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Sunnyside Baptist Church Philippians 4:2-9 Josiah DeForest
Good morning
Sunnyside. It's good to see your bright smiling faces on this beautiful day.
Mr. Kyle Smith who normally would do this is with his son Lincoln on the sixth grade
CHA trip to Washington. You may have seen his post on the bus.
It's tradition for the CHA class at sixth grade to watch the film
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington starring Jimmy Stewart.
Well he took he took a picture of Mr. Smith on his way to Washington watching the movie
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. You don't find that unusual?
All right we also want to pray for our Durham family. Our pastor and his family have are taking the week to enjoy some refreshing time and time together and they they've not revealed their exact location.
We did try to plant a GPS but it we didn't get that done. We also are rejoicing with a certain
Mr. Jerry Brown with us this morning and his beautiful bride
Jan Brown. Also Hannah Hamilton.
Haven't seen her for some time. I was reintroduced to her by her husband this morning.
Sorry just had to do it. You can see in the bulletin those announcements that are coming to us.
Please think especially the one about needing your photos.
I won't go into great detail but that's something that's being worked in the background. Also just so you'll know there has been a preliminary list and it's being vetted for accuracy, grammar and punctuation of the summer sessions upcoming and at this point we have three.
More information is forthcoming once the punctuation, grammar and other corrections are made by Mr.
Smoot. All right and our
Friday verse of the week is this. Fear not little flock for it is your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Sell your possessions and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with money bags that do not grow old.
With a treasure in the heavens that does not fail. Where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
For where your treasure is there is your heart also. So it's a pleasure to have you here today.
We ask that you give your heart and your mind's attention to worshiping
God through the singing and the preaching in the prayer time and the sharing in Scripture.
May thank you very much. Would you pray with me?
Sorry for that. Father we just thank you for your many blessings and your the privilege of being in this house on this day with these people.
We do pray for our pastor and his family as they are away.
Give them give them refreshing time together to enjoy a week with fewer burdens and fewer responsibilities.
I pray for the blessings of this day. I pray for blessing upon Josiah as he preaches before us and may we worship you in all the ways that we know how and ask for your blessing in Jesus name.
Amen. I'd just like to say
I really appreciate Jerry Brown, Brian, Dwight, Ken and Randy, our elders that faithfully serve and lead our church here at Sunnyside.
And we as a body at Sunnyside we're very very thankful for you guys. Keep us on the straight and narrow, keeping us the truth of Christ and just your leadership here at Sunnyside is really appreciated.
Would you stand for our call to worship and again so thankful for our pastor brother
Michael in leading us in the truth of Christ proclaiming that you know we can celebrate
Christ's resurrection every Sunday and anyway we'll go into our call to worship here.
Our passage this morning is found in Psalm chapter 78. We'll be reading verses five through eight so read with me together.
He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel which he commanded our fathers to teach their children the next generation might know them the children yet unborn and arise to tell them to their children so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God but keep his commandments that they should not be like their fathers a stubborn and rebellious generation a generation whose heart was not steadfast whose spirit was not faithful to God and our first song this morning is in Psalm 78 and our song for worship hymnal page 78 a and we'll sing all three verses my mouth will speak a parable the saints dark of old which we have listened to and known as by our fathers told will from their children hide them not but tell the age to come the praises of the
Lord is sweet the wonders he has done his word he unto
Jacob gave his law to Israel which he our fathers did command to teach their children well the children yet unborn might know and their descendants lead to trust in God recall
God's words and his commandments and not be what their fathers were rebellious through and through for they would not correct their words nor unto
God say true and our next song is on the handout in the back hope you're able to pick that up is may the people's praise you we're going to sing all five verses and there's also a bridge there so we're just going to sing the praises the
Lord together one thing I just wanted to point out was lost my place we're making known
Christ his his death on the cross for our sins his resurrection from the grave the third day and his reign forever and ever may the people's praise the
Lord Jesus Christ they are every breath we tell the griefs that broke into our strife with boundless love and deepest joy with endless life may the people's praise you let the nations be glad all your blessing comes may praise the name of Jesus all the earth is yours and all within each harvest is your own and from now to you to take
Christ known may the seeds of mercy grow in us for those who have not learned may songs of praise build lives of grace to spread your word may the people's praise you let the nations be glad all your blessing comes that we may praise the name of Jesus may the people's praise you let the nations be glad all your blessing comes that we may praise the name of Jesus may praise the name of Jesus holy holy is the
Lord almighty worthy worthy is the lamb that was slain holy holy is the
Lord almighty all creation praise your glorious name may the people's praise you let the nations be glad all your blessing comes that we may praise may praise the name of Jesus may the people's praise you let the nations be glad This is the word of God.
The burden against Tyre, wail, you ships of Tarshish, for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no harbor, from the land of Cyprus it is revealed to them.
Be still, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whom those who cross the sea have filled, and on great waters the grain of Sior, the harvest of the river is her revenue, and she is a marketplace for the nations.
