CRITICAL AND EXPLANATORY NOTES
Philippians 1:1. Paul and Timothy, the servants of Jesus Christ.—There is no necessity for Paul to mention his apostolate, inasmuch as the Philippians had never even thought of calling it in question. “Paul an apostle and Timothy a servant” was a distinction too invidious for Paul to make. There is a fine aroma of courtesy in what is not said as well as in what is said here. Bishops and deacons.—“It is incredible that St. Paul should recognise only the bishops and deacons (if ‘presbyters’ were a different order from ‘bishops’). It seems therefore to follow of necessity that the ‘bishops’ were identical with the ‘presbyters’ ” (Lightfoot).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Philippians 1:1-2
Christian Greeting—
I. Addressed to a fully organised Church.—“To all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons” (Philippians 1:1). Christianity, which began with the quiet meetings in the humble Jewish proseucha, or oratory, by the river-side, had so far spread in Philippi as to settle down into a stable and permanent Church organisation. This is the first instance in which bishops and deacons are mentioned, and specially addressed in the apostolic salutation. The former are sometimes called elders, presbyters, rulers, or presidents, and were empowered to take the oversight of the whole Church, to instruct, exhort, and rule the members; the latter were chosen to take care of the poor, and to manage the finances of the Church. The bishop attended to the internal, the deacons to the external affairs of the Christian community. The title presbyter implied the rank, the bishop the duties of the office. As the apostles by their frequent absence were unable to take the personal oversight of the Churches they founded, they appointed officers in each Church. As the Churches multiplied, and the Church-life developed, the organisation became more compact and complete. It is noticeable in this instance that the apostle addresses the whole Church more than its presiding ministers. It should be ever remembered that the minister exists for the Church, not the Church for the minister. The clergy are not the Church, but, under God, the servants and religious guides of the people. The Christian Church is the glory and stability of a nation. When at Brussels Lord Chesterfield was invited by Voltaire to sup with him and Madame C—. The conversation happening to turn upon the affairs of England, “I think, my lord,” said Madame C—, “that the Parliament of England consists of five or six hundred of the best-informed men of the kingdom?” “True, madame, they are generally supposed to be so.” “What, then, can be the reason they tolerate so great an absurdity as the Christian religion?” “I suppose, madame,” replied his lordship, “it is because they have not been able to substitute anything better in its stead; when they can, I do not doubt but in their wisdom they will readily adopt it.”
II. Valued as emanating from distinguished Christian pioneers.—“Paul and Timothy, the servants of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:1). The significance and worth of a salutation depend upon the character and reputation of those from whom it comes. Paul was honoured by the Philippians as their father in the gospel, and as one who had won a high distinction by his conspicuous abilities and labours in other spheres; and Timothy was well known to them as a devoted minister and fellow-helper of the apostle. Words coming from such a source would be gratefully welcomed and fondly cherished. Paul does not give prominence to his apostleship, as in the inscriptions to other epistles. The Philippians had already sufficient proof of his apostolic authority and power. Paul and his colleagues were reverenced as “the servants of Jesus Christ.” They acknowledged subjection, not to man, but to Christ; they lived to advance His interests and honour, and found their highest joy in His service, though attended with hard toil, unreasoning persecution, and unparalleled suffering. The Baptist Missionary Society adopted for its motto a device found upon an ancient medal representing a bullock standing between a plough and an altar, with the inscription, “Ready for either, for toil or for sacrifice.” The service of Christ is a life of self-sacrifice; but that is the pathway of duty, of blessing, of reward, of glory.
III. Invokes the bestowment of great blessings.—“Grace be unto you, and peace” (Philippians 1:2). Grace and peace are divine gifts, proceeding from “God the Father,” as the original and active Source of all blessings, and from “the Lord Jesus Christ” who is now exalted to the right hand of the divine majesty to bestow those blessings upon His people. Grace, the unmerited favour of God, is the exhaustless fountain of all other blessings, and includes the ever-flowing stream of the Holy Spirit’s influences; peace, the result of grace, is the tranquillity and joy of heart realised on reconciliation with God. The very form of this salutation implies the union of Jew, Greek, and Gentile. The Greek salutation was “joy,” akin to the word for grace. The Roman was “health,” the intermediate term between grace and peace. The Hebrew was “peace,” including both temporal and spiritual prosperity. The great mission of the gospel is to spread peace on earth, peace with men, following on peace with God. The believer enjoys peace even in the midst of trial and suffering. One of the martyrs, exposed to public derision in an iron cage, is reported to have said to a bystander, who expressed surprise at the cheerfulness he manifested, “You can see these bars, but you cannot hear the music in my conscience.”
Lessons.—
1. Religion teaches the truest courtesy.
2. The unselfish heart wishes well to all.
3. That greeting is the most genuine that recognises the claims of God.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
Philippians 1:1-2. The Apostolic Greeting.—
1. Unity and concord amongst ministers in giving joint testimony to the same truths add weight to what they preach. Preachers are in a special manner the servants of Christ as being wholly and perpetually dedicated to His service.
2. As to make a man internally and spiritually holy it is necessary he be in Christ by faith, so to make him externally holy requires a visible and external union with Christ in professing truths relating to Him.
3. The dignity of a minister or of any Church officer does not exempt him from the necessity of being taught, exhorted, reproved, and comforted.
4. God’s grace is the fountain from which peace with God, with our own conscience, and all sanctified prosperity and peace among ourselves do flow. In seeking things from God we look to Him, not as standing disaffected to us and at a distance, but as our Father.—Fergusson.
Philippians 1:1. The Commencement of the Gospel at Philippi.
I. To secure the widest diffusion of the gospel great centres should be the first places chosen for the concentration of its forces.
II. The gospel of universal adaptation has a world-wide mission.—The first three converts embraced different nationalities, employments, social grades,—Lydia, the oriental trader, the Grecian female slave and soothsayer, the Roman keeper of the prison. Christ has demolished all barriers to the exercise of divine mercy.
III. The duty and privilege of Christian parents to consecrate their children and home to Christ (Acts 16:15; Acts 16:33-34; Acts 16:40).
IV. Civic distinctions subordinated to Christ will further the gospel and adorn the Christian name.—Paul’s Roman citizenship gained his freedom and silenced his enemies. His chain connects the history of Rome and Philippi. The Christian’s spirit can defy the inner prison to suppress its praise or prayer (Acts 16:25).
Philippians 1:2. God our Father.—Christ aimed at raising men from the bondage of mere servants into the freedom of sons. He taught that God our Father was henceforth to be—
I. The sole Model of perfection. (Matthew 5:48).
II. The sole Rewarder of almsgiving (Matthew 6:4).
III. The sole Hearer of prayer (Matthew 6:6).
IV. The sole Observer of fastings (Matthew 6:18).
V. The sole Provider of daily wants (Matthew 6:26-33).—Lay Preacher.