Paul and Timothy, servantsof Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishopsand deacons:2Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.3I thank my God every time I remember you,4constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you,5because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now.6I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.7It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because you hold me in your heart,for all of you share in God’s gracewith me, both in my imprisonment and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel.8For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus.9And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight10to help you to determine what is best, so that on the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless,11having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.12I want you to know, beloved,that what has happened to me has actually helped to spread the gospel,13so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guardand to everyone else that my imprisonment is for Christ; Phil 1:1 - 13
4Rejoicein the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.5Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.6Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil 4: 4 – 7
10I rejoicein the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it.11Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have.12I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need.13I can do all things through him who strengthens me.14In any case, it was kind of you to share my distress. Phil 4: 10 - 14
3We must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters,as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing.4Therefore we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith during all your persecutions and the afflictions that you are enduring.5This is evidence of the righteous judgement of God, and is intended to make you worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering. 2 Thess 1: 3 – 5
6Now we command you, beloved,in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from believers who areliving in idleness and not according to the tradition that theyreceived from us.7For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with you,8and we did not eat anyone’s bread without paying for it; but with toil and labour we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you.9This was not because we do not have that right, but in order to give you an example to imitate.10For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: Anyone unwilling to work should not eat.11For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work.12Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.13Brothers and sisters,do not be weary in doing what is right. 2 Thess 3: 6 - 13
I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deaconof the church at Cenchreae,2so that you may welcome her in the Lord as is fitting for the saints, and help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a benefactor of many and of myself as well.3Greet Prisca and Aquila, who work with me in Christ Jesus,4and who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles.5Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convertin Asia for Christ.6Greet Mary, who has worked very hard among you.7Greet Andronicus and Junia,my relativeswho were in prison with me; they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.8Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord.9Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys.10Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus.11Greet my relativeHerodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus.12Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord.13Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; and greet his mother—a mother to me also.14Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisterswho are with them.15Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.16Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you. Rom 16: 1 - 16
Questions:
Who is this letter written to?
What is Paul writing from and what mood is he in?
How is he feeling about the people he’s writing to?
What specific issues is he raising in this extract?
How relevant are those issues to our community?
How relevant are they to other contemporary Christian communities?