We having been hearing from Paul’s letter to the Church at Philippi all this week. Philippi was an ancient city in Macedonia northeast of Greece, founded 4 centuries before Christ’s birth and named after Philip of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great. It later became an urban center in the Roman empire where Paul founded a Christian community on his second missionary journey. Paul was imprisoned when he wrote this letter, but he heard about discord in that community and wanted to write them a letter of encouragement and advice.
We might think of the ways we look to our mentors or our elders for advice when we are struggling or going through a difficult time. Paul, in fact, holds himself up to be an example for them to follow on their journey of faith. Paul is writing this letter from prison and is the one offering encouragement and hope to them; this is a testament to his strong joyful faith. Paul saw some in the community as false imitators of Christ, clinging too much to the things of the world and not keeping their eyes focused on our true homeland, God’s heavenly kingdom.
I remember when I was serving as a missionary in Ecuador, one of the Peace Corps volunteers in the area came looking for me in the mission site. One of the villagers told him – Brother Lincoln is not here – he has returned to his patria – to his homeland. The Peace Corps volunteer thought - Wow – Lincoln didn’t tell him he was going home to the United States to visit his family. The villager explained – Oh no, he did not go back to the United States, rather he went to the homeland here in Ecuador – to the village of San Francisco – when he goes every weekend and where he has so many projects going on. It was an honor for some of the villagers to see me having a homeland there in Ecuador, where I definitely put a lot of my heart and soul. Where would others see us having a homeland? Is our homeland in God’s kingdom, or is it in the things of this world?
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