Monthly Archives: July 2026

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…ATTITUDE – 6c

Bible Study, ,

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset (attitude) as Christ Jesus:…”

It’s all about attitude!

Google AI’s definition of attitude helps us understand what Paul was saying. 

“In the Bible, attitude means the inner mindset, spirit, and disposition of the heart that guides a person’s actions and words. Key biblical attitudes include humility, love, and a Christ-like mindset.”

What better example could Paul use than the one who was the model of humility in His earthly life…Jesus!

Let’s examine Jesus’ attitude more closely. 

How could Jesus live like He lived, do what He did, die like He died? To whom was His attitude directed?

“Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; 

he took the humble position of a slave 

and was born as a human being. 

When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God 

and died a criminal’s death on a cross.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭6‬-‭8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Look at the key words used in this description…”He humbled Himself”…”He made Himself nothing “…” He took the humble position “… He stepped down to the lowest position on earth…a slave who had no rights. 

We learn about Jesus’ attitude by the way He related to the Father. He chose to set aside His divine attributes…not to lose them but to veil them in a human person for the duration of His time on earth. He chose to subject Himself to the Father’s authority, fully and completely, in every detail of His existence on earth…to say and do only that which the Father authorised. He chose to obey the Father…even to the point of sacrificing His own life in the most humiliating, cruel, and agonising way. 

Jesus’ submission to the Father was motivated by love and His obedience driven by purpose. He never moved outside of His predetermined goal, and the reward for obedience. 

“…For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In his prophetic vision, Isaiah saw the outcome of Messiah’s obedience and suffering…

“But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands. When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins. I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭10‬-‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jesus gave up everything He was to the Father for one purpose…to do the Father’s will… in that will and in His obedience to the Father was His reward. 

Now, says Paul, this is the way, and the only way, to accomplish the Father’s will…to relinquish what we hold onto, however fiercely…our will…our self-determination. God gave us free will as our right but He asks us to give it to Him…

…motivated by love…driven by purpose…

…and in that will, blended with the will of God, is the only perfect way to live…to experience the love, joy, and peace, and the unity which mirrors the Trinity… that is the way of God’s kingdom and the atmosphere of heaven…

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…UNITY – 6b

Bible Study, ,

“Therefore, if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As always, “therefore” is the bridge that connects what Paul wrote before with what follows. Conversion, for these Philippians, from paganism to faith in Jesus, had produced supernatural transformation in them. United with Jesus, they learned and experienced His love so real that it had drawn them together in a strong bond of love for one another. So…

If Paul has nothing to rebuke or correct in his letter to this congregation in Philippi, why would he write to them and what would he say to them in this happy letter? He has begun by commending them and praying for them. Now, what next?

If you were writing this letter, what would you say to people who were well on the way to maturity? Paul knew that, as much as they were growing in their faith in Jesus and their love for one another, they needed constant encouragement to fine-tune their understanding and behaviour in this new life. 

There was a goal to be attained, a goal which might be forgotten if they did not keep it in mind and strive together, in the Spirit’s power, to move towards it. So, Paul clearly describes what this goal looked like and how to move towards it. 

Paul sets the bar for them higher than it was already. 

“…being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind…”

…of one mind, one in spirit, and having the same love! 

Paul not only sets the goal but he gives them practical ways to reach it, impossibly high as it was. His instructions are simple and clear, but absolute…the same as the prescription he gives in every letter…put the self to death, live for Jesus by lovingly serving one another. 

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition (strife or contention) or vain conceit (vainglory).”

Let’s examine these two words…strife and vainglory. 

