Spiritual Depression Pt. 21: Final Cure

The Final Cure in Philippians 4:13

We're up to chapter 21 of spiritual depression, and the first, for this last chapter there's only one verse that the book uses, Philippians 4 .13, I can do all things through him who strengthens me. This is, he says, here we are confronted by one of those staggering statements which are to be found in such profusion in the epistles of this great and mighty apostle to the Gentiles.

There is nothing more misleading when one reads the letters of the apostle Paul than to assume that when he has really finished the business which he has set out to do, he has at the same time finished saying great and mighty things.

Just think of, just listen to what he's saying there. Just when you think Paul's finished, and he says, and then finally, and he's got more to say, all right? And here, even in the, what's that? Absolutely.

And then, even in his postscript, remember we're looking at these last verses of Philippians 4 as him saying thank you to the church in Philippi for the gifts that they've given to him, and we find the same thing contained in his thank you.

He's still teaching and instructing, all right? So he's at the same time finished saying great and mighty things. We should always keep an eye on the postscripts of this apostle. You should never know, you never know when he is going to throw in a gem.

Anywhere, everywhere, in the introduction to his letters, in the postscripts to his letters, there is generally some amazing insight into the truth or some profound revelation of doctrine. So this is why, this is another reason why you never want to skip over portions of scripture on a regular habit.

I know people who have never read through the book of Numbers, for example, or never read through the book of Leviticus, and there's just so much contained in those books. And even skipping over the chronology, I know a man who was saved reading the chronology of Jesus, and that's what brought him to faith, all right?

So don't overestimate or underestimate anything that's in the scriptures at all, and that's what the good doctor is saying. He says, we are here, in a sense, looking at the postscript to this letter. The apostle has finished the business at the end of verse 9, and he is now just offering his personal thanks to the members of the church at Philippi, for their goodness to him personally, for the gift which they had sent.

But as we have already seen, the apostle could not do that without being involved at once in doctrine. Anxious as he is to thank them, he is still more anxious to show them and to show others that his sufficiency was in Christ, and that whether he is remembered or forgotten by men, he is always complete in the Lord.

And it is in that connection that we come to this 13th verse. Remember what he's talking about here is what we looked at last week. Remember last week we looked at the concept of learning to be content.

And that was the, he gave us that instruction in the midst of him thanking the church in Philippi for the gift, and that's what Dr. Jones is speaking of here. So now this is the last chapter of the book, and it's aptly titled, The Final Cure.

The focus is just on one verse, 413, and this is another one of those verses that is often taken out of context, misinterpreted, misused, and misapplied. It's amazing how this verse, I've seen it used for so many things having nothing to do with the context.

It must be viewed in the context of the entire epistle to the church in Philippi. The verse does not say, I can do everything through him who strengthens me, which is how it's usually used. Oh, I can do it all, you know.

There's nothing that I can't do because I have Christ. That's not what the verse is saying. It says, I can do all things. The question then is, what are the all things? As we know, all is not necessarily a universal affirmative.

The word all has limitations built into it based upon the context. So, what we're talking about here is the things that Paul speaks about in the previous verses. The things that God brings into the life of the Christian in his gymnasium.

Remember that lesson we had talking about the gymnasium, God's gymnasium, where he brings trials and tribulations into your life for particular reasons. The things he brings into your life to sanctify you.

Okay, that's the context of this verse. Nevertheless, that being said, that there is a limited context, and that is that whatever God brings into your life, he will also supply the ability and the means necessary to work through it.

It's still an amazing statement. I mean, that does not demean from it whatsoever. It is at the same time a humble statement, yet it is also one of triumph. It's humble because you're acknowledging that you need Christ.

It's not something, we're never told as a Christian, just pull yourself up by your bootstraps and you can do this, you can do everything. That's not the message of scripture, not at all. And it's certainly not the message of Philippians 4 .13.

