LESSON 26

Classroom Goals of this time together:
* here to see and meet and learn of Jesus; 
* to grow TOGETHER in our own personal lives/relationships with Jesus
* to grow in our daily day-to-day JOY IN Him
* to grow in our vision /understanding of Jesus as our SAVIOR and REDEEMER everyday in the midst of our lives in a pagan world

ROE: 
* all questions are encouraged all the time
* TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER THROUGHOUT OUR TIME TOGETHER, WHETHER WE AGREE OR NOT ON ISSUES OF VARIOUS THEOLOGICAL THOUGHT, WE MOST CERTAINLY MUST AGREE ON THIS: THAT WE HAVE BEEN BOUGHT BY THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF A MOST LOVING SAVIOR AND BECAUSE OF THAT WE MUST LOVE EACH OTHER

SUMMARY:
Lest we forget where we've been, let's make a quick review:
1:1-11  Greetings and Gratitude
1:12-26  "Pauls Personal Circumstances: the Preaching of Christ"
1:27-2:30  "The Pattern of the Christian Life: The Humility of Christ"
3:1-21  "The Hope of the Christian Life: The Knowledge of Christ"

And NOW we start the final section of Pauls letter: 
4:1-23  The Peace of the Christian Life: The Presence of Christ
4:1-3  Peace with Others
4:4-9  Peace with Ourselves
4:10-23  Peace with Circumstances

[HAVE THEM READ THE 1ST 4 VERSES; THEN READ THE NAS]
4:1  Some think this verse was really the end of the previous section as trans in the NIV [READ THE NIV]; Others think he was introducing them to his words of exhortation that followed [READ THE NAS]; 
BUT WHATEVER ELSE THE PURPOSE OF VS1 WAS, Paul DOES begin this chapter 1st with words that show how deep his affection and tender love was for these people! 
What terms does he use for them in this 1st verse alone??
KJV trans word as "...longed for..."; this is the only time this word is used in the NT as if Paul is struggling to find new and better ways to communicate the depth and fulness of his affection for them, of the burden of love in Jesus he has for them; yet it compares to his words in 1:8;
the word trans "...crown..." is stephanos; this word was commonly used to denote the festive garland worn as a sign of gladness; 
It was also used to denote the wreath of victory given to the winner of an athletic contest; perhaps Paul was thinking about what he had just written in 2:16 [HAVE THEM READ IT]; The Philippians would be his crown at the final day; the proof that all his labors had NOT been in vain, that rather his struggles in person and over the span of time and distance had been effective and their confession of faith in Jesus had been real and sincere; 

