#Letter to the Philippians

[phillipmedhurst]

50/66 Headpiece to Philippians by Simon Brett

50/66 Headpiece to Philippians by Simon Brett Wood engraving by Simon Brett (British b. 1943) in The Reader’s Digest Bible (illustrated edition) 1990

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#Bible #Bible illustration #epistle #headpiece #Letter to the Philippians #Philippians #Phillip Medhurst #prisoner #Readers Digest #shackle #Simon Brett #stylus #vignette #wax tablet #wood engraving

[officialyourdailyinspiration]

Obedience and Service in the World

12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is GOD WHO worketh in you both to will and to do of HIS good pleasure. 14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings, 15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, children {the sons} of GOD, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world, 16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of CHRIST, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain. 17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all. 18 For the same cause also do ye joy, and rejoice with me. — Philippians 2:12-18 | King James Bible: Purple Letter Edition (KJBP) The King James Bible: Purple Letter Edition © 2009 by Jim Musser. All rights Reserved. Cross References: Numbers 28:6-7; Deuteronomy 32:5; 2 Chronicles 30:12; Job 33:29; Proverbs 4:18; Proverbs 8:8; Isaiah 49:4; Mark 9:14; Luke 2:14; Luke 5:30; Romans 15:16; 1 Corinthians 1:8; 1 Corinthians 10:10; 2 Corinthians 6:10; 2 Corinthians 7:15; Philippians 1:5-6; Philippians 2:19; Philippians 3:1; Philippians 4:15

#obedience #service #world #Philippians 2:12-18 #The Epistle of Philippians #New Testament #KJBP #King James Bible: Purple Letter Edition

[e-devotion]

finishing Philippians 4

This week we have taken a dive through Philippians 4.  This literally is one of my favorite chapters of the Bible.  I have a lot of favorites.  As I said a couple times earlier one of my first Bible promises came from verses 6 and 7 (my first Bible promises were from Psalm 139:23-24 and 150:6).

We have talked about peace and how God gives us that gift for leaving behind worry.  His peace is stronger than anything we know and far beyond anything we have yet to experience.  But what we might not have heard, or at least mentioned in these e-devotion, is that the best thing we learn is from verse 9 as it says “the God of peace with be with you.”  

Not only will we have peace.  We will have God with us.  He brings peace with Him.  I love that.

But as we close out this week of e-devotions and our dive through Philippians 4 we find some final words from Paul.  Let me share and summarize those a bit for us…

Philippians 4:10-23  NLT   

How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again… 11 Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. 14 Even so, you have done well to share with me in my present difficulty. 15 As you know, you Philippians were the only ones who gave me financial help when I first brought you the Good News… 17 I don’t say this because I want a gift from you. Rather, I want you to receive a reward for your kindness. 18 At the moment I have all I need—and more! I am generously supplied with the gifts you sent me with Epaphroditus… 19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus… 23 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

That is a lot to digest, and I even condensed a little.  Here are the highlights, and this is so, so good.

When people are concerned about you, it really is encouraging!

We must learn to be content if we have a little or if we have a lot.  I have learned that.

Christ gives us strength and the ability to do so much.  I leave verse 13.

The people blessed Paul and were so generous.  He wanted them to be blessed even more.

Paul pointed them, and now points us as well, to know that it is all about the grace of God.

May we learn to go through Scripture, grab on to what God is saying and watch Him change our lives.  He is molding us to be more and more like Jesus.  This chapter is only a small part of all the God is doing.  My prayer is that you have taken time to dive in these verses and grow with me.  

God is good!  Philippians 4 proves that fact once more.

#e-devotion #devotion #devo #Paul #Philippians #Philippians 4 #Philippi #letter #New Testament #Scripture #Bible #disciple #church #faith #peace #God #Jesus #Michael Harrison #The Community Fellowship

[justana0kguy]

2023 OCTOBER 01 Sunday

"Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but (also) everyone for those of others."

