Coppertop Sermons

Philippians 4

Philippians 4

Philippians 4:1: This verse completes the end of the previous chapter. Before commenting on it, let me cite a supporting statement for a comment from chapter 3. There I said that both Christianity and Buddhism claim that desire run rampant is a new form of bondage. Like a hunted hare you run, the

View More

Philippians 3

Philippians 3

Philippians 3:1a: This part of verse one continues the thought of the previous section. Paul is encouraging joy. With the next section, we seem to have a radical shift in tone, leading some to argue that perhaps this letter is a compilation of more than one correspondence.

Philippians 3:1b-16: Paul writes to remind

View More

Philippians 2

Philippians 2

Philippians 2:1-11: Paul had been writing about living life in a manner worthy of the gospel, and a part of that was to stand firm in one spirit, to work together with one mind. The phrase “be of one mind” literally means, in Greek, “set one’s mind on the same thing.” This connotes

View More

Paul’s Letter to the Jesus Community at Philippi

Paul’s Letter to the Jesus Community at Philippi

Traveling north from the city of Ephesus to Macedonia in the first century CE and you find the city of Philippi. It was a leading city in the Roman province of Macedonia and located on a major east-west road linking Rome with Byzantium. The city of Philippi

View More

Ephesians 5

Ephesians 5

Ephesians 5:1-20: The previous chapter ends by encouraging the Ephesian Christians to forgive as God has forgiven. This chapter begins with the more general admonition – “Be imitators of God.” Another way of saying this is to say, “Live in love as Christ loved us.” Christ’s love was demonstrated in the way he

View More