21 The Saints of God (Philippians 4:20–23)
Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen. Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. (4:20–23)
The theme of the concluding passage of the book of Philippians is found in the familiar but often misunderstood word saint. The word has drifted far from its New Testament meaning, and has been loaded down with all sorts of cultural and religious baggage. To some it has an insulting, “holier than thou” connotation. They would not call themselves saints for fear of sounding egotistical, boastful, and proud. Others believe saints are those who do remarkable good for humanity. To others the term saint conjures up the image of a gaunt, ethereal figure etched in the stained glass window of a cathedral.
Much of the confusion about saints stems from the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. A saint in Roman Catholic theology is someone who, because of his or her exemplary virtue, merit, devotion, and religious achievement, is already exalted in heaven (as opposed to the majority of faithful Catholics, who can expect to enter heaven only after a prolonged stay in purgatory). Such a person is elevated to sainthood by an official decree of the pope known as canonization, and is considered a model whose life is to be emulated.
But canonization by the Catholic Church means far more than just setting forth the saint as an example to be followed; canonized saints are also publicly venerated. Churches are often dedicated in their memory, a festival day honoring them is observed, and masses are celebrated in their honor. The Catholic Church also encourages its members to appeal to the saints to intercede with God on their behalf. Thus, prayers are offered to them, and their statues and relics are venerated. According to Roman Catholic theology, the saints can intercede not only for the living, but also for those in purgatory (in Catholic theology, a place of after-death punishment to make one fit for heaven). Living Catholics can therefore appeal to the saints to intercede with God on behalf of their loved ones suffering in purgatory.
But according to the New Testament, a saint is not an ecclesiastical relic crystallized in a stained glass window, immortalized in a statue, or canonized by Rome. A saint is anyone who has come to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, “saint” is the apostle Paul’s favorite term for Christians, appearing forty times in his epistles. He addressed all the believers in Philippi as saints in the opening verse of this epistle (cf. Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 14:33; 2 Cor. 1:1; Eph. 1:1; Col. 1:2; Heb. 13:24). Paul even addressed the members of the Corinthian church, the most troubled, sin-plagued church in the New Testament, as “those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling” (1 Cor. 1:2). A saint is not a superhero of the faith; a saint is anyone who has eternal life in Christ (Rom. 6:23) and from whom the light of Christ shines (Phil. 2:15).
In this concluding portion of his letter to the Philippians, likely written with his own hand (cf. 1 Cor. 16:21; Gal. 6:11; Col. 4:18; 2 Thess. 3:17), Paul reminds them of their identification as saints. He describes the character of saints, the worship of saints, the fellowship of saints, the joy of saints, and the resource of saints.
THE CHARACTER OF SAINTS
saint . . . saints (4:21, 22)
Inherent in the definition of hagios (saint) or hagioi (saints) is the character or nature of saints. The term can be translated “set apart ones,” “separated ones,” “sanctified ones,” or, perhaps best, “holy ones.” It is also used in the New Testament of the elect angels (Mark 8:38; Luke 9:26; Acts 10:22; Rev. 14:10) and, supremely, of God (Mark 1:24; Luke 1:49; 4:34; John 6:69; 17:11; Acts 2:27; 3:14; 4:27, 30; 13:35; 1 Peter 1:15, 16; 1 John 2:20; Rev. 3:7; 4:8; 6:10; 15:4; 16:5). God’s holiness is His utter and complete separation from sin. A saint, therefore, is someone who has been separated from sin to God for holy purposes.
“In Christ Jesus” (v. 21) is the spiritual sphere in which sainthood is the reality; the saints are those who are in Jesus Christ. That reality is unique to Christianity. The adherents of other world religions do not see themselves as being united with their religion’s founder; they merely follow his teachings. But Christians do not just believe that Christ lived, died, rose from the dead, and is coming again; they are also in Him in a union of life (cf. 1:21; 4:1; Rom. 8:1; 16:11–13; 1 Cor. 1:30; 3:1; 7:22; 2 Cor. 1:21; 5:17; Eph. 5:8; 6:10; Col. 1:2, 28; 4:7). Because of that they can say with Paul, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Gal. 2:20).
Through His sacrificial death on the cross, Jesus Christ sets believers apart to God and makes them holy. The writer of Hebrews notes, “We have been sanctified [set apart to God] through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Heb. 10:10). To the Corinthians Paul wrote, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. . . . He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:17, 21). Baptism pictures the believer’s union with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection (Rom. 6:3–4). Thus, every believer is a saint, because every believer is separated from sin to God through faith in Jesus Christ. By calling the Philippians saints, Paul reminded them that they must live as those separated from sin to righteousness.
