Philippians 4:4-9 New Living Translation (NLT)
4 Always be full
of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let
everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord [is
near]. 6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about
everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then
you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His
peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
8 And now, dear
brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and
honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things
that are excellent and worthy of praise.9 Keep putting
into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me
and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.
In
the spirit of Thanksgiving, I wanted to speak a bit about giving thanks, about
gratitude. In preparation for this
message, I read some commentaries that really pick apart these verses from
Philippians. Everything I read can be
summed up in one phrase, “Gratitude is a matter of Attitude”. When I read this text in preparation, I
realized that I have heard each of the verses before, but not necessarily all
together. We hear them as platitudes, stand-alone
tidbits of advice and comfort. But
putting them all together really makes for a bigger, deeper message.
We
say “rejoice always, in all things.” But
sometimes that’s really hard to do – what if we are sad, what if something
awful has just happened? How do we
rejoice in tragedy? But yet that is what
we are called to do. But I don’t think
that it means we are to laugh and joke in the face of misfortune or
heartbreak. When we rejoice, we remember
that the Lord is with us, in all things.
The Greek word for rejoice is Kaírō (from the root Kar-,
"leaning towards" and Káris, "grace") – literally, to experience God's grace,
to be conscious of His grace. Lean into God, trust Emmanuel to be present
at all times.
We
can also trust, and rejoice with our fellow believers, our friends and
neighbors. We are all in this together
and we should be always ready to help each other. Verse 5 says Let your gentleness be known to
everyone, or Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Gentleness and consideration are forms of
moderation. When we are joyful in the
Lord, we are raised above strictness towards others and we are prudent in our
own affairs. When we are harsh or strict
towards others, we are prematurely judging them, and that privilege belongs
solely to the Lord. When we wallow in
sadness and let ourselves be pulled down into negativity, we are harsh towards
others and restless or troubled in our spirits.
Maintaining Joy in God is of great benefit to Christian living and we
often need to be reminded to do so. It
is easy to be dragged down into the muck, but we need perseverance to rise
above, to show compassion, kindness and grace to others around us – even those
who test our patience. By doing so, we
show the love of Christ and God’s peace.
People around us can see that we are steady in our daily lives, even
when we experience loss and hardship we have the assurance of God’s peace and
mercy.
The
next familiar verse is “Do not worry
about anything…” The King James version
uses the word “Careful” for “worry” and the NIV says “do not be anxious”. There are two kinds of cares – those that
are due diligence, our responsibilities
and obligations – and those that are anxieties or worries – fear and distrust,
sin and folly, things that perplex and distract the mind. By praying about everything (in all things,
at all times), we keep our mind in a state of grace, of joyfulness. Worries and Joy cannot occupy the same space
– “Care and Prayer are as mutually opposed as Fire and Water.” Say that again….
“In
everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be
made known to God.” Supplication means
to ask earnestly for something. We
should make our requests with confidence, with familiarity. We know we don’t need to or shouldn’t hold
anything back – God already knows our hearts.
We have been promised that even a groan will do when we have no words. But we must begin – we must GO to the Lord in
prayer. We must reveal our hearts to
him. God is our protector, our
confidante – our greatest ally. We can
trust his love and mercy, patience, grace and love beyond all of our
understanding. When we pray with
Thanksgiving, we are putting our prayers
into effect. Thanksgiving proves
results, recognizing outcomes to our prayers.
When we live with a spirit of gratefulness, with joy and thanksgiving,
by giving praise in all things, we acknowledge and immerse ourselves in the Peace of God – the sense of being reconciled
to God and having a part in his favor.
The hope of the “heavenly blessedness”, a greater good, can be fully
expressed. “The peace of God, which
surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Jesus
Christ.” This peace stands guard over
our hearts and minds, it will keep us from sinking under troubles and keep us
calm with inward contentment.
“8 Finally,
brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever
is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any
excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these
things. 9 What you have learned[b] and received and
heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will
be with you.”
In
the last two verses, I believe Paul is telling us to Do as Jesus says and also
to Do as Jesus did. All our privileges
and salvation arise in the free Mercy of God; yet the enjoyment of them depends
on our sincere and holy conduct. In
everything, when we perform daily tasks in our everyday lives, when we offer
our prayers and concerns to God, when we work to benefit his Kingdom by serving
others, we can be faithful in the knowledge that surrounding our own efforts is
the ongoing workings of God. God is with
us – Emmanuel!
As
we enter this week of Thanksgiving which ends with the beginning of Advent, the
season where we prepare for the coming of the Messiah, our Savior, Lord Jesus
Christ… as we undergo preparations for a
meal, or travelling, welcoming family and friends… May we always remember to Rejoice in the Lord
Always, All Ways.
Let
us Pray, “Father in Heaven, Creator of all things, we humbly lay our cares at
your feet, knowing that you will bear them for us, that you guard our hearts
from all troubles and that you Bless us in all circumstances with your presence
and Peace. We believe that you are with us, that you will not forsake
us, and that you sent your only son to be our Redeemer and Savior. As we prepare our hearts with gladness to
receive your gracious gifts, show us the way to reveal your presence to those
around us. By the Spirit and your son Jesus, Amen”
Philippians 4:4-9 (NIV New International Version)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is
true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is
lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about
such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or
received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God
of peace will be with you.
Philippians
4:4-9King James Version (KJV)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.
5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is
at hand.
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer
and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding,
shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true,
whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are
pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if
there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and
received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with
you.
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