Philippians
The Epistle to the Philippians is an informal correspondence that Paul sent in response to a gift he received from the church at Philippi. Knowing that Paul was in prison and probably in need of material benefits, the Philippian church sent one of its members, Epaphroditus, with a gift of money and the intention of staying with Paul to assist him in any way that Epaphroditus could. However, Epaphroditus became ill and was forced to return home, and Paul sent this letter to the church of Philippi with him.
The letter begins with an expression of thanks for the gift and a prayer for the well-being of the church. With reference to his own personal experience, Paul says that his only desire is to be free from prison so that he might be of greater service to the church. Regarding it a great privilege to be counted worthy to suffer for the cause of Christ, he writes a famous hymn concerning Jesus, "who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness." Paul commends this spirit of humility and service to the church at Philippi, urging that its members be of the same mind as that which was manifest in Jesus.
Paul tells the church members that Timothy will visit them in the near future and asks that they receive him with kindness. Interrupting the main course of his letter to warn against the propaganda being circulated by Jewish legalists, he reviews his own experiences with Judaism and his conversion to the Christian faith. With a few practical admonitions and a prayer for God's blessing on the Philippian church, Paul closes the letter.
