It was during his second missionary journey that Paul founded the church at Philippi. Here, a number of people are identified as having placed their faith in the Lord. Among them were Lydia and her household (Acts 16:14-15) and Paul's jailer (Acts 16:27-33). Following this second event, Paul and Silas were asked to leave Philippi, and did so willingly; however, the church remembered them and supported them in their mission:
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:3-5)
Paul wrote this letter to recognize their service in his support and to provide some teaching on practical living of the Christian faith.
Paul's purpose was threefold when he wrote the epistle to Philippi:
1. To reassure the church at Philippi that his ministry was still alive and well although he was in prison in Rome;
2. To inform the church of an upcoming visit by Timothy;
3. To warn and correct the church in regard to false teaching and doctrines originating with the Judaizers.
Colossians
Colossians was written during Paul's first imprisonment in Rome in order to correct the gnostic heresy that had begun to take root in the fledgling church at Colosse. In its pages, Paul encourages that the church look to Christ Himself as the response to heretical teaching and doctrinal error.
Colossians is similar to Ephesians in discussion of Christ and the Church, except that its focus is more on Christ as the Head of the Church whereas the focus in Ephesians is on the Church as the Body of Christ. This focus derives from the fact that the church at Colossae had been infected with heretical teaching.
Click on the link to read day 32: Ephesians 4:17-Colossians 1:23
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