THE WORSHIP OF SAINTS
Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (4:20)
This paean of praise is a sample of the saints’ worship. Saints are not people to be worshiped; they are people who worship. Worship defines the redeemed, and Paul began the concluding portion of Philippians with a doxology. The English word “doxology” comes from two Greek words, doxa (“glory”) and logos (“word”). Thus, a doxology is a word about glory; it is an outburst of praise and adoration that honors and ascribes glory to God.
Doxologies in Scripture are fitting responses to doctrinal truth. This one flowed from Paul’s exuberant joy over the magnificent truths he had been inspired by God to expound in this letter. True worship flows from divine truth.
In the doxology of Romans 11:33–36, Paul rejoiced and praised God for the monumental truths revealed in Romans chapters 1 to 11—the most magnificent doctrinal treatise in all of Scripture. He wrote,
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.
As he concluded the epistle five chapters later, Paul’s heart was still overflowing with praise for the marvelous truths it contained:
Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith; to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. Amen. (Rom. 16:25–27)
In Ephesians, after three chapters of rich doctrinal truth, Paul again burst out in a doxology of praise and worship: “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen” (Eph. 3:20–21). In Galatians 1:5 Paul penned this brief doxology in anticipation of the truths he would soon share with the Galatians: “To [God] be the glory forevermore. Amen.”
A doxology is also an appropriate response to all that God has done for believers. In gratitude for the wonder of his salvation, Paul wrote: “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” (1 Tim. 1:17). Facing martyrdom, he could nevertheless confidently exult, “The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen” (2 Tim. 4:18). Jude penned a doxology of praise for believers’ eternal security: “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen” (Jude 24–25).
Paul identified the object of his doxology first as our God, the God whom Christians worship, the only true and living God. John 5:44 describes Him as “the one and only God”; John 17:3 as “the only true God”; Romans 16:27 as “the only wise God”; 1 Timothy 1:17 and Jude 25 as “the only God.” The pronoun our emphasizes believers’ personal relationship with Him; they are to worship the true God in personal, intimate fellowship. As previously noted, the habitual act of worshiping God defines believers; they “are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh” (Phil. 3:3). The object of redemption was to make people worshipers. Jesus declared to the Samaritan woman at the well in Sychar, “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers” (John 4:23; cf. Rev. 5:9; 7:9–10).
Worshiping the true God cannot be done in ignorance. It is impossible to worship Him unless one knows who He is. Nor does God want ignorant worship. In Hosea 6:6 God declared, “I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings,” while Jesus said in John 4:24, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” Ignorant worship is unacceptable because it is a form of idolatry. Idolatry is not only worshiping false gods, but also entertaining thoughts about the true God that are untrue and unworthy of Him. A. W. Tozer writes,
Among the sins to which the human heart is prone, hardly any other is more hateful to God than idolatry, for idolatry is at bottom a libel on His character. The idolatrous heart assumes that God is other than He is—in itself a monstrous sin—and substitutes for the true God one made after its own likeness. Always this God will conform to the image of the one who created it and will be base or pure, cruel or kind, according to the moral state of the mind from which it emerges.
A god begotten in the shadows of a fallen heart will quite naturally be no true likeness of the true God. “Thou thoughtest,” said the Lord to the wicked man in the psalm, “that I was altogether such an one as thyself.” Surely this must be a serious affront to the Most High God before whom cherubim and seraphim continually do cry, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth.”
Let us beware lest we in our pride accept the erroneous notion that idolatry consists only in kneeling before visible objects of adoration, and that civilized peoples are therefore free from it. The essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him. (The Knowledge of the Holy [New York: Harper & Row, 1975], 11)
The only cure for such idolatry is for the church as well as individual believers to make knowing God their primary pursuit. Those with a mancentered theology cannot be obedient worshipers.
A second truth about God that flows out of Paul’s doxology is that He is believers’ Father. In the New Testament, God is first and foremost the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. Rom. 15:6; 2 Cor. 1:3; 11:31; Eph. 1:3; 1 Peter 1:3; Rev. 1:6)—a fact Jesus attested to by referring to or addressing Him as “My Father” nearly forty times in the Gospels. That fact is a proof of Christ’s deity; He and the Father share the same common life, the same deity, the same essence. The implication of Jesus’ calling God His Father was not lost on the unbelieving Jews, as John 5:18 records: “For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.”
