Summary: Welcome to Philippians! This is a compressed letter, filled with phrases that jump out and grab you like, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” It is tempting to do a “drive by” or “bumper sticker” survey of its four chapters, underlining our favorite phrases and then moving on. That is better than nothing, but a grab bag of slogans ripped from their context can never sustain the soul, especially in seasons of suffering. Slogans may inspire us for the moment but suffering craves substance–spiritual food that sustains. If you hunger to experience God, deep intimacy will not be birthed without meditating on and marinating in the Scripture, then trusting the Holy Spirit to transform your heart and mind. One of the frequent observations made of Philippians–a letter Paul penned from prison–is that its most repeated theme is joy. Joy and happiness are not synonyms. God never promises happiness; happiness is dependent on happenings. If we pursue happiness we will miss God’s best. But if we pursue God regardless of circumstances, we will find ourselves captured by joy. Happiness feeds from rivers that run dry. Joy is the outcome of living immersed in Holy Spirit reality. It's rivers of Life, dripping wet with the kind of assurance that can look defeat, abandonment, pain, disappointment, and even death, in the face with the unshakeable confidence that the “Kingdom Plans of God” will overwhelm our broken dreams and bodies. And God grants even more than joy; He gives rejoicing. Rejoicing is when joy gets on a roll and it feeds off itself. Joy that comes from God is irrepressible and impossible to exterminate. It’s like kudzu with no cure, but it's good. Downloads