~ Philippians 2:3-4

#bible #scripture #verse #second reading #letter #Philippians #do nothing #selfishness #vainglory #humble #regard others #more important #than self #God #Lord #Jesus #Christ

[dollyabuya]

Rejoice in the Lord always; again l will say, Rejoice. Let all men know your forbearance. The Lord is at hand. Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 

#Bible verse of the week from the letter of Paul to the Philippians 4:4-7

[ailelie]

"I thank my God every time I remember you."

(Philippians 1:3)

What a way to start a letter.

#bible #philippians #christianity #letters

[whencyclopedia]

The Letters of Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles

Paul was a member of the Jewish Pharisees in the 1st century CE, who experienced a revelation of the resurrected Jesus Christ. In this vision, Jesus commissioned him to be the apostle (herald) to the Gentiles (non-Jews). After this experience, he traveled widely throughout the Roman Empire, spreading the "good news" that Jesus would soon return from heaven and usher in the kingdom of God on earth.

In the New Testament, we have 14 letters traditionally assigned to Paul, but the scholarly consensus now recognizes that of the 14, seven were written by Paul:

1 Thessalonians

Galatians

Philemon

Philippians

1 & 2 Corinthians

Romans

2 Thessalonians, Ephesians, and Colossians remain debatable among some scholars. The other major letters (1 &2 Timothy and Titus) were most likely written by disciples of Paul’s, using his name to carry authority. The letters that have survived range between 52 and 60 CE, and although we cannot pinpoint when Paul’s letters were collected, Clement, a bishop in Rome in the 90s CE, quoted from 1 Corinthians.

The Nature of the Letters

We understand these letters to be circumstantial. They were not written as systematic theology or as treatises on Christianity. The letters are responses to specific problems and circumstances as they arose in his communities. Paul spent time in cities establishing a group and then moved on. He received letters and sometimes reports with detailed questions or advice on how to settle conflicts. Unfortunately, when Paul’s letters were saved and circulated, the original letters from the communities were not preserved. The reconstruction of the original problems can only be determined by Paul’s responses.

Known as the most famous convert in history (from the Acts of the Apostles), Paul did not actually undergo conversion. Conversion assumes changing from one religious system to another, but at the time, there was no Christian system for him to convert to. Paul himself was ambiguous when it came to his self-identity:

To the Jews I became like a Jew... To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) ... To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) ... I have become all things to all people. (1 Corinthians 9:20-22)

In relation to what happened to Paul, it is better to follow what he says, in that he was 'called'. This is the tradition of the way in which the Prophets of Israel were called to their individual missions.

I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. (Galatians 1:11-12).

Paul argued that this experience gave him as much authority as the original circle in Jerusalem (Peter, James, and John). Paul’s call to be the Apostle to the Gentiles was shocking because, as he freely admitted, he had previously "persecuted the church of God" (Galatians 1:13). He never really explained what he did, nor why he did it. It is in Paul’s letters that the name Jesus is combined with Christ, the Greek for the Hebrew messiah ("anointed one"). Understood as a title, "Jesus the Christ", it became common as a phrase that indicated his identity and function.

Continue reading...

#History #Bible #Christianity #PaultheApostle #WHE #[ #]

[walkswithmyfather]

‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:12‭-‬17‬ (‭GNT‬‬). “I give thanks to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength for my work. I thank him for considering me worthy and appointing me to serve him, even though in the past I spoke evil of him and persecuted and insulted him. But God was merciful to me because I did not yet have faith and so did not know what I was doing. And our Lord poured out his abundant grace on me and gave me the faith and love which are ours in union with Christ Jesus. This is a true saying, to be completely accepted and believed: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. I am the worst of them, but God was merciful to me in order that Christ Jesus might show his full patience in dealing with me, the worst of sinners, as an example for all those who would later believe in him and receive eternal life. To the eternal King, immortal and invisible, the only God—to him be honor and glory forever and ever! Amen.”

“Grace on Display” By In Touch Ministries:

“Even the worst of sinners is welcome to receive God's extravagant mercy and love.”

“Paul described himself as the worst of sinners and as someone to whom the Lord had expressed His favor and love (1 Tim. 1:16 NIV). How could he be both? That’s the power of God’s grace: Though sinners, we become spiritually alive and receive a new purpose for living.

