These are the final lines of Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It is easy to get waist deep quickly in the theology and practical living that is instructed in these letters. One thing that is often overlooked is the openings and endings of the letters. If all Scripture is God-breathed and to our use, then these greetings and farewells are important, too. We have 21 letters to learn from. In fact, letters must be important if there are 21 of them. We can learn much about greeting and saying farewell to other Christians from these letters.

In today’s verses, Paul closes his letter. And, he closes the letter by asking the Philippians to greet other Christians. It is important that we treat each other very well as Christians. We are all part of the same body—the Church. Others can see how to treat one another by how Christians treat one another. We are to be salt and light. We can’t do that job if we aren’t behaving as the salt and light. It’s not much of a leap to assume that Philippians may not have been communicating with other Christians well, or even completely stopped communicating with some. This seems to mirror our current cultural climate in the US. We need to keep communicating.

Greet Christians. Greet everyone. Be the salt. Be the light.

Philippians 4.21-23

21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you. 22 All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household. 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

[ WHAT ] is this passage saying and what is a key truth or thought that we learn?

+ What does it mean to “greet every saint in Christ Jesus”?

+ What was special about the saints in Caesar’s household?

+ What is to be with our spirit?

[ HOW ] is the Lord calling me to action/obedience?

+ Is there sin to confess or a next step to take? How has it gone since last time?

+ How can you, today, “greet other saints”?

[ WHO ] am I walking with and praying for to discover Jesus?

+ What is my next step?

+ Who, today, can you treat well that really needs it?