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| Painting by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn |
By Bob Campbell, Reporter
• Odessa American
MIDLAND/ODESSA, TEXAS - Every book in the New Testament is unique in some way and Philippians is distinct as the only one of the Apostle Paul’s 13 letters not to deliver a rebuke.
The Revs. Landon Coleman and Bob Fu say the relatively short book of four chapters, written from prison in Rome, is also notable for its calls for joy in the face of suffering.
“Paul planted the church in Philippi on his second missionary journey,” said the Rev. Coleman, pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church. “The founding members were Lydia and her household, the jailer and his household and possibly the slave girl who had been delivered from a demon by Paul.
“Paul wasn’t able to stay in Philippi long, so he wrote this letter to encourage the church in his absence. Philippians is unique among the Pauline corpus because there is no corporate rebuke. In fact, the only negative comment is a gentle encouragement for two women, Euodia and Syntyche, to agree in the Lord.”
Coleman said Paul “apparently loved this church very much and basically he wanted them to keep doing what they were doing.
“He saw them as partners in his mission of proclaiming the Gospel and planting churches,” he said. “The dominant theme is rejoicing in suffering. Paul uses the word ‘rejoice’ multiple times and the idea is worshiping with joy.”
Coleman said Paul was a sterling example of what he preached.
“When imprisoned in Philippi, he was singing hymns with Silas late into the night,” he said. “As he wrote Philippians he was a prisoner and in chains, but he was still rejoicing.”
Coleman said Philippians is often referred to as the ‘coffee cup epistle’ because it is filled with some of the most memorable and beloved verses in the New Testament, “the kinds of verses we put on coffee cups, inspirational calendars, Instagram posts and T-shirts.
“The doctrinal heart is Philippians 2:1-11,” he said. “These verses are among the most beautiful and weighty descriptions of the person and work of Christ in the New Testament.
“Most people would cite 4:13 and it’s hard to argue against the glory of 2:1-11, but my favorite is 1:6: ‘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.’
“Paul knew God had started the work in Philippi. It was God who opened Lydia’s heart to pay attention to Paul’s message. It was God who delivered the demon-possessed slave girl and it was God who saved the jailer and his family. He started the work in Philippi and Paul knew God would see that work to completion.” The Rev. Fu, founder and president of ChinaAid in Midland and an associate pastor at Mid-Cities Community Church, said Philippians is a letter of encouragement. “It’s unlike the letters Paul wrote to Corinth and Galatia when those churches were facing theological ecclesiastical crises,” Fu said.
“It is a letter of love and joy during the persecution Paul was experiencing in prison for the Gospel of Jesus. He wrote to the believers in Philippi in a profound manner with a deep bond of love and affection in Christ, even mediating that he might be martyred this time.”
Fu said Paul showed the Philippians “the full definition of a normal Christian life, that is to suffer for Christ.”
He said Evangelical Lutheran Pastor Richard Wurmbrand (1909-2001) who was imprisoned and tortured from 1948-64 in Communist Romania, coined the term “sufferology,” founded a group called Voice of the Martyrs and wrote a book titled “Torture for Christ.”
“For Christians in the free West, the book of Philippians should help us remove some misunderstandings,” Fu said. “Paul here teaches us that a normal Christian life is not free of pain or suffering. Instead, suffering for Christ is a norm and even a privilege” ...
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