King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Sunday, December 17, 2023
Chapters: THE BOOK OF PHILIPPIANS
Message: The Eternal Purpose
Hello My Brother/Sister/Friend,
[Purpose; That which a person sets before himself as an object to be reached or accomplished; the end or aim to which the view is directed in any plan, measure or exertion.] I do not care who you are or what you believe, we all have a purpose in life and I believe that God gives each and every one of us talents or skills to be able to fulfill that purpose. However, not everyone has the same purpose, to the world, purpose is often fueled by pride, lust, and envy. To the religious purpose is often fueled by false promises, money, and lust as well. But to the faithful, saved, born again Christian, purpose is often fueled by the Holy Spirit and what God wants for us. We are all here for a purpose, an eternal purpose, [Ephesians 3:10-12 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, 11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: 12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.]
The Book of Philippians is the eleventh book of the New Testament, the fiftieth book of the Bible, and contains four chapters. The author of this epistle (letter) is Paul and it was written and transcribed by Epaphroditus from a prison in Rome, to the church of Philippi, in approximately 64AD. The purpose of the letter was to bring unity to the church and encourage them to keep going for the gospel of Christ, and to express gratitude for their Christian liberty. What we are to learn from the book is that unity with Jesus brings us joy in all that we do, [Philippians 2:2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.]
The Church at Philippi in Macedonia was planted by the Apostle Paul about 53AD, The Philippians were greatly dedicated to Paul, and showed their affection by sending him supplies when he was planting other churches. When they heard that he was in prison in Rome, they sent Epaphroditus, one of their pastors, to check on him, who then sent him back with this letter to thank them for their compassion.
[Philippians 1:1-7 Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: 2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, 5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; 6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: 7 Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace.]
[begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:] Paul, was confident that Jesus would return before he left the earth, if not, shortly after he went to heaven. We all need to have that same confidence and be ready for the day He returns. Paul, goes on to say what we need to be doing while we wait for Christ’s return, he also lets them know that there was a purpose for him being a prisoner.
[Philippians 1:9-14 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; 10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; 11 Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God. 12 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; 13 So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; 14 And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.]
[are much more bold to speak the word without fear.] Jesus, gave His life for us, the least we can do is tell those who do not know Him how they can. Many Christians fear talking about Jesus because they are afraid of what people would think or how they would treat them. We are to never live in fear of telling people that we are a Christian, [Romans 5:5-6 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.]
While I do not make an announcement everywhere I go that I am a Christian, I am not ashamed to speak about Jesus or tell anyone that I am a Christian. In fact, most people know right away by the way that I present myself, and those who do not understand will ask me. I will say one thing, being a Christian does give a boldness for this introvert to speak the Gospel in public that I would never have had had I not come to know Christ as my Saviour. Everything that we go through serves a purpose, whether it is good, bad, or down right ugly sometimes in order for Christ to manifest in us. We no longer live for ourselves, we live for Christ.
[Philippians 1:18-24 What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice. 19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. 23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: 24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.]
[Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.] This is why we are here, the harvest white. We are not here for our own salvation as Christ took care of that for us, we are here to be a witness. In fact, every place that God puts us, whether it be in a prison, hospital, or grocery store, is an opportunity to preach the Gospel, [John 4:35-38 Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. 36 And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. 37 And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth. 38 I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours.]
There is a saying that goes something like this, “If you are a Christian and have not gone through any suffering, just wait, it is coming.” There is a reason why Christ’s faithful seem to face more suffering than others, we make an impact for Christ. The devil despises us because each time we lead someone to Christ he has lost one more soul to possess. Paul, goes on to warn them of the suffering they will face, but that too has a purpose.
[Philippians 1:27-29 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; 28 And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. 29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;]
[not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;] This is another reason why people are afraid to speak up about their faith in Christ, they do not want to suffer. Well, we all suffer from something, but at least as Christians we have an expected end to our suffering, for the lost, it will only get worse, [Jeremiah 29:11-13 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. 12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. 13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.]
True Christians, while we all do have a little bit of pride in us from time to time, are quite humble, we do not seek the limelight, and if we are in it, we tend to shy away from it as it is not us, but Christ who did the work in us. People come and go in our lives for a reason, things come and go for a reason. Sometimes God puts us in some strange circumstances in order to bring others to Christ, but it is ultimately through the Holy Spirit that Christ begins the good work in us. Christ, even humbled Himself to live life as a pauper, being the King of kings.
[Philippians 2:2-8 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. 5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.]