After Paul met the Savior, he cared deeply about those who did not yet know God, and he also desired to help Christians grow in their faith. For the rest of his life, he shared the gospel, encouraged fellow believers, and met the needs of others. He acted as God’s ambassador to the Gentiles, and his letters became biblical wisdom for future generations.

Through the transforming work of the Holy Spirit, Paul began to display more and more Christlike qualities. In his writings, we see compassion, great humility, and appreciation for God’s blessings. Only the grace of God could enable a well-educated and influential man to count all his credentials a “loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:8).

Paul’s life is an example of God working through sinners and transforming them. The Holy Spirit seeks to do the same for you and me. Are you allowing God’s favor and love to work within you?”

[Photo by Jametlene Reskp at Unsplash]

#‭‭1 timothy‬ ‭1:12‭-‬17‬ #gods grace #gods mercy #grace and mercy #god loves you #bible verses #bible truths #bible scriptures #bible quotes #bible study #studying the bible #the word of god #christian devotionals #daily devotions #bible #christian blog #god #belief in god #faith in god #jesus #belief in jesus #faith in jesus #christian prayer #christian life #christian living #christian faith #christian inspiration #christian encouragement #christian motivation #christianity

[holystormfire]

The List of 75 Books Lost or Excluded from the Bible

Joshua 10:13 KJV

And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.

2 Samuel 1:18 KJV

(Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.)

1 Kings 11:41 KJV

And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?

𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑠...

The Protevangelion

The Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus Christ

The Infancy Gospel of Thomas

The Epistles of Jesus Christ and Abgarus King of Edessa

The Gospel of Nicodemus (Acts of Pilate)

The Apostles’ Creed (throughout history)

The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Laodiceans

The Epistles of Paul the Apostle to Seneca, with Seneca’s to Paul

The Acts of Paul and Thecla

The Epistle of Clement

The Second Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians

The Epistle of Barnabas

The Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians

The Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians

The Epistle of Ignatius to the Trallians

The Epistle of Ignatius to the Romans

The Epistle of Ignatius to the Philadelphians

The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrneans

The Epistle of Ignatius to Polycarp

The Shepherd of Hermas (Visions, Commands, and Similitudes)

Letter of Herod To Pilate the Governor

Letter of Pilate to Herod

The Lost Gospel of Peter

The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians

Book of Enoch 1

Book of Enoch 2 (known as The Secrets of Enoch)

Enoch 3

Book of Esdras 1

Book of Esdras 2

Book of Maccabees 1

Book of Maccabees 2

Book of Maccabees 3

Book of Maccabees 4

Book of Maccabees 5

Book of Tobit

Book of Jasher

Book of Judith

Book of Esther

Book of Ecclesiasticus / Sirach

Book of Jubilees

Book of Baruch 1

Book of Baruch 2

Book of Baruch 3

Book of The Shepherd of Hermas

Book of Wisdom / Wisdom of Solomon

Book of The Psalms of Solomon

Book of The Odes of Solomon

Book of Giants

Book of Adam and Eve 1

The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan

The Gospel of James / The Protevangelion

The Gospel of Peter

The Gospel of Thomas

The Gospel of Nicodemus / Acts of Pilate

The Syriac Infancy Gospel / Infancy of Jesus Christ

The Epistles of Jesus Christ and Abgarus, King of Edessa

The Epistle of Aristeas

The Epistle of Jeremiah

The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Laodiceans

The Epistles of Paul the Apostle to Seneca

The Epistle of Pilate to Herod

Assumption of Moses

Apocalypse of Moses

Testament of Abraham

Apocalypse of Abraham

Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs

The Acts of Paul

The Acts of Paul and Thecla

The Apostles Creed

Psalm 151

Story of Susanna

Story of Bel and The Dragon

Story of Ahikar

The Prayer of Azariah and the Songs of the Three Holy Children

Prayer of Manasseh

#christian blog #bible reading #bible scripture #christian doctrine #bible fandom #bible #jesus #christian quotes #biblical #christian living #christainity #christian faith #christian bible #christianity #jesus christ #bible verse #bible study #bibleposting #biblical scripture #bibledaily #read your bible #king james bible #holy bible #follow jesus #faith in jesus #jesus is coming #belief in jesus #jesussaves #salvation #gospel

[alwaysrememberjesus]

The Power of Thankfulness

We have a choice about what attitude we go through life with. We can either adopt a sour, complaining mindset, or one of gratitude and thankfulness. The wisdom to be thankful not only influences our thought lives, but actually enables us to be more productive. Studying God’s Word reveals how much we can accomplish with right-thinking.

