Pastorals The pastoral epistles consist of Paul’s two letters to Timothy and his letter to Titus. They are grouped together because of similar teaching, similar phrases and other language, and similar time of composition. They have been termed the “pastoral” epistles because of their pointed instruction to those who would succeed the apostle Paul in…
Phil 4:10-13 Paul had been in prison for almost four years at the time of this writing (two in Caesarea and two in Rome); what circumstances may have prevented the Philippians from having the opportunity to render assistance to him until now? How might a fleshly person have felt in the intervening time to not…
Phil 4:1-3: List everything in Phil 4:1 that highlights Paul’s affection for the Philippians. What do Paul’s words in this verse teach us is the greatest admonition we can give to those we love the most? See also Phil 1:27, 1 Cor 16:13, Gal 5:1, 1 Thess 3:8, 2 Thess 2:15. What can we learn from Phil 4:3…
Phil 3:12-14 What was it that Paul pressed on to lay hold of, for which also Christ had laid hold of him? See also Phil 3:11. Considering the exemplary life Paul lived for Christ, what do his words teach us about attaining absolute perfection in this life? Did such a realization prevent him from continuing…
Phil 3:1 Notice the preceding and following context of Paul’s admonition in this Phil 3:to rejoice in the Lord, and recall Paul’s circumstances as he was writing; is our joy as Christians dependent upon circumstances? What (or Who) is it dependent upon? See also Phil 1:15-18, 4:4. Note: in 2 Cor 13:5 Paul admonishes us to…
Phil 2:19-24 For what purpose does Paul say in Phil 2:19 that he planned on sending Timothy to the Philippians? Why was he concerned about their condition? See Phil 1:27, 2:2-3. Why would good news of their condition be an encouragement to him in his present circumstances? For what other purpose did he want to…
Phil 2:14-16 Note: In Phil 2:15 NASB “prove yourselves” (KJV “be”) is literally “become” (see NASB text note). NASB “above reproach” (KJV “without rebuke”) means unblemished or without defect, and is the word found throughout the OT to describe the sacrifices acceptable to God (e.g. Ex 29:1, Lev 1:3); see also Eph 5:27, Col 1:22,…
Phil 2:5-8 Describe each rung of the ladder Christ descended on our behalf from the throne of God: What was the glorious form of His pre-incarnate existence? How was His willingness to not regard His rights and privileges as a prize to be grasped tightly and held onto an example to us?[1] What does it…
Phil 1:27 Note: “conduct yourselves” is literally “live as a citizen” and refers to the responsibilities of citizenship. What are the responsibilities of our U.S. citizenship? See Rom 13:1-7. What are the responsibilities of citizenship in Christ’s kingdom? See also Phil 1:29. What do Paul’s words here indicate about a potential problem facing the Philippians? …
Phil 1:12-18 In what two ways had Paul’s imprisonment actually resulted in the greater progress of the gospel? See Phil 1:13-14. What was the praetorian guard? See NASB text note and also Mark 15:16, Acts 23:35; note: this was the palace guard. “There were originally ten thousand of these picked soldiers, concentrated in Rome by…