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And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Heb 11:6 |
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| Archived Manna: | |
Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Sunday, October 12, 2025
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :Overview of the New Testament: The Epistles Bible Verse:Philippians 2:5-8, 4:6-8, 4:13 (ESV) "In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! * * * Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. * * * “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” " Message:
The church at Philippi was founded by Paul during his second missionary journey. (Acts 16:1-40) It was a member state of the Roman Empire, as opposed to a colony, and its tax burden was light; so although it was not terribly large, it was comparatively wealthy. Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians, a prison epistle, is primarily a thank-you note; they were able to send him money, allowing him to maintain a decent household during his imprisonment (house arrest) and thus facilitate his continued ministry.
funeral procession from illuminated hymnal, ca. 1350
Illuminated “R”
French hymnal ca. 1350
Even more than Ephesians, Philippians is absent the criticism and urgent attempts to stop erroneous doctrine and practice found in the early letters. It overflows with praise, affection, and Paul’s personal feelings about his own situation. Because Philippi did not need extensive correction, the epistle is one of the shortest of the church epistles. It has four chapters.
Paul begins with a prayer of thanks. He praises the Philippians for their faith, praying that their church might continue in its progress and holiness. He then shares his own joy of Christ with them. In this, he treats them more as fellow believers than as students; although he exhorts them to steadfastness in the face of tribulation and opposition, Paul himself has more trouble than they; so he gives himself as an example, not by boasting, but simply by discussing his feelings in the face of possible execution. He is hard-pressed, he tells them, to decide whether he would rather live or die; for to die would mean being with Christ; but to live would mean he could continue his work for Christ.
He makes one very important theological statement in the epistle, the first paragraph of today’s Scripture. It is written in Paul’s customary oblique style and is a bit difficult to grasp. But the key point is to emphasize and explain what it meant for Christ to be a human being. God, in becoming human, became truly human and voluntarily gave up the limitless powers of divinity. The ESV reads, “[H]e became nothing”; but the phrase literally means “he emptied himself”; that is, he gave up his divine power at birth and thereafter exercised only the power and knowledge given to him by the Father.
Jesus playing as a boy
Jesus playing as a boy.
For a random example, we can deduce that Jesus had to learn how to walk and talk just like any other child. Luke gives us a hint of this in Luke 2:40, “The Child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom.” He felt the powerful pull of temptation, and could be killed. He felt the same emotions as we do; notably, fear, for he sweated blood in Gethsemane just before his arrest. By being human, his perfect faith and obedience mean so much more to us, because he felt exactly the same emotions, desires, and pain that we do.
Philippians is a joyful letter and full of pithy quotes. It speaks to Paul’s character that he was joyful addressing a faithful church when he was facing death; whereas, he seemed less happy in writing the troubled churches in Corinth and Galatia, even though he was a free man.
Meditation : Prayer : Let the word of Christ richly dwell within me all this day; and whatever I do in word or deed, may I do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father....Amen. |
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