Philippians 1

As we start this new study on the book of Philippians I will not be taking a whole chapter at a time. It seems like I missed some of the material in Colossians due to this, so I will only be taking small sections of Philippians.
Let me start with an overview of the book of Philippians. Philippians is one of Paul's prison letters. Therefore Paul is in prison for spreading the name of Christ when he writes to the Philippians. Paul's main focus behind this book is "Fellowship". Often in the church today we see fellowship as when ever we get together with someone else to have coffee, snacks, or just have a conversation together. I believe that we will see from Philippians that Paul's idea of fellowship was much more than sharing drinks and food. Paul will teach us that you cannot have fellowship with someone unless you have something in common, and for Christian fellowship, this means the possession of eternal life within the heart. In Philippians 2:1, Paul wrote about "fellowship together in the Spirit," because when a person is born again he receives the gift of the Spirit (Rom. 8:9), also see Acts 2:38-42. Too often we confuse friendship with fellowship, so hopefully Paul will teach us the real difference. Paul starts the book of Philippians by praising the Philippians for their dedication to "spreading the good news about Christ"(Phil. 1:5). Philippians 1:11-"May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation-the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ-for this will bring much glory and praise to God." Notice that Paul said this will bring glory and praise to God not us. Philippians 1:12-14-"And I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News. For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ. And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God's message without fear." Remember that Paul says because of your life in Christ it will bring glory and praise to God. Even while Paul is in prison he continues to share the message of Christ, to where it bring glory and praise to God. Paul even though he is in prison because of Christ continues to preach the "Good News". Yet, we let any little thing keep us from sharing Christ with our friends so that we might be able to fellowship with them. It's something to think about.