[in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:] God, in the likeness of human flesh, could have made some other way to redeem mankind, but He chose to come here as one of us to do that. Through the birth of a virgin woman, Jesus, not only become a servant, He became the sinless sacrifice that who would redeem every soul forever who believes in and accepts Him. Whether you believe that or not, Jesus, will be exalted, every knee will bow to Him, and everyone of us will confess that Christ is the LORD our God.
[Philippians 2:9-15 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 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 which 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, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;]
[among whom ye shine as lights in the world;] There it is, we are the lights of the world, especially through the pain and suffering that we endure. The more we endure with Christ the more He shines through us, and believe it or not, we are blessed with the things of the world. And here is the thing, the more we receive the more we realize that none of it is more valuable than our relationship with Christ.
[Philippians 3:1-4,7-9 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. 2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision. 3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. 4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: 7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, 9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:]
[Though I might also have confidence in the flesh.] Meaning that we are not trusting in the works of our own flesh to save us, even if we happen to have done things that were written in the Law after we got saved. There is absolutely nothing that we have done in the flesh before we got saved that was recognized and nothing we do for Christ now is required, therefore to live through Christ really is to our own gain as we will receive something much more valuable than anything this earth has, eternal life.
[Philippians 3:13-19 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. 16 Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing. 17 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. 18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)]
[and reaching forth unto those things which are before,] Our past is our past and since we cannot do anything about our past the only thing we can do is learn from it. We need to let go of the past and live for the future. We must never let go of our faith in Christ, and if we have truly and sincerely accepted Christ as our Saviour, then He will manifest in us as we walk with Him. I will be the first to tell you that I do not understand all suffering, but I do understand that Jesus does ease suffering. We can rejoice through all suffering, I woke up this morning with a lot of pain in my leg, but for the first time in a while I felt at peace.
[Philippians 4:4-9 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. 5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.]
[Rejoice in the Lord alway:] We may not agree with all the things that God places in our lives, but it is never a cause to forsake Him and go against everything He stands for. The truth is, God, is always going to use us for His purpose, we might as well let Him use us in a way that is pleasing to Him rather than to make an example of what not to do, [Romans 9:21-22 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? 22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:]
[Be careful for nothing; but in every thing…let your requests be made known unto God.] God, knows what we have need of, but that does not mean that He does not want us to ask for them. If there is one thing that I have learned this year it is that God will supply our every need as long as we are appreciative of it.
[Philippians 4:11-14 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. 12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. 14 Notwithstanding ye have well done, that ye did communicate with my affliction.]
[I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound:] While we are to be content with what we have that does not mean that we are not to desire more. Let me tell you, nothing gained or taken from our lives is counted for lost when Christ is involved. As long as we trust God and remain faithful to Him, He will see us through every challenge, even when we fuss and cry about how unfair He is. Remember, God is always with us, we just need to take the good with the bad, and I know that is hard, but we can do all things through Christ, [2 Corinthians 12:9-10 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.]
[Notwithstanding ye have well done,] Perhaps one of the biggest burdens that we as Christians is that we try to handle our own burdens by ourselves, we do not want to bother people or ask for help when they have their own burdens. Yes, it is one thing to give it all over to God, but we must also realize that God is using people while we do give it over to Him. We are to never deny the assistance or help of someone who God sincerely is using to take care of us. We are here for each other, and God will use us all to help and encourage each other, [2 Timothy 2:9-11 Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound. 10 Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. 11 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him:]
[Philippians 4:17-22 Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account. 18 But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, wellpleasing to God. 19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 20 Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. 21 Salute every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren which are with me greet you. 22 All the saints salute you, chiefly they that are of Caesar’s household.]
[but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.] Paul, desired that when they came to appear before God, that they might reap the benefit of all the acts of kindness which they had shown to him. You know, we spend so much time worrying about how we are going to find the way to get the things we need that we lose sight of God being in the picture. God, knows what we have need of, and is preparing us to receive them, and when we are ready for them we will receive them, [1 Peter 5:6-7,10 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.]
Today’s Prayer: God, As much as I know that You always work things out, I get tired of constantly being on the receiving end of the suffering. Nevertheless, I will Rejoice in the Lord always. Lord, Give me the peace that passes all understanding. Give me wisdom and guidance, help me see the light of Christ that shines in me when all I can see is darkness. Give me Your strength, mercy, and grace to see through every challenge, and let me never forget that You work everything out for good and in Your time. I love You, Lord, and pray in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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