Monthly Archives: August 2026

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…WATCH OUT – 12

Bible Study, ,

“Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Rejoice! A safeguard! Watch out! A warning!

Despite the fact that he had no reason to rebuke or correct this little congregation at Philippi,  Paul knew that they were always in the path of spiritual danger. What was their protection?

As always, Paul reminded them…and he saw no boring repetition in doing so…that their protection lay in what they kept in mind. What did they think about…in their everyday activities…in their interaction with unbelievers in the world…in the tests and trials that lay in their path? 

First…rejoice in the Lord! Keep the Lord Jesus in the front of your minds…not your struggles…not your circumstances…not the suspicion or the hostility of your neighbour…

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Paul knew that it was not easy to be “heavenly-minded” when life was rough and tough, but he also knew that their life in Jesus was real…and that it was the guarantee that there was nothing powerful or dangerous that could harm them…that could get between them and God’s love for them, demonstrated in the cross. To rejoice and remain in the love of Jesus was their safeguard against buckling under the weight of their struggles. 

So, rejoicing in Jesus, even in their darkest moments, would keep them facing right way and steady on course when they felt shaky or alone. They needed this constant reminder. Stuff happened, sometimes suddenly and unexpectedly. If their minds were conditioned to rejoice in the Lord, they would be ready to face whatever came their way without flinching. 

Second…a warning… and Paul was blunt in his contempt for the people who tried to derail these people. He called them “dogs”, “evil doers”, “mutilators of the flesh”! This was not polite language! This was what they were…not family pets…or spiritually mature believers…or even faithful Jews who honoured God’s law. 

Paul recognised the danger these Judaisers posed to the followers of Jesus. As innocent as their teaching appeared to be…keep the law of God, get circumcised, because you need to, to be saved, the real issue was…you must add circumcision to what Jesus did on the cross to make His death effective…Jesus plus something you do!

Any simple thing, any effort on our part, to complete Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, makes Him a liar, and cancels everything He did to reconcile us to the Father. He said, “It is finished!” The Judaisers said, ”It isn’t…not without circumcision.” Someone was lying…and it wasn’t Jesus!

This simple prescription, if we really take it to heart and put it into practice, is the godly wisdom that will be the buffer between us and spiritual shipwreck. Rejoice and stay alert. Stick with Jesus through thick and thin…and don’t fall for the nonsense that adds anything to Him. He is absolutely, altogether, and always enough. 

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…EPAPHRODITIS – 11

Bible Study, ,

“Meanwhile, I thought I should send Epaphroditus back to you. He is a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier. And he was your messenger to help me in my need. I am sending him because he has been longing to see you, and he was very distressed that you heard he was ill. And he certainly was ill; in fact, he almost died. But God had mercy on him—and also on me, so that I would not have one sorrow after another. So I am all the more anxious to send him back to you, for I know you will be glad to see him, and then I will not be so worried about you. Welcome him in the Lord’s love and with great joy, and give him the honor that people like him deserve. For he risked his life for the work of Christ, and he was at the point of death while doing for me what you couldn’t do from far away.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭25‬-‭30‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Epaphroditus…another of Paul’s fellow soldiers! New names keep popping up…real people who littered Paul’s path with companionship, assistance, partnership, labour…and suffering.  Paul called this man “a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier“. What a commendation! A brother…spiritually, of the same family, the same blood! A co-worker…on the same team! A fellow soldier…fighting on the same side! 

With people like Epaphroditus, Paul was never alone. These men and women…a growing number, names mentioned in most of his letters..didn’t start their own missions. They teamed up with Paul, followed his example, submitted to his authority, accompanied him on his journeys, and carried his vision wherever they went. 

Some, like this man, Epaphroditis, put his in life on the line for the gospel, as Paul had done. Somewhere along the way he fell into serious danger.  He became seriously ill. He contracted a deadly medical condition that could have ended his life. 

Life, in Paul’s day, was a daily risk. Medical expertise and facilities were non-existent. Diseases were everywhere, just waiting for someone with a compromised immune system…and Epaphroditus became a victim. 

Paul gives no details…the sickness had no name…but enough to make this man’s dedication clear. Whatever risk he took, whatever interrupted his journey, Epaphroditis had survived…and Paul was grateful. 

It was not medical intervention but God’s mercy that saved Epaphroditus that time…and every time someone got sick and recovered. 

Just reading through Paul’s description of Epaphroditus’ experience makes me realise how interconnected believers were under Paul’s watch. There was continual coming and going between people in the churches…news being exchanged…visitors being welcomed, hosted, refreshed, and sent back to share resources and encourage one another. 

One would think that movement was easy…but it was not! Yet, the people in these small congregations, across many miles, were more connected, then, than the people in small congregations in one town or city today. Why?