Being thankful shifts our attention away from ourselves and toward God, keeps us humble and dependent on Him, and makes us grateful for what we have—even the little things. It also pushes out the spirit of complaining, makes Satan flee, and keeps the doors of blessing open. It even enhances our prayer lives when we devote ourselves to prayer with alert minds and thankful hearts (Colossians 4:2, NLT).

Thankfulness is a powerful weapon against negative emotions. Believers are instructed not to worry about anything, but instead, to pray about everything (Philippians 4:6, NLT). While we’re praying and telling God what we need, we should also thank Him for all He has done. Paul knew all about prayer; he wrote in his letter to Philemon that he always thanked God as he remembered Philemon in his prayers (Philemon 1:4, NIV).

Life will never be perfect; it’s not supposed to be. When it throws something at us that we don’t like, deciding to give thanks anyway keeps us in control of our response to the situation. We’re to give thanks not for everything, but in everything; this is God’s will for us (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Pondering how God’s grace affects our lives triggers thankfulness; thankfulness brings us into God’s presence by allowing us to enter His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise (Psalm 100:4).

As free moral agents, we can think however we choose, but God asks us to infuse our thoughts with thanksgiving. Our hearts and minds are closely connected. Letting gratitude into both empowers us to carry out God’s assignment for our lives and live in the peace He promised.

#devotional #god #jesus #christ #holy spirit #bible #scripture #christianity #Thanksgiving #thankfulness #faith #hope #prayer #praise #worship #love #Grace #mercy #daily devotional #daily devotion

[orthodoxadventure]

2nd Saturday of Great Lent: Memorial Saturday

Commemorated on March 30

Only Creator, with wisdom profound, You mercifully order all things, and give that which is needed to all men: Give rest, O Lord, to the souls of Your servants who have fallen asleep, for they have placed their trust in You, our Maker and Fashioner, and our God.

Saturday is the day which the Church has set aside for the commemoration of faithful Orthodox Christians departed this life in the hope of resurrection to eternal life. Since the Divine Liturgy cannot be served on weekdays during Great Lent, the second, third, and fourth Saturdays of the Fast are appointed as Soul Saturdays when the departed are remembered at Liturgy.

In addition to the Liturgy, kollyva (wheat or rice cooked with honey and mixed with raisins, figs, nuts, sesame, etc.) is blessed in church on these Saturdays. The kollyva reminds us of the Lord’s words, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24).The kollyva symbolizes the future resurrection of all the dead. As Saint Simeon of Thessalonica (September 15) says, man is also a seed which is planted in the ground after death, and will be raised up again by God’s power. Saint Paul also speaks of this (I Cor. 15:35-49).

It is customary to give alms in memory of the dead in addition to the prayers we offer for their souls. The angel who spoke to Cornelius testifies to the efficacy of almsgiving, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God” (Acts 10:4).

Memorial services for the dead may be traced back to ancient times. Chapter 8 of the Apostolic Constitutions recommends memorial services with Psalms for the dead. It also contains a beautiful prayer for the departed, asking that their voluntary and involuntary sins be pardoned, that they be given rest with the Patriarchs, Prophets, and Apostles in a place where sorrow, suffering, and sighing have fled away (Isaiah 35:10). Saint John Chrysostom mentions the service for the dead in one of his homilies on Philippians, and says that it was established by the Apostles. Saint Cyprian of Carthage (Letter 37) also speaks of our duty to remember the martyrs.

