[1] (Philippians
1:2) When translator supplements are removed (e.g., Grace be unto you and peace
from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ), Paul’s greeting to
the congregation at Philippi, can be seen as a clear reference to the Godhead.
This commentary [using the Majority Text] removes the words “from the”
preceding the mention of Jesus in verse two. These two little words, are
translator supplements [and
are not substantiated by the underlying Koine
Greek]. These were added for no other see-able purpose than to portray a
non-existent hierarchy within the Godhead. The same can be said for Ephesians
6:23. Any teaching of hierarchy within the Godhead contradicts scriptures which
clearly teach functional equality within the Godhead. The scriptures say that
all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Jesus in bodily form, that Jesus [The
Word] is God, that Jesus is the Mighty God, that Jesus is the Everlasting
Father. All of these refute the idea of hierarchy within the Godhead. Jesus is YHWH, and no accurate translation of
either the Hebrew or Greek scriptures says otherwise.
[2] (Philippians
1:6) Paul placed great priority on teaching Bible prophecy. In his letters, he
often made mention of the coming of Jesus. In this instance, he called it, “the
Day of Jesus Christ.” He did the same in 1 Corinthians 1:7, where he used both
terms together, leaving no question as to what he was referring. Paul
frequently mentions the Rapture, the Second Coming, and other aspects of Bible
prophecy as well. See 1 Corinthians 15:23-28, 52 (practically all of chapter
15), Philippians 1:10, 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 2:19, 3:13, 4:15-18, 5:1-11, 23, 2
Thessalonians 1:7-10, 2 Thessalonians 2 (entire chapter). This is by no means
an extensive listing, but just a short list shows the frequency of references
to these things and gives a good indication of the importance the great apostle
placed on Bible prophecy.
[3] (Philippians
1:7) Paul was a prisoner of Rome because he preached the resurrection of Christ
Acts 23:6-11. What did his defense and confirmation of the gospel
consist of? Concerning his defense of the gospel, in Acts 23, it was the
Resurrection he defended. He defined “the Good News,” in 1 Corinthians 15, as
the message of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Throughout his
life, Paul remained laser-focused on the message of the gospel, for which he
was imprisoned [which he defined as redemption, the message of the cross and the empty
grave]. Each time he identified himself as a “prisoner of Christ,” he was
referencing his defense of the death, burial, and resurrection of the Messiah.
Note the following samples from each of Paul’s letters. There are many more: Romans
1:1-5, 1 Cor 2:1-2, Galatians 1:1, Ephesians 2:13-19, Philippians 2:8,
Colossians 1:13-22, 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 2 Thessalonians 1:7, 1 Timothy 2:4-6,
2 Timothy 1:8-12, Titus 2:13-14, Philemon 1:1.
Concerning the confirmation of
the gospel—proof that what he preached about Jesus was true—in Romans 15:18-19,
Paul reminded the Christians in Rome how his preaching of the Good News had
been confirmed by God with mighty signs and wonders. Jesus had previously
detailed what those signs and wonders would consist of Mark 16:13-18,
and Paul no doubt knew of this even before Mark’s Gospel was published. He
wrote of the confirming signs and wonders to the the congregations at Corinth and
Thessalonica 2 Corinthians 12:12, 2nd Thessalonians 2:4. Even so, he
did not neglect to warn Christians against following after counterfeit signs
and wonders 2nd Thessalonians 2:9, which Jesus had also warned
against Matthew 24:24. Christians must be able to discern between
the real and the counterfeit. That is possible only through a working knowledge
of the Bible, with the help of the Holy Spirit. God has also gifted some with
the gift of discerning of spirits.
[4] (Philippians
1:11) Jesus is God John 1:1. New Testament statements like Philippians
1:11, can only be properly understood within the context of the Eternal Godhead
Colossians 2:9. Only by disregarding scriptures like Matthew 1:23,
Acts 20:28 and 1 Timothy 3:16 [in the Koine Greek and all translations from the
Received Text], which explicitly state that Jesus is Yahweh, can the conclusion of a hierarchical godhead be reached.
Almost all Christian cults diminish
Emmanuel (THE God with Us) by
creating hierarchical triads. Hierarchy within the Eternal Godhead does not exist,
and Received Text scriptures are witnesses to the Hebrew texts, where the
prophets wrote of the Messiah, who would be Immanuel—THE
God himself Isaiah 7:14, 8:8. Isaiah also wrote that Messiah would
not only be Immanuel, but that the
Son of God, the Prince of Peace, would be God
Himself [YHWH]—the
Everlasting Father (the Father of
Eternity) and the Mighty God Isaiah
9:6. Jesus is truly THE GOD with us.