“In the Bible, selfish ambition (translated from the Greek word eritheia) is the pursuit of personal gain, status, or power motivated by pride and self-promotion. It is characterized by putting one’s own interests above others, often leading to division, jealousy, and conflict.” (Google AI)

“Vainglory refers to excessive, unwarranted pride, vanity, or boastfulness. It describes a state of being overly conceited and full of oneself, often characterized by a preoccupation with seeking attention or empty, unjustified self-glorification…” (Google AI)

Can you see what Paul is highlighting? He is explaining the two opposing selves that cancel each other out. The selfish self is the one with which we were born…the one that controlled our lives  from our first breath until we were “born again”. When we believed in Jesus, we were reborn…with a new self, the nature with which the first human, Adam, was created before he rebelled…the image of God. 

These two “selves” are functioning in us but perpetually at war…striving for control…depending on which one we choose. If the selfish self is in control, it will destroy the unity in the body of Christ by elevating self above everyone and everything else. However, if, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we choose to put the selfish nature to death…or rather, to consider the old nature already dead, we will create the environment in which unity is possible. 

“In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭11‬-‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”

Is this way to live easy? No! Is it necessary? Yes! However, the thing is…not that we must put our selfish self to death every time we make a choice but, rather…that we are already dead… that we step into that new nature by faith in the power of the Holy Spirit… and that we live out of the new nature that is alive inside us. 

Paul put like this…

“For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

How do we make this “death” real in our lives?

“In the same way, count (reckon) yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭11‬-‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“In the Bible, “reckon” means to calculate, count, or consider something as a definite, absolute truth. It comes from a bookkeeping and business term where a person adds up numbers, enters the final sum into an account, and treats it as a settled fact.” (Google AI)

A “settled fact” means that we can consider it true and act on it as the truth. 

So, Paul is asking the Philippian believers to live their lives together out of the settled fact that their old lives are already dead and their new lives in Christ are in control. Humility, taking their rightful place before God and one another, will keep them all on one level. 

In this way, putting others before self will preserve the unity that the Holy Spirit has created, and will be a powerful witness to the world that Jesus has come and that the Father has loved them as much as He loves Jesus. 

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

‭‭John‬ ‭17‬:‭20‬-‭23‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Love and unity…the two most powerful evidences that their faith was real and that the Holy Spirit was at work in them. 

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…TOGETHER – 6a

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“Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News.

Don’t be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself. For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭27-‭29‬ ‭NLT‬

Standing…fighting…struggling together…this doesn’t sound like an easy ride. God’s children were never meant to be pushovers. There is a resolve built into their spirit that refuses to give way under pressure. 

There is a stark contrast between the Christian’s inner life and the outer struggle. Where grace and peace are operating inside, striving, struggling, and contending are the inevitable on the outside because we live in a fallen world which is anyways out to get us. 

This resolve… and, with it, the stubborn resistance that refuses to move from its firm foundation…that is, citizenship in God’s kingdom…is what keeps God’s children steadfast in the face of mortal danger. Later in this letter, Paul gives his readers the rope that ties us to God and pulls us towards the future. 

“Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Cling to what is indestructible and eternal…the word of life. We don’t hold on to “airy fairy” theories, or human philosophies, or people’s fanciful inventions about God and life. We hold on to the anchor that is attached and secured in heaven itself…the truth that Jesus Himself has revealed to us. 

“So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6‬:‭18‬-‭19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

What is it that anchors our souls to the eternal realities that hold us steady in the fiercest of battles? Our hope lies in a person and in God’s promises and His oath about that person, Jesus…according to Hebrews…that cannot fail because these words are secured in heaven itself, in the Most Holy place, where God is enthroned. 

“We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him.”

Here’s the strategy… and we must note this carefully…

In the Old Covenant, the hub and focus of the covenant was loving God wholly and completely…and obedience to God’s laws, the evidence of that love… which His people found impossible to obey. 

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭6‬:‭4‬-‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Although Jesus echoed this commandment in response to a question, He did not demand obedience to it as a condition for salvation. Instead, He gave us another condition for entry into His kingdom…”trusting in Christ”. 