4:2  KJV "I beseech Euodias and I beseech Syntyche..."; 1st, note the repetition of the word trans beseech with EACH name; this makes his exhortation individual and specific; Paul is trying to make a POINT here with these two; [READ THE OTHER TRANS OF "BESEECH" IN AMP, NAS, AND NIV]; 
A few words about these women; Sadly, they were not living up to the meaning of their names; Euodias (actually better trans as feminine Euodia) means "prosperous journey" and Syntyche is trans either as "happy chance" or "pleasant acquantance"; 
At one time these two sisters in the Lord had been co-workers together with Paul in his ministry; they were WELL KNOWN to him, they were MAJOR PLAYERS in this tiny Philippian church and their feud clearly was NOT some minor spat since it required Paul to take time to address the issue, and even solicit additional support within their church to help resolve the problem; 
AND REST ASSURED OF THIS: THE REST OF THE WORLD WAS COMPLETELY AWARE OF THE DISSENTION THEIR CONTENTION WAS CAUSING IN THIS CHURCH; Feed a million starving children, march in the HUNDREDS of thousands to protest a righteous cause, even raise the DEAD, and the world will hardly notice or barely even yawn; BUT LET TWO CHRISTIANS GET IN A SNIT, MUCH LESS A FIGHT, AND THEY'LL CALL THEIR NEIGHBORS, ANNOUNCE IT ON CNN AND THEN FIGHT FOR RINGSIDE SEATS, MOCKING ALL OF US ALL THE WHILE; WITHOUT EVEN KNOWING WHY they somehow realize just exactly what Jesus said to us so long ago: that the world will "know" us, will recognize our pecular status by HOW WE LOVE ONE ANOTHER; SO when we FAIL to do that, those in the world somehow realize we have FAILED ourselves, our Lord Jesus and even THEM; 
NOW, some of you historically oriented male chauvenist swine might be tempted to think: "Big Deal, two women arguing in antient Greece; NOBODY paid any attention to women in those days"; And in MOST place back then you might be right, In Greece generally the standing of women was inferior, something along the line of furniture or as slaves; BUT NOT IN MACEDONIA; The status of women in Macedonia was exceptional; Macedonian women were allowed to own property; Monuments were erected to women by public bodies in Macedonia; SO, folks in Macedonia STILL noticed when prominant PEOPLE (male OR female) had a falling out; 
We never learn exactly WHAT it was that had set these two off against each other; Probably just as well since it would very likely have seemed either totally incomprehensible to us or, perhaps worse, just plain SILLY; this might have tempted us to excuse our OWN wrangling by saying "Oh, I know Paul wrote that to those two womwen, but MY grievance with SO-and-so is SO MUCH MORE important than THEIR crummy petty argument that what he wrote can't POSSIBLY applied to ME...!"; 
What was it that Paul entreated these two to DO?? [HAVE PEOPLE READ 4:2 FROM DIFFERENT TRANSLATIONS]
Paul used an interesting phrase here: to auto phronein; it is the same phrase he used in 2:2 of this letter; it LIT means "think the same thing"; BUT he wasn't urging some kind of mental echo effect; the "thinking" that this word communicated to the Greeks who heard it was NOT about just mental processes so much as it was about a sympathetic interest and CONCERN, a process as much of the heart as it was of the mind; 
Paul was urging them to HAVE AND TO SHARE A COMMON BURDEN FOR THEIR CHURCH IN JESUS CHRIST; 
As one commentator put it: The common mind they are to share, in reconciliation and mutual love, is one which sets the good of the church above personal interests, and finds its inspiration and example in the lowliness of the incarnate Lord and the standard He expects of His people (2:3,5).
How sad it is to see that even those deeply active and involved in the Lord's ministries can be separated from each other; This is a warning to US; 
4:3  And what about the "true Yokefellow" (KJV)? What does Paul ask him to do?? the word trans "help" LIT means "take hold with" as if to say "work together with them to gain reconciliation"; 
Some think maybe that "Syzyge" trans as "yokefellow" really WAS somebodies proper name and that Paul was making a tiny pun in his calling on this person to help mend the rift that had occured between these two former friends and sisters in the Lord; as if to say, "Syzyge, be a REAL yokefellow and help draw these two separated sisters back together"; 
Oh, how great a need there is still today for such Yokefellows!! Men and women burdened with a desire to bring peace and restore lost love in a hurting body of Christ!! How easy it is to just avoid BOTH parties of some argument in a church; How even MORE tempting it is to take sides and feed the fight with useless comments and snide remarks that encourage one or the other to continue their bickering instead of seeking to call them back together in true Christ-like love, to urge and exhort them to resolve their differences and seek to give AND recieve forgiveness for the traded hurts and slights; 
WHO is Clement?? Some have tried to make this fellow out to be the same guy known as Clement of Rome who wrote a letter to the church of Corinth; But this is REALLY reaching since there is NOTHING else to make this connection and Clement was a common name in the 1st century Roman world; 
Why did Paul specifically mention him?? I don't know and Paul never says; 
He also mentions all the others there who shared in his ministry; What did he call them?? Those "whose names are in the Book of Life"; There's only ONE Book, and NO indication IT is divided up along personal lines; Paul has pointed out for ALL of us that when the desire overtakes us to split up and turn away from those brothers and sisters who have given us a cause for grievence that we are ALL together in ONE Saviour, saved by ONE sacrifice, washed in ONE Blood and our names are ALL written in ONE Book of life; WE MUST BE COMPELLED BY THAT SINGULAR TRUTH TO ALWAYS SEEK TO RECONCILE, TO ALWAYS SEEK TO LIVE TOGETHER IN THAT ONE LOVE THAT ONLY HE CAN POUR OUT THROUGH US TO EACH OTHER; 
Why did Paul even mention these others? Perhaps Paul was trying to remind the two women of what it had been like before their falling out; and to remind them that ANY time two Christians fight they don't just hurt each other, THEY END UP HURTING ALL THE OTHERS AROUND THEM THAT LOVE THEM AND THAT SHARE IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST IN THEIR CHURCH; It's like having a really bad tooth ache but trying to pretend that screaming throbbing raging pain in your mouth doesn't REALLY have any effect on the REST of your body; As if somehow all the other parts of the body could go on about their business UNEFFECTED by the agony going on in the mouth; IMPOSSIBLE!! 

4:4  I view this as a transitional verse, looking BOTH back to the previous section but ALSO leading into the next; it's exhortation fits BOTH topics of discussion;