text: In Chapter 4, Paul urges the Philippians to resolve conflicts within their fellowship. In the latter part of the chapter (Letter A), Paul expresses his gratitude for the gifts that the Philippians had sent him, and assures them that God will reward them for their generosity.
  Throughout the epistle there is a sense of optimism. Paul is hopeful that he will be released, and on this basis he promises to send Timothy to the Philippians for ministry, and also expects to pay them a personal visit.
  Christ poem
  Chapter 2 of the epistle contains a famous poem describing the nature of Christ and his act of redemption:
  Due to its unique poetic style, Bart D. Ehrman suggests that this passage constitutes an early Christian poem that was composed by someone else prior to Paul's writings, as early as the mid-late 30s AD and was later used by Paul in his epistle. While the passage is often called a "hymn", some scholars believe this to be an inappropriate name since it does not have a rhythmic or metrical structure in the original Greek.
  Incarnation Christology
  The Christ poem is significant because it strongly suggests that there were very early Christians who understood Jesus to be a pre-existent celestial being, who chose to take on human form, rather than a human who was later exalted to a divine status.