Please read the passage before reading the commentary.
When we are isolated from others by illness, homesickness, or imprisonment, we long for letters from home. Phone calls are nice, but letters often seem better.
At the time of the writing of Philippians, Paul apparently was homesick for his converts and friends at Philippi. He spoke of needing encouragement and solace. What would have cheered Paul up the most? A good report from Philippi about their charity, their mutual cooperation, and their unselfishness. Paul wanted them to be united in heart and to regard others as more important than themselves.
We are on the eve of national elections. It has been a hard, even brutal, period of campaigning. I hope that the ones elected will work for the common good of all and not for their own political parties. This would be Paul’s recommendation for us.
We are a nation supposedly rooted in the Bible and respect for God; if we are, we should show it by our cooperation and respect, by our willingness to work together, by our acceptance of each other and of others, and by looking out for the interests of all peoples.
I think Paul had confidence that his people would respond to his exhortations well. I hope we will respond to our challenges well also. We need it. We want it. May we cooperate with God to deliver it.