4:10
Part of the way that God works in the church, and in the lives of individuals, is through the love of others. I consider it vitally important that when asked what the greatest commandment was, Jesus said the first was to worship God with all we have, and the second was like it and was to love each other. The Philippians had recently had the opportunity to show their concern for Paul. Apparently there are some commentators who (i) question why this thanking by Paul did not come near the start of the letter; and (ii) is Paul disappointed that they didn’t show concern sooner. With regard to the first question, I can easily imagine Paul getting excited about the teaching that he has given in the first three chapters of the letter. Moreover, there is no manuscript evidence to support a contention that this part is actually from a separate letter. With regard to the latter question it shows no regard for the practicalities of life at the time. Communications were far different from what they are today!
No comments:
Post a Comment