Joyful thanks for a gift of love
I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. 11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Many people in our busy society do not take the time to practice the courtesy of acknowledging gifts. The apostle Paul was not like that. Although it was not his chief purpose, part of his purpose in writing to the Philippians was to acknowledge a gift, probably a gift of money, that they had sent to him at Rome and to thank them for it. No doubt the apostle had sent the Philippians a verbal acknowledgement, perhaps with someone who was traveling from Rome to Philippi, as soon as he had received the gift. Now he takes the time to write his thanks. He states what the gift really means to him, and he tells of the uniquely Christian reason he appreciates it.
From the time they had first become acquainted with Paul, the Philippians, more than any other congregation of Christians, had shown a special, personal interest in the apostle’s physical welfare. Now once more, like a tree that puts forth new shoots each spring, the Philippians’ concern for him had found a way of expressing itself. As soon as they had learned about his imprisonment, the Philippians had wanted to do something to help the apostle.
For a time, however, they were unable to carry out their resolve. Something had hindered them. Perhaps the grinding poverty that had affected the entire region some years earlier (see 2 Corinthians 8:1,2) was still making life economically difficult for the Philippians, or perhaps no messenger was immediately available to make the long journey to Rome. At any rate, the obstacles that had previously prevented the Philippians from expressing their generosity had now been removed, and Epaphroditus had brought a generous gift to the apostle on the Philippians’ behalf. He was now returning to Philippi with this letter and with the apostle’s warm thanks.
When Paul received the gift from the Philippians, he “rejoice[d] greatly in the Lord.” Here Paul uses that key word “rejoice” for the last time in the epistle. We can well imagine what special joy receiving this gift brought to Paul. After a long and dangerous sea voyage, he had arrived at Rome as a prisoner. In a huge city he had never visited before, he had to go about the task of preparing a legal defense to present to the highest court in the empire. He knew that if that defense failed, it could cost him his life.
What a joyful surprise it must have been when a trusted friend, Epaphroditus, arrived from his beloved Philippian congregation to serve as his personal attendant in Rome, to bring a gift from the congregation and, most important of all, to cheer the apostle with the assurance that his friends in Philippi had not forgotten him. Paul was an emotional man, and he was deeply moved by the Philippians’ kind gesture.
Paul was deeply grateful to the Philippians for their thoughts of him and for their gift, and he was lavish in his thanks. Still, always the teacher, he did not want to give the Philippians a wrong impression. He did not want them to think that earthly things had suddenly become overwhelmingly important to him. Nor did he want them to think that the Lord had left him in desperate physical straits or that his warm thanks was nothing more than a veiled plea for another gift. He wanted the Philippians to pause with him and see this gift of theirs in its proper perspective. He wanted them to know that there were certain things about their giving of the gift that were even more important than the gift itself.
Regardless of his physical circumstances, Paul tells his readers, he had learned to always be content. Throughout his lifetime, and especially during his years as an apostle, Paul experienced earthly circumstances that varied from great need to great fortune. At times the Lord granted him periods of rest and refreshment, even relative prosperity, but more often the apostle had lived in less than prosperous circumstances. As he served the Lord—often, in fact, because he served the Lord—he suffered hunger, cold, nakedness, beatings, imprisonment, and lack of the physical comforts many others would have considered necessities.
No matter what physical circumstances he faced, Paul had learned the secret of being truly satisfied. He had found that secret in Christ. Daily, as Christ came to him in God’s Word and as he came to Christ in prayer, the apostle found a source of strength and a never-failing fountain of contentment that could lead him to confidently declare, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength [namely, Christ].”
Whatever needed to be faced or done or accomplished or suffered, Paul was confident that he could meet the challenge because by faith he was “in Christ.” Christ’s grace was sufficient for him. Christ’s power rested on him. Christ himself stood by Paul, supplying his every need. Whatever physical things the Lord chose to give to him or withhold from him, no matter how the Lord worked in his life, Paul was content because he knew the Lord Jesus was on his side.
We too can be content with whatever the Lord gives us, be it little or much. We too have the assurance that because we are in Christ by faith, he is always there beside us to give us the strength he knows we need to cope with life in the world and to live our lives for him. Many Christian families have attractive plaques hanging in their homes inscribed with the words “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” There was one in this author’s boyhood home. What a good reminder those words are for each Christian every day. What a wonderful assurance they provide, an assurance that grows more precious and meaningful with every passing year.