Philippians - Verse-by-Verse Biblical Exegesis

paramount importance, both to Paul and to Christ. Paul's teaching on this subject is unusually rich,
with many interweaving ideas contributing to a coherent whole.
For this reason, I choose Philippians 1:9-11 as the phrase which best sums up Paul's message in this
epistle. The object of his prayer is the total sanctification of the Philippian believers. What they now
have in part must be brought to full fruition. Paul places an extraordinary emphasis on progression
in this verse. His theme in verses 9-11 is developed in many ways in the remainder of the letter.
Even the word αγιoις (saints) in verse 1:1 reflects in a striking way the assurance of definite
(ultimate) sanctification. In verse 1:9, περισσευω ... ετι μαλλov και μαλλov ("be extremely rich and
abundant, still more, even to a greater degree") indicates something of the Philippian's present yet
partial enjoyment of the graces Paul prays for. The subsequent clauses express, with progressive
significance, three goals that the apostle sets before his readers.
There are three αγαπης (stages of love) for three purposes:
(1) περισσευω so that you may test and approve the things that matter,
(2) ετι μαλλov that you may be pure and honorable in motives
(3) και μαλλov having a proper scale of values, blameless
How do we accomplish the goals of Paul's prayer? By the daily intake, metabolization and
application of Bible doctrine. Paul uses all the theological "buzzwords" for this process. And we
have good reason to believe that Paul chose αισθεσις (spiritual discernment, applications of
knowledge) to specify the practical outworking of the acquired knowledge in view.
This division of duties is in actuality the functions of the priesthood and ambassadorship of the
believer. The metabolization of Bible doctrine in the soul is the function of the believer's priesthood,
while the practical application of this accumulated doctrine is the function of the believer's
ambassadorship. In 1992, I wrote a paper on Philippians for an advanced Greek exegesis class. Some
of my friends will remember the zeal I had for this assignment. The first thing I did was make a copy
of the entire Greek text and cut each-and-every word out with scissors. Then I pinned each word in
sentence diagram form to a large 4-by-6-foot sheet of Styrofoam purchased at Home Depot. Next,
following the design of the homework assignment, I found what I believe is the primary periscope of
the book (1:9-11) and ‘overlapped’ other passages in Philippians that elaborated on Paul’s message.
Using terminology from the ministry of Robert B. Thieme, Jr., I then completed the following two
diagrams – Stage I: Priesthood of the Believer, Stage II: Ambassadorship of the Believer. Stage I is
represented by the Greek word “ginosko” which means “to come to know or to learn.” Stage II is
represented by the Greek word “aesthesis” which means “to apply what you have learned.” I include
these graphic illustrations and an explanation of the Greek words for my fellow Greek students out
there. I hope they will bless you and challenge you in some way. Since I work in the computer
industry, I borrowed some basic symbols that might look vaguely familiar to some of you. The most