Philippian Bits – 1:15 – Considering the Bible

For this series in Philippians, I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1:15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will.

Some of these brother’s, those that had become confident due to Paul’s example, these brothers reacted to Pauls example in two ways.

Envy and Rivalry

To envy is different than to be jealous. See Love like Jesus – Without Envy for further details. To envy is to want what someone else has or is. Some of these brothers saw personal opportunity since Paul was off the circuit, to rise in the ranks of importance within the fledgling church. With Paul out of the way, these brothers might gain influence and personal power over others. If I appear to be a bit harsh in my estimation of these brothers, consider verse 17. I will not comment at this time.

These brothers also preached out of rivaly. Strife, contention or debate seems to be the idea here, and though this is not the highest goal for the preacher, at this time, Pauls was looking for victories, and the name of Christ was being published. For this, he was thankful.

Good Will

A portion of the brothers were preaching of good will. For this Paul was much, much, more thankful. They were mimicking the apostle, not seeking him harm. But either way, the name of Christ was being published abroad and the gospel was advancing.