Be ashamed, O Sidon, for the sea has spoken, the strength of the sea, saying, I do not labor nor bring forth children, neither do
I rear young men nor bring up virgins. When the report reaches
Egypt, they also will be in agony at the report of Tyre. Cross over to Tarshish, wail, you inhabitants of the coastland, is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is from ancient days, whose feet carried her far to dwell, who has taken this council against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the honorable of the earth, the
Lord of hosts has purposed it, to bring to dishonor the pride of all glory, to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth.
This is God's word. Would you pray with me? Lord, you are the
King of glory, and you are in the heavens, and you do what you please. There is no one who stays your hand or says to you, what have you done?
Father, you bring down the prideful and you exalt the humble. Father, thank you for making us humble and beholding
Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Thank you for breaking our hearts and breaking our pride to humbly come to Christ and throw ourselves upon his mercy and grace, and in him we receive mercy and grace.
Please deliver us from pride. Please deliver us from evil and from temptation in Jesus Christ and the glorious Son, in whom we have the victory.
And it's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. You may be seated. Thank you,
Josiah. It's awesome, Josiah. We'll be preaching to us here in just a few minutes. Appreciate you, brother.
All right, as we continue in our song service, if you would, turn page 372 in your regular blue hymnals.
We're going to sing the first three verses of Living for Jesus. Then we'll go into page 206 and sing
There is Redeemer. And then we'll sing the chorus Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus Living for Jesus A life that is true
Striving to please Him In all that I do
Being allegiance Glad -hearted and free
That saves us,
Lord and Savior I give myself to Thee For Thou in Thy heart,
O Friend Gives me life for to live
O Christ, for me Living for Jesus Who died in my soul
Constraints me to follow
Thee And used of me
Jesus, Lord and Savior I give myself to Thee For Thou in Thy heart,
O Friend Gives me Thyself for me
I am Thine, O Master My heart shall be
Thine alone My life, I give it for to live
O Christ, for me There is a
Redeemer Jesus, God's own
Son Precious Lamb of God Messiah, Holy One Thank You, O my
Father For giving us
Your Son And leaving
Your Spirit to The work on earth is done
Jesus, my Redeemer Name above all names
Precious Lamb of God Messiah, O forsaken
Thank You, O my
When I stand in glory
I will see His face
There I'll serve my King forever
In that holy place
Father For giving us Your Son Turn your eyes upon Jesus Look full in His wonderful face
And the fiends of earth
Will grow strangely dim In the light of His glory
And grace Let's begin this morning with prayer.
Father, how unsearchable are Your ways. Your grace is vast and deep, beyond our comprehension.
Yet You have revealed this to us in Your Word. You have brought us to Your Son, Jesus Christ, and help us to look on Christ today.
Thank You for the gift of music, and to be able to worship You, Lord. Thank You that You have made us to worship
You, and that You have given us answers in Your Word on how to live in a broken world.
Father, as we approach the Scriptures today, help us, Lord, to trust in You. Please, may
Your Spirit open our eyes, and may we behold Christ in the text. And it's in Christ's name that we pray,
Amen. This morning we'll be in the book of Philippians, Paul's letter to the church at Philippi, specifically chapter 4, verses 2 through 9.
So I invite you to turn there, and we'll be reading there in a moment. Many of you are very familiar with this book of God's Word.
It's known as the Epistle of Joy, as joy is one of its main themes that run throughout the entire letter.
And we know many statements from Paul that are very familiar to us, and very dear to us. Statements like,
For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
And of course, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. At the time of his writing,
Paul is imprisoned. The faithful apostle had been chained for the sake of preaching the gospel, and even faced the very real potential of being executed for his faith.
Yet in spite of this, the apostle nevertheless still takes time to write to this church to encourage them, to update them, and to instruct them further on how to live in an ungodly world, on how to live out their
Christian faith. Paul deeply loved this church. He is extremely thankful for them in chapter one, always making mention of them in his prayers to God the
Father. And he is openly honest with them, letting them know, I wish to depart and be with Christ, yet I also feel this pull to be here with you.
He's openly honest, and we don't see that very much in his letters. He's being honest with the
Philippians and saying, this is how I'm doing. This is how I'm doing. Yet in all of this,
Paul is joyful. The Philippians had labored with Paul and partnered with him in the gospel ministry and sent support in his missionary work.
Paul loved this church. The believers here were very dear to him, and he held them close in his heart.
And while the church had been faithful with many things, yet still there were trials and troubles that plagued them, that they had to face on many sides.
The Philippians were living in a perverse and crooked generation. The world around them was sinful and broken.
The congregation was also dealing with sins within themselves that promoted disunity among the brethren, among the local church.
And they were preachers of the present time that preached Christ, yet not out of a sincere heart of worship, but out of envy and strife.
They were more enemies of the gospel, false teachers who boasted in the flesh and taught that the old covenant was still needed.
You needed this in addition to Christ to be saved. They promoted a twisted gospel.
And there were other enemies of the cross of Christ present as well, those whose God was their belly and whose glory was in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.
And the Philippians, on top of all of that, saw their faithful apostle and teacher imprisoned for the sake of the gospel, facing impossible execution.
They had evil on many sides for this church. And in spite of all these spiritual dangers,
Paul still writes to them, to his beloved brethren with joy. He is confident in God's sovereignty.
And that theme bookends the letter. He begins chapter one, I am confident that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it.
And at the end of his letter, God will supply all of your needs according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus.
Paul knows that God will be faithful to complete the work begun in this church. And alongside the truth of God's sovereignty, he instructs the
Philippians to continue to have their conduct be worthy of the gospel, to stand fast in one spirit with one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel.
In our text today, we'll see that Paul instructs the believers at Philippi to not lose their focus on Christ for that's the danger of all these things that they face, all the evil that is present before them.
The danger for the Philippians is to lose their focus off of Christ and to rather set it on earthly things, on the things around them, on their sins upon the false teachers.
So Paul instructs them, keep your focus on Christ, persevere in him, stand fast in the
Lord. Do not be swayed by trials and troubles around you. Do not move away one inch, give no ground, remain stationary in your faith.
And in 2022, in Oklahoma, in this United States, we also live in a perverse and crooked generation.
In a world that calls right wrong and evil good, we also have false teachers who promote twisted gospels and speak out of envy and strife.
We also encounter people who worship themselves and their sinful appetites. We also contend against ungodly fears and anxiety and disunity among ourselves and within ourselves.
And we know that there are faithful preachers of the word who are imprisoned for the sake of the gospel. There are many trials and troubles for us today on many sides that can cause us to lose our focus on Christ.
Yet, praise God, he has given us his word. And in Philippians, we see instructions that were written to brethren who came long before us.
And these instructions, by God's grace, apply to us. For this is God's word, living and active, guiding the church throughout the ages, faithful to lead the
Philippians, faithful to lead the church in the first centuries, the reformers, the Puritans, and faithful to lead us today, to instruct us on how to stand fast in the
Lord, to persevere in Christ. Praise God. He has provided for us answers on how to live in a crooked and perverse generation.
He has provided for us. So I encourage you to take up and read God's word.
Philippians chapter 4, verses 2 through 9. I encourage you to stand for the reading of God's word.
I implore Euodia and I implore Syndice to be of the same mind in the Lord. And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to all men.
The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good reports, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things.
The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do. And the
God of peace will be with you. This is God's word. You may be seated. The first way that we persevere in Christ, stand fast in the
Lord, is to continue to be united in Christ and therefore united with each other.
We see this in verses 2 and 3 of Philippians 4. Paul mentions two women by name,
Euodia and Syndice. And for whatever reason, the text does not specifically say, it doesn't give us the circumstance, but these two women were for some reason not united with one another, but they were at odds with one another in disunity.
And we see Paul's response to their disunity. In a spirit of gentleness, he calls them to unity in Christ.
He implores, he entreats them. He appeals to them. And the apostle does so individually.
He doesn't come to them both right off the bat. He appeals to Euodia and he appeals to Syndice.
Be of the same mind. He approaches them individually and instructs them, be of the same mind in the
Lord. Do not be in disunity, but be united in Christ.
And Paul also enlists the help of a true companion, another believer, to assist in this matter.
There are several translations that translate this part of the word differently. Some put true yoke fellow or some put the actual
Greek word. But the Greek word here means to be yoked together and to pull and sink, to work together.
And so Paul enlists the help of this other believer, a partner, who works alongside in ministry.
He says to him, help these women, help them to be united in the Lord. We know as well that these two women had labored with Paul in gospel work, along with others as well, with Clement and the rest of Paul's fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
And if I may go down a quick rabbit trail here, there is a truth here that is truly glorious.
We read of these fellow workers who labored with Paul in the spread of the gospel. We read of people like these two ladies and of Clement.
And who is Clement? In researching this part of scripture, all the commentaries were in agreement regarding this gospel worker.
Nothing is known about him. He is not mentioned anywhere else in the
New Testament. And we also see these other fellow workers with Paul not being mentioned by name, that are unknown to the rest of history, yet are known by God, the
Lord of heaven. He knows each one of his servants by name. And isn't this a glorious reversal of how the world works?
Last week we saw in that portion of Daniel, our pastor broke it down for us and said these historical figures that have made their mark on the world, how does the word of God treat them?
There are no names. But here, there are people who history does not remember, who are not recorded in the history books, but God knows their name.
And their name is recorded in the book of life. He knows your name.
He's called you by name and has set his love upon you. And though history and the world might not know your name, though you may labor quietly outside the spotlight,
God knows you. Your quiet work for the gospel is not in vain, but it's used by God in mighty ways.
And your name is written in the book of life, having held fast to Jesus Christ by faith because of his person and work.
These fellow workers were all Christians, saved by God and known by God, including these two women who, for whatever reason, had strife in the local church.
There was disunity. And Paul instructs that local church, be of the same mind in Christ.
Come together as you had rightly done in the past in gospel work. Be united in Christ. Unity is an essential for the local church to be united in serving
Christ and serving one another. For we are living stones being built up into a spiritual house with Christ as our cornerstone.
What would it be like if some of those stones did whatever they wanted to do? Were led astray by their own desires?
What if members of a local church decided to go with their own selfish ambitions instead of being united with Christ and with each other?
Wouldn't it be like this right here with these two ladies? No longer having unity, but now having disunity and strife.
And again, these were real Christians. These weren't hypothetical situations and hypothetical people.
Paul mentions them by name and says these are real people in a real church. And this is a real threat for the people of God to be led astray by their own ambitions.
And this can happen with well -intentioned ministries, with gospel work, with weekly worship.
One Christian will say we should do things this way. Another disagrees and says that's never going to work.
We should do things my way. That's the only way that's going to work. Out of selfish ambitions, disagreements arise along with complaining and disputes.
And there is the unsaved visitor seeing all of the disunity in the body of Christ and walking away saying there's no unity, there's no love in the people of God.
When God's people seek after their own desires and allow sinful disputes to grow among them,
Christ is dishonored. The Apostle Peter writes elsewhere, finally all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another, love as brothers, be tender -hearted, be courteous.
And Romans 12, 16 says, be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble.
Do not be wise in your own opinion. And here is Paul in Philippians writing to these two ladies, be of the same mind in the
Lord. Earlier in his epistle to the Philippians, Paul has already instructed the church about being united in Christ.
And in chapter two, he writes, fulfill my joy by being like -minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind.
Let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of men.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
Therefore, God also has highly exalted him and given him the name, which is above every name, that the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven and of those on earth, of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord to the glory of God, the Father. Jesus is our supreme and ultimate example of humbly serving one another and being united together.
He who is truly God emptied himself, stepped down from heaven, and entered the created world.
He gave up his rightful position with the Heavenly Father and became a servant to do the
Father's will. He who had created everything became the dust of the earth, becoming truly man.
The Son became a servant to those fallen sinners around him, teaching them, being patient with them, and washing their feet.
And he delivered himself up for the sins of his people, securing their eternal salvation forever and ever.
It is this mind, the mind of Christ, the humble servant, that Christians have by the grace of God.
It is in this humble servant that believers are united. He is our Savior and our King, and we are citizens of his kingdom.
In thinking about the unity believers have with each other, I often think about this A .W. Tozer quote.
Mr. Tozer writes, Has it ever occurred to you that 100 pianos, all tuned to the same fork, are automatically tuned to each other?
They are of one accord being tuned not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow.
End quote. Therefore, let us have this same mind which is in Christ, and be united in him, and thus be united with each other.
And it's interesting how Paul addresses the situation between these two ladies. He simply calls them to be of the same mind in the
Lord, to be united in Christ. And isn't this what is simply required to address disputes among the people of God?
To call them to remember Christ, and to remember to serve others like he did? When we continue in the same mind in Christ, disputes are no longer present.
By looking at Christ and his supreme example of service, Christians are changed to be more like Christ.
Believers no longer want to pursue their own desires, their old selfish ambitions, but begin to ask,
How can I help? What can I do for the honor of Christ? How can I best edify my brother or my sister?
How can I better be united with those around me? By looking at Christ, there is unity among the brethren in him, and in him alone.
So let us not be tempted to be selfish, or to jump into quarrels with one another, but let us stand fast in the
Lord, let us persevere in Christ, being united in him, and thus united with our local church.
The next instruction Paul gives to the Philippians is to rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say,
Rejoice, in verse 4. Rejoicing has been a rich theme in Paul's letter thus far.
It's been all over the place. It was mentioned earlier at the beginning of chapter 3. And now
Paul repeats this command and repeats it again, immediately. Again, I will say, Rejoice.
The Apostle not only commands rejoicing, but actually lives it out himself. We read in his letter that he rejoices in many things.
Over the Philippians and their faith. Even over the fact that those who preach Christ out of selfish ambitions, hey,
Christ is still preached. The gospel is still going forth. Also, Paul rejoices in his present state, being imprisoned and facing possible execution.
Even in this situation, Paul rejoices. He lived out his command, Rejoice in the
Lord always. But how can Paul rejoice now? And why does he instruct the believers at Philippi to rejoice in all they are facing?
Can a Christian really rejoice at all times? The situations of life do not determine the
Christian's joy. Paul's situations did not determine his joy. And he writes to the
Philippians to be likewise. A Christian rejoices in the good times and in the trials of life and during the average days where things are just okay.
To rejoice always in the Lord, even when weeping, to rejoice.
The Christian joy is not a joy that suppresses godly emotion. It's not to force a fake smile in every situation.
That's not sincere. That's not genuine. But the Christian joy is a genuine, supernatural blessedness, a joy that continuously shines though there might be darkness all around the believer.
To rejoice in the Lord always, a joy that is deep in the inner man, a joy that is connected to the supreme treasure the
Christian has at all times, to Jesus Christ. Even in the hard situations through the valleys as well as on the mountaintops,
Christian joy is always to be present in a believer's life. And again, it's because our joy is connected to and based solely in Jesus Christ, the risen
Savior. Do you wish to have this joy? Then look to Christ.
Remember the gospel. The Word was with God and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
He who knew no sin became sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God.
Christ became a curse for us being hung on a tree, that we might receive the blessing of the Spirit through faith, therefore having been justified, made right with God by faith in Christ alone, we have peace with God.
There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love
God, to those who are called according to His purpose. How can a Christian have joy at all times?
Because our joy is in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are saved in Him by His perfect work.
We who were once dead in trespasses and sins, now by God's mercy and grace, are made alive with Christ.
You were once dead, sinner. You were once spiritually blind and unable to hear the gospel, unable to see
God. Yet now, through Christ, you are alive. Now, in Jesus, you have not received what you deserve, the wrath of God, but you have received what you do not deserve, salvation and favor.
We are kept by Christ, held by Him, the Good Shepherd, who will never let us go, who will never leave us nor forsake us.
By Christ, our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for His ultimate return.
This fallen world, filled with pain and with evil, is not our home. Praise God. Praise God.
It's not our home. We wait for that final day when we will be transformed, conformed to Christ's glorious, resurrected body, forever and ever.
Therefore, the Christian has a hope of a glorious eternity yet to come. And we know as well that everything that happens in this life, good and bad,
God will use for His glory and for our good. 2 Corinthians 4 says,
Therefore we do not lose heart, even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.
For our light affliction is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.
For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Let us stand fast in the Lord and rejoice always. When it's hard to have joy in difficult times, when it seems like you have none left, for those times come for the believer, look to Christ and pray.
Pray like David, being utterly dependent on God. Restore unto me the joy of your salvation.
Think on the gospel. Think on your salvation. Meditate on the person and work of Christ over and over and over again.
Meditate on Jesus and his promises until your joy is restored. Continue in faith, and when you do,
God promises you will bear fruit, including joy. Stand fast in the
Lord and rejoice always. Next, Paul addresses how the
Christian must be gentle in verse 5. He says in verse 5, Let your gentleness be known to all men.
The Lord is at hand. Gentleness. Different translations put this word as reasonableness, moderation, even big -heartedness.
And with all these different words, what exactly does Paul mean here? What is the meaning he's getting at? The specific word he uses is used differently in the
New Testament, and going to other passages will help us understand what does Paul mean here? In 1
Timothy 3, when Paul is discussing about the qualification for elders, he writes,
Not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous.
Gentle and not quarrelsome. Not a brawler, not an aggressive man who is ready to fight at the first sign of any possible conflict, ready to get into a needless fight, but one who is gentle.
Titus 3, 2, Paul speaks to Titus about how the church, not just elders, but all of the local church, must live, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.
Again, we see the idea of being peaceable said alongside being gentle, to show humility to all men.
And so seeing how the rest of Scripture closely puts gentleness alongside being peaceable, it makes sense to conclude that this gentleness is a calm forbearance, a patient behavior that does not seek its own.
In a perverse and crooked generation, the Apostle Paul instructs the believers at Philippi to stand fast in the
Lord and let their gentleness be known to all men, to all men, not just the brothers and sisters of the church, but those outside of the church, those outside living and the parts of the crooked and perverse generation.
He says, let your gentleness be known. Demonstrate this characteristic to all around you.
Live it out in the church and in the world. When disputes rise among the church brethren, don't aggressively respond and jump into a quarrel, but be calmly forbearing of the other.
Be gentle with your brothers and sisters. And do not stop there, but be gentle to those outside.
Those who come with ungodly aggression against the church, you believers do not fire back with ungodly aggression, but be gentle with them, calmly forbearing with them.
And I'd like to make clear, being gentle does not mean that the Christian never gets into a fight.
It does not mean that. We know from other letters of Paul that he contended for truth, that he got into fights, and he fought hard for the glory of God.
The Christian does, and he must, fight the battles that the Lord sovereignly places him in.
Ephesians 6 speaks of how Christians wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against power, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places, and instructs us, therefore, take up the whole armor of God.
The Christian is a soldier who is both meek and gentle, meek, self -controlled, ordering his entire conduct, his entire life, and the spiritual combat that he is in, and he is both gentle, calmly forbearing with those around him.
Fighting against lies and evil, yes, absolutely, being led by the Word and the Spirit in all combat, but also not returning evil for evil, not returning sin for sin.
And our Lord Jesus gave us an example of what this looks like, what gentleness looks like.