But Paul has in mind here the truth that God is also the Father of believers (1:2; cf. Matt. 5:16, 45, 48; 6:1; 10:29; Rom. 8:15; 1 Cor. 1:3; 2 Cor. 1:2; Gal. 1:3; Eph. 1:2; Col. 1:2; 2 Thess. 1:1; 2:16; Philem. 3), whom He has adopted as His children (Rom. 8:15, 23; Gal. 4:5; Eph. 1:5). Unlike pagans, who fearfully approach threatening, aloof, uncaring deities (cf. 1 Kings 18:25–29), believers worship the God who loves them as His children. That causes them to “cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6). Believers might be afraid to approach the infinitely wondrous, majestic, and awe-inspiring God. But the intimate term Father bridges the gap between sinful, finite believers and their infinite, holy God.
The phrase forever and ever indicates the duration of believers’ worship of God. The Greek text literally reads “to the ages of the ages,” and describes “a very long and indefinite period—the image taken from the cycles or calendars of time, to represent an immeasurable eternity” (John Eadie, A Commentary on the Greek Text of the Epistle of Paul to the Philippians [Reprint; Grand Rapids: Baker, 1979], 286). The worship of the saints will not be limited to this life, but will extend throughout all eternity in heaven. To that glorious truth Paul can only add the confessional affirmation Amen—“so let it be.”
THE FELLOWSHIP OF SAINTS
Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, (4:21–22 a)
Paul’s threefold repetition of the word greet implies a strong bond of fellowship. As he closed his letter to them, Paul expressed his love for the members of the Philippian congregation and his concern for their spiritual well-being. His injunction was specifically for the leaders of the Philippian congregation (1:1), who would receive the letter from Epaphroditus. The apostle charged them to greet the individual members of the congregation on his behalf, and assure them of his love and concern for their spiritual well-being.
The apostle’s use of the individualistic term every instead of the collective term “all” reveals that every saint was worthy of his care and affection. Paul reinforced the point he made in 2:2, where he urged the Philippians to “make [his] joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.” There must be no favoritism in the church, because “there is no partiality with God” (Rom. 2:11; cf. Deut. 10:17; 2 Chron. 19:7; Job 34:19; Acts 10:34; Gal. 2:6; Eph. 6:9). All believers are saints, and any stratification in the body of Christ is contrary to the intention of the Spirit of God. All those accepted in God’s Beloved Son (Eph. 1:6) must be accepted by God’s beloved children in the church. All believers are what they are in God’s sight solely by His grace (1 Cor. 15:10).
Paul’s concern for individuals reflected that of the Lord Jesus Christ. Even when surrounded by large crowds, He was aware of individuals and their needs, as the following story reveals:
A woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse—after hearing about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind Him and touched His cloak. For she thought, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.” Immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?” And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. (Mark 5:25–32)
Paul further illustrated the point of equal affection for all believers by noting that the brethren who are with me greet you. Those brethren, Paul’s close coworkers whom he distinguished from the rest of the believers at Rome (v. 22), included some of the most illustrious names in the early church. Timothy, Paul’s protégé and beloved son in the faith, was one of them (1:1; 2:19); Epaphroditus (2:25; 4:18) was also with the apostle at the time he wrote this letter. Tychicus, bearer of the letters of Ephesians (Eph. 6:21), Colossians (Col. 4:7), and Philemon (vv. 4–9), may also have been with Paul at that time. Aristarchus, another long-time companion of the apostle (Acts 19:29; 20:4; 27:2), could have also been among the brethren Paul mentioned (Col. 4:10; Philem. 24). The group may have also included Onesimus, the runaway slave who was the subject of Paul’s letter to Philemon (Col. 4:9; Philem. 10), and two of the gospel writers, Mark and Luke (Philem. 24). As prominent as they were, though, all those luminaries were simply described as the brethren.
