The Philippian church partnered with Paul, and it was not a one-time thing.
When you contrast that with his harsh experiences in many places, the contribution and support that the Philippian church offered would be like cold water on dry ground—he felt supported.
They were a constant presence during Paul’s imprisonment, when he had the opportunity to defend the gospel, and when the gospel bore fruit and was confirmed as true in people's lives.
He was imprisoned because of the gospel; that is part of the suffering that Jesus said Paul would experience.
Acts 9:15-16: But the Lord said to him, “Go, because this man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel. 16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”
This shows you how far ahead Jesus sees (how He controls the future) and not just that, but how His ways are not our ways and our thoughts not His thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9: “Indeed, my plans are not like your plans, and my deeds are not like your deeds,” says the Lord, “for just as the sky is higher than the earth, so my deeds are superior to your deeds and my plans superior to your plans.”
If it were you and you wanted a previous enemy (Paul) on your side, you wouldn’t tell them they would suffer—you might promise a comfortable experience to lure people in.
But Jesus said that if you do not carry your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of me (Luke 14:27). Therefore, it's problematic if the call to people is that if they become Christians, their lives will be rosy.
Matthew 24:9: “Then they will hand you over to be persecuted and will kill you. You will be hated by all the nations because of my name.”
When you promise people what Jesus is not promising them, there is a problem. When Jesus said people should count the cost before they become his disciples, and you promise people the riches and glory of this world once they become Christians, we have a problem.
How about this proposition from Jesus: follow me, but if you love your life, that is actually a problem.
John 12:25: The one who loves his life destroys it, and the one who hates his life in this world guards it for eternal life.
The point is that the imprisonment of Paul was not a walk in the park. It was suffering. And he said that his life was marked with the danger of death everywhere he looked.
2 Corinthians 4:8: We are experiencing trouble on every side, but are not crushed; we are perplexed, but not driven to despair; we are persecuted, but not abandoned; we are knocked down, but not destroyed, always carrying around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our body. For we who are alive are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our mortal body. As a result, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
In that imprisonment, he suffered.
Imagine the comfort and encouragement that the Philippian church gave Paul when no one was putting a gun to their heads to do so. Imagine how that made Paul feel. And here we see the feeling of delight come from the words of this verse. He said they were in his heart.
God sent angels twice during Jesus' temptation (Mark 1:13) and at the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:43). Both were intense experiences for Jesus, and angels came to minister to him.
We can also see this from Elijah's experience after confronting Jezebel, when he was exhausted and angels came to strengthen him (1 Kings 19:5-7).
The focus verse mentions two kinds of situations: imprisonment, where he could not do what he wanted, and defense and confirmation of the gospel, which is what he wanted.
In these different circumstances, the Philippian church became the message of God’s love to him.
The gospel tied Paul with these people. They were not tied by ethnicity or family links, but by the gospel. The church embraced the truth, and that truth manifested in their commitment to joining Paul.
Partners in God’s Grace
The same grace of God that moved Paul like a whirlwind to take the gospel message everywhere is the same grace that worked in the Philippians to send him supplies. It is the same grace expressed in two different ways. They were joined together on a mission. While some may not go (Paul) or give (Philippian church), all can pray.
The same grace that sustained Paul in prison also energized him to defend the gospel and bear fruit resulting from that impact.
