Philippians 2:15

“that ye may become blameless and harmless, children of God without blemish in the midst of. crooked and perverse generation, among whom ye are seen as lights in the world”

“That”: “All the injunctions Paul lays down upon the Philippians (Philippians 2:3-14) are for. purpose” (Hawthorne p. 101). “Ye”: This would equally apply to every Christian. “May become”: Such. goal is possible for every Christian, yet “may become” is not the same as “automatic” or “unconditional”. “ Become implies. process of development. It is part of that salvation which they are to work out” (Erdman p. 91). “Blameless”: “For with believers an outwardly blameless life must couple itself with inward sincerity and purity and simplicity” (Muller p. 93). "Blameless" does not mean "sinless" (1 John 1:8), instead it describes the type of person who always makes the proper acknowledgement and correction for the sins they commit. “Harmless”: Unmixed, thus innocent. “Unmixed, pure; these two terms describe conduct and motive” (Jackson p. 50). “The Greek implies that which is ‘unmixed', ‘unadulterated', or ‘unalloyed'. Their lives are to be all of one piece, not part belonging to God and part to sin and self” (Erdman p. 91). “The word Conveys the idea of simplicity of character, purity, guiltlessness, or innocence” (Hawthorne p. 102). Paul is instructing that there should be “nothing in their hearts and their motives that ought not to be there” (Lenski p. 802).

From the context we learn that being self-assertive, self-centered, bitter, and complaining will frustrate the goal mentioned in this verse. Selfishness will prevent any Christian from having. good reputation among non-Christians and from having pure motives.

“Children of God”: Becoming. child of God is just the beginning. Will we be. child of God that draws people to your Father? Or, will we be. child of God that people use as an excuse for why they do not want to become. Christian? “Without blemish”: “Means unblemished in reputation and in reality” (Vincent p. 439). This context already has revealed what will blemish us. Conflicting motives, impure motives, selfish motives in the heart of any Christian will only result in. Christianity that does not appear to be genuine, because in reality it is not.

“In the midst of”: The modern American landscape is filled with "role-models”, yet it often lacks "good examples". Our "advanced" society is in great need of seeing genuine Christians. “Crooked”: Something that is warped. “Perverse”: To distort or corrupt. “Living in. warped and diseased world” (Phi). The Bible demonstrates that when people twist the truth for their own selfish ends (Romans 1:21), they end up wrong on morality as well (Romans 1:24 ff). Twisted thinking leads to twisted living.

Since every generation contains sinners (Romans 3:23), every generation is bound to be crooked and morally perverse (Matthew 12:39; Acts 2:40). This is one more reason why we are not to "love" the world (1 John 2:15). The world is "messed up"!

“Among whom ye are seen”: It is easy to forget that Christians are “seen”. People actually are playing very close attention to the way that we live. “Lights”: It “means any light-bearing body. It was used of. torch,. lantern, even of harbor beacons” (Hawthorne p. 103). “Really means stars, bearers of light” (Muller p. 94). “The word used for ‘lights' is the same as is used in the creation story of the lights which God set in the firmament (Genesis 1:14)” (Barclay p. 44). “These luminaries do not shine for their own sake; they shine to provide light for all the world. The same should be true of Christians: they live for the sake of others” (Bruce p. 85). “In the world”: The world is in desperate need of such "light" (1 John 5:19; Acts 26:18). The "good works" of Matthew 5:14. that we are to let "shine" include the good works of “harmony, of selflessness, of service to others” (Hawthorne p. 103). Christians must always remember that they are not the final source for the "light" they reflect. Let's give God all the credit, and the main point is not "being different" or standing in contrast to the world, instead the important thing is giving the "right" contrast. Our "difference" must be rooted in Scripture and not our own weird opinions. The salvation of our friends and neighbors, in part, depends upon the "signal" we are presently sending. An old expression is "they (we) are the Bible the world reads and studies". The decision to become. Christian is. decision to be. light-bearer (Ephesians 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:5)