2:16
We are to hold firmly to the word of life, ie to the gospel. What does the gospel say? It says that we have all sinned against God. Sin has corrupted the very heart of our being, and as a result we are under judgement. But it also says that if we repent and believe in Jesus Christ then we are forgiven, our sins have been paid for by the blood of Jesus. We are born again, adopted into His family, and filled with the Holy Spirit. The bit about sin is a crucial part of the gospel, without it there is no gospel. So it is quite normal for the society around us in its rebellion against God to be promoting sin, as we see our governments and other leaders doing so today. But we know that sin leads only to death, so we must hold on to the word of life. If they do this then Paul would know that his labours had not been in vain.
2:17,18
Paul has spoken several times about what may or may not lie ahead of him, would he be killed or not? His thoughts seem to sway from thinking he would be safe to thinking he might well be put to death. He did not need to know the outcome in order to be secure in Christ. Moreover, he did not need to know in order to be full of joy! And it was partly because of his work for the Philippians that he would be put to death. Rather he rejoices with them all. So if Paul, in captivity and under the possible sentence of death, could rejoice, then the Philippians should also rejoice. Joy does not come from our circumstances. Circumstances go up and down, sometimes good, sometimes bad. One problem gets solved, another comes along. But joy comes from the Holy Spirit, it comes from knowing the Lord and is not subject to circumstances but overcomes all things. The joy of the Lord is our strength (Psalm 28:7) so we should seek to know the Lord all the more.
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