Was it because they were people who lived apart from the world, in it but not of it? They were separated by conversion and conviction, and their only safety lay in staying together…doing life together and protecting one another. 

In today’s world, God’s people are distracted by many attractions and not threatened much by their hostile environment. It’s easy to blend in, not to be noticed, to be lost in, and to be part of the crowd. 

From God’s perspective, there is great benefit in being separated and distinct…not only because of His  favour…

“Then those who feared the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and always thought about the honor of his name. “They will be my people,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child. Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

‭‭Malachi‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬-‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.”

‭‭Malachi‬ ‭4‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

…but because it is a matter of life and death…

“Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.”

‭‭1 John‬ ‭2‬:‭15‬-‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In today’s world, we have opportunities and privileges far beyond those of Paul’s day… communication and travel being among the most advantageous. Let’s not become lazy or complacent in the administration of our faith. Let’s do the “Paul thing”…use our connectedness to foster fellowship, love, and service…to God’s glory. 

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…TIMOTHY – 10

Bible Study, ,

“If the Lord Jesus is willing, I hope to send Timothy to you soon for a visit. Then he can cheer me up by telling me how you are getting along. I have no one else like Timothy, who genuinely cares about your welfare. All the others care only for themselves and not for what matters to Jesus Christ. But you know how Timothy has proved himself. Like a son with his father, he has served with me in preaching the Good News. I hope to send him to you just as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me here. And I have confidence from the Lord that I myself will come to see you soon.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭19‬-‭24‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Paul met Timothy in the city of Lystra (modern-day Turkey) during his second missionary journey. Impressed by the young man’s strong reputation among the local believers and his deep knowledge of the Scriptures, Paul invited Timothy to join him and Silas on their travels….”

“This meeting sparked a lifelong mentorship. Paul became a spiritual father to Timothy, later referring to him as his “true son in the faith” in 1 Timothy 1:2”

Google AI gives us a glimpse into this association between Paul and Timothy, growing from a meeting to a lifelong connection…Paul mentoring and training Timothy like a father, and Timothy faithfully serving Paul like a son. 

Paul’s commendation of Timothy was warm and loving. Since he was in chains and Timothy free, Paul was able to send him to Philippi to take news about himself to them and return to Paul with news of the church in Philippi. 

How important this was to Paul! Part of his ministry was to keep contact, to keep encouraging, teaching, correcting, and praying for those who had come to Christ through his ministry. His bond with Timothy was his lifeline between himself and the churches scattered across the empire. 

There was nothing Timothy would not do for Paul. He was faithful and reliable, and best of all, he was young and free. He could come and go with greater ease than the older man who had borne the brunt of years of travel and hardship. Paul was not only old but also incarcerated…which meant that he needed someone to be his arms and legs to carry on where he could no longer go. 

Timothy was not only Paul’s deputy. He himself cared about the churches Paul served. He had watched and listened to Paul long enough to have drunk of the same Spirit that was in Paul…the love and compassion he felt for the believers who were relatively new in the faith and shared the struggles of those who  faced hostility from all sides. 

Timothy could have stayed at home, married, raised a family, and been a pastor in a local congregation but…he chose to be the faithful companion of an older man…to travel with him…to learn from him…and to serve him during the darkest days of Paul’s life. 

Timothy did eventually land up in a pastoral position in Ephesus…but only after years of accompanying Paul and maturing into the role entrusted to him. Even there, Paul had his eyes on him, writing letters to guide and encourage him as long as he, Paul, was alive to do so. 

These glimpses into this companionship of father and son in the faith are special…highlighting the humanity and vulnerability of these two men. They needed each other…and God, the tender Father, in His grace, made sure that they met, bonded, and supported each other through their weaknesses, trials, and struggles. 

Paul’s loving commendation of Timothy should warm our hearts. He was big enough to give credit where credit was due. He was human enough to acknowledge his need. He was lavish in his praise for another man and…as we move on, not only Timothy but also others were a part of Paul’s inner circle…those who helped to carry the load with him. 

Paul’s letters surely show us how God married human weakness and vulnerability to His own grace and strength to write the story which continues to this day. 

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…REJOICE – 9

Bible Study, ,

“But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭17‬-‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Worship! Why did Paul relate the whole of life to worship? It seems that whatever happened to him, or even whatever he did, was about worship. 

What is worship?

“In the Bible, worship is a total response of awe, honor, obedience, and love to God’s supreme worth. It is not just a song sung on Sunday, but an inner attitude of the heart and an outward way of living every day.”(Google AI)

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew words used that relate to worship are mostly about posture and the ways they were to use the body to express God’s worth when directed towards Him. 

Paul, in the New Covenant, expands the expression of worship to everything we do in the body…so that all of ordinary life, when directed towards God, becomes worship. 

