Philippians 4:2-9 Rejoice in the Lord WC
McCarter
Introduction
READ Scripture- This is the Word of God
Final Call for Unity (2-3)
Paul will
now give specific application to the message he has taught about unity in the
church, and his exhortation in verse one becomes a bridge from the last point
into the next. By way of introduction, he says stand fast in the Lord. This
allows him to then go on to give practical application of that phrase. Unity is
a must for any local church (see 2:2) and the Apostle calls out a few here that
will be key figures for that unity in Philippi. Apparently two notable women in
the church could not agree with each other on some point. We don’t even know
what the argument was or which of the two were really in the wrong. Paul
repeats the verb “implore” in speaking to both of the women separately. He does
not take sides. The disharmony would discontinue if they would stand fast in
the Lord and not in their opinions. It seems to be more of a personality clash
than a doctrinal issue.
The church
is really the only assembly of people from all walks of life. The Body of
Christ, the Kingdom of God, is made up of different genders, different races,
different ages, different languages, different levels of education, different
levels of financial status…the church incorporates us all. AND there are bound
to be some clashes! Yet, we are exhorted “to be of the same mind in the Lord.”
Also, those
outside of a “clash” are to help those involved. All of these people are fellow
workers alongside Paul. They are Christians. Their names are written in the
Book of Life. “Clashes” do not cast us out of salvation, but they have that
potential. Do we not know that everything we do and say has an impact?
(Especially for those of us who are mature in Christ). We may think that we are
standing up for a noble cause, but instead we are inflicting wounds on others that
may be difficult to heal. Often, instead of standing fast in our opinions, we
need to stand fast in the Lord. After all, we are to be true companions,
laborers together in the Gospel, and fellow workers. The word Paul uses for
laboring in the Gospel is a word most often used in those days for contending
in battle or competing in athletic games. Paul says that these women, and some
others, were right alongside him battling for the progress of the Gospel; not
physically battling, but spiritually contending for Gospel progress.
The Book of
Life actually has Old Testament roots. Moses, David, and Isaiah all referred to
it. The Apostle John also referenced it.
Joy and Anxiety (4-7)
(Rejoice)
Paul leaves us no space to ask the question, how, after he says “rejoice in the Lord always” because he quickly
follows it up by with “again I will say rejoice.” You have heard me say on
several occasions that joy is something that can be experienced at all times
because it is not an emotion. Emotions change with the weather, but JOY is a
rock. I propose to you that the Lord Jesus Christ is Joy, He is our joy. Psalm
95 says, “Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock
of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us
shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the LORD is the great God, And the great
King above all gods.” Christ is the Rock of our salvation that cannot be moved
and all that knowledge can do is cause us to rejoice (shout joyfully to the
Rock of our salvation). Therefore, when a baby is born we can rejoice; when a
Christian dies we can rejoice; when we are struck with an illness we can rejoice;
though our eyes begin to fade we will rejoice. With David we will say, “I have set
the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be
moved.”
(Gentleness)
It is easy to be gentle with certain people of our choosing, but this word
declares that we are responsible for making our gentleness known to all. One
person says, “[A] gentle spirit will do much to disarm the adversary” (Kent
Jr.). Thus, Jesus says, “Agree with your
adversary quickly. . . .” Now, this word for gentleness is a combination of
many ideas including gentle, yielding, kind, forbearing, and consideration. It
probably refers to returning good for evil.
“The Lord is
at hand” is a promise and word of comfort that the Lord is near to those who
belong to Him.
(Peace) How
can you be anxious for nothing? In everything let your requests be known to God
How do we make our requests known? By prayer and supplication, with/after
thanksgiving.
We should
not have undue concerns in this life. Should Christians be free from concerns?
No, but we must have a godly mind for the things with which God is concerned.
On many occasions we concern ourselves with things that are none of our
business, or with petty things, or things that are out of our control. Christ
says, “…do not worry about tomorrow…” When we finally come to this point in our
lives, when we truly make our requests known to God in everything, we will know
the peace that surpasses all understanding (SEE Eph 3:20-21). It could also
have the meaning of surpassing value rather than the transcending of our
understanding (SEE 3:8). Either way, it
will be inexplicable, even incomprehensible… It is the peace of God… And it
will guard our hearts and minds. Joy takes the place of our anxiety. The Bible
teaches us to look away from ourselves to the needs of our brothers and
sisters; yield our wants and even rights for the sake of our brethren. “And as
far as your needs are concerned, bring them all before God in an attitude of
thankfulness for what he has already given you” (Silva).
A little
phrase at the end of verse five puts it all in perspective: “The Lord is at
hand.” Specifically of gentleness it can be said that the soon return of Christ
is a reminder that He is Judge and we are not (praise the Lord for that fact!).
We can be gentle knowing that the Lord will give to each in accordance with his
works. Also, this is of foremost importance concerning both joy and peace. We
rejoice in the Lord always, knowing that our time here on earth will soon come
to an end and the coming of Christ will inaugurate even greater things of joy
that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no heart has received. And that is
peace. It even surpasses understanding! The Lord will soon return.
Obedience and Peace (8-9)
We
Christians should keep on thinking and doing what is morally and spiritually
excellent. We need to put into practice what we have learned of God’s word. We
need to follow the lead of the Holy Spirit. We need to not only store up
treasures in heaven, but also set our minds on heavenly things. The Philippians
could follow the example of the apostolic witness by what they had seen, we can
follow the example of the apostles by reading their word which was inspired by
God.
Instead of
filling our minds with the worries of this world, we need to fill our minds
with the things of God.
Conclusion and Christian Application
(1) We all need to be of the same mind:
thinking the same, same attitude, same opinion, same goals. How can be have the
same mind? If we are “in the Lord.”
(2) Peace becomes a major theme as we
come to the close of the book. A strong, healthy church is not a perfect
church. There are struggles and issues to resolve. Unity and peace are needed.