In 1 Peter 2, Apostle Peter writes, For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow in his steps, who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth, who, when he was reviled, did not revile in return.
When he suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes you were healed.
For you were like sheep going astray, but now have returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls.
What does it look like, this gentleness that Paul speaks of? Look to Christ and see the ultimate example of what it means to be gentle.
Behold, your Savior and your Captain fight like him and be gentle like him.
Let us be gentle today to all men. Let's be gentle to our brothers and sisters of the Church when we're trying to teach one another spiritual truths or even practical truths and the brother's just not getting it.
Be gentle with them. Be patient. When your brother sins against you, don't retaliate with sinful anger, but bear with them, forgiving them as you have been forgiven.
When your brother is suffering from pain, bear with them in the hurt. Let us be gentle to those outside of the
Church as well. When the ungodly would breathe out words of hate toward us, mock us, ridicule us because we are followers of Christ, do not return evil for evil, sin for sin, but trust
God with that situation. Persevere in Christ and confront them and fight them with truth.
Stand fast in the Lord and be gentle. And before we move on to the next instruction, we have to quickly touch on this phrase in verse 5.
The Lord is at hand. What does Paul mean by this? A passage in Mark helps us understand.
Mark chapter 1, verse 15. Jesus says, The time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent and believe in the gospel. Here in that passage, Jesus arrives to begin his earthly ministry and with his arrival, the kingdom comes.
It's near. It's close. It's at hand. And here in Philippians, Paul encourages the believers that the
Lord is present. He is near. He is at hand. The Christian must stand fast in the
Lord. He must persevere in Christ and continue in the instruction the Lord gives. And there is a reality alongside this one.
The Lord is present with his people. He is close. He is near. He is at hand to strengthen, to protect, to encourage and chastise, to uphold and guide.
He is with the Christian and he himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. In Christ, we are adopted to be children of the
Heavenly Father and he loves us like so. His spirit dwells within us and is ever present.
God is with us, who is closer than a brother, closer than a parent, closer than your best friend, and closer than a spouse.
Always there. Always loving. The next instruction
Paul gives to the Philippians as they persevere in Christ is do not worry, but pray. And we see this in verses six and seven.
Living in that time, dealing with all the current trials, a danger for the Philippians was worry and anxiety.
All these pressures had the potential to build up, presenting a danger to the Philippians to lead them to ask, what are we going to do?
Leading them into new internal trials as uncertainty and fear could now become their main focus, their main thought, their most frequent thought.
Paul gives us helpful lists in his letter. For example, in Galatians he gives us the works of the flesh and the fruit of the spirit and gives us lists of these characteristics of each.
And here he gives us a comprehensive list about what to worry about. Things to worry about for a
Christian, it's a blank list. Nothing. Nothing.
Paul writes, be anxious for nothing. There is no situation, circumstance, or problem for the believer to worry about.
Rather, in everything, pray. In every situation, in every circumstance, with every problem, go to the
Lord. And Paul gives further instruction on how to pray.
He gives three aspects of prayer. First, Paul instructs the believer to pray with worship. And I appreciate the words of Martyn Lloyd -Jones here as he writes on this word, what does he mean by prayer?
This is the most general term and it means worship and adoration. Second, the apostle directs us to pray with supplication, to genuinely pray to the
Lord. We can think of the earnest prayer of Hannah in 1
Samuel when she goes to the Lord and petitions for a son. She describes herself in that situation as pouring out her heart to the
Lord. She offered up supplication to the Lord, sincere and genuine prayer.
And Paul also says, pray with thanksgiving to remember what the Lord has done, the blessings
He has bestowed upon His people, and to express gratitude and prayer for these blessings. To give the thanksgiving back to God for the blessings
He has given you. To remember what the Lord has done. And with these three aspects in mind,
Paul encourages the Philippians to not worry about anything, but to pray. And when the believer does so,
Paul writes about a blessed effect that will occur. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
The apostle directs the Philippians to not be anxious, but to cast their cares, their anxieties upon God.
And the result will be the peace of God. A supernatural calm that is beyond human understanding.
This peace will guard, it will garrison, protect, encircle the inner person, the heart and mind of the believer.
Even protect them from internal threats such as worry and anxiety. And this is all through Christ Jesus.
There are many evils that the Christian encounters in this life that can stir up worry and anxiety. Outward trials that can cultivate inward trials of doubt, unbelief, ungodly fear.
Worry and anxiety shifts our focus off of Christ onto earthly things, onto the things around us.
God's people should never worry, but rather pray. We should come to God in worship, praising Him for who
He is, living in our intended state as human beings, worshiping our
Creator. This is what we were made for. And Paul instructs the believers, come to God and be as you were made for.
We should pray with supplication, honestly pouring our hearts to God, offering up to Him our heartfelt desires, praying,
Father, please help. Please help me. We should pray with thankfulness as well, remembering all that the
Lord has done and looking back on the blessings, counting those blessings. That can often renew the heart of the
Christian, for the Lord has delivered, hasn't He? He's been good to you, Christian. Just look back and count the blessings.
