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Words from the Heart (Philippians 1:1-8)
The first eight verses of Philippians celebrate a church with diversity and good leadership. In verse 1 Paul addresses the letter to the saints, but specifically mentions the leadership of the church: overseers and deacons. These leaders were leading a church with people from all walks of life and cultural heritages.
This diversity was a product of a trade route, the Egnatian Way, that led to a vibrant center for commerce. Because of this, people were drawn from all over the world to do business in Philippi. The result was a church established by people like Lydia who was a business woman, a slave girl who was released from the bondage of demon possession, and a jailer whose life was transformed in a moment of desperation. It was made up of people whose lives were changed by the power of God.
It is fitting that the first five verses after the greeting are a declaration of love and affection by Paul for the church. As he wrote theses verses he probably remembered the day that he looked for the synagogue (Jewish center for worship) in Philippi to begin his ministry, and had to go outside the city to find them worshiping down by the river. The fact that there was no synagogue tells us there were less than ten men in the city who actually worshiped God when Paul arrived. From the churches humble beginnings it had grown into a force for the Kingdom. This church was transforming lives in a city that was hungry for hope.
When you walked into the church at Philippi you knew there was something different happening, and people wanted to be a part of it. Paul even mentions they were the kind of people who had your back no matter what – in the mountaintops and the valleys (v. 7). Paul’s passionate love for this church is on display in the final words of this passage – he “holds them in his heart” and “yearns for them all with affection.” What Paul was saying in these two phrases is that he was constantly reflecting on his relationship with them, and that these thoughts led to deep feeling for the people of the church. “Paul revealed that he had the ‘heart’ of Jesus Christ, who loved them and died for them.” These were 1passionate words from a great man who loved them so much.
Over 125 years ago two men and a woman came to Allentown to plant a church. There prayer was that the church would reach the city of Allentown with the gospel. We have such a rich history as a church that speaks to an impact not only in Allentown, but also throughout the Lehigh Valley. The church at Philippi models for us the heart of a vibrant, diverse, and grounded church. They loved each other no matter what, and reached their city for Christ as a dynamic group of transformed believers. What a great example the church at Philippi and the founders of our church are for us. May their example challenge us to reflect the heart of Christ to each other and those around us.
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