Worship, once again, starts with attitude. When our attitude is towards God as both the source and centre of our existence, what we say and do flows out of that attitude and back to Him as the expression of how much we value Him. 

So, from the most ordinary of human activities…eating and drinking…to the very life God has given us, we offer everything back to God, acknowledging Him as the giver of everything. 

“So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭10‬:‭31‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The context of Paul’s conclusion here suggests that their behaviour…in this case, whether his Corinthian readers should or should not eat meat offered to idols, was to be regulated by the way they honoured God’s worth. 

“And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.”

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

For Paul, life itself, together with all its ramifications…every detail… was an offering to God, a drink offering…. 

“In the Bible, a Hebrew drink offering (nesek) is a liquid libation—usually wine—poured out before God as an act of total devotion, worship, and gratitude. It was typically poured onto or beside the altar alongside animal and grain sacrifices rather than consumed…”

“Complete Devotion: Because the liquid sank into the ground or altar and could not be recovered or drunk, it symbolized holding nothing back from God.” (Source: Google AI)

That’s the bottom line. If he could offer what he said and did as an offering to God…if it is in keeping with His character…if it expressed something of His worth…then that word, action, behaviour, was worthy worship. 

Paul’s circumstances, as far as he was concerned at that moment, was literally a “dead end”. He was in jail, not only for refusing to honour Caesar Nero as God and Lord, but also for actively proclaiming that an executed Galilean peasant, one Jesus of Nazareth, was God and Lord. He declared that Jesus was alive…and called everyone who heard his message to follow this Jesus, believing and confessing Him as Lord. 

Is it any wonder, from Nero’s perspective, that Paul was a danger to him and must be exterminated? For the sake of his place and authority as emperor of the Roman Empire, he could not tolerate rivalry, even if Paul preached that this Jesus was Lord of a spiritual kingdom. Nero demanded absolute allegiance from everyone, regardless of religious persuasion. 

Let’s examine the implications of Paul’s declaration. 

In this context, Paul viewed his impending execution, not as punishment, martyrdom, or a travesty of justice, (definition…a false, absurd, or poor imitation of something serious that makes a mockery of it)…but the sacrifice of his life as an offering poured out to God! 

With this outlook, this perspective, this philosophy of life, we cannot be overcome. What if, instead of viewing our lives, not as one situation, one circumstance at a time…separate and disconnected…but as an uninterrupted act of worship? What if we see God in the centre of everything we are and do and offer everything up to Him as our continual worship? 

How would our hearts, our attitudes, our lives change?

To be continued

PAUL’S HAPPY LETTER…ATTITUDE – 8

Bible Study, ,

“Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. 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 ‭2‬:‭14‬-‭16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

We must remember that Paul’s counsel to this church was not based on criticism or correction but on his desire to fine-tune their lives in their faith and obedience to Jesus as Lord. As we have already noted, it’s all about attitude.  

“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.” Google AI. 

Complaining…murmuring…the subtle undercurrent of discontent. Not loud, or insistent, or vocal…just a quiet disturbance of harmonious, peaceful fellowship. Debate…introducing another subtle opportunity to question…and even to argue about doctrine, about the things they did or did not do or the way they did them. The subtle disagreements could  be as much about doctrine as about the peripheral things that caused them to rub against each other. 

Paul was not accusing these believers. He was cautioning them against allowing these subtly divisive attitudes to creep into their fellowship. They were to shine like pinpricks of light in very dark world full of rot and corruption. Their individual light might be minuscule but very noticeable in a dark environment. 

Any small attitude of darkness, any tiny deviation from the truth in their faith or behaviour would dim or extinguish the light that keeps them on track and points others towards Jesus. 

Once again, Paul makes clear that they are not the source of light but the bearers of the light that is in them. Practical and do-able…

“Don’t participate in the things these people do. For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.”

‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭5‬:‭7‬-‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The light within them would expose and reveal…expose the deeds done in darkness and reveal the truth that would shine out of their words and behaviour. 

“Hold firmly to the word of life…”

“The teaching of your word gives light, so even the simple can understand.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭119‬:‭130‬ ‭NLT‬‬

So, Paul encouraged his beloved Philippian believers to cling to God’s word, the source of the light that was in them…to live by it themselves and to share it with others…because this was the only light that would guide them and others to Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life. 

The obedience and faithfulness of these Christians in Philippi to Jesus and His word was Paul’s only guarantee that his labour was not in vain. Their increasing likeness to Jesus showed him that they were firmly grafted into the true vine and bearing the fruit of that union. 

Attitude itself is not seen but revealed through the words and deeds of those who follow Jesus as much as through those who don’t. Attitude influences and drives the way we function and relate to others.

Attitude could be another way of understanding “spirit”…not a supernatural being in them, controlling them…but a mindset that underlies who they are and the way they live. 

And so with every believer who follows them…

To be continued