WELCOME ICEBREAKER

What was your highlight of the long weekend?

WORSHIP

Paul was known for singing even when he was imprisoned. Encourage your group to enter into worship even if the week has been a challenge to them.

WORD

To review how the church was started have your group read Acts 16:9-40.

Philippi was located in what is now known as Greece. It was a Roman colony and reflected the Roman culture and administration. Paul writes to this church while in prison. Most scholars believe he was in Rome and the year was about 63 A.D. About 12 years has past since he started the church. Have the group read chapter one of Philippians. As the chapter is being read ask the group to listen as if they were in Philippi hearing the letter when it was first received.

• What good has come out of Paul’s imprisonment?

• According to verses 9-11, find five things Paul prays for these Christians?
  

• One of the things Paul prays for is for the believers to be sincere. (This meant to be without wax, in reference to the pottery of the day that had cracks filled with wax to trick the buyer. What does it mean to be sincere?

• How do you think Paul shared his faith with the elite imperial guards?

• How do you react when people seem to be preaching the Gospel for money or for selfish reasons? How did Paul react?

• What does Paul want prayer for?

• What does worthy of the Gospel  mean to you? (Verse 27) ÿ Paul wanted to hear that the church was unified (verse 27). In what ways does the enemy try to divide you from other Christians?

• History tells us that the opponents of the Philippian Christians were a group of Roman citizens who had pledged to worship the emperor and were actively seeking the allegiance of all members of the Roman colony to do the same. What kind of suffering might we face for being Christians?

WORK

• Encourage your group to memorize Phil. 1:21
  

• Pray for those being water baptized this Sunday.