It is one of those paradoxical statements in which this apostle seems to have it delighted. Indeed, it is the simple truth to say that Christian truth is always essentially paradoxical. It at one and the same time exhorts us to rejoice, to make our boast, and yet to be humble and to be lowly.

And there is no contradiction because the boast of the Christian is not in himself, but in the Lord. All right, you see what he's saying here. And this is a crucial point to get through. All right? At one and the same time, we are exhorted to boast in the Lord, not to back down.

Remember, Christian meekness is not weakness. It's not being a Casper milquetoast. Meekness is standing boldly and asserting who we are in Christ, but always at the same time humbly acknowledging that it is Christ working in us.

And you'll see this further as we progress through this final chapter. So, Martyn Lloyd-Jones offers a paraphrase for the verse, which I like, so we're going to use the paraphrase. He says, but I suggest that a better translation would be, I am strong for all things in the one who constantly infuses strength into me.

This is one of those times where we can use the word infused. Don't use it about righteousness. That's heresy. All right? But here, where he infuses strength into us, that's okay. All right? So don't confuse the two.

All right? So notice what he says. I am strong for all things in the one who constantly infuses strength into me. This is another one of those verses that you notice. Does anybody know what the King James Version says?

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. The word Christ is not there. It's implied, but this is one of those examples where you have to be careful and why it's always helpful to use more than one translation of the Bible, especially if you're doing a Bible study.

If you're just reading devotionally, did you guys catch that? You know I don't like that word. But anyway, if you're just reading it devotionally, all right, it's okay. You're reading through a whole passage of Scripture, but if you're doing any serious study, that's why hymn is a better translation because the word Christ is not there.

In other words, we have in this verse the ultimate and the final explanation of what Paul has been saying in the preceding verses. Context, context, context. This statement is not only the fitting conclusion of the epistle to the Philippians, but also for the book we've been reading.

So this is a perfect chapter. As I was reading this chapter, I said this is, Martin Lloyd-Jones has done just such an excellent job, not only in the way he has laid out the book, the way he introduced the subject, the way he talked about how it manifests itself and what the remedies are, but now he's brought it to a conclusion in probably one of the best books to conclude this topic, Philippians 4, where he talks about suffering, et cetera.

Remember in chapter 1, what did Paul say? That to you it has not only been granted to believe, but also to suffer for his sake. So it's a book about rejoicing and suffering. It's again one of those paradoxical statements.

Here you have a book which is known mostly for rejoicing, and yet equally to that is all about suffering for Christ. It's paradoxical. So it's a fitting conclusion, not only for the book of Philippians, but also for the book Spiritual Depression that Martin Lloyd-Jones has written.

We've studied many different manifestations, causes, and remedies for spiritual depression through these 20 chapters. We're now in chapter 21. But it is here in this 13th verse that we have the ultimate explanation.

The real secret, says Paul, which I have discovered is that I am made strong for all things in the one who constantly is infusing strength into me. That is his final explanation. In fact, what he's saying is this is the bottom line.

Everything else that he's said in the previous 20 chapters is fine, and it's all good. It's all necessary. It's all helpful. But if you miss this last point, you're going to wind up still in some sort of depression.

This statement, though short, is absolutely profound. It highlights a very important doctrine. The Christian life, after all, is a life. I want you to pay special attention to this quotation. The Christian life, after all, is a life.

It is a power. It is an activity. That is the thing we so constantly tend to forget. It is not just a philosophy. It is not just a point of view. It is not just a teaching that we can take up and try to put into practice.

It is all that, but it is something infinitely more. This is what separates Christianity from every other worldview, every other philosophy. You're following? It's more than, is there a philosophy of Christianity?

Yes. Is there a theology of Christianity? Yes, there is. Are there practical outworkings of the Christian moral ethic? Yes. But is that the sum total of Christianity? No. That is the sum total of all the other religions and all the other philosophies.

