Phillipians 3:1 – Rejoice!

For the rest, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To be writing the same to you is not, indeed irksome for me, yet it is your security.

We come across this ‘rejoice!’many times in this letter. Paul more or less apologizes for the repetition, but argues in defense that it is not annoying for him to point it out every time and for his readers it is safe. No frame of mind is as fitting to God’s good message as joy. By generating joy, the joyful message proves exactly what it claims to be.

Paul wrote this letter as a prisoner (1:13) and it goes without saying that this in itself is not a circumstance in which a person rejoices. It is all the more remarkable that there is no letter in the whole NT that shows so much joy, as it is in this letter. However, no joy in the circumstances, but “in the Lord”. That characterizes the atmosphere and motive.

The fact that there is One who controls and holds everything is a constant source of joy. Then you may be caught but you know: everything is one hundred percent under control. Because He is Lord!

Delen: