Philippians 1:1-2

STP Devotional for the Week of 9/22/25

This devo is all about greetings! We’re going to look at the first two verses in the book of Philippians:

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

How do you greet someone you don’t know? What about someone you do know? What is the difference between them?

We talked a little about Paul’s greeting last week. In modern letter writing we start with the name of the person we’re writing to and finish with our name. In Bible times, they would start with their names to identify themselves to their readers. Timothy was probably the scribe for the letter as Paul dictated it. Paul mentions that Timothy is with him because Timothy was involved in founding the church at Philippi.

Look at how Paul describes Timothy and himself – as servants of Christ Jesus. What does it mean to be a servant? A servant is someone who performs duties for another, a devoted and helpful follower and supporter. In what ways did Jesus show servant leadership? Paul and Timothy are serving Christ by spreading the gospel wherever and whenever they can. Their servanthood is also sacrificial – Paul is willing to be jailed and even sacrifice his life for the gospel message.

Paul then addresses his letter to the saints at Philippi. Saints is Paul’s way of referring to true Christians who are living lives that are an honor to Christ. He also mentions the elders/pastors (overseers) and deacons. This is an established church, a congregation of Jesus Christ, and Paul is addressing all of its members.

Let’s focus on Paul’s blessing – “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul uses this blessing in each of his letters (Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians 1:2, Colossians 1:2, 1 Thessalonians 1:1, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, 1 Timothy 1:2, 2 Timothy 1:2, Titus 1:4, and Philemon 3).

How would you define grace? Grace is God’s love for the unworthy.

“…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” Romans 3:23

What is peace? Peace is a spiritual and physical well-being that can only come from God. God’s peace guards our hearts and minds. (Phil. 4:7) Jesus is called the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6) We can experience God’s grace and peace when we are saved.

In just a few lines of an introduction, Paul has delivered the gospel message – believe in

Jesus Christ and you will be saved. You will experience God’s grace and peace as a servant of Christ. He has also expressed his love and hope in them by greeting them and blessing them. This week let’s try to greet others in a way that blesses them.

AT HOME:

Do you consider yourself a servant of Jesus?

What is something you could do today that would help someone know that Jesus loves them?