Philippians: Paul Prays with Joy and Confidence
Philippians 1:3-6 - There is only one thing that can give true joy and that is contemplation of the Lord Jesus Christ.
“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all, in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now. For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 1:3-6 NASB1995
Paul begins the main text of this epistle doing these things:
Thanking God!
Remembering the saints at Philippi: He has not seen them in Philippi since about A.D. 58 on his third missionary journey as documented in Acts 20, so that is about four-six years previously. The church was first established in Paul’s second missionary journey, about ten years previously.
Offering unceasing prayer in joy in every prayer for them.
Noting that they participated in the Gospel from the very first day and are continuing until now.
Expressing confidence that He who began a good work in them will perfect it until [and in] the day of Christ Jesus.
It is obvious that the church at Philippi is a source of deep, positive emotion to Paul, unlike some of the other early churches. Here is what Charles Spurgeon says about Paul’s gratitude to the believers at Philippi (from Precept Austin):
All Paul’s memory of Philippi excited gratitude in his mind. He could not have said of the Galatians, “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.” Oh, no! He said, “O foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you?” There were persons of whom he said, “I thank God that I baptized none of you.” He was pleased that believers should be baptized, but he was glad that he had not baptized certain persons who would have made capital out of it, and boasted that they were baptized by the hands of Paul. It was not so with the Philippians. Paul thought of them with devout gratitude to his God that there were such people, and that he had come into personal contact with them. He knew the ins and outs of them, and yet he could thank his God whenever he thought of them.
The underlying deep emotion in this expression of gratitude from Paul is, of course, based in joy. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), something well beyond temporary happiness or pleasure that is tied to things we do in this life. I’m happy to embark on a cruise. It’s a pleasure to meet friends at happy hour. I’m thrilled to have lost a couple of pounds. Camping at this lake is extremely nice. This temporary state is erased by the fact that you eventually have to disembark the cruise (at a ridiculously early hour) and fly home with bags of dirty clothes, the happy hour get-together is over in an hour or two, you just weighed yourself and are shocked to see that you gained five pounds in one day (probably after the happy hour or the cruise), and you must sadly leave the beautiful campground and return home on overcrowded roads with impatient drivers. Although there are many things in this life that make us happy in a moment, true joy can only come from God. These commentary examples of that joy from Precept Austin are worth contemplating:
Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote that when we give a definition for joy:
…we do not go to a dictionary; we go to the New Testament instead. This is something quite peculiar which cannot be explained; it is a quality which belongs to the Christian life in its essence, so that in our definition of joy we must be very careful that it conforms to what we see in our Lord. The world has never seen anyone who knew joy as our Lord knew it, and yet He was “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” So our definition of joy must somehow correspond to that… Joy is something very deep and profound, something that affects the whole and entire personality. In other words it comes to this -
There is only one thing that can give true joy and that is contemplation of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He satisfies my mind; He satisfies my emotions; He satisfies my every desire. He and His great salvation include the whole personality and nothing less, and in Him I am complete. Joy, in other words, is the response and the reaction of the soul to a knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Life in Christ Studies in 1 John by Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
[From Bruce Hurt] How can we as believers "maximize our joy?
The hope (absolute assurance) of future glory brings joy (1 Pe 4:13).
The Lord's Word brings joy (John 15:11).
Prayer brings joy (John 16:24).
The presence and fellowship of believers brings joy (1 Jn 1:3-4).
Converts bring joy (Lk 15:5; Php 4:1; 1 Th. 2:19-20)
Hearing that those you have mentored or discipled are walking in the truth brings joy (3 Jn 4).
Fellowship with Father and Son brings joy - we need to "keep short accounts" by confessing our sins so that this fellowship is not adversely effected (1 Jn 1:3, 4, 1 Jn 1:9)
Secular dictionaries define joy as the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or the emotion evoked by the prospect of possessing what one desires. The world's definition of joy is synonymous with the definition of happiness, for both of these "emotions" are dependent on what "happens".
Certainly there is a semblance of joy in human life, such as joy when one experiences a victory ("We will sing for joy over your victory, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners. May the LORD fulfill all your petitions." Psalm 20:5 Spurgeon's comment) or when one reaps a bountiful harvest (see Isaiah 9:3), but more often the Bible speaks of joy in a truly spiritual sense (as described above by Martyn Lloyd-Jones). For example, Nehemiah declared to the down in the mouth (not very filled with joy) Jews that "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Neh 8:10). Similarly, David pleaded with God to “restore to me the joy of Thy salvation” (Psalm 51:12 Spurgeon's Comment). As an aside, it is not surprising that joy and rejoicing are found most frequently in the Psalms (about 80 references) and the Gospels (about 40 references).
C. S. Lewis came a bit closer to the Biblical meaning of joy when he called it an “unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction.” That statement is a bit obtuse (to me) but Lewis then went on to add that joy "must be sharply distinguished both from happiness and from pleasure". Ultimately Lewis experienced joy when he discovered that Jesus was the wellspring of all joy.
Think about it - Paul is under house arrest, unable to move about freely and closer to his execution than he realizes, yet he is filled with joy when remembering the believers at Philippi. He is confident that the good works that the Lord has put into those believers will continue and be perfected in the day of His return. I also like what Enduring Word says about this passage;
Making request for you all: Paul prayed for the Philippians and he did so with joy. This was one way Paul felt he could repay the Philippians for all they did for him.
One might simply say that when Paul prayed for the Philippians, he became happy. It is remarkable to see that Paul’s first reference to his own feelings or frame of mind in this letter is that of joy – though he wrote from prison and a possible soon execution.
“It is a glorious revelation of how life in fellowship with Christ triumphs over all adverse circumstances. The triumph, moreover, is not that of stoical indifference. It is rather the recognition of the fact that all apparently adverse conditions are made allies of the soul and ministers of victory, under the dominion of the Lord.” (G. Campbell Morgan)
“This is Paul’s great singing letter. It was at Philippi that he had sung in prison at midnight, in the company of Silas. Now he was again in prison, this time in Rome.” (G. Campbell Morgan)
For your fellowship in the gospel: This was one reason Paul was thankful for the Philippians. The idea is that the Philippians “partnered” with Paul in his spreading of the gospel through their friendship and financial support, and they did so from the first day until now. They didn’t wait to see if Paul was a “winner” before they supported him. They got behind Paul and his ministry early.
He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ: When Paul thought of the beginning of God’s work among the Philippians (from the first day), it was natural that he also thought of the day when that work would be complete. Paul also expressed his confidence in God’s ability to complete that work.
It was indeed a good work begun in the Philippians and in all believers. “The work of grace has its root in the divine goodness of the Father, it is planted by the self-denying goodness of the Son, and it is daily watered by the goodness of the Holy Sprit; it springs from good and leads to good, and so is altogether good.” (Charles Spurgeon)
Because this good work was begun, Paul was confident of its completion. God is a worker who completes His works. “Where is there an instance of God’s beginning any work and leaving it incomplete? Show me for once a world abandoned and thrown aside half formed; show me a universe cast off from the Great Potter’s wheel, with the design in outline, the clay half hardened, and the form unshapely from incompleteness.” (Charles Spurgeon)
This work in the believer will not be finally complete until the day of Jesus Christ, which in context has the idea of the second coming of Jesus and our resurrection with Him. “Holy Scripture does not regard a man as perfect when the soul is perfected, it regards his body as being a part of himself; and as the body will not rise again from the grave till the coming of the Lord Jesus, when we shall be revealed in the perfection of our manhood, even as he will be revealed, that day of the second coming is set as the day of the finished work which God hath begun.” (Charles Spurgeon)
Maximizing our joy means doing these things, as noted by Bruce Hurt:
Repenting
Being confident of eternal glory
Reading and studying the Word
Praying
Being with other believers
Converting others
Seeing others walk in Truth
Giving
Having fellowship with the Father and Son
You can’t force yourself to be joyful and we should not mistake it for being stoic or unemotional when faced with life’s turmoils and pleasures. The Holy Spirit is the one who gives us the fruit of the Spirit.
My next devotional examines Philippians 1:7-8 - Paul declares his affection for the saints at Philippi.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I must first thank you for the many times in my life where, through Your providence, I enjoyed and was happy in a circumstance in this life. However, I want to continue to work to replace that happiness with the true joy that comes from contemplating You at all times. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Precept Austin was accessed on 6/24/2025 to review commentary for Philippians 1:3-6.
Enduring Word commentary by David Guzik is used with written permission.