Golden Agers’ Bible Study: JUSTICE PREVAILS

Discussion Guide for Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Golden Agers’ Bible Study: Justice Prevails

Unit 2 – God Promises a Just Kingdom

Deeper Bible Study: AN OVERVIEW OF PHILIPPIANS

CHOOSE JOY: An Overview of Philippians

(Notes from the PowerPoint Presentation)

Philippians – Paul’s Joy Letter

It is a very personal, maybe his most personal, letter. The tone of the letter suggests that the Church at Philippi could be Paul’s favorite congregation.
- Philippians 4:1 – Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.
The Church at Philippi was founded in response to a supernatural vision from God (Acts 16:8-10) and it marked the expansion of the gospel to the European continent. This is important for several reasons:
- As for natural resource, Philippi was know for its gold ore.
- Economically, the city was located on the Eqnation Way (the Roman trade route from East to West) and was only 11 miles for a port to the Aegean Sea.
- From a military perspective, Philippi served as a key defense against northern invasion.
- Because the city was a Roman colony populated by retired or exiled soldiers, Philippians were considered full Roman citizens and enjoyed the following benefits:
  - They spoke Latin.
  - They did not pay taxes (poll, land, etc.).
  - They had the right to buy and sell property.
  - They had the full protection of the Roman legal system.
  - And even though Rome was 700 miles away, their government and way of life was set up to mirror that of the capitol city – so much so Philippi was called “Little Rome”.
- Philippi, and the other 3 districts of Macedonia, gave women more social freedom and economic opportunity than anywhere else in the Roman Empire. This is why:
  - Lydia from Thyatira headquartered her business in Philippi (Acts 16:14)
  - Paul would acknowledge that Eudoia and Syntyche were “women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel” (Philippians 4:1-3).
    - This indicates that these women were possibly a part of the Acts 16 prayer meeting and had assisted Paul in the founding of the church.
The church was founded during Paul’s second missionary journey. 5 years later, Paul would visit them a second (and possibly a third) time during his third missionary journey (Acts 19:21; 20:1-3, 6; 2 Corinthians 1:16)
Another 5 years has passed, and Paul is in prison. Scholars debate on whether Paul is imprisoned in Ephesus, Caesarea, or Rome. All the evidence points to his Roman imprisonment (Acts 28:30, 31).
Four letters (epistles) were written during this period, and all four bare witness to Paul’s imprisonment:
- Colossians 4:18 – “Remember my imprisonment.”
- Philemon 10 – “Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my imprisonment.”
- Ephesians 6:20 – “for which I am an ambassador in chains.”
- Philippians 1:12-20 – “my circumstances”; “my imprisonment.”
Colossians, Philemon, and Ephesians were written around the same time early in Paul’s imprisonment, and they were sent to their varied destinations in A.D. 61 by Tychicus and Onesimus (Colossians 4:7-9).
It took some times for the letter to the Philippians to be penned and posted. Consider the length of time it would have taken to travel the 700 miles between the two cities (Rome and Philippi) at least 5 times:
- The news travels from Rome to Philippi to communicate that Paul has been imprisoned.
- The Philippian church sends Epaphroditus to Rome to deliver their financial gift and to offer any assistance he could considering Luke and Aristarchus have both left Paul in Rome (Acts 27:2).
- Epaphroditus becomes terribly sick will in Rome, and news is sent back to Philippi to inform his family and the church.
- The Philippians send correspondence back to Rome inquiring about Epaphroditus’ health and the progress of Paul’s case, which becomes the occasion for the letter.
- Now, in A.D. 62 (10 years after the founding of the Church at Philippi), Paul sends Epaphroditus home with this letter.
Paul’s letter to the Philippians was designed to accomplish several things:
- This letter was to express Paul’s appreciation for the church’s financial support (Philippians 1:3-11; 2:19-30; 4:10-20).
- This letter was to provide an update of Paul’s circumstance:
  - The Gospel was still being preached (Philippians 1:12-20).
  - He was gaining an audience with the soldiers and the servants of Caesar’s household (Philippians 1:13; 4:22).
  - He was expecting a decision on his case in the very near future (Philippians 2:23-24).
- This letter was to warn against false teachers (Philippians 3:2, 18-19).
- This letter was to encourage the Philippians to practice the spiritual grace of joy even in the midst of internal and/or external struggles (Philippians 2:18; 3:1; 4:4).
Like the other prison epistles, Philippians focuses on the gospel of Jesus Christ. Philippians is 4 chapters and 104 verses. The name of Jesus or one of His titles appears 51 times in those 104 verses.
- One of the most important Christological passages in all of Scripture is found in Philippians 2:6-11.
  - It is the most doctrinal section of the book highlighting the incarnation, humiliation, and exaltation of Jesus Christ.
  - But in context, this early Christian hymn was not written for doctrinal content, but to provide an example for all believers to imitate (Philippians 2:1-5).
This is why the doctrinal key verse is Philippians 2:5 – “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (KJV).
The key word of Philippians is joy. The term joy, in either noun or verb form, is used over 16 times.
- The Greek word is chairō. The theological sense of the word is:
  - Joy is a gift from God to those who believe the gospel produced by the Holy Ghost experienced most fully as believers receive and obey God’s Word, deepened through trials, and made complete when we set our hopes on the glories of heaven.
- This is illustrated in Paul’s own joy:
  - Philippians 1:18 – “in this I rejoice.”
  - Philippians 2:2 – “make my joy complete.”
  - Philippians 4:1 – “my joy and crown.”
- When we acknowledge that the goal of Philippians is practical Christianity more than it is doctrine or theology, we see a secondary theme and key verse:
  - Theme: The Believer’s Joy in Spite of Adverse Circumstances.
  - Key Verse: Philippians 4:4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, Rejoice.”
- This is important because while Paul was imprisoned in Rome, the church at Philippi was facing difficult times as well:
  - Although the church excelled in the spiritual gift of generosity (Philippians 4:10-18), the Philippians were poor people (2 Corinthians 8:1-2 – “their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.”).
  - They were facing persecution (Philippians 1:28-30).
  - They were in danger of, if not already, experiencing dissension amongst the membership (Philippians 2:1-4; 4:1-3).
- So to encourage them, Paul uses images like the athlete, the soldier, or even the commercial worker to illustrate the tension of the Christian life, and he uses these images to exhort believers to:
  - Pursue unity through humility (Philippians 2:1-18), and
  - Progress in their Christian maturity (Philippians 3:1-4:20).
5 Points of Application
- The city of Philippi was called “Little Rome,” a reflection of what Rome was like. The church should, likewise, reflect the Kingdom of God in the earth.
  - The church should be a “kingdom colony.”
- The Philippian church was committed to partnering together for the advancement of the gospel, in spite of their poverty or the opposition they faced. They were an “ALL IN” church.
  - The people were involved.
  - The people invested.
- Like all churches, the Church at Philippi had its issues, but their attention was always redirected to what was most important (Christ, His gospel, their spiritual maturity, the advancement of the Kingdom), and that rallied them together in unity. Our priorities has to be more important than our preferences.
  - We unify around our priorities, but we differ on our preferences.
- The book opens with Paul praying for the people. The book ends with Paul encouraging the people to pray for themselves. This points to making progress on the journey of spiritual maturity.
- The overall message – YOU MUST FIGHT FOR YOUR JOY!
  - We dishonor Christ when we serve Him without joy.
  - Choose Joy!

