Paul Exhorts the Philippians to Stand Firm for the
Word of God
Philippians
2:16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ,
that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain. KJVWhenever a person purchases a major appliance or some electronic device or a new automobile, there is provided to that person with the purchase an instruction manual or owner’s manual on how the item functions, where all of the key elements of the item are, how to operate the device or item, as well as warnings on what not to do in or to the item that could cause the item to malfunction or become broken, also there is usually a chart listing probable or possible causes of a malfunction along with potential solutions. With this thought in mind, the Apostle Paul has painted a word picture to these Philippian believers and we believers today of what true Christian unity should look like wanting them to approve the things which are excellent, standing fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the Gospel, suffering for Christ sake, and doing all things for Christ/other believers without complaining or grumbling, now Paul urges them and us that we must continually be, “holding forth the word of life” (Philippians 2:16). Just like an automobile or home appliance or an electronic device must be operated according to the manufacturers instruction manual, so to must the life of the believer in Jesus Christ be operated according to the purchaser’s instruction manual and in our case that would be the Bible.
The English phrase “holding forth” Paul uses here in the beginning of this verse is translated by one Greek word epecho meaning to hold upon, that is, (by implication) to retain; to pay attention to: - give heed unto. In other words, the Bible more specifically words from the Bible are to be retained in the inner man or inner woman of the believer secured there for future use as in spiritual warfare with the devil to defeat him as our Lord Jesus Himself demonstrated as documented for us by Dr. Luke, “Then Jesus, full of {and} controlled by the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led in [by] the [Holy] Spirit For (during) forty days in the wilderness (desert), where He was tempted (tried, tested exceedingly) by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they were completed, He was hungry. Then the devil said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, order this stone to turn into a loaf [of bread].’ And Jesus replied to him, ‘It is written, Man shall not live {and} be sustained by (on) bread alone {but by every word and expression of God.}’” (Luke 4:1-4) (Amplified Bible).
Just as the Heavenly light bearers like the moon hold fast or keep in place the light or reflect the light of the supreme light giver the sun, so are these Philippian believers and we believers today to reflect the light illuminating from the Word of God made flesh Jesus Christ (John 1:14) as it is also written again with these words by the Apostle John, “[We are writing] about the Word of Life [in] Him Who existed from the beginning, Whom we have heard, Whom we have seen with our [own] eyes, Whom we have gazed upon [for ourselves] and have touched with our [own] hands. And the Life [an aspect of His being] was revealed (made manifest, demonstrated), and we saw [as eyewitnesses] and are testifying to and declare to you the Life, the eternal Life [in Him] Who already existed with the Father and Who [actually] was made visible (was revealed) to us [His followers].” (1 John 1:1-2) (Amplified Bible).
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the ‘Word of Life’ at the same time the entire Word of God or the Bible is the ‘Word of Life’ and finally the Gospel is the ‘Word of Life’ as Paul wrote to Brother Timothy with these words, “[It is that purpose and grace] which He now has made known {and} has fully disclosed {and} made real [to us] through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, Who annulled death {and} made it of no effect and brought life and immortality (immunity from eternal death) to light through the Gospel.” (2 Timothy 1:10) (Amplified Bible). Note: “The Gospel stands thus in contrast with all human systems of religion - for they have no efficacy (capacity or power to produce a desired effect) to save.” (Albert Barnes) Having declared to the Philippian believers and we believers today our responsibility, Paul now lets them and us know how much it means to him personally that they hold onto the truth of the Gospel that, “I may rejoice in the day of Christ” (Philippians 2:16).
The Apostle Paul before his conversion to Christ was a steadfast, staunch, and striking persecutor of the Church of Jesus Christ, but after coming to Christ, the Holy Spirit turned that rage/anger into love for the brethren and Paul was always concerned for the spiritual well-being of the Body of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 11:28). Therefore, he wanted to know that these Philippian believers were holding firm to the truth (2 John 1:4) and this would give him great joy while he was imprisoned in Rome as evidenced by the same theme he wrote to the believers in Thessalonica with these words, “But we, brethren, having been taken away from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavored more eagerly to see your face with great desire. Therefore, we wanted to come to you --- even I, Paul, time and again --- but Satan hindered us. For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For you are our glory and joy.” (1 Thessalonians 2:17-20) (NKJV). Paul had founded their Church in Philippi and he was the human instrument God used in preaching the Gospel to them (their spiritual father) being converted to Christ by the Holy Spirit and it is for this cause that Paul wants them to shine for Christ and in so doing it would bring him much joy as the Apostle John wrote with these words, “I have no greater joy than this, to hear that my [spiritual] children are living their lives in the Truth.” (3 John 1:4) (Amplified Bible).
The Apostle Paul wanted to be sure that his spiritual work, warfare, and witness to them and for them was an effort that would benefit them in eternal blessedness with Christ and therefore he says, “that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain” (Philippians 2:16). In other words, that he had not strived hard for their spiritual good for nothing, if they were phony or did not receive the Gospel truly in their inner man and inner woman and really belonged to Christ exactly as Paul feared for the Galatian believers when he wrote these words to them, “But at that previous time, when you had not come to be acquainted with {and} understand {and} know the true God, you [Gentiles] were in bondage to gods who by their very nature could not be gods at all [gods that really did not exist]. Now, however, that you have come to be acquainted with {and} understand {and} know [the true] God, or rather to be understood {and} known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly {and} worthless elementary things [of all religions before Christ came], whose slaves you once more want to become? You observe [particular] days and months and seasons and years! I am alarmed [about you], lest I have labored among {and} over you to no purpose {and} in vain.” (Galatians 4:8-11) (Amplified Bible).
This is why Paul when he was away from many of the believers that he had preached the Gospel to, he would send men to them to bring back to him a report of their spiritual condition. Even though during the writing of this letter Paul was not with Brother Timothy, he prayed for and trusted that our Lord Jesus Christ would send Timothy to them and then Timothy would contact Paul giving him an update as to their spiritual condition (Philippians 2:19), just as he had done for the believers in Thessalonica as documented with these words, “For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain.” (1 Thessalonians 3:5) (NKJV). Paul wanted their individual testimonies and their collective testimony as a Church to be a good one just as the Apostle John wrote concerning Demetrius with these words, “Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God. Demetrius has a good testimony from all, and from the truth itself. And we also bear witness, and you know that our testimony is true.” (3 John 1:11-12) (NKJV).
“It is our duty not only to hold fast, but to hold forth the word of life; not only to hold it fast for our own benefit, but to hold it forth for the benefit of others, to hold it forth as the candlestick holds forth the candle, which makes it appear to advantage all around, or as the luminaries of the heavens, which shed their influence far and wide.” Matthew Henry
If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…
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