[5] (Philippians 1:12) Believers are called
to be bearers of glad tidings to the lost. Watchmen and prophets are generally
(though not always) sent to God’s people, to other believers or professing Christians.
One notable exception is Jonah. The Assyrian capitol was saved from destruction because these
gentiles heeded the word of the prophet.
[6] (Philippians 1:12-14) Here we read of
one reason for persecution and martyrdom of believers. Beginning with Jesus
himself, history records that anywhere persecution for Christ takes place, the
congregation of the Out-Called grows exponentially. One example is China and
Korea, where Christians are brutally persecuted, yet the number of believers
continues to grow. We must remember to pray for our persecuted brothers and
sisters in Christ.
[7] (Philippians 1:15-18) When Christ is
preached, regardless of the motivation of the preacher, it is the gospel itself
that is the power of God unto salvation. Therefore, whether we approve of the
preacher or not, we can rejoice with Paul, that the Word of God is being preached
and God’s Word will not be spoken in vain.
[8] (Philippians 1:19) This is yet another
proof that there is no hierarchy within the triune Godhead (YHWH).
Jesus is YHWH. The Holy Spirit is YHWH. The Spirit
of Jesus Christ referenced in this verse is the same Spirit of Elohim
in Genesis 1:1 and throughout the Old Testament. The Spirit of God (Elohim)
and the Spirit of Jesus Christ are one and the same because Jesus is YHWH.
Else why would Ananias have been asked why he had lied to God when he lied to
the Holy Spirit?
[9] Paul
was a political prisoner, and continually faced a death sentence at any time,
so when he wrote, “…if I live in the
flesh…,” he was making reference to his life here on earth -Vs- his life in
the hereafter. But why did he feel the need to make that distinction?
It was because Paul understood
that his conscious existence would never cease. For the Christian, conscious life
is continuous, either here on earth or in the hereafter. He also wrote, “to be
absent from the the body is to be present with the Lord.” There are no time
gaps in the conscious existence of anyone. Whether saved or unsaved. Paul did
not teach Soul Sleep. And this helps us to understand his next statement about
trying to decide whether he wanted to stay in the flesh or depart and be with
Christ, the departure (physical death) being far better.
Paul knew from the story of
Lazarus and the rich man, told by Jesus himself Luke 16:19-31, that
the transition from this life to the next is immediate. Only the bodies of
believers will “sleep” in death until the resurrection. The soul never sleeps
or loses consciousness. Jesus confirmed this when he said, “I am the
resurrection and the life They that believe in me though they were dead yet
shall they live And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.”
[10] (Philippians 1:23) This verse also
refutes the notion of soul sleep. The doctrine is not taught anywhere in
scripture. Paul rightly believed that when his body died (fell asleep), he
would immediately be with Christ in Heaven. Jesus taught this as well when he
told of the rich man and the beggar, Lazarus. There was no loss of consciousness
upon the death of the body. The bodies of believers “sleep” in death until the
resurrection, but not the soul.
[11] (Philippians 1:29) In every generation since the death and resurrection of Messiah, there have been believers called to suffer for Christ’s sake. Suffering is not a prerequisite for salvation and therefore cannot be confused with the suffering of believers and Jews during the time of wrath that is coming on the earth during the last seven years immediately preceding the 2nd Coming of Christ.
Before Jesus was born, died, and rose again, persecution only
came upon God’s people when they rejected him and his ways. Persecution for
righteousness sake is peculiar to the time of “Christ in You.” The age of the
Out-called, the Time of Christ in You, began with the Coming of the Holy Spirit
on the Day of Pentecost and will end with the Resurrection and the Harpazo (Catching
Up/Rapture).
With the Body of Christ no longer on the earth, those left
behind will find themselves living in the the 70th Week of Daniel (the
final seven years preceding Christ’s visible and physical return), a time the
prophet Joel declared to be so fearful he warned all to be greatly afraid. Those
who rejected Christ during The Accepted Time, the Time of Christ in You, when it
was possible to simply call on the name of the Lord for salvation, will find
themselves living in the time of wrath. Jesus spoke of this wrath when he
warned that those living in that time must endure to the end [of the most
brutal persecution ever known] to be saved.
The Bible says Christians are not called to wrath but to
deliverance. The time of wrath is the Time of Jacob’s Trouble/The Great
Tribulation and the deliverance is the harpazo (catching up/rapture).
This is written of in Luke 21:35-36 (20-36), Revelation 3:10, 1 Thessalonians
5:1-9, and is speaking of deliverance from the wrath “to come” that Jesus
mentioned in Matthew 3:7 (the Time of Jacob’s Trouble/ the Great Tribulation).
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