The fellowship of the saints is a common bond of love without strata. None of Paul’s more prominent coworkers wore backward collars, or appropriated ecclesiastical titles for themselves. That they were uniquely gifted and used by God did not make them spiritually superior; Paul identified himself as “the least of the apostles” (1 Cor. 15:9), and as the foremost of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15–16). They understood well the teaching of Jesus on the equality of believers:
Do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. (Matt. 23:8–12)
The wider circle of believers at Rome’s church also sent their greetings, as Paul noted in the phrase All the saints greet you. Though differently gifted, and at different levels of faithfulness and spiritual maturity, they were spiritually equal to their more prominent brethren. Using the metaphor of the human body, Paul stressed that point to the Corinthians:
But now there are many members, but one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; and those members of the body which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it. (1 Cor. 12:20–27)
The sharing of a common, non-discriminating love bond and a mutual desire for each other’s spiritual well-being is an essential characteristic of saints.
THE JOY OF SAINTS
especially those of Caesar’s household. (4:22 b)
The greatest joy of saints is to see sinners come to faith in Christ. In Luke 15, Jesus told two parables that illustrated salvation. The first told of a man who rejoiced at finding his lost sheep (Luke 15:5–6); the second told of a woman who rejoiced at finding her lost coin (Luke 15:9). Both express the joy believers have at the salvation of lost sinners. Similarly when Paul and Barnabas described “in detail the conversion of the Gentiles [they brought] great joy to all the brethren” (Acts 15:3).
Paul’s reference to those of Caesar’s household was especially meaningful to the Philippians. Philippi was a Roman colony (Acts 16:12) and its citizens were Roman citizens (Acts 16:21). Because of their close ties with Rome, it is possible that the Philippians knew some of the members of Caesar’s household. Caesar’s household included more than just the members of his family; it included all those in his direct employ, both lowly slaves and high-ranking freemen. In today’s terminology, they were government workers. During his imprisonment at Rome, Paul would have come into contact with many of them.
Some of the members of the imperial household, such as those of the praetorian guard the apostle refers to in 1:13, were led to faith in Christ by Paul. Others, however, were already Christians before Paul came to Rome. The nineteenth-century New Testament scholar J. B. Lightfoot found some striking parallels between the names Paul lists in Romans 16:8–15 and the names of members of Caesar’s household on lists dating from Paul’s time (cf. St. Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians [Reprint; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1953], 171–78). He concludes, “As a result of this investigation, we seem to have established a fair presumption, that among the salutations in the Epistle to the Romans some members at least of the imperial household are included” (Philippians, 177).
Paul includes both groups, those saved through his ministry and those already believers, in his greetings from Caesar’s household. Both he and the Philippians were no doubt thrilled that the household of the pagan emperor had yielded up many souls to the kingdom of Christ. The joy of saints is to see others rescued from the dark depths of sin and brought to salvation in Christ.
THE RESOURCE OF SAINTS
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. (4:23)
Paul has now come full circle. He began this letter by wishing the Philippians grace (1:2), and he concludes it the same way. The apostle ended all his letters by wishing God’s grace for their recipients (cf. Rom. 16:24; 1 Cor. 16:23; 2 Cor. 13:14; Gal. 6:18; Eph. 6:24; Col. 4:18; 1 Thess. 5:28; 2 Thess. 3:18; 1 Tim. 6:21; 2 Tim. 4:22;Titus 3:15; Philem. 25).
The resource all believers need most is the grace that comes from the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace is the unmerited favor or undeserved, beneficent love of God in Christ that brought about believers’ redemption (Eph. 2:5, 8; Rom. 3:24; 2 Tim. 1:9). God’s work of grace in believers’ lives will continue until their glorification. Paul expressed that truth in Romans 5:2: “Through [Christ] also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.” Believers are not only saved by grace, but also sustained by grace. They are governed by grace, guided by grace, kept by grace, strengthened by grace, sanctified by grace, and enabled by grace. They are constantly dependent on the forgiveness, comfort, peace, joy, boldness, and instruction that come through God’s grace.
God’s sustaining grace comes to believers through the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the theme of this epistle, being mentioned almost forty times in its four chapters. Paul described himself as a servant of Christ (1:1); he addressed the Philippians as saints in Christ (1:1); his imprisonment was for the cause of Christ (1:13); for him to live was Christ (1:21) and death ushered him into Christ’s presence (1:23); he exhorted the Philippians to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of Christ (1:26) by having the attitude of Christ (2:5); he called for them to glory in Christ (3:3); he counted everything in his past as garbage in view of the riches he found in Christ (3:8); he was saved by faith in Christ (3:9); he eagerly awaited Christ’s return (3:20); and his sufficiency was in Christ (4:19).
The character, worship, fellowship, joy, and resources of saints are all bound up in Jesus Christ. Paul aptly summed up the Christian life when he wrote, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (1:21).