Philippians serves a Wesleyan reading of Scripture through six key themes that run through the letter.
First, at its core, Philippians functions as a letter of gratitude to a community of faith that had supported Paul financially throughout his ministry. The missional generosity of the Philippians proved to be especially significant during Paul’s Roman imprisonment. They were chief among his patrons. The Philippians model a faith that stewards its resources for the advance of the Gospel across the world (1:5 cf. 4:10–20). My mentor Robert Tuttle taught that the last aspect of a person’s life to be converted is often his or her bank account. In the 21st century, we Western Christians likewise must model the Philippians sacrificial generosity that allowed the promotion of the Gospel way beyond their lives in Philippi.
Second, Paul emphasizes the sanctification of the Philippians as a means creating a united witness as God’s people before the watching world (1:27–4:1). The key metaphor for Philippians is that of being a citizen worthy of Christ (1:27 cf. 3:20). For Paul, the gospel of Jesus subverts the life and ethic of the Greco-Roman world. God’s people must willingly release their clinging to individual rights, privileges, and status as Roman citizens in favor of a new citizenship of the gospel that finds its highest value in Jesus’ death on the cross. The metaphor “citizen of heaven” is a timely one in the modern world where we often create odd hybrids of allegiance to a nation or group over our true citizenship in the kingdom of God. By the way, there is a name for equating our allegiance to any ideology, group or nation with our relationship to our Creator God and the Lord Jesus…it’s called idolatry.
Third, Philippians models what it looks like to be God’s missional people in the world. Believers adopt the mindset of Jesus (2:5). This involves learning to desire and intend the things on God’s heart. This is the essence of sanctification through the imitation of Christ. Jesus models a self-giving mode of existence that is the exact opposite of how Rome’s hierarchical structure worked. He was God but precisely because Jesus is God Jesus did not exploit that status for his own glory. Instead, Jesus took the form of humanity or as Philippians says, “the form of a slave.” That is one of low status. After all, Philippians teaches us that the status we embrace sets the limits on our capacity to reach others with the Gospel. If we prop ourselves up via status and hierarchy, we are actually choosing the way of the world rather than the way of Jesus. Jesus was highly exalted not by clinging to his status but by surrendering to death, even death on a cross.
Fourth, Philippians offers serious reflection on the witness of individual believers and on the importance of the character and conduct of its leaders. Paul lifts up Jesus and the prime model of Gospel citizenship (2:1–18), but he also reminds the Philippians of the potent examples of himself (3:1–16) and his coworkers (2:19–30). The Christian life can be lived out successfully in this world. In 3:17, Paul can say without blushing: “Imitate me. Imitate Timothy and Epaphroditus.” The challenge of this teaching can be felt with this question: Who do we need to become to be able to say to others with integrity ‘Follow my example and you will live as Jesus did’?
Fifth, Philippians promotes a vital piety centered in full surrender to Jesus Christ. Using his own example (3:1–16), Paul embraces the values of Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection as the grounds for salvation and promotes a continual pursuit of this as the purpose of life. Paul willingly relinquishes all things including his gifts and accomplishments because true gain is knowing Christ and fully identifying with his life, death, and resurrection. Paul’s model invites us to ponder our strengths and core identities as hindrances to the deepest work that God desires to do in us and through us. Paul says, “Give God your main thing and God will give you everything.” What is biggest strength? Have the courage to surrender it to God as loss. True gain is on the other side of deep surrender.
Last, Philippians teaches us to embrace true joy in the journey. Paul uses the noun “joy” in 1:4, 25; 2:2, 29; 4:1 and the verbal form “rejoice” in 1:18 (2x); 2:17, 18, 28; 3:1; 4:4 and 10. The joy that Paul describes in one of the fruits of the Spirit from Gal 5:22. It is not merely a giddiness or naive happiness. It is a trench tested disposition of our inner world in which we can live in abundance regardless of circumstances. Paul can pray with joy for the growth of the Philippians (1:4) and he can rejoice in the spread of the Gospel in spite of his imprisonment and the false motives of some fellow Christians (1:18). Too many of us tend to ride an emotional roller coaster through life. Philippians teaches that a profound rooting in Jesus opens us joy as a state in which we can experience both the mountain tops and valleys of life.
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