The holy Fathers also testify to the benefit of offering prayers, memorial services, Liturgies, and alms for the dead (Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Saint John of Damascus, etc.). Although both the righteous and those who have not repented and corrected themselves may receive benefit and consolation from the Church’s prayer, it has not been revealed to what extent the unrighteous can receive this solace. It is not possible, however, for the Church’s prayer to transfer a soul from a state of evil and condemnation to a state of holiness and blessedness. Saint Basil the Great points out that the time for repentance and forgiveness of sins is during the present life, while the future life is a time for righteous judgment and retribution (Moralia 1). Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Gregory the Theologian, and other patristic writers concur with Saint Basil’s statement.

By praying for others, we bring benefit to them, and also to ourselves, because “God is not so unjust as to forget your work and the love which you showed for His sake in serving the saints...” (Heb. 6:10).

[Text from OCA]

With the saints give rest, O Christ, to the souls of Your servants, where there is neither sickness nor sorrow, and no more sighing, but life everlasting.

#Christianity #Orthodox Christianity #Lent #Great Lent #Memorial Saturday

[keepersofthegate]

Marketing Without Arrogance

Pride: the seventh deadly sin, and, according to some, the first and greatest sin of all.

Love is not proud, love is not self-seeking, and the Bible says in Philippians 2:3 "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves."

All Christians wrestle with these issues, of course, but for Christian creatives and small business owners, the question of how to make their way in the world while following the Bible's admonitions can be a particularly twisty issue.

How do we get our content into the hands of all the people we want to reach without pride, arrogance, boasting, conceit, selfish ambition?

1.

The first and most important thing to recognize is that all of these things start with motive. The arrogant marketer wants to take from others. They market themselves because they are thinking mainly about the money and attention that they want to get.

The humble marketer sees themselves as the bearer of a gift. They are thinking of their skills, product, etc. as something that they want to give. If you see your skills that way, you will never agressively market your product to someone who does not want it, because then it would not be a blessing to them, rather you are focused on finding the people who would be the most blessed by your services.

2.

Proverbs 27:2

Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.

At first glance this would seem to condemn all forms of advertising! However, it is not so. Instead we can get out of this that the Christian's practice when describing their product, service, or content (book, art, media etc.) should merely be accurate and factual, rather than full of qualitative claims.

This is already something taken for granted, for example, in the professionalism standards of the publishing industry. When you are writing a query letter to an agent, it is frowned upon to praise yourself in the letter. A writer would be laughed off if she were to say, "My book is the most revolutionary novel since Hemingway." She is expected to simply describe the book's plot and characters and refrain from self-aggrandizement. The same statement might be very well received by audiences if it came from a reviewer in the New York Post, but out of the mouth of the book's own author it would be a load of slop. But the Bible verse suggest something else too! Indeed it's very insightful, since all modern marketing studies confirm that the single most effective marketing tool is honest and genuine word of mouth.

With that in mind, you should not only wait for others to speak well of you, but also do your part to promote others.

Don't be afraid to tell other people, honestly and unpretentiously, that your work exists. Just don't allow the race for shares of attention to become your motive in your work. We are not here to take but to give!

#christianity #christian publishing #marketing #writing

[officialyourdailyinspiration]

Saul Becomes a Follower of Jesus

1 Saul kept threatening to murder the Lord’s disciples. He went to the chief priest 2 and asked him to write letters of authorization to the synagogue leaders in the city of Damascus. Saul wanted to arrest any man or woman who followed the way ⌞of Christ⌟ and imprison them in Jerusalem.

3 As Saul was coming near the city of Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”

5 Saul asked, “Who are you, sir?”

The person replied, “I’m Jesus, the one you’re persecuting. 6 Get up! Go into the city, and you’ll be told what you should do.”