Guest Sermon: When I Couldn’t Come to Him, Jesus Came to Me

Golden Agers’ Bible Study: A RESURRECTED SERVANT

Lesson Taught by:

Pastor Marvin Mosley

Deacon Freddie Blackmon

Sister Theresa Ghant

Brother Reggie Maddox

Deeper Bible Study: A Conversation with PMKM

Special Guests Include:

Pastor C. Allen Stewart – Divine Faith Missionary Baptist Church (Birmingham)

Pastor Sedaric Dinkens – Jarvis Christian College (Hawkins)

Pastor Brian Johnson – Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church #1 (Mobile)

Minister Fernando Washington – Bethel Missionary Baptist Church (Orlando)

Pastor D. J. Harris – Greater Harvest Church (Texas City)

Knowing God by Name: JEHOVAH NISSI

Discussion Guide for Sunday, April 12, 2020

JEHOVAH NISSI:

THE LORD IS OUR BANNER

Series: Knowing God by Name: The Power of God’s Names

Big Idea

Our Scripture text for this week introduces us to an age old family feud. Esau and Jacob were twin brothers who just couldn’t seem to get along. The bad blood between these brothers festered for generations, and in Exodus 17:8-16, the descendants of Esau – the Amalekites, launch an attack on the descendants of Jacob – the Israelites. The Amalekites represents anything in your life that blocks you from doing what God wants you to do, and their battle against the Israelites represents the spiritual warfare that the people of God regularly face. The lesson this battle teaches us is that as believers, we fight their battles in both the natural and the spiritual realm. While Joshua went down into the valley to fight the physical army, Moses took the rod of God and went up into the mountains to fight the spiritual enemy.

When the battle was over, Moses built an altar and named it “Jehovah Nissi – The Lord is our Banner.” In ancient days, a banner was nothing more than a bar staff, like Moses’ rod, with a metal ornament that glistened in the sun. The rod in this story is an Old Testament picture of Jesus Christ. It shows us that Jesus struggled for our victory. Jesus endured excruciating pain to secure our salvation. That is why it is called His passion, or in the Latin His agony. However it is through that struggle that Jesus secured our victory. Through His death on the cross, Jesus once and for all defeated the works of the devil, and it is through His finished work that we continue to overcome the devil’s snares. Right now, Jesus is standing in the gap for our victory. He is seated at His Father’s right hand praying for us right now. As we trust Him, He gives us the strength we need to conquer the skirmishes we face day to day.

Discussion Questions

Are there any strains in your family relationships that need to be resolved? How can you begin to get things right?
When Moses’ arms grew heavy, he had Aaron and Hur as a support system. Who makes up your support system? How do you return the favor?

Prayer Focus

Lord, I thank you for raising Your standard over me. As I face spiritual battles of many kinds, help me to be confident in your protection, to fight with your power, to prevail in your strength. Dear Lord, may your victory be total and complete, destroying whatever stands in the way of your plans and purposes for my life.

Next Steps

As believers, we fight our battles in the natural and the spiritual. Joshua fought a physical army in the valley while Moses fought a spiritual battle on the mountain. You must learn to do both. Spend some time this week praying over a strained relationship. Ask God to break down any walls that could keep you from reconciliation, and plan some practical ways you can work towards restoration. Maybe you can make a phone call or schedule a lunch, but whatever you do, don’t leave it at just prayer. Pray and take action.