“For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭10‬ NIV

Throughout the New Testament, the emphasis is on faith in Jesus, not loving Him, that leads to salvation. Loving Jesus is the evidence of, not the condition for salvation. Our life of obedience to Jesus in the kingdom of God is our response to His love for us. 

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins…We love because he first loved us.”

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭10‬, ‭19‬ ‭NIV‬

Jesus’ requirement is never to love Him perfectly but to live out His love in us towards His people by  trusting in and identifying with Him in what we say and do…no matter the consequences. This, which Paul explains, is a privilege rather than an obligation. 

A privilege to believe…and a privilege to suffer! Whoever thought that suffering was a privilege? Peter fleshed this thought out for us. 

“For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭19‬-‭21‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The greatest of all privileges, strangely enough, is not sitting with Jesus in the heavenly realm, but suffering with Him through refusing to retaliate to the same kind of injustice He suffered…obeying the Lord, no matter the consequences, because this is the right thing to do…

“Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭5‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

When we view suffering for doing right as a privilege rather than a punishment, our attitude changes…resentment to rejoicing!

“But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭4‬:‭13‬, ‭16‬ ‭NIV‬‬

What s strange way to respond to suffering! 

“The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭5‬:‭41‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This is something the world can never understand…a transformation inside so radical that it turns persecution into a privilege. If we are armed with this conviction, there is nothing the world can ever do to God’s people that can crush or destroy such a spirit. 

How else can we reveal to the world that God is our supreme authority and that we trust and fear nothing outside of Him?

To be continued

‭

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…DILEMMA – 5

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“For I know that as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance. For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die. For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better. But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don’t know which is better. I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me. But for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭19‬-‭24‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Although Paul was never in charge of his life…and he knew it…his mind was torn between two options.  Was it okay for him to have natural desires? In his predicament…a condemned prisoner in a Roman jail…should he pray to stay or pray to go?

Paul knew that prayer was powerful. His Philippian partners were always praying for him. Of this he was assured. If they prayed, God would deliver him from an impossible situation…but, was deliverance the best thing for everyone at this time?

Paul knew that he could sway the verdict simply by denying Jesus but…for him, this was unthinkable. Perhaps the deliverance he really needed was not from Rome but from himself. His boldness and courage to stand true to Jesus and to preach the truth, didn’t come from will power. It came from the grace that God provided through the prayers of His people. 

“And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.”

‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Paul never took his condition in life for granted. He was who he was and where he was because of God’s grace. The prayers of his fellow believers for him was a comfort and a hope that he would finish as he started. 

However, Paul was still faced with the prospect of martyrdom. He was human. Violent death at the hands of Roman executioners…the reality that hung over him…was not a pleasant thought. It was not something he could shrug off easily. 

Yes, going to be with Jesus was a compelling desire but…he knew there was still much work to be done while he was here on earth. What was it, then, that Paul allowed his mind to dwell on rather than the horror that awaited him? Staying or going…which option was better? Both had merits. 

Fortunately for Paul, as much as he would have liked to make the choice, his future was not in his hands. He could dwell on the prospects but…he could not determine the outcome. 

What captures my attention most in Paul’s contemplation of his situation is the focus of his attention…not which was better for him but which was better for them…

“I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me. But for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live.”

Of course, staying alive would mean escape from the executioner’s sword but…that was not his consideration. Staying alive would mean more time to spend with his beloved fellow believers. Going to be with Jesus would mean facing what any person would dread but…Paul looked beyond the way to the destination to the destination itself…the presence of Jesus forever. 

I love Paul’s honesty. He was sharing his intimate thoughts with the people he loved. He didn’t hide his struggles. He showed himself to be vulnerable but, at the same time, he revealed the passion that drove his soul…not self…but Jesus in him. His testimony was not empty words. 

“My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭2‬:‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Paul’s situation was where the rubber met the road. His life only meant something if he lived it in harmony with his Lord. That was okay if the circumstances were pleasant but…on death row…that was different. 

