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C
3:20 to 4:10.
Conversation there. Stand fast.
Body of glory.
Then.
B
4:11 -20.
Fellowship in beginning of gospel.
A
4:21 -23.
Epistolary
Salutation.
Caesar's household.
Fellowship in the Gospel opens and closes the epistle proper (1:3 -26;
4:11 -20).
The epistle opens very differently from that to the Ephesians, which
commences as follows:
`Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who hath
blessed us ... before the overthrow of the world' (Eph. 1:3,4).
In Philippians the opening words are:
`I thank my God ... for your fellowship in the gospel from the first
day until now' (Phil. 1:3 -5).
With this thought of active co -operation with the gospel the epistle
opens and closes. It is an indication of the trend of the teaching before
us; not so much what is ours in Christ, but what we are doing with it. Not
so much to look backward, `before the overthrow of the world', or upward, to
the `spiritual blessings in heavenly places', or forward, `that in the ages
to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in kindness towards
us', but a survey of present activities in view of `the day of Jesus Christ'.
There is no trusting to self, however, but confidence that He Who had begun
the good work would perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ. While `fear
and trembling' must ever accompany our endeavours to `work out our own
salvation', such a state of mind is not incompatible with a settled
confidence in the Lord, or with a peace that passeth all understanding.
The opening theme of the epistle is threefold:
(1)
Fellowship and defence of the gospel.
(2)
Furtherance of the gospel.
(3)
Furtherance of faith.
Each of these three phases is marked with either thanksgiving or
prayer, and in each case with `confidence':
`Being confident, that He which hath begun ... will finish' (Phil.
1:6).
`Waxing confident by my bonds' (Phil. 1:14).
`Having this confidence, I know that I shall abide' (Phil. 1:25).
We now approach a section of the epistle that demands great care in its
exposition, and patient examination of the words used so that we do not miss
the Spirit's teaching:
`For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer,
and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest