Outline of Philippians

The book of Philippians is said by many Bible scholars and commentators to be hard to outline, as it appears not to follow any particular order.  However, I have been studying the book for years and I keep seeing four themes that naturally flow in very clear order from one point to the next.  I don't claim any special insight, I just know what I see as I have read through and studied this book, more than I have any other of Paul's epistles.  And I see four major themes corresponding closely to the four chapter divisions, all pointing to what I believe is the central message of the book: "Christian Experience."  I have outlined these four themes with the thrust of my outline being "Elements of Vital Christian Living."

The four themes, as outlined below are:

Chapter 1 - Think Rightly About the Gospel
Chapter 2 - Develop the Form of a Servant
Chapter 3 - Stand Fast
Chapter 4 - Hold a Proper Christian Attitude

Together these are "Elements of Vital Christian Living" and form the basis for living a vibrant Christian life regardless of the circumstances around us.

Some have said that "joy" is the theme of Philippians.  Joy and rejoicing are represented very well in the book, appearing 18 times in only 4 short chapters, written ironically from prison.  However, what I see is that this joy and rejoicing is but a part of the overall Christian experience.  I am making a note in my Bible, "Joy in Philippians is not the main course, but is sprinkled like salt in every bite."

Philippians stands alone, unique among Paul's epistles to churches.  It was not written to teach doctrine, like Romans and Ephesians.  It was not written to correct any moral problems, like Corinthians and Thessalonians.  It was not written in response to false doctrine, like Galatians and Colossians.  Instead it was written to a normal, thriving church that was already moving in the right direction.  If Paul were on earth today writing letters to churches, the most sound and solid of Bible-believing churches could receive a letter just like Philippians.  For that reason, such a church should study it diligently and gain from it all that it might.  While we learn much from Corinthians or Galatians for example, we still have to (hopefully) say, "It wasn't meant for a church like ours; by the grace of God let us not become such a church."  But when we study Philippians, we instead have to say, "It was meant for a church JUST like ours!  Let us gain from it all its wonderful riches!"

Starting next week, I will be attempting to teach through Philippians for the second time in my ministry.  The first time through ten years ago, teaching to a group of senior high school boys and girls, was my first ever public teaching ministry in a church.  I studied very diligently, but I mainly had to follow the printed 13-week lesson plan provided by a Sunday School publisher, since the kids were studying that.  This time, I was asked by my pastor to teach a Bible study to (mainly) adults and I will follow the outline of Philippians that I have developed in my own mind over years of thought on the book.  I finally put my outline on paper recently and it still needs to be fleshed out more, but I will share it here in its current form.

As I teach through the book, I plan to post my lesson plans and detailed outlines here as well, or over at my preaching blog, and I will also be sharing my Bible's margin notes, old and new, over at my wide margin Bible note-takers' blog.

Here is my (current) outline of Philippians.  The next time you read through Philippians, you may be able to correlate this outline and see how these points seem to sum up the message of each chapter and section.  In thinking through the book this way, I think we can gain much from this outstanding little letter to a faithful church.

The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Philippians

Outline by Victor E. Mowery, 2014

Theme: Elements of Vital Christian Living

I.                   Think Rightly About The Gospel – Chapter 1

A.   Our Fellowship in the Gospel – 1:1-11

B.   God’s Sovereignty in the Gospel – 1:12-18

C.   Conduct Becoming of the Gospel – 1:19-30

II.                Develop The Form of a Servant – Chapter 2

A.   The Servant’s Heart – 2:1-4

B.   Jesus: Servant of No Reputation – 2:5-11

C.   The Philippians: Servants of No Rebuke - 2:12-18

D.   Timothy: Servant of No Equal Peer – 2:19-24

E.   Epaphroditus: Servant of No Self-Regard – 2:25-30

III.              Stand Fast – Chapter 3 (3:1-4:1)

A.   Stand Fast to Stay Safe! – 3:1-3

1.                 Safe in the Tried & True Doctrine, v. 1

2.                 Safe Against Teachers of Works Salvation, vv. 2-3

B.   Stand Against Exaltation of Flesh and Self – 3:4-11

C.   Stand Fast in the Journey to Christ-likeness – 3:12-16

D.   Stand Fast in the Heavenly Mindset – 3:17-21

1.                 Follow the Right Example, v. 17a

2.                 Mark and Reject the Wrong Example, v. 17b-19

3.                 Keep An Eye on the Sky, for our Redemption Draweth Nigh !  v. 20-21

E.   Stand Fast in the Lord – 4:1

IV.            Hold a Proper Christian Attitude – Chapter 4

Obviously, Roman numeral IV needs to be developed more.  In fact, all of the points will be developed more as I teach through the book.  I plan to keep posting updated outlines here and it is my hope that sharing the lessons here will be of help to others.  If it seems hepful to you, stay tuned and ask questions in the comments section below.

VM - 07-04-2014