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December 17th
The bible reading today is in the four-chapter letter of Paul to the church at Philippi...probably the last of the four prison epistles written during his first imprisonment in Rome.
The Prison Epistles from Rome..? Philemon was a letter to a personal friend in the church of Colossae...concerning victory that comes through forgiveness.
Colossians was a letter to a church that dealt with the divinity of Christ that had been denied by some teachers in that church.
Ephesians was a formal letter to the church at Ephesus dealing with the doctrines and applications of such doctrines in the daily disciple life of doing church together as the Holy Spirit-filled body of Christ.
And now Philippians...A brother in the Lord from the church in Philippi, Epaphroditus, came to Rome to see Paul. He was delivering a financial love offering from the church. Paul’s heart was lifted and the joy of the Lord became his renewed strength for carrying on while in the custody of Rome.
Paul’s letter was a thank you to the church for their timely gift. He wanted to encourage them as they encouraged him. He wanted to give them something that would make their hearts glad forever. And he did.
Now for some of my favorite texts in this letter of joy.
“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
