Meditations from the Book of Philippians part 8 – Week 31 / July 31

by admin

The Basics – Philippians 4:1-7

As is the habit of Paul, he begins this part of his letter to the Philippians with an exhortation to stand fast in the Lord. That is, they are to adhere to the Gospel as he taught it and not be moved away from it. He accompanies this exhortation with a sense of endearment in that he considers them to be his reward in heaven one day and, in the present, a source of great joy. They are his “beloved and longed-for brethren.”We should always see fellow Christians as having special dignity because Jesus lives in them!

From verse two he moves into a series of brief exhortations that have to do with basic Christian living. We should always ensure that these basics are in place because if they “slip” we become vulnerable to failure and this is no stranger to the Christian Church. We should therefore take note of the following:

Be united (V2-3)
Good, strong Christians can have relationship problems and do. Here Paul recognizes the blessing that Euodia and Syntyche have been to the family of God and progress of the Gospel and yet their strength also became their weakness in that they allowed their strong-mindedness to divide them. They were not of the same mind and Paul knew how this could weaken and damage the people of God. I have seen in my many years of ministry that strong leaders also tend to “fight” and sadly damage the work of Christ. At the root of this is often pride and we must all remember that whatever wonderful gift of ministry we have it was not natural talent but given to us as a gift! The unity of God’s people is a gift of God that we must preserve at all costs and this will require humility and this is why we all need to be in submission to one another. (Ephesians 4:1-3)

Be Joyful (V4)
Joy is one of the hallmarks of belonging to the Kingdom of God. (Romans 14:17) This is supernatural joy and it springs out of being rightly related to God by Jesus Christ. We can and should be joyful all the time, notwithstanding our circumstances, because Jesus never changes and has done for us more than we will ever think or need. (Hebrews 13:8) In fact He has given us everything we need “for life and godliness in Him.” (2Peter 1:3) Our circumstances may well be difficult, as Paul’s were at the time of writing, but God will always lead us out of them to victory if we are living clean lives and dedicated ones.  Indeed the joy of the Lord is our strength as, in times of trial, it enables us to look away from ourselves and praise God and this builds faith to endure. No wonder Paul writes “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!”

Be Gentle (V5)
Gentleness is power under control. Jesus was always gentle as He knew what capacity He had in God. He was able to deal firmly with people but never harshly. This too is our inheritance in Christ and we should manifest it since it enables us to win people and not offend them. Too many Christians are brash and offensive when dealing with others, inside the Church and outside. It is sad to hear people affirm that they are scared of a particular brother or sister because they are always given to anger or rudeness. God is watching and all of this will follow us to the judgment seat of Christ when He comes again. (Romans 13:12-13) We have all failed in this area and may the Lord lead us to a place of repentance and gentleness.

Be anxious for nothing (V6-7)
Worry destroys our lives at every level. Christians have a way out from this reality that plagues so many lives today and ruins them. We must be a praying people!! Paul says, “…but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God.” Everything means everything and when we “pray through” a matter we know that someone bigger than ourselves has it hand and consequently the peace of God floods our hearts even though the answer has not yet been realized. In fact the original language states that peace of God, like a soldier, will march up and down the citadels of our hearts giving us rest! What a joy to be delivered from fear and anxiety but so many Christians are riddled with these two “enemies of the soul and body” because they will not pray. Until we learn to call on God regularly our lives will remain defeated and we will never reflect the triumph of Christ. The world is watching us wanting to see that Jesus makes a difference in our lives. I wonder what it sees?

Conclusion
For Paul these are the basics, by Christ’s power in us that we are to get right and keep right. They are simple and uncomplicated and all we need to do is walk out the grace that has been given to us by Jesus’ death. Paul stated, in his letter to the Church at Corinth, that the grace of God that flooded his life was not in vain. (Romans 15:10) We should have the same testimony.

Malcolm Hedding

©Malcolm Hedding Ministries

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