7 Meanwhile, the men traveling with him were speechless. They heard the voice but didn’t see anyone.

8 Saul was helped up from the ground. When he opened his eyes, he was blind. So his companions led him into Damascus. 9 For three days he couldn’t see and didn’t eat or drink. — Acts 9:1-9 | God's Word Translation (GWT) God's Word Bible Translation Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved. Cross References: Genesis 14:15; 1 Samuel 16:3; Psalm 27:12; Isaiah 6:8; Isaiah 17:1; Ezekiel 2:1; Daniel 10:7; John 12:29; Acts 8:3; Acts 9:27; Acts 10:14; Acts 22:6-7; Acts 22:11; Acts 26:14; 2 Corinthians 11:32; Philippians 3:12

#Saul #Damascus road #conversion #Jesus #persecution #blindness #Acts 9:1-9 #Book of Acts #New Testament #GWT #God's Word Translation #Holy Bible #God's Word to the Nations Mission Society

[e-devotion]

what Paul said

This week we are going to take an extra look at Paul’s letter to the church at Phillipi.  So much to be shared.  So much to learn from this letter.  So much that we are only going to look a few verses, at least a few each day.

Let’s dive in.  This is good…

Philippians 4:1,4-5  NLT  

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stay true to the Lord. I love you and long to see you, dear friends, for you are my joy and the crown I receive for my work… 4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.

Oh this is good.  Hear Paul and his heart.  He says, “stay true to the Lord.”  That can go several ways.  But let’s take it as an encouragement to greater and stronger days.  It could be a correction and scourging, yet I see this as a word about their commitment to follow Jesus.  Stay at it.  Don’t stop now.

Paul goes on to say, “I love you and long to see you.”  That is what friends say to those who mean much to them.  Paul loved these people and desired that they know and stay confident in who they are and what they are doing.  His being with them would be an even bigger encouragement.

When you care about someone, you build up their lives and give them more value.  That is why Paul shares that these people aren’t only his friends but they are his joy and crown in the work.  Loving what you do and living in your calling leads others to do the same.  These people filled Paul’s tank with even more to share with others.

Finally, what Paul puts out there is somewhat of a shot in the arm or a booster.  I don’t think this is a tag on, like a PS at the end of a letter.

Always be full of joy; rejoice often and often.

Let all see you consider others.

Those two things are strong.  In fact a person who is strong will lead others to be strong.  Joy is contagious.  Helping others win also helps you win.

What do we need to remember most?  Good question.  Jesus is coming back.  Always be watching and be ready.  No one knows when this is going to happen, but it is any time.  That makes serving others and living in joy much more important.

Paul’s words in these few verses give us a lot to chew on, and we will get even more the rest of this week though the e-devotions look at the verses ahead in Philippians 4.

Have a great week!

#e-devotion #devotion #devo #Paul #Philippians #letter #write #encourage #joy #rejoice #Jesus #Christ #God #Michael Harrison #The Community Fellowship

[justana0kguy]

2023 OCTOBER 01 Sunday

"Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but (also) everyone for those of others."

~ Philippians 2:3-4

#bible #scripture #verse #second reading #letter #Philippians #do nothing #selfishness #vainglory #humble #regard others #more important #than self #God #Lord #Jesus #Christ

[fear-not-beloved]

Saint John begins his account of how Jesus washed the feet of his disciples with especially solemn, almost liturgical language: "Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end" (13:1). The "hour" of Jesus has arrived, toward which all of his activity was directed from the beginning. John describes what makes up the content of this hour with two terms: "to pass" (metabainein, metabasis) and "agape" – love. These two words explain each other; both describe together the Passover of Jesus: cross and resurrection, crucifixion as elevation, as "passage" to the glory of God, as a "passing" from the world to the Father. It is not as if Jesus, after a brief visit to the world, were now simply departing and returning to the Father. This passage is a transformation. He carries with him his flesh, his being man. On the Cross, in giving himself, He is fused and transformed, as it were, into a new mode of being, in which He is now forever with the Father, and at the same time with men. He transforms the Cross, the act of killing, into an act of self-donation, of love to the end. With this expression, "to the end," John refers in advance to the last words of Jesus on the Cross: all has been brought to conclusion, "it is finished" (19:30). Through his love, the Cross becomes "metabasis," the transformation of the human being into a participant in the glory of God. In this transformation, He involves all of us, drawing us into the transformative power of his love to such an extent that, in our being with Him, our lives become a "passage," a transformation. Thus we receive redemption – becoming participants in eternal love, a condition toward which all of our existence strives.

