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Overview
Discover the Secret of Paul’s Joy
Despite being imprisoned for his beliefs, Paul writes a joyful letter to his partners in the gospel. Paul’s experiences give him authority when he challenges them to persevere in the work of Christ and when he instructs them how they can find peace and contentment in perilous times. As we read, we, too, can discover the secret of Paul’s joy and experience his triumphant confidence in Christ.
LifeChange
LifeChange Bible studies will help you grow in Christlikeness through a life-changing encounter with God’s Word. Filled with a wealth of ideas for going deeper so you can return to this study again and again.
Features
- Cover the entire book of Philippians in 11 lessons
- Equip yourself to lead a Bible study
- Imagine the Bible’s historical world
- Study word origins and definitions
- Explore thoughtful questions on key themes
- Go deeper with optional projects
- Add your notes with extra space and wide margins
- Find the flexibility to fit the time you have
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781641581011 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | The Navigators |
| Publication date: | 04/03/2018 |
| Series: | LifeChange |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 128 |
| File size: | 4 MB |
About the Author
The Navigators is an interdenominational, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people "know Christ and make Him known” as they look to Him and His Word to chart their lives.
Navigators have invested their lives in people for more than seventy-five years, coming alongside them life on life to study the Bible, develop a deepening prayer life, and memorize and apply Scripture, The ultimate goal is to equip Christ followers to fulfill 2 Timothy 2:2—to teach what they have learned to others.
Today, tens of thousands of people worldwide are coming to know and grow in Jesus Christ through the various ministries of The Navigators. Internationally, more than 4,600 Navigator staff of 70 nationalities serve in more than 100 countries.
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Lesson One
OVERVIEW
This overview will probably take you more time than any other lesson of the study. If necessary, allow one week to read the "How to Use This Study" section on pages 5–8, the historical background on pages 9–13, and the whole letter to the Philippians. Then take a second week to answer the overview questions.
First impressions
The Philippians had not seen Paul for years. Then they heard he was under house arrest, and poorly supplied with food and other necessities. So, they sent Epaphroditus to take Paul some money and care for him during his ordeal. But now Epaphroditus is back unexpectedly. Surprised to see their emissary, but glad for news after months without word, the Philippians (if they treated letters as most people do) probably read through Paul's epistle quickly at first, searching for the main points and their friend's state of mind. They probably went back to study the profound words in detail later, but their first reading was likely to have been swift and general.
In the same way, read through the whole of Paul's letter at one sitting. Get a general impression of his themes and state of mind.
1. How would you describe the mood (emotion, state of mind) Paul conveys in this letter? What appear to be his attitudes toward his circumstances, the Philippians, other people, himself?
________________________________________ ________________________________________
2. Repetition is a clue to the ideas that are most important in a book. What words and ideas are repeated in each of the following sets of verses?
1:27; 2:2-4; 4:2-3______________________ ________________________________________
1:5,7; 2:25; 4:14-15____________________ ________________________________________
1:4,18,25; 2:2,17-18; 3:1; 4:4,10_______ ________________________________________
other___________________________________ ________________________________________
Broad outline
If your impression of Philippians is vague after one reading, a broad outline can help sharpen it.
3. Reread Philippians, preferably in a different translation. (A different version can help you notice new things and can make a confusing passage clearer.)
This time, think of a short phrase or sentence that can serve as a title for each paragraph. You may want to include key words from the paragraph. Write your titles on the next page.
(Be creative. There is no one right answer; the first title is given as an example. Your Bible's paragraph divisions may differ, so feel free to alter those given here.)
