Πρὸς Φιλιππησίους - (Pros Philippēsious)
“To the Philippians”
Favourite Book
Philippians was my favourite New Testament book as a young Christian. I marked my Bible with different coloured pens, pencils and highlighters until you could barely see the text. Why did it capture my heart? Partly because of the emphasis on joy and love, but mostly because it is saturated with references to the nature, the work and the heart of Jesus Christ.
Depending on exactly how you count them, there may be as many as 75 references to Jesus (as Lord, Jesus, Christ, and saviour) in those four short chapters. That means he’s mentioned or alluded to in approximately every two or three verses. No one is going to miss Paul’s focus.
Prayer Priority
Having said that, a particular emphasis in the first 11 verses is on prayer. The paragraph starting from verse three mentions prayer:
“I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you,” (Philippians 1:3–4 NRSV)
And ends with the same idea:
“And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.” (Philippians 1:9–11 NRSV)
Learning Today
What can we learn about prayer today? The focus is on the way we pray for one another. What does Paul’s prayer in verses 9–11 reveal about his desire for the Philippians’ spiritual growth? If you were to apply Paul’s prayer in verses 9–11 to your own life, what areas would you prioritise in your spiritual growth?
Let’s learn from the Apostle Paul, the Philippians and, most of all, our wonderful Lord.
God bless, Malcolm