He's been good. Praying like this will result in the peace of God coming upon the believer, a peace that no one can really understand or explain, a calmness of mind and a serenity of spirits, even in the blackest night, a peace that says at all times, it is well with my soul.
This peace will guard the inner person of the Christian, even from internal threats such as worry and anxiety.
And this is through Jesus Christ, who said Himself, I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly
Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
It's because of Christ that we have peace with God, that we're reconciled to Him. And it's because of Christ that we have the peace of God in our lives.
So what makes you anxious? What fills you with worry? What takes your focus off of Christ?
Do not worry. Be anxious for nothing. Some might respond to this instruction, saying it's easy for others to say and to believe, but they're not facing what
I'm facing right now. This instruction might apply to the small things in life, but to the big trials, this doesn't work.
This never will work. Let's take a look at Paul's list again, a complete and exhaustive list for all the things a
Christian needs to worry about. Be anxious for nothing. Nothing.
And this is from a man who faces the real possibility of execution. This is from an apostle who thinks on the many churches, who prays for them constantly around the world, and the dangers that trouble them.
He has a lot on his mind, and if anyone had the potential to be worried, it was Paul. But he says, be anxious for nothing.
Oftentimes for the believer, worry and anxiety can cause you to have this death grip on your fear, whatever it is.
And God's Word says, do not be worried, do not be anxious. Take that death grip and place it upon Jesus Christ and hold on to Him by faith, by faith in Christ.
Do not allow anxiety to reign in your heart and mind. That is Christ's spot. That is
His spot. He must be your first thought, your center and focus, and so do not let outward trials cause inward trials of the heart, but pray.
Worship God and the beauty of His holiness. Pour out your heart sincerely to Him with supplication.
Thank the Lord for all He has done. Count your blessings. The Lord has been good. And give
Him all of your requests. And God says that He will bless you with the peace of God that will protect your inner person from anxiety and worry.
So stand fast in the Lord. Don't worry, but pray. Look to Christ.
The next instruction Paul gives the Philippians is to think rightly. And here's another list from the
Apostle. A list outlining what a believer should think on. Things that are, and as we go into each one of these, we'll touch on them and just kind of talk about what they mean.
And I'll be referencing Strong's Concordance to kind of grab some other words that have similar meanings.
I'll be referencing some teachers and other scriptures to kind of help us understand these words and what they mean.
Things that are true. Truth comes directly from God, who is true. He has declared truths about who
He is, what He has done, how one should live. The Christian must think on these truths and believe them.
Hold fast to that which is true. He must always deny and resist lies, wherever they come from and in whatever form.
Think on things that are noble. Some of your translations might interpret this word as honest.
And in 1 Timothy 3, we see the same word is used to describe what a deacon should look like in the church.
And that word in the New King James in 1 Timothy is translated as reverent. And I appreciate how our pastor spoke on that passage last
November, and his breakdown is helpful. Our pastor said, simply means that the man is honest, that the man is devout, plainly and clearly believing the things of the
Bible and not trying to deceive others, not putting on a show. End quote. Think on things that are just, that are right and innocent.
We see in Proverbs some images of what is just. The just man walks in integrity.
He is the same person on the outside, out in public, as well as privately. He is the same person filled with integrity.
We see the image of a just weight, a fair accounting of money and justice. Think on things that are pure, that are clean, without spot or blemish, undefiled.
James 1 .27 says, pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this, to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Think on things that are lovely, that is, friendly towards, rightly loving another.
In the Old Testament, we see the friendship between David and Jonathan, and after the death of Jonathan, David writes in a lament,
Saul and Jonathan were beloved and pleasant in their lives. Their friendship was a deep and strong one that withstood much adversity from King Saul.
And in the New Testament, we see the Apostle Paul write in 1 Peter, and above all things, have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.
Things that are lovely, to love one another rightly. Think on things that are of good report, that is, a good reputation.
In Proverbs 22, we see the truth that a good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, to have a good standing among others.
Think on things that are praiseworthy, that are commendable. We have this idea of to praise someone for work well done.
Think on these things, Paul says. In a world filled with various evils, living in a crooked and perverse generation, there was a danger for the
Philippians to be affected by the fallen and twisted darkness around them, to be conformed to the world rather than to Christ.
To begin to think like the world and not like a Christian. There was also the danger of allowing ungodly thought of worry and anxiety to reign in the mind.
And Paul gives direction, don't think on those things, don't think like the world, but rather think on these things.
Meditate on these things, that is, to take inventory of these things.
To diligently search these out, to find them, to know them, to number them, to analyze them, to determine their value and prize them accordingly.
To take inventory. A Christian is one who is saved by grace through faith in Christ alone.
For him, Jesus is Lord over every aspect of his life, and this includes his thought life, his thought life, which the
Christian is responsible for. He must submit his thinking under the authority of his
Savior and take every thought captive. He must live holy, for God is holy.
