CONFLICT RESOLUTION

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Philippians 4

Parakaleo Formula

Therefore + parakaleo (“I urge”) + addressed person(s) + infinitive verb = purpose of letter

Examples of Formula

• Romans 12:1 - Therefore I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices
• 1 Corinthians 4:16 - Therefore I urge you to imitate me.
• Ephesians 4:1 - I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
• 1 Peter 2:11- I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.

Who Are They?

• Euodia – Good Luck
• Syntyche – Fortunate or Success
• They were “fellow workers” with Paul and others.
• They “contended at his side”
• Influential in the congregation

The Loyal Yokefellow

• Paul’s wife (Lydia?)
• The husband or brother of either Euodia or Syntyche
• Epaphroditus
• Timothy
• Silas
• Luke
• Christ
• The bishop of Philippi
• A proper name - Syzygos

Paul and Philippians

• They were the only church to support Paul in his mission to Macedonia
• Team talk – “synathlein” (v. 3)
• Unity talk – Shared in support and shared in troubles (v. 14)

Unity

• Is it a spirit and attitude?
• Is it a plan or movement?
• Story of the 1832 Union in Lexington, Kentucky

Chris Benjamin

West-Ark Church of Christ, Fort Smith, AR
Evening Sermon, 24 February 2008

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