Greetings in Christ Jesus, Fellow Soldiers.
Suppose you took a vacation to Europe--perhaps to get the bad taste of your vacation to Afghanistan out of your mouth. And suppose that one of your key stopping points in Europe was the city of Phillipi. It would not be surprising that you would want to go there. It was the site of titanic clashes between those who wanted to rule the Roman Empire. It was at a key point on the trade routes that brought together the Western and Eastern worlds. It was also where military legends--whether your officer, NCO, or lower enlisted--went to retire and bask in the glory of their success.
But as you walk through the city, considering the great powers that swept through there, you might stumble upon the ruins of an ancient prison. In the present day, there is only one wall left of these ruins, so I would imagine that you would want to step a bit closer to examine what is left of this remarkable place. As you near the remaining wall, certain words, scrawled upon the wall, will come into focus. These words, when translated into English, read "To live is Christ, to die is gain."
Some of the greatest worldly powers passed through the city of Philippi and left their mark, but all of those powers have passed away. The greatest power to sweep through that city, represented by the scrawl of some poor, pitiful prisoner, has stood the test of time: The power of Jesus Christ by His Word and His Spirit, working in and through His church. The greatest battle is not faught by flesh and blood, and that is what sustains the forgotten prisoner and makes him untouchable.
The words on that wall come from Philippians 1:21. The book of Philippians was not written by Paul under God's guidance to address the perversion of the Gospel (Galatians) or exploitation of the Gospel (Corinthians), but to praise, encourage, and strengthen a church that was already standing upon the grace of God. Paul knew the perils of sin and the deceptions of Satan. He knew of the downfall of Samson, who believed his strength was in his hair and not in the Lord. He knew the tragic story of David, who after receiving grace upon grace in his life, committed adultery, murdered a man, and lived for a time in unrepentant sin. And so, from his own prison cell in Rome, Paul (under God's supernatural inspiration) wrote another portion of God's Word to keep the Philippian church, along with us today, focused heavenward.
In a book filled with rich theology and vivid portraits of grace, you might be tempted to pass over the greeting (verses 1-2). That would be a mistake. All of God's Word is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:15). A greeting may seem to you to be too simple and human, but that is part of its beauty. If God spoke to us in His majestic tongue, we would never comprehend a word of His speech. But, in the words of Calvin, God speaks to us in "baby-talk," so that our infantile minds can grasp His truth by His grace. So Paul's greeting is God's grace to us.
But God's grace in such human language is mirrored by the divine power of these human words. Ancient greetings would often go something like this: Paul from Tarsus to the Philippian church: Greetings. But God's inspired Word here is much deeper and penetrating: Paul and Timothy, servants (slaves) of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus in Philippi, along with the overseers and deacons: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (1:1-2).
These two verses are crucial to the entire letter. Before the Philippians--or you--can survive and even thrive in a world broken by sin with hearts broken by sin, they--and you--need to be reminded of who you are. In other words, you must find yourself in Christ if you are to find your way in life. That was the secret of the prisoner in the jail cell, whose name is now known only to God. And in this greeting, Paul reminds you of three fundamental features of who you are in Christ: You are a slave of Christ; You area saint in Christ; You are saved by Christ. These will be unpacked in the next post...
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