This essential process of the hour of Jesus is represented in the washing of the feet, in a sort of symbolic prophetic action. In it, Jesus displays through a concrete action precisely what the great Christological hymn of the letter to the Philippians describes as the content of the mystery of Christ. Jesus removes the garments of his glory, he girds himself with the "towel" of humanity, and becomes a slave. He washes the dirty feet of the disciples and thus makes them capable of participating in the divine meal to which He invites them. Exterior purifications for worship, which purify man ritually while nevertheless leaving him as he is, are replaced by the new bath: He makes us pure through his word and his love, through the gift of himself. "You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you," He will say to the disciples in his discourse on the vine (John 15:3). He continually washes us again with his word. Yes, if we welcome the words of Jesus in an attitude of meditation, of prayer and of faith, they develop their purifying power within us. Day after day, we are as it were covered with various forms of uncleanness, empty words, prejudice, partial and altered wisdom; a multifarious half-falsity or open falsity constantly infiltrates our depths. All of this obfuscates and contaminates our soul, it threatens to make us incapable of truth and goodness. If we welcome the words of Jesus with an attentive heart, these reveal themselves as genuine washings, purifications of the soul, of the inner man. This is what the Gospel of the washing of the feet invites us to: to allow ourselves continually to be washed again by this pure water, to allow ourselves to be made capable of convivial communion with God and with our brothers. Yet from the side of Jesus, after the blow of the lance from the soldier, there emerged not only water, but also blood (John 19:34; cf. 1 John 5:6,8). Jesus did not only speak, He did not leave us only words. He gives himself. He washes us with the sacred power of his blood, meaning his self-donation "to the end," to the Cross. His word is more than simple speech; it is flesh and blood "for the life of the world" (John 6:51). In the holy Sacraments, the Lord kneels down again and again before our feet, and washes us. Let us pray to Him that the sacred bath of his love may penetrate us more and more deeply, so that we may be truly purified!

If we listen attentively to the Gospel, we can discover two different aspects in the episode of the washing of the feet. The washing that Jesus performs for his disciples is above all simply his own action – the gift of purity, of the "capacity for God" offered to them. But the gift then becomes a model, the task of doing the same thing for each other. The Fathers described this twofold aspect of the washing of the feet with the words "sacramentum" and "exemplum." In this context, "sacramentum" does not refer to one of the seven sacraments, but to the mystery of Christ in its totality, from the incarnation to the cross and resurrection: this totality becomes the healing and sanctifying power, the transformative power for men, it becomes our "metabasis," our transformation into a new form of being, in openness toward God and in communion with Him. But this new being that He, without our merit, simply gives to us must then be transformed in us into the dynamic of a new life. The totality of gift and example that we find in the pericope of the washing of the feet is characteristic of the nature of Christianity in general. In comparison with moralism, Christianity is something more and something different. Our activity, our moral capacity is not placed at the beginning. Christianity is above all a gift: God gives himself to us – He does not give some thing, but himself. And this takes place not only at the beginning, at the moment of our conversion. He continually remains the One who gives. He always offers us his gifts anew. He always precedes us. For this reason, the central action of being Christians is the Eucharist: gratitude for having been gratified, the joy for the new life that He gives us.

In spite of all this, we do not remain passive recipients of the divine goodness. God gratifies us as personal and living partners. The love that is given is the dynamic of "loving together," it is intended to be a new life within us, beginning from God. We thus understand the words that, at the end of the account of the washing of the feet, Jesus speaks to his disciples and to all of us: "I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another" (John 13:34). The "new commandment" does not consist in a new and difficult norm, one that did not exist before. The new commandment consists in a loving together with Him who loved us first. This is also how we must understand the Sermon on the Mount. This does not mean that Jesus gave us new precepts at that time, which represented the demands of a more sublime humanism than the previous one. The Sermon on the Mount is a journey of training in conforming ourselves to the sentiments of Christ (cf. Philippians 2:5), a journey of interior purification that leads us to living together with Him. The new reality is the gift that introduces us into the mentality of Christ. If we consider this, we perceive how far we often are in our lives from this new reality of the New Testament; how slight an example we give to humanity of loving in communion with his love. We thus owe humanity a proof of the credibility of Christian truth, which is demonstrated in love. Precisely for this reason, we desire all the more to pray to the Lord to make us, through his purification, ripe for the new commandment.

