first Christian congregation in Europe. You can read the fascinating story of Paul’s early mission in Philippi and the obstacles he faced there in Acts 16:6–40. OUTLINE OF PHILIPPIANS 1.Letter Opening (1:1–11) a.Greeting (1:1–2) b.Thanksgiving and Prayer (1:3–11) 2.Paul’s Situation: An Example of Faithfulness to the Gospel (1:12–26) 3.Conduct Worthy of the Gospel: Instruction and Examples (1:27–2:18) a.Stand Firm and United in the Face of Opposition (1:27–30) b.Practice Unity through Unselfish Humility (2:1–4) c.Embody the Story of Christ (2:5–11) d.Live Out Your Salvation (2:12–18) 4.Two Christlike Examples: Timothy and Epaphroditus (2:19–30) 5.A Christ-Centered Focus in the Face of Threats to the Gospel: Warnings and Examples (3:1–4:1) a.True and False Confidence (3:1–11) b.Pressing toward the Prize (3:12–14) c.Good and Bad Examples (3:15–4:1) 6.Final Instructions (4:2–9) 7.Concluding Matters (4:10–23) a.Gratitude for the Philippians’ Gift (4:10–20) b.Letter Closing (4:21–23)2 This letter, however, is not in the first place about Paul. Above all, Philippians has to do with the advance of the gospel and the formation of a Christian community into the cross-shaped likeness of Christ. As a result, the main part of the letter is saturated with both examples for the Philippians to follow (see 1:12–26; 2:5–11, 19–30; 3:4–17) and instructions to heed (see 1:27–2:18; 4:2–9). At the very heart of these exhortations and examples, we encounter the story of Christ’s self-giving love (2:5–11), a story that shapes the character and mission of the church. What’s more, Paul brackets the entire letter with a pair of “thanksgiving bookends”: he begins and ends by expressing gratitude to his beloved friends in Philippi and thanking God for them (1:3–11; 4:10–20). The Backstory Why did Paul write this letter to this church? Paul’s reason for writing Philippians arises not only from his own situation as a prisoner of Rome, but also from the circumstances of the Christian congregation in Philippi. This letter has a backstory, one that Paul likely heard about from the Philippians’ messenger, Epaphroditus. Three aspects of the circumstances in Philippi help to shape Paul’s exhortations to the church. First, this local congregation apparently faced disagreements and interpersonal tensions within the church (Phil 4:2; we’ll say more about this later). Christian unity, then, emerges as an important theme in the letter (1:27; 2:1–4; 3:15). Second, Paul sees a potential threat on the horizon from Jewish Christian agitators (Paul calls them “dogs” and “evildoers”; see 3:2–4). It’s likely that Paul was concerned that these teachers might infiltrate the church, bearing a counterfeit teaching that supplemented the gospel by forcing gentile Christians to submit to the Jewish law, especially the practice of circumcision. Third, the congregation in Philippi met serious opposition from people outside the church. Paul says that the Philippians were engaged in “the same struggle” as he was; they, too, were called to suffer for the sake of Christ (Phil 1:29–30). This harassment most likely stemmed from the Roman populace in their city. Philippi enjoyed the privileged status of a Roman colony. The city functioned like a miniature Rome, outside the capital. In such a setting, loyalty to Caesar and his empire would have been intense. In a city such as Philippi, all kinds of events—including public festivals and meetings of private associations, and even social events such as birthday parties—provided occasions to give honor to the emperor and the local gods that stood behind Caesar. Those who dared to worship a Lord other than Caesar likely would have been considered a threat to Rome and Rome’s colony. Consequently, “Christians in Philippi might experience the kind of ostracism, discrimination, or even violence that has accompanied loyalty to Christ in many times and places.”3 With a missionary and pastor’s heart, Paul tailors his reflections on the gospel to the needs and situation of his friends in Philippi. In Philippians, then, we encounter Paul’s theological response to his own situation and that of a congregation facing pressures from both inside and outside the church (see 1:27–30; 4:2–3). The result is a Christ-centered letter that continues to shape communities of Christians today. The Theological Center of Philippians Philippians has a theological nerve center. It is found in the V-shaped story narrated in the hymn-like passage in Philippians 2:6–11. In this story, Christ, who is equal with God, makes himself nothing, taking on the form of a human being. The story plunges to its lowest depth when Jesus humbles himself to the extreme. In obedience to God the Father, he dies a disgraceful death on a cross. At this point, the story suddenly veers upward (the second part of the V). In response to Jesus’ costly obedience, God exalts him and gives him the divine name of Lord. The narrative reaches a glorious climax when all creation confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.4 From one perspective, Philippians 2:6–11 narrates the gospel that Paul wants the Philippians to embrace, proclaim, and live out (1:27). It gives us a thumbnail sketch of God’s gracious, loving activity on behalf of people and the whole of creation in Christ. But, in Philippians, Paul doesn’t tell the V-shaped story of what God has done in Christ simply to inform our belief system. He describes Jesus’ downward descent so that God’s people will reenact that story of self-giving love in their own circumstances. We are to “have the same mindset as Christ Jesus” (2:5). Philippians, then, spotlights the downward path of the V-shaped story. The story of Jesus humbling himself and pouring himself out for others, even to the point of death on the cross, is not only the source of our salvation; it is also the pattern of our lives. New Testament scholar Morna Hooker hits the nail on the head in noting that the direct link between theology (who God is and what God does) and ethics (what we should be and what we should do) is one of the signature contributions of this letter to the church.5 For Paul, both the good news and our Christian life, which flows out of the...