They had sent the Apostle Paul a donation for his ministry, did the few believers in hiding at Philippi.
He makes a few points, in his correspondence with them, saying, "yall are the only ones that sent anything." He goes on to speak of their common lot as believers, their hope, together....
Finally, near the end of the letter, he says.....
"I know how to live in either abundance or in need, because my faith in Christ strengthens me."(very heavy paraphrase)
The original verse can read as snarky, poorly-worded or even dogmatic, but the point is this:
"My faith helps to sustain me in any circumstance."
Your faith should never be an excuse to condemn another; in that circumstance, your faith has become the reason people persecute Christians, even the Romans remarking of the "obstinence" of followers of "Cristus".
Faith when oriented towards love and healing becomes a remarkably restorative force, just as they say even thinking a well-hidden placebo can yield results, but here we have something much more, not a trick to bolster our spirit, but a real connection to the Creator of the world!
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