"Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to all the holy ones in Christ Jesus, the [ones] being in Philippi, with the overseers and deacons..."
-Paul is definitely writing to the assembly of believers in Philippi, a place where he had visited, preached, been imprisoned, and seen God’s hand at work (Acts 16). It was the veryfirst European city where Paul had preached. He returned for a second visit in Act 20.1-6. Most estimates have Paul writing this letter some time later, from prison in Rome in around 61AD.
-Philippi was a Roman colony but was also Greek. Those who lived there were no doubt proud of their Roman citizenship but were also proud to be Greek. The city itself was named after Philip II, king of Macedonia. who founded it in 356 B.C. Philip II was able to consolidate control of the various city-states of greece under his rule, and bequeathed it to his son, Alexander III. Alexander came to be called Alexander the Great, as he extended the dominion and influence of Greece throughout much of western Asia. The Greeks became so proud of their national identity that they came to draw a clear distinction between Greek and non-Greek. They developed a particular condescension for anything and anyone non-Greek. The vast majority of slaves in their society were non-Greeks - these were actually regarded as sub-human. Greeks considered themselves to be masters of the world, and came to denigrate anyone who was not born a Greek as a barbarian (vis a vis ignorant, uncivilized, and certainly inferior)(cf Romans 1.14)(also Acts 28.2 - the word we translate into English as ‘natives’ is literally ‘barbaros’). To speak any language other than Greek was to speak ‘bar-bar’ (1Corinthians 14.11). Even in today’s world, Greeks remain quite ethnocentric - they are tremendously proud of their civilization and culture (for many reasons), Greeks marry Greeks, etc.
-Into this extremely ethnocentric mix, God had sent the apostle Paul, an Asian Jew who happened to be a Roman citizen. This was to be the first assembly of believers outside of Palestine/Asia Minor, the first in Europe. God had given the Macedonian call to Paul in a dream (cf Acts 16.9-10), which he immediately obeyed (Acts 16.11-12), despite the fact that the ministry was exploding in Asia Minor where he had been serving at that time (which incidentally was also the region where he grew up)(Acts 16.5). It so happens that just prior to this call, Paul had taken Timothy on as a disciple (Acts 16.1-3). And it is interesting to note that Timothy was actually Greek (or at least his dad was - his mother was Jewish). Paul was at that time (and unbeknownst to him) about to be called to launch into planting churches in Macedonia (aka Greece). No doubt the Lord knew what He was doing and knew that - in human terms - Timothy, being both a Greek and a Jew - would prove to be a tremendous asset to Paul as they began the work in Greece.
-The first thing that Paul says about himself (and Timothy) is that he is a bond-servant. A slave. A doulos. He had willingly surrendered his freedom, his rights, his wants, his life to Jesus. He had given Jesus ownership of all that he was and had. Tremendous example, this.
-One wonders if by specifically mentioning the overseers and deacons Paul might in fact be working to include all the other saints in Philippi. Perhaps those leaders might have been tempted to keep his letter to themselves. On the flipside of course we are aware that nobody in this Philippian assembly is excluded from paul’s instruction in this letter. One thing we know for sure - God had a plan for Greece. From its founding and extension of its influence (and language) throughout the then-known world, to the very deliberate call given to a faithful Roman Christ-follower with a Grecian Jew for a companion, we can step back and marvel at God's hand in history as He very deliberately marches forward in gathering a throng of peoples who will celebrate and spread the knowledge of His breathtaking goodness wherever they go and forever.
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