The Book Of Philippians A Couple Years Ago

I chose to write my paper on Philippians 3:12-21. Before writing this paper I was not entirely familiar with the reasons for Paul’s letters to the church of Philippi. It was an interesting study once I understood the background and reasoning for Paul’s writings. Paul writes a thank you letter to the Christians at Philippi for their contributions and support in his hour of need, and he uses the occasion to send along some instructions on Christian unity. Paul is also giving them an update on his circumstances. Most of Paul’s letter to the church of Philippi dealt with areas such as joy, rejoice, praise, thankfulness, and attitude.

The Bible’s verses concerning slavery contradict other verses in several places when discussing slavery and the treatment of slaves. Ephesians 6:5-9 instructs masters to “give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.” Galatians 3:28 states that “[T]here is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” Again, the Bible illustrates that slaves were equal to all others, stating “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, … whether we be bond of free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” Abolitionists undoubtedly used these quotes in order to put an end to slavery.

They indicate the Ten Commandments, taking note of that "Thou shalt not desire thy neighbor's home, ... nor his attendant, nor his maidservant. " In the New Testament, Paul gave back a runaway slave, Philemon, to his lord, and, in spite of the fact that servitude was boundless all through the Roman world, Jesus never took a stand in opposition to it. Guards of servitude swung to the courts, who had ruled, with the Dred Scott Decision, that all blacks — not simply slaves — had no legitimate remaining as people in our courts — they were property, and the Constitution secured slaveholders' rights to their property. Protectors of bondage contended that the establishment was divine, and that it conveyed Christianity to the pagan from over the sea.

The book of Romans was written by Paul to present a basic system of salvation to a church that had not receive the teaching of an apostle before. In this book, the basis of a biblical worldview can be illustrated by Paul when it comes to explaining the natural world, our human identity, human relationships, and culture.

The issue of slavery has been debated since its early inception. In recent times, there has been considerable debate as to the definition of slavery. Western scholars have attempted to justify slavery of the New World by comparing it to the slavery that existed in Biblical times as well as Greco-Roman and African slavery. Some argue that there can be no international definition of slavery. Others try to define by a few words that apply to every instance of slavery. The only true way to define slavery is according to each society in which it was based. Webster’s dictionary defines slavery submission to a dominating influence or the state of a person who is a chattel of another. Though Webster’s gives

feel that they were human beings. This was blasphemous doctrine for a slave to teach;

"I didn’t know I was a slave until I found out I couldn’t do the things I wanted," Frederik Douglass. The definition of the word slave is a person who is the legal property of another and is forced to obey them. In 1845, people were treated as property, and human beings were treated as if they were dogs or a pet to their master. Commissioners were appointed to divide properties and tragically, humans. Mr. Douglass lived the life of a slave and escaped wisely and cunningly.

Slave, I before reasoned with you, but you have proved yourself unworthy of my condescension. Remember that I have power; you believe yourself miserable, but I can make you so wretched that the light of day will be hateful to you. You are my creator, but I am your master; obey (152)!

“The most common term for “servant” is doulas, which means “slave”. Not surprisingly, doulous was a title of humiliation in the ancient world. People frowned upon the idea of being subservient, of putting a master’s interests before their own” (Jonhston.1999 p,76) In addition the word servant fits better with Christians, than the word slave.

I think Paul has mixed feelings in his feelings towards slavery, however, I think overall he is anti-slavery. In 1 Corinthians 7:22-23, Paul says that if a person was a slave before he found Christ, then he will be free; but, if a person was free and then was baptized, then they would be a slave of Christ. In that passage, Paul states that the condition a person is in will be the opposite if they choose to follow Christ; however, the opposite is true in Galatians and Philemon. In Galatians 3:28, Paul says that through Christ there is no longer a person that is free or a slave. In Philemon 1:16, Paul asks Philemon to take Onesimus back not as a slave but as a beloved brother. I think Paul is against slavery, but I think that when it comes to Christ, that is when he might have mixed feelings because we do not know if a person is free when they follow Christ or if they are a slave.

Paul asks a Christian slavemaster named Philemon to receive kindly, perhaps even to release, his recently converted runaway slave Onesimus, now returning."

Well we have seen in this above with the introduction that this deals with the humility when it is genuinely exercised and the rewards that are awarded by God. Well let’s discuss through this Philippians chapter two, one through eleven. Before going into the deeper first let us discuss what it says in the first five verses of this chapter. Well though it is always good to hear from the scholars. To say that in the verse one it clearly states that this chapter was linked to the previous chapter, because this chapter was started with “Therefore” which indicates that Paul began with the unity that was ended up in 1:27. This shows that it has four clauses which deals with the Philippians sharing and as well as their experiences. These are stated to promote unity especially through experiences in the people of Philippians. Richard R. Melick Jr. stated in his book of Philippians, Colossians, Philemon commentaries that,

Interestingly, Paul does not deliver a discourse against slavery but instead teaches on how we are to relate to each other in Christ. Eventually, Paul was prepared to write to Philemon to explain what they needed to do to have an exceptional relationship with Onesimus. However, Onesimus’ conversion had made a genuine difference in his life that made him consider himself and others differently, including Philemon. Paul knew by having a different concept of slavery and how to treat others who are in authority is truly a blessing to for Onesimus and Philemon to know. As a result, “all such authority begins with God, for there is no authority except from God” (Rom 13:1).

Slavery, a word described as the state of one bound in servitude as the property of a household. This description, along with sadness and disbelief gets brought into peoples’ minds as the chilling sensation of the explanations begins to be sought out. The New Testament brings us many different views on how we percept our personal beliefs upon Slavery, and different problems arising as aspects on this topic are perceived by Paul the Apostle in Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon.

As with any interpretation of a passage of Scripture, the proper interpretation of Philippians 2:2-11is relied on accurate examination of its context. Paul wrote this letter to the Philippians to thank them for the gift, in which was sent to him by Epaphroditus while in prison. Although most scholars have argued that the current Epistle to the Philippians was basically several separate letters, based on different tones throughout the chapters, in 2:2 it clearly associates the first chapter of the Philippians with the second. The direct context of Philippians 2:2-11 is the sermon to unity found in Philippians 1:27-30. With this, we see Paul urging the Philippians to essentially live as citizens who are worthy of the gospel. He then continued this theme into chapter two where he continued to advise the Philippians to humility.