Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Colossians.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Paul and Timothy are explicitly named as the authors of Colossians (1:1). Timothy probably served as Paul’s secretary (amanuensis) since the first person singular (“I”) is used throughout the letter (e.g., 1:24). The title indicates that Paul wrote the letter to Christians living in the small city of Colossae.
Some scholars have doubted Paul’s authorship based on (1) a style of writing that they deem inconsistent with his uncontested letters, and (2) a set of theological statements that they regard as more developed than what he wrote in previous letters. The latter objection is readily answered by the unique situation reflected in the letter, leading Paul to address these particular concerns with the most relevant theological emphases. There is nothing in the theology that is inconsistent with what he wrote elsewhere, and many of his statements are simply logical developments of previous thoughts. The argument about style is much weaker since there is, in fact, strong continuity of style between this letter and his other letters. It is also quite precarious to make a judgment about authorship based on such a small sampling of letters. It is inappropriate to expect an author to demonstrate stylistic uniformity throughout all his works. [1]
Although Paul has never personally been to Colossae (2:1), he knows much about the believers there and considers them one of his churches—through his coworker Epaphras (1:7-8). His primary concern is that they stand firm in what they have been taught (1:23; 2:6-16; 3:1). After a glowing thanksgiving and encouraging prayer report (1:3-12), much of the first half of the letter reiterates the truth of the gospel they have received (1:13-22; 2:2-3, 6-7, 9-15). The rest of these two chapters exposes the follies of the errors to which some are being attracted (2:4, 8, 16-23). One may rightly guess, therefore, that the emphases in Paul’s recounting the gospel are also there in response to the errors.
At the heart of the errors is a desire to regulate Christian life with rules about externals—“Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” (2:21, which sounds very much like certain forms of present-day Christianity). Most of chapters 3-4, therefore, take up the nature of genuinely Christian behavior. “Rules” and “regulations” have an appearance of wisdom, but no real value (2:23). Christian behavior results from having died and been raised with Christ (2:20; 3:1) and now being “hidden with Christ in God” (3:3), thus expressing itself “in the image of [the] Creator” (3:10). Note especially that the imperatives that flow out of these realities (3:12-4:6) are primarily directed toward community life, not toward individual one-on-one life with God. [2]
[1] ESV: Study Bible : English Standard Version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles, 2008. 2289.
[2] Fee, Gordon D, and Douglas K. Stuart. How to Read the Bible Book by Book: A Guided Tour. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2002. 359-360.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Philippians.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Philippians.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Philippians.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
A Study Through the Book of PhilippiansPaul is the stated author of Philippians, and few have questioned his authorship. It was written to the Christians in the Roman colony of Philippi.
Scholars have debated Paul’s location when he wrote Philippians. Caesarea, Ephesus, and Rome have been the three most commonly proposed locations. Paul was in fact imprisoned in the “praetorium” of Herod the Great in Caesarea (Acts 23:35; cf. ESV footnote on Phil. 1:13) around A.D. 60. But his statements to the Philippians about his possibly imminent death (e.g., 1:20) would be puzzling if coming from Caesarea, since he would have been able to request a trial in Rome, as in fact he did. Ephesus was close enough to Philippi for Paul to receive regular news from there, but there is no mention of his ever being imprisoned in Ephesus. On balance, it seems most likely that the letter was written from Rome, c. A.D. 62. This also fits most naturally with the mention of the praetorium and “Caesar’s household” (1:13 and 4:22).[1]
Philippians is the favorite letter of many Christians, full of wonderful and memorable passages. To his longtime friends at Philippi Paul bares his soul more than anywhere else in his letters (1:12-26; 3:4-14). Here you get a good look at what made Paul tick—Christ crucified and raised from the dead, whose story is recounted in 2:5-11. Paul has given up all his past religious “profits” and counts them as “loss,” as “garbage,” in comparison with knowing Christ, who is also the final prize he eagerly pursues (3:4-14).
But the community in Philippi is experiencing some inner tensions at the very time they are also undergoing suffering because of pagan opposition to their gospel, so Paul addresses this matter head-on (1:27-2:18). He also warns them against adopting Jewish marks of religious identity, especially circumcision (3:1-4), which would, in fact, make them enemies of Christ (3:18-19).
Thus even though Paul’s and their “circumstances” make up the heart of this letter, everything finally focuses on Christ. Indeed, Paul urges the Philippians to follow his own example just as he follows Christ (3:15, 17; 4:9; cf. 2:5). Since the letter will be read aloud in church and since they are his friends no matter what, he saves his thanksgiving till the end (4:10-20)—acknowledging their gift with overflowing gratitude and reminding them that God himself accepted it as a sweet-smelling sacrifice (4:18), which leads to doxology (v.20). [2]
[1] ESV: Study Bible : English Standard Version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles, 2008. 2275.
[2] Fee, Gordon D, and Douglas K. Stuart. How to Read the Bible Book by Book: A Guided Tour. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2002. 353-354.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Ephesians.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Ephesians.
Read • Remember • Reflect
Read the passages slowly. Write out the verses you want to remember. Write how God spoke to you through the passages. Jot down your observation and reflection in the verses.
Click HERE for “A Guide to Journaling & Prayer”
Click HERE for the commentary and Bible Project sketch notes for the Book of Ephesians.