The Apostle Phillip

The Apostle of Administration

John 6:7 “Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.””

SWOT Analysis

Philip is a Greek name, meaning “lover of horses.”

In the four lists of the Apostles, He is always mentioned fifth

Potentially a Hellenist

Acts 6:1 “Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.”

Not Phillip the Deacon in Acts 6 who led the Ethiopian Eunuch to Christ

He was from Bethsaida

John 1:44 “Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.”

Potentially a fisherman by trade

John 21:2 “Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together.”

John 21:3 “Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.”

What do we know about Philip? Matthew, Mark, and Luke give no details at all about him. All the vignettes of Philip appear in the Gospel of John

Philip was a classic “process person.”

He was a facts-and-figures guy—a by-the-book, practical-minded, non-forward-thinking type of individual.

He was the kind who tends to be a corporate killjoy, pessimistic, narrowly focused, sometimes missing the big picture, often obsessed with identifying reasons things can’t be done rather than finding ways to do them.

He was predisposed to be a pragmatist and a cynic—and sometimes a defeatist—rather than a visionary

His Call

John 1:43 “The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.””

Jesus sought him out

John 15:16 “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”

Phillip was the first to hear these words “Follow Me” and responded appropriately

He had a seeking heart

He was in the same region John the Baptist was preaching

Sovereign election and Human choice

John 1:45 “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.””

He had a heart of evangelism

friendships provide the most fertile soil for evangelism

He had a ready heart

John 1:46 “Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.””

The Feeding of the Five Thousand

200 denarii = $35,616

1 denari = 1 days wages

$7.12 per person

Matthew 14:15 “Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.””

Jesus singles out Phillip indicating his administrative role

John 6:5 “Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?””

He already had the calculations in his head

His response was of a human perspective “It can’t be done!”

One of the supreme essentials of leadership is a sense of vision

His ability of arithmetic hindered his faith

The Visit of the Greeks

John 12:20–21 “Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.””

They sought him out potentially:

Because his Greek name

Because his reputation as administrator

Was there a rule for this

The Rule

Matthew 10:5–6 “These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Matthew 15:24 “He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.””

Romans 2:10 “but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek.”

The exception

The Samaritan woman at the well

His answer was to take them to Andrew

John 12:22 “Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.”

His heart beat out his head

Revelation 22:17 “The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.”

The Upper Room

John 14:7 “If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.””

Phillip disappoints greatly

John 14:8 “Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.””

John 14:9 “Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?”

Do you not believe? Believe!

John 14:10–11 “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.”

What had he been paying attention to for three years?

If we were interviewing him for this position we would most likely overlook him.

1 Corinthians 1:27–29 “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.”

His life after the Bible

Tradition tells us that Philip was greatly used in the spread of the early church and was among the first of the apostles to suffer martyrdom. By most accounts he was put to death by stoning at Heliopolis, in Phrygia (Asia Minor), eight years after the martyrdom of James. Before his death, multitudes came to Christ under his preaching.