And this is something that a lot of churches just miss because of their particular worldview. And we'll get into that a little bit more. This thought runs throughout this epistle. Of course, it runs throughout the whole Bible.

And we see that. I'm going to give you just a couple of examples. For example, Philippians 1, 6. For I am confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work, and you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

There's a beginning. There's a middle. There's an end. And who is there at the beginning? Christ. Who is there at the end? Christ. Who is there in the middle? It doesn't say in this verse, but who is there in the middle?

Christ. It's a way of life. Philippians 2, verses 12 to 13. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you. God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

You cannot take God away from the Christian life. Christianity is so much more than just a code of ethics. There are a lot of religions out there that have a pretty decent code of ethics. There are a lot of cults out there that have a pretty decent code of ethics.

But that's not the sum total. That's not what we're comparing. Paul addresses the fact that Christianity is more than a philosophy in several places. Philippians 3, 10. That I may know him and the power of his resurrection.

You know what that word power there is? Come on, Greek scholars. Dunamis. Same word we get dynamite from. It's not just, it's not authority. If it was authority, it would be exousia. Or exousia, depending on your Greek pronunciation.

You come from the north or south of Greece. Anyway, Ephesians 1, 19 to 22. And what is the surpassing greatness of his power toward us who believe? These are in accordance with the working of the strength of his might, which he brought about in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in heavenly places.

Here's exousia. This is authority. He has both authority and dunamis, power. Far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.

And he put all things in subjection under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church. Notice, that is far more than just a philosophy. And then, of course, we have these words also in Ephesians.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power, same word, that works within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever.

Amen. These are the essential truths that enable the Christian to avoid spiritual depression. Do you want to know how to avoid spiritual depression? It's not just merely sitting down and reading your devotions.

This is what, going back a week or two ago, when I talked about how do we read the scriptures. It's more than just reading something. It's more than just taking in information. That's the first part. But it is more than that.

There is a power that the Christian has through Christ which enables him to not fall into spiritual depression or, if already in its grasp, to be freed from it. It's genuine power. We come back again to what I am never tired of quoting, namely John Wesley's favorite definition of a Christian.

He found it in that book by Henry Scogle, a Scotsman who lived in the 17th century, and the very title, The Life of God in the Souls of Men. This is a book that Wesley found, written by Henry Scogle, titled The Life of God in the Souls of Men.

That is what makes a Christian. The Christian is not just a good, decent, moral man. The life of God has entered into him. There is an energy, a power, a life in him, and it is that that makes him peculiarly and specifically Christian, and that is exactly what Paul is telling us here.

As soon as I read this, I said, that's going to become one of my favorite quotations from a 17th century Scotsman. The life of God has entered into him. There is an energy, a power, a life in him. You see how this is far more than merely sitting down and reading a philosophy.

When I was going to college, it was at a time when I wasn't walking with the Lord, it was before I was saved, and I got, like a lot of college kids of my age, this was back in the middle 1960s, in the Middle Ages, and I got carried away with the French existentialists.

I was reading Jean-Paul Sartre, Camus, and those guys, and I got really into it, because they were very talented writers and tremendous intellect and thinkers, but it's hopeless. There's nothing. In fact, the single book that drove people mad was called No Exit.

And you know what Sartre said. You know Sartre's definition of hell? Hell is other people. And just imagine going around with a philosophy. There is no final destruction. This is it. And everybody else is hell.

It's depressing. No life. It is that that makes him peculiarly and specifically Christian, and that is exactly what Paul is telling us here. Martin Lloyd-Jones then spends some time refuting the Stoics and Eastern religions that all have a negative or passive attitude towards what happens during your life on this earth.

Remember, one of the things that you've seen over and over again, week after week as we've been going through his book, is that it's not grin and bear it. When bad things happen, and bad things will happen, Jesus made it very clear.

He says, in the world you will have tribulation. But then what does he say after that? Does he say, but just stiff upper lip, grin and bear it, and soon it'll be over. And this soon shall pass. No, you're never instructed that in Scripture.

What does Jesus say? In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. All right. There's the difference. It's a life, it's a power, it's an energy. All right. He says, why am I concerned about this negative emphasis?

The reason which compels me to do so is that all such teaching is really hopeless. All those religions are finally pessimistic. Stoicism in the last analysis was profound pessimism. It really came to this, that this world is hopeless, that nothing can do any good, that the thing you have to do, therefore, is to get through it as the best you can and just refuse to let yourself be hurt by it.

Okay. So what do I do? Nothing. Just lay back and let it pass. What kind of a way is that to live a life? The Eastern religions are, of course, entirely pessimistic. And one of the reasons for that is they teach that matter is essentially evil and the flesh is essentially evil.

So where is your hope? As long as you're in the flesh, you're struggling with this evil person. That's why it's a shame. Some Christian sects have, S-E-C-T-S, have adopted the same thing. Oh, no, everything in the flesh is evil.

That's not the message of Scripture. When you are born again, you are a new creation in Christ and there's nothing inherently evil in your flesh itself. It's the sin nature that's inherently evil. The best you can do is get through this life with a minimum amount of pain and hope for the best.

What's that? I said imagine coming in late to this study. Yeah. Just hang in there. Okay. That is not the Christian gospel and my apologies to any English majors out there for the double exclamation point.

I know that's a pet peeve of English majors. I don't care. Okay. I just felt compelled that that statement needed more than one exclamation point. Okay. At its core, one of the reasons why it's wrong is it fails to give glory to God.

Where is the glory to God if all I'm going to do is sit back and relax and let life flow over me? Whatever happens to me happens to me. Okay. To be a Christian is not only to believe the teaching of Christ and to practice it.

It is not only to try to follow the pattern and example of Christ. It is to be so vitally related to Christ that his life and his power are working in us. It is to be in Christ. It is for Christ to be in us.

Doesn't that get you excited as we're looking at the pessimistic philosophies of this world and then seeing what is the reality in Christ? It's completely different. It is to be in Christ. It is for Christ to be in us.

In other words, there is a real change that takes place in the Christian. Regeneration, being born again, is a real change that takes place. It's not merely a change in philosophy. It is that change in philosophy, but it is so much more.

There's a real change that takes place in you. That change enables the Christian to accomplish whatever God brings into his life. That's Philippians 4 .13 right there. The change that takes place in you when you are saved is what enables you to accomplish whatever God brings into your life.

First step is you have to believe that. How many here, and I don't want to see hands. This is a rhetorical question. How many people here have ever gotten to the point where you say, You know what? This is just too much.

Life is, the way things, the position I'm in, the condition I'm in right now, it's just too much for me to handle. Again, that's rhetorical. Don't want to see a change of hands. I want you to answer that question in your mind.

All of you who said, Yeah, I've been there. You believe the lie. Because the scripture says that there is nothing that he will bring into your path that is greater for you to handle. Okay? So it's a question.

So that's why you have to believe first. Christian life is faith. You have to first believe. And we're going to get a little bit more on that later. It is not a mere philosophical change or a theoretical change, but real change that takes place.

If this is so important, then, why do many Christians never manifest this ability? Why do you have so many Christians who are seeking psychotherapy, counseling, secular counseling, psychological counseling, or even biblical counseling, but they never seem to get anywhere?

And, by the way, this is a real situation. There are a lot of people out there, a lot of professing Christians that are just kind of living in the humdrums and never really getting going on their life.

Why is that true? Through misunderstanding, misapplication, and the result of poor and erroneous teaching. That's the first step. If you don't believe that the Christian life is a real change and that you have the power of Christ working in you, if you don't believe that, well, then you're never going to avail yourself of it.

Look again at the verse. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. And, again, remember, what are the all things? All the things that he talked about in the