1:1-2 Servants to Saints ________
1:3-11___________________________________ _________________________________________
1:12-26__________________________________ _________________________________________
1:27-30__________________________________ _________________________________________
2:1-11___________________________________ _________________________________________
2:12-18__________________________________ _________________________________________
2:19-30__________________________________ _________________________________________
3:1-11___________________________________ _________________________________________
3:12-4:1_________________________________ _________________________________________
4:2-9____________________________________ _________________________________________
4:10-20__________________________________ _________________________________________
4:21-23__________________________________ _________________________________________
Theme/purpose
People usually write letters in response to a particular situation in their own or their readers' lives. They normally have reasons for choosing the topics they cover in their letters. It is often not possible to reconstruct exactly what circumstances moved a person to write, but the more we can reconstruct, the better we will understand the writer's message.
Our own purpose for studying the letter will often differ from its original purpose, but how we understand and apply a writer's words should be influenced by how the Holy Spirit meant them to be understood and applied in the first century.
4. From your first readings of Philippians, what seem to be Paul's chief aims in writing this letter? ________________________________________ _______________________________________
5. If you have not already done so, read the historical background on pages 9–13. If you feel that additional background would help you to better interpret Paul's letter, you might write down your questions here. Some of your questions may be answered later in this study guide. The sources in Study Aids on pages 111–115 may help you to answer others. ________________________________________ _______________________________________
6. In your first readings of Philippians, you may have come across questions you'd like answered as you go deeper into this study. While your thoughts are still fresh, you may want to jot down your questions here to serve as personal objectives for your investigation of the letter. ________________________________________ ________________________________________
7. You have been reading Philippians as just an ordinary ancient letter, but it is also God's Word to us today. Does your first reading of Philippians suggest any areas in which it might apply to you? If so, what are some of those areas? ________________________________________ ________________________________________
For the group
This "For the group" section and the ones in later lessons are intended to suggest ways of structuring your discussions. Feel free to select and adapt what suits your group. The main goals of this lesson are to get to know the book of Philippians as a whole and the people with whom you are going to study it.
Worship. Some groups like to begin with prayer and/or singing. Some share requests for prayer at the beginning, but leave the actual prayer until after the study. Others prefer just to chat and have refreshments for a while and then move to the study, leaving worship until the end.
Warm-up. The beginning of a new study is a good time to lay a foundation for honest sharing of ideas, to get comfortable with each other, and to encourage a sense of common purpose. One way to establish common ground is to talk about what each group member hopes to get out of your group — out of your study of Philippians, and out of any prayer, singing, sharing, outreach, or anything else you might do together. Why do you want to study the Bible? If you have someone write down each member's hopes and expectations, then you can look back at these goals later to see if they are being met. Allow about fifteen minutes for this discussion.
How to use this study. If the group has never used a LifeChange study guide before, you might take a whole meeting to get acquainted, discuss your goals for the study, and go over the "How to Use This Study" section on pages 5–8. Then you can take a second meeting to discuss the historical background on pages 9–13 and the overview questions. This will give you more time to read Philippians and prepare lesson 1 for discussion.
It is a good idea to clear up any confusion about how to do the study as soon as possible, so at the beginning of your second meeting, ask the group if anyone was confused about how to do lesson 1.
Reading. It is often helpful to refresh everyone's memory by reading the passage aloud before beginning to discuss your lesson. Reading the whole letter may take time, but the effort will be rewarded. Have a different person read each chapter, using the tone of voice he or she thinks Paul was trying to convey so that the letter sounds like the work of a living person. It should take perhaps fifteen minutes to read all of Philippians.
First impressions. Ask the group to share first impressions of Philippians — its style, mood, content, or whatever strikes the group. If members don't understand the question, you might ask them how Paul's letter is like and unlike letters they write or receive, or like and unlike a sermon, a graduation speech, or advice from a father. The point of question 1 is to help the group see Philippians as a real letter from a person to real people for a specific occasion. Don't spend more than a few minutes on this question.
The setting of a letter is an important part of its context. The background on pages 9–13 may help you to understand the setting. Ask several group members to tell who Paul was, how he got to know the Philippians, what is important to know about the Philippians, and what was going on in Paul's and the Philippians' lives when Paul wrote. By piecing together everyone's recollections of the background, you can probably recall the main points. Then, using the background and clues from the letter, see how much you can conclude about why Paul was writing and what was going on at the time.
