Philippians 4:13-16

Thankfulness for a Generous Church

Paul did not want to seem ungrateful so he commended the Philippian church for their good work. They shared, or had part in, his suffering when they helped. Actually, our word, "fellowship" would fit here in place of the word "shared" (1 Peter 4:14).

From Paul's very first experience with the church at Philippi, he had found them to be generous, always ready to supply his needs. Paul went from Philippi to Thessalonica, then Athens and Corinth (Acts 17:1; Acts 17:15-16; Acts 18:1). We know Paul received help while in Corinth (2 Corinthians 11:9). This probably came from Philippi, since we know Thessalonica had no part in it (1 Thessalonians 2:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:8). In fact, they sent for him while he was in Thessaloniaca, another Macedonia town (1 Peter 4:15-16).