“Knowing this, I am convinced that I will remain alive so I can continue to help all of you grow and experience the joy of your faith. And when I come to you again, you will have even more reason to take pride in Christ Jesus because of what he is doing through me.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭25‬-‭26‬ ‭NLT‬‬

If I were in Paul’s place, what would my thinking be? 

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…GODLY OPTIMISM – 4

Bible Study, ,

“And I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News. For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ. And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God’s message without fear.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬-‭14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Where was Paul when he dictated these words? He wasn’t in a comfortable house, or an inn or hotel room…with the prospect of a hot meal and a warm bed.  He was in a cold, dark dungeon, chained night and day to a Roman soldier, as if he were some dangerous criminal. 

Why was he there? He was on trial for his life because he proclaimed, in an empire controlled by a cruel and capricious dictator,  that there was another king…not Caesar…who is to be worshipped and honoured as Lord. He was at the mercy of someone who took revenge on anyone who dared to question his authority…a tyrant who had people killed in the most cruel way for daring to say that he was not God!

Paul had a mission, a mandate from Jesus, to tell the world that He, Jesus alone, is king. This commission consumed Paul’s life…occupied his thoughts…drove his ambitions and plans…and kept him steadfast despite the opposition he faced… but now he was restrained and muzzled. How could he continue to fulfil his mission when he was locked up in prison? 

There was only one way… out there, in the public space, there were many who could continue the witness of the one when the one was restricted and shut up in jail. 

Paul was only one, but he never kept quiet about Jesus. If he could not tell the world outside, he could tell the soldiers in the prison! Imagine the poor Roman guard…chained for hours to the man who never stopped talking about Jesus! 

Paul’s fellow believers caught the fire. If Paul was muzzled and restricted, they were not. If one man was imprisoned, they were free. Little did the Roman government understand that they could not put the fire out by adding fuel to the flames. 

“The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” (Tertullian…197 AD)

“This famous phrase means that the persecution and execution of Christians often leads to the growth of the faith. Coined by the early church father Tertullian in ~197 AD, it suggests that the sacrifice of martyrs inspires others and helps the church multiply.” (Source:  Google AI)

What captures my attention most is that Paul’s optimism, born of a faith in God that could not be dampened or diluted by circumstances, gave him a resilience that no dark prison or threat of death could extinguish. 

Paul lived, even in the realities of his own life…including incarceration in a Roman dungeon…where he counselled others to live…in the realm outside the earth…the command centre of the universe. 

“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.”

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Not even his body shut up in the darkest hole in the city of Rome could put out the fire in Paul’s heart for Jesus, nor destroy his confidence in the sovereign purposes of God. If he was there for Jesus’ sake, he was content, knowing that Jesus was in charge. 

If, in the sovereignty of God, Paul was locked up in prison, God, in His sovereignty, had also already set in motion another plan. Nothing ever took Him by surprise and…Paul knew that. God had kick-started the evangelism of Asia Minor and Europe through his chosen apostle, Paul, but His strategy didn’t end there. Lock that one person up…and release many more like him to carry the mission forward. That’s God’s strategy. Multiply!

Jesus put it into words about His own mission and, by implication, the strategy of multiplication that works in His kingdom. 

“Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.” …Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭4‬:‭8‬, ‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The principle is general but also specific. 

 “Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.”

‭‭John‬ ‭12‬:‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus died, one seed, but that one seed was producing a harvest everywhere. 

To the world, Paul was already dead but…there was a harvest of new “plants” beyond the prison walls that could continue to proclaim the good news, scattering the seed of God’s word into all kinds of soil. 

The harvest was guaranteed. No earthly Ceasar, however powerful, could stop the process. So, no prison walls could dampen Paul’s joy or optimism…that the kingdom of God would spread and grow on earth. Not even Rome…not even his own imprisonment or impending death could halt God’s power at work.  Even if another seed died, the ingathering of God’s harvest was guaranteed and would never stop. 

To be continued