The Pulpit Commentary — Philippians — Section 56

Lydin., a .Tewish proselyt~; a ~~k slave; a Roman jail or. The..oe may be taken to rcpre!'{'nt the thrre lcadm2: d1ns1ons of the human familv, all of which are to be emhrncM by the C11tholic Church. Their conversion &I.so iilustrates the iruth thRt in Ciiri~t .Jesus there is no di~tinction or male or female, bond or froe. n·. IT TRU.""!'FIGURES HUMAN llKLATIONSIIll'S INro D1vn,"E. It is of the Church at :r'hi_lippi t.h11t it is especially_ ~rded th~t the faith was received, not merely by rndmduals, but by whole families (Acts xvi. 15, 33). The family is the Divine unit in ~,od'~ natural organization of IDAnkind. llfay not this fe.ot in some men.sure account for the singular freedom of the Philippian Church from the grosser forms of eITOr nnd for the simplicity of its faith and love? ' . Y. IT IS APOSTOLIC. It receives its teaching from the mouth of the apostles and is in communion with them. VJ. IT IS AN ORDERLY Al_.D ORGANIZED COl\IMUNlTY1 WITH ITS BISHOPS AND DEACONS. VJI. IT ABIDES. Being the possessor of a life which it derives from the spiritual world, it outlasts the visible and external order of things. The city of Philippi has long since ceased t.o be; it is almost impossible to trace any reminiscence of its former importance. The Church of Philippi lives still in the words of this Epistle, and exercises a power and an infine.nce which can never cease to bci.-V. W. H. Ver. 4.-Christian ;'oy not dependent up® outward circumstances. I. 1. The out- ward circumstances of St. Paul's life, at the time of his writing this Epistle, were singularly joyless. A prisoner in Rome, awaiting his trial, deprived of the power of freely preaching the gospel when and where he would, compelled to be in the society of his Roman guard night and day. 2. Notwitbstand.ing these untoward conditions he is inwardly full of joy. The key-note of the Epistle is re;'oi.ce. 3. The joy which fills him is not merely a selfish joy at his own acceptance with God; it is a sympathetic joy which rejoices in the growth of God's kingdom. This is the joy of the angels. This is the joy of Jesus himself. This is the joy which he promises to bestow upon his disciples (John :i.:v. 11; xvii. 13). This is the joy of the Lord into which they who have used well the t&lents entrusted to them are to enter. This joy is not mere selfish exultation in our own rescue from the pains of hell, but a sense of bliss atthe victory which God has won, and a joy at being permitted to minister more entirely to his glory. IL 1. We mn possess this joy here and hereafter if we are filled with the unselfish desire that others should be blessed and that God should be glorified in them. We deprive ourselves of it if we are guilty of envy at the spiritual progress which they are making, and at the evident tokens of God's grace working in them. 2. We can con- tribute t.o this joy. By our own steadfastness in the faith we add to the treasury of joy which is the possession of the whole Church. We give joy to the angels. We are able to increase the joy even of onr Lord, who, seeing of the travail of his soul, is fAtisficd.-V. W. H. Ver. 6.-TM truest !J'U,(1,ranf,ee <I peneverana. Note- 1 ST. p AUL'S CJO~"FIDENCE THAT THESE PBILII'PIANS WOULD PERSEVERE UNTO THE END, II. THE GROUNDS ON WHICH BE BESTS THIS CONFIDENCE, 1. That it is God's work. If we know that God is working in us wci can trust him to complete his work. 2. God's work demands man's CO-()JJ6'"atwn. St. Paul recognizes in the zeal which these Philippian.s displayed in the furtherance of the gospel (ver. 5) th~ best evidence of their co-operation with God, and therefore the best guarantee of their perseverance. III. WHAT THIS ZEAL IS NOT. It is not the same as anxiety for the victory of a party, of a particular set of views, or of our own personal influence. It is not a devotion to the merely ex:tcrna.l upects of religion. IV. WiuT THIS ZEAL is. It is joy at the progress of God's kingdom in human souls Ly whatcv1:r methods that progress may have been brought a.bout. It is readiness to Li:ar witness for Christ and to work for him. V. THJ..li ZEAL FOB THE FURTHERANCE OF Tirn GOSPEL Is: 1. Apostolic (Acts xi. 23). 2. It is angelic (Luke ii. 13, 14). 3. It is Divine. YI. Tuu, WlTI'l'JiS·IlEAr.JNG 111 IN ITSELF AN ELF-:lfENT 01" BTl!F,NGTH, and tbercifor~ of Jx,r::;•,verauet: (Rom. x. 10). UH, I, 1-30.] THE EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS. 51