Philippians 4:21-23 (NIV)
Greet all God’s people in Christ Jesus. The brothers and sisters who are with me send greetings. All God’s people here send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
Paul ends his letter the same as he began it, with greetings to “all the Saints in Christ Jesus” (1:1b), translated in the NIV “all God’s people in Christ Jesus”, and with the blessings of the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ (1:2). This reemphasizes that those who are part of the church in Philippi are indeed genuine saints, and bolsters Paul’s encouragement throughout the letter to actually live out that reality in their day-to-day lives. And, if they do, they are assured that the grace, the favor of Jesus Christ Himself, will be with them.
Paul conveys greetings from the brothers and sisters who are with him in Rome, seeing to his needs and helping him to accomplish those things he cannot do himself due to his house arrest. Among these is a Epaphroditus, the brother from Philippi who had come to bring the support from the church there.
He expands his greetings to include those from all the saints with whom he has contact in Rome, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. Even though Nero Claudius Caesar himself was a notorious pagan who would in the coming years persecute the church in Rome violently, even ordering Paul’s execution, at the moment the Christians barely showed up on his radar. And many from his household had heard Paul’s testimony and had received Salvation through Jesus as a concequence. Caesar’s household included not only or even mainly his family members, but also slaves, courtiers, and even members of his elite guard. Now these household members were coming to Paul to learn more about Jesus and God’s Kingdom, and they wished to pass on greetings to their brothers and sisters in Christ so far away in Philippi–so different from them in some ways, but all living under the same Lord.
Father, it is true that often our brothers and sisters in Christ can be closer to us than our own flesh and blood. And that is true regardless of race or national origin, socioeconomic background, or educational level. We all have come to the cross from the point of hopelessness, and having to admit that we were sinners, unworthy of your grace, but praying for it anyway. We have all been transformed by your presence in our lives. We have all received the same destiny, eternity with you, and we all realize that we have each received a calling, a role to play in your body in the advancement of your Kingdom until that destiny becomes real. These are the ties that bind us together, now as much as in Paul’s day. Lord, make these ties even more secure in our day as we face challenges and as we move your agenda forward under what often seems growing hostility and more and more challenging circumstances. Help us to be faithful to you and united to each other, all the way to the end. Amen.