The idea of abounding love in Philippians 1 has a context. First, “abounding love” is in the context of prayer. Verses nine through eleven are the content, the expression of what the apostle Paul was praying for the believers in Philippi.
Paul’s thoughts easily move from thanksgiving (vv.3-8) to petitioning prayer (vv.9-11). In one step he moves from giving thanks for all that God was doing to asking God to do even more. The two — thanksgiving and petitioning — were part of the same spiritual activity. As Paul acknowledged that the good done in the Philippians’ lives came from God, now he prayed that God would increase and expand His work in them further.
Remember this is not Paul’s sermon to them, even though he did write it out for them to read and know his concerns. This is his prayer for them. And even though abounding love was a necessary spiritual priority for them to pursue, Paul does not command them to pursue it here. Instead he is praying that God would be cultivating greater love in them.
You see what is important to a person when they pray. Most people are smart enough to get serious when they address God. And the request Paul makes is that God would cause their love to abound.
I think the most telling thing about this is that God must be the one to germinate and grow love. Love is a spiritual, supernatural, divine, and gracious work. The fruit of the Spirit is love….
I may be able to manipulate your feelings or tug on your emotions, but this kind of love is a God-product.
So if we want love to abound in the hearts of others and ourselves the first thing we must do is to pray for it. These three verses provide not only a window into Paul’s interest for the Philippians but it also provides us with an example prayer. This is something that I have been praying for our ministry, for each staff person, for each student and for myself. This is the kind of prayer after which our own praying should be patterned. This is the kind of substance that should be in our minds when we intercede for someone else. Look to verses nine through eleven and work through each phrase for someone else.
For love to abound still more and more we must pray for it.