To help the group get to know Paul as a real person, ask them to share what kind of person they think he was (based on the background and the letter). Application will require you to put yourselves in Paul's shoes, and it will be easier to identify with Paul if he seems real to you.
Looking for repeated words and ideas (question 2) should help the group see themes and main ideas in the letter. You might ask the group to name as many repeated phrases and ideas as possible, and then move to question 4 on the letter's themes. You could share your titles (question 3) after that. Remember that there is no one right way to title a passage.
Questions. Give everyone a chance to share questions about the letter or the way you are studying it. It is good to clear up confusion about the book, the group, or the study guide as early as possible. You may want to leave some questions about the book until later in your study; they may answer themselves as you go deeper if you are looking for the answers. You could point out the list of references on pages 111–115 or encourage members to seek answers from their pastors or other Christians they respect.
Application. Question 7 ties in with the expectations and objectives you discussed at the beginning of your meeting. If some group members are unfamiliar with how to apply God's Word to their lives in specific ways, this is a chance to think of some sample applications together. (You could do this next week if you are running out of time.)
Application is often the most difficult part of the study, since many people have never been taught how to apply Scripture consciously, yet it is essential to the Christian life.
Wrap up. The group leader should have read through lesson 2 and its "For the group" section. At this point, he or she might give a short summary of what members can expect in that lesson and in the coming meeting. This is a chance to whet everyone's appetite, assign any optional questions, omit any numbered questions, or forewarn members of any possible difficulties.
You might also encourage any members who found the overview especially hard. Some people are better at seeing the big picture or the whole of a book than others. Some are best at analyzing a particular verse or paragraph, while others are strongest at seeing how a passage applies to our lives. Urge members to give thanks for their own and others' strengths, and to give and request help when needed. The group is a place to learn from each other. Later lessons will draw on the gifts of close analyzers as well as overviewers and appliers, practical as well as theoretical thinkers.
Worship. Many groups like to end with singing and/or prayer. This can include songs and prayers that respond to what you've learned in Philippians or prayers for specific needs of group members. Many people are shy about sharing personal needs or praying aloud in groups, especially before they know the other people well. If this is true of your group, then a song and/or some silent prayer, and a short closing prayer spoken by the leader, might be an appropriate end. You could share requests and pray in pairs instead, if appropriate.
Study Skill — Application
James 1:22 urges us to do what the Word says, not merely listen to it. So, the last step of Bible study is asking yourself, "What difference should this passage make in my life? How should it make me want to think or act?" Application will require time, thought, prayer, and perhaps even discussion with another person.
At times, you may find it most productive to concentrate on one specific application, giving it careful thought and prayer. At other times, you may want to list many implications a passage of Scripture has for your life, and then choose one to concentrate on for prayer and action. Use whatever method helps you grow more obedient to God's Word.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Philippians"
by .
Copyright © 2013 The Navigators.
Excerpted by permission of NavPress.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
How to Use This Study, 5,
Historical Background — Paul And Philippi, 9,
Map of the Roman Empire, 9,
Timeline of Paul's Ministry, 10,
One — Overview, 15,
Two — A Prayer for Partners (1:1-11), 25,
Three — The Important Thing (1:12-26), 35,
Four — Worthy Conduct (1:27–2:4), 43,
Five — The Mindset of Christ (2:5-11), 53,
Six — Working It Out (2:12-16), 61,
Seven — Co-workers (2:17-30, 69,
Eight — Gains and Loss (3:1-11), 75,
Nine — Citizens of Heaven (3:12–4:1), 85,
Ten — The Peace of God (4:2-23), 93,
Eleven — Review, 101,
Going On in Philippians, 109,
Study Aids, 111,