In the Gospel of the washing of the feet, the conversation between Jesus and Peter presents yet another detail of the praxis of Christian life, to which we finally want to turn our attention. At an earlier point, Peter had not wanted to allow the Lord to wash his feet: this reversal of order, that the master – Jesus – should wash feet, that the master should perform the service of a slave, is completely in contrast with his reverential fear of Jesus, with his concept of the relationship between teacher and disciple. "You will never wash my feet," he tells Jesus in his usual passionate manner (John 13:8). This is the same mentality that, after the profession of faith in Jesus as Son of God, in Caesarea Philippi, had urged Peter to oppose Jesus when he had predicted his affliction and cross: "No such thing shall ever happen to you," Peter had declared categorically (Mt. 16:22). His concept of the Messiah involved an image of majesty, of divine greatness. He had to learn over and over again that the greatness of God is different from our idea of greatness; that it consists precisely in descending, in the humility of service, in the radicalness of love to the point of total self-abandonment. And we, too, must learn this over and over again, because we systematically desire a God of success, and not of the Passion; because we are not capable of realizing that the Shepherd comes as a Lamb who gives himself, and in this way leads us to the right pasture.

When the Lord tells Peter that without the washing of his feet he would never be able to have any part in Him, Peter immediately and impetuously asks to have his head and hands washed as well. This is followed by the mysterious words of Jesus: "Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed" (John 13:10). Jesus alludes to a bath that the disciples, according to ritual prescriptions, had already taken; in order to participate in the meal, they now needed only to have their feet washed. But naturally, a deeper meaning is hidden in this. To what does it allude? We do not know for sure. In any case, we should keep in mind that the washing of the feet, according to the meaning of the entire chapter, does not indicate a single specific Sacrament, but the "sacramentum Christi" in its entirety – his service of salvation, his descent even to the cross, his love to the end, which purifies us and makes us capable of God. Here, with the distinction between the bath and the washing of feet, nevertheless, there also appears an allusion to life in the community of the disciples, to life in the community of the Church – an allusion that John may have intentionally transmitted to the community of his time. It then seems clear that the bath that purifies us definitively and does not need to be repeated is Baptism – immersion in the death and resurrection of Christ, a fact that changes our lives profoundly, giving us something like a new a identity that endures, if we do not throw it away as Judas did. But even in the endurance of this new identity, for convivial communion with Jesus we need the "washing of the feet." What does this mean? It seems to me that the first letter of Saint John gives us the key for understanding this. There we read: "If we say, 'We are without sin,' we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing" (1:8ff.). We need the "washing of the feet," the washing of our everyday sins, and for this we need the confession of sins. We do not know exactly how this was carried out in the Johannine community. But the direction indicated by the words of Jesus to Peter is obvious: in order to be capable of participating in the convivial community with Jesus Christ, we must be sincere. One must recognize that even in our own identity as baptized persons, we sin. We need confession as this has taken form in the Sacrament of reconciliation. In it, the Lord continually rewashes our dirty feet, and we are able to sit at table with Him.

But in this way, the word takes on yet another meaning, in which the Lord extends the "sacramentum" by making it the "exemplum," a gift, a service for our brother: "If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet" (John 13:14). We must wash each other's feet in the daily mutual service of love. But we must also wash our feet in the sense of constantly forgiving one another. The debt that the Lord has forgiven us is always infinitely greater than all of the debts that others could owe to us (cf. Mt. 18:21-35). It is to this that Holy Thursday exhorts us: not to allow rancor toward others to become, in its depths, a poisoning of the soul. It exhorts us to constantly purify our memory, forgiving one another from the heart, washing each other's feet, thus being able to join together in the banquet of God.

Holy Thursday is a day of gratitude and of joy for the great gift of love to the end that the Lord has given to us. We want to pray to the Lord at this time, so that gratitude and joy may become in us the power of loving together with his love. Amen.

Benedict xvi

#holy thursday #pope benedict xvi