As Paul the apostle
concluded his letter to the Philippians, he sent several salutations
and greetings from himself, the brethren who were with him, and they
of Caesar's household. In chapter four and verse twenty-three Paul
wrote one final phrase of blessing to the church members where we
read:
The verse begins, “The
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ...” Paul
began his letter to the Philippians in chapter one and verse two with
these words, “Grace be unto you,
and peace, from God our Father, and from the
Lord Jesus Christ”, and he ended his letter with “the
grace” which is the Greek word “charis” and means “that
which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness:
grace of speech, good will, loving-kindness, and unmerited favor”
“of our Lord Jesus Christ”. There is no greater spiritual
blessing than to enjoy the “unmerited favor” of our Savior and
Lord Jesus Christ.
The
verse goes on to say, “...be with you
all. Amen.” As one final note,
Paul's desire is that Jesus Christ's grace would “with
you all” which left no one
excluded. Everyone who was within the reading or hearing of this
letter was to receive Paul's blessing of grace, and then as though to
solidify his offer, Paul employed the word “Amen” which
means “so it is, so be it, may it be fulfilled”.
As
we have gone through this wonderful letter of Paul, hopefully we have
all been both challenged and encouraged in our walk with the Lord
Jesus Christ. Perhaps some have become familiar with Jesus and His
desires, and other have become more acquainted with His ways. There
is no better way to end this study of this letter than the way Paul
concluded his words to the Philippians - May
“the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be
with you all. Amen.”
Next
time we begin a new book from the Old Testament called Malachi,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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