He must hold fast what is good and abstain from every form of evil, from every evil thought.
He must take up his cross in his mind and deny himself, deny the thoughts that are not godly, that are not right.
And by the Spirit's sanctifying power day after day, he must uproot every evil and wicked and ungodly thought and plant new thoughts that are right, that are godly.
The believer continuously lives before God, who knows each man's heart and mind.
You cannot hide your thoughts from God. Are your thoughts a sweet -smelling sacrifice to God or a dumpster fire?
We must think rightly as followers of Christ. Romans 12, 1 and 2.
By the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
As we meditate on godly thoughts by the Spirit's sanctifying power, we will begin to think differently.
Our minds will be renewed so that we look more like Christ and we think more like Christ.
Praise God. And the most glorious thing in this passage right here in verse 8, the most glorious thing in all of these characteristics in this entire list that Paul gives, all of these things listed here by Paul are most clearly seen in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
He is supremely true. He is the truth that sets men free. He is supremely noble, honest in all of His person.
He is supremely just. In Him was no sin, and through Him we sinners are made just, right with God.
He is supremely pure, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, who is without spot or blemish.
He is supremely lovely. He has loved us with such a wondrous love. It's one thing for a man to die for a good friend, for a good man, but Christ died for us while we were yet sinners.
He who is altogether lovely comes to the totally unlovely and makes us lovely.
He is supremely of good report. He who has been given a name that is above all other names, King of kings and Lord of lords.
He is supremely virtuous, filled with all excellence. His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.
And He is supremely praiseworthy, who is worthy of all praise, Jesus Christ in Him alone.
Do you wish to think rightly? Do you wish your mind to be transformed and renewed?
Is it hard to uproot the evil thoughts that reside in your mind, the worry, the anxiety, the selfishness, the pride, the hatred, and all other manner of sinful thinking?
Then look to Christ. Meditate on Him. Take inventory of His characteristics.
He will deliver you, forgive you, and cleanse you from the inside out. And where do we see
Christ most clearly? We've been talking about looking to Christ, looking to Him as our ultimate example, as He who is clearly seen in all of these attributes.
How do we look to Christ? We don't turn our physical eyes to artist's rendering of what
He might look like. We don't turn to actors portraying Jesus on TV or movies to see
Him most clearly. No. We open the Holy Scriptures. These are they that testify, that point to Christ.
We read the Old Testament looking for types and shadows of Christ and learn about Him there. We see
Him revealed in the history of Israel in the Psalms and Proverbs. We read the New Testament and see
Christ's incarnation clearly beholding His person and His redemptive work. We see
Him build His church in Acts, equipping His saints and the apostles. By the illumination of the
Spirit, we behold Jesus Christ most clearly in the Bible. And by beholding
His glory, the very glory of God, you will be changed, transformed to be more like Him into the same image from glory to glory through the
Spirit. Praise God. Therefore, actively think rightly.
Think on Christ and things that are true, that are noble, that are just, that are pure, that are lovely, that are of good report, that are virtuous and praiseworthy.
Daily make this a habit and pray. Be utterly dependent of God for this change, for you cannot change without Him, without His grace, without His Spirit.
Take up and read. Read the word that reveals the only one who can forgive you, who can cleanse you and change you from the inside out.
Stand fast in the Lord and think rightly. And doing so will lead to living rightly.
And that's what we find in verse 9. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do.
And the God of peace will be with you. Paul says, think on these things and imitate me.
And is this Paul being prideful? No. This is inspired text by the Spirit.
And Paul says, imitate me as I imitate Christ. Live out the
Christian faith outwardly. And he gives that other promise, the God of peace will be with you.
Not just the one who supplies the peace of God, but the one who supplies that, the
God of peace. And through Jesus Christ, the God of peace is with us.
Through Jesus Christ, we have peace with God, we experience the peace of God, and He Himself is with us and will never leave us
Let's pray. Heavenly Father, You are glorious.
You are the King of glory. Thank You for Your Word.
Thank You for the many blessings that You have given unto us in Jesus Christ, who is our greatest blessing.
Thank You for Him. Thank You, Father. We pray that You would please help us to think more like Christ, to think on Christ, of His characteristics,
Lord, and to be changed by Him. Please help us to take up and read, Lord. Give us a desire for Your Word, to take it up, a desire that cannot be quenched without seeing
Your Word. And please help us to pray, to pray to the Spirit and ask Him, please show me
Christ in this text. Father, help us to see Christ in Your holy
Word, and it's in His name we pray. Amen. Would you stand with me for our song of benediction?
We're going to sing verse 5 of the song we sang earlier. May the peoples praise You. ♪
It's our holy privilege to declare Your praises and Your name
To every nation, tribe, and tongue Your truth,
Your name May the peoples praise
You Let the nations be glad All Your blessing comes
And we may praise May praise the name of Jesus May the peoples praise