Reflections on Philippians Class

The Philippians block class lasts two weeks, and now it is ending soon. Philippians is a short book, but quite a unique one in that Paul displays a close relationship with the members of the Philippi church, and urges them to follow His example as a fellow worker in the gospel – more than in other letters he has written. His impressive life of striving for the gospel is shown forth in his perspective during his imprisonment – his constant encouragement for his listeners to rejoice, his desire to see the gospel continue to be preached, and his concern over the affairs of the church he has planted despite being away from them.  He must have thought through the possible outcome of his imprisonment, as his letter suggested it (Phil 1:21-26), but he is single-mindedly focused on furthering the gospel, and not really concerned about his fate at the hands of the Roman authorities.

            Having been a Christian for over 17 years, I do see myself being more mature than when I first started (and I believe we all grow the same way as we know Christ more) – in terms of my priorities in what I dedicate my time to, in how I spend my money, etc; in terms of how I relate, being more willing to give up my rights and less concerned about having my say, being less critical of people, etc.; in my perspective, in seeing the experience I go through, the skills I learn at work and the lessons I learn in life as being beneficial for my own growth, so that I could serve God better, etc. However, Paul’s example shows to me there is still a lot of areas of my life I hold on to, my comfort zones which God has not touched, and a relatively lack of passion for the gospel (compared with Paul!). If Paul then considers himself as not having yet attained what he pursue, then how much more room there is for me to grow in God.

It seems that Paul is addressing arguments among the believers in Philippi in his letter, and his perspective is clear in how the church as a whole should deal with it – with regard to those who jeopardise the gospel, the church is be wary and avoid them (Phil 3:18-19), but for matters which are disputable, Paul sees the unity of the believers as much more important than the individual rights and ambitions each of them has. God is the one who unites us, and Christ is the example to follow, and we are all transformed by the Holy Spirit towards the gospel.

            Having been in church for a number of years, I am often encouraged by my brothers and sisters in church through the fellowship we share, and there is a lot of ways which fellowship can spur ourselves on in character transformation and diligence in ministry which we cannot learn on our own. At the same time, disagreements and quarrels can also be very damaging in a Christian community, sometimes even leading to divisions and people leaving the community. It is perhaps very much due to the tension between the expectation of an ideal community transformed by Christ, and the very human selfishness and pride that still exists within imperfect human beings like us. The closer we are in our fellowship, the easier it is for us to be hurt on occasions when we see out individual rights and ambitions as being more important than the other person. The emphasis of Paul on unity in the church is thus sometimes we all ought to keep in mind always – that the unity of the community of believers takes priority over our disagreements. Of course, beyond the exhortation towards unity, Paul still needs to deal with the specific issue in the Philippian church, and I believe that in the heart of every disagreement there is a way of deal with the issue without leading to quarrels, and it is often pride in us, not the issue at the heart of the disagreement, that will divide the community.

In Paul letter to the Philippians, Paul emphasises following examples in his appeal to right Christian conduct, first by appealing to the ultimate example of Christ, then by elaborating on his own example. Paul is deeply convicted in what he preaches and has lived it for over twenty years since he believed in the gospel, and his passion and conviction comes forth from his letter of appeal to the Philippian believers. Paul’s success in ministry is not just due to God’s calling and anointing in his ministry, but more his giving of and living out his life for the gospel, as a powerful example for us to follow.

            I remember that I my early years as a believer, many of the attitudes and spirit I learned are not just from the teaching of the Word, but very often by the unspoken examples of my leaders and mentors in the church (I am not sure which had a greater impact on me, but I believe both have shaped my faith as a young believer). Even now, I look out for other believers and mentors whom I can emulate in my faith. At the same time, Paul’s letter is a good reminder I ought to live out what I preach, especially when I often have much opportunities to “preach”, so that I live up to what I say, and I only say what I truly live up to.

The sharing of our faith journey on Monday’s lesson is both a deeply encouraging time and a stirring time (to reflect) for me. It is really encouraging to see how God is present in the lives of every one of us and led us in our walk in Him, and God’s faithfulness to every believer gives me the assurance that He is involved in my life, and I can trust in Him in every step – if I would follow His leading. At the same time, it is deeply stirring for me to reflect on my own spiritual journey – how much have I trusted in Him, and how much have I truly sought Him out in my decisions and priorities? My church brought-up emphases on the Word of God, diligence and making plans to further the gospel – which are all good. However, it also inevitably leads to a suspicion of “God speaking” with regard to disputable matters sometimes as being impractical and not Word-centred. I believe they are not mutually exclusive, and my years of studies in the college and applying them in my walk with God shows me that we can trust in God’s voice together with being obedient to the Word of God. Hence, I believe as I continue to grow in my relationship with God, I will see God in much more of my life as He has been before – as I grow in know Him better and allow Him into more of my life.