The New Israel

Paul was coming to the church in philippi, which was this brand new fringe movement that started within judaism. This is paul sharing the the story of israel with a group of people that would have been largely gentile. And what he does, by using this language of do not argue and grumble, what he's doing under the surface. Heis inviting them to take on his family story. We forget this. The jerusalem council in acts 15 was the first moment that the followers of jesus became this jew and gentile joint effort in the first century. It wasn't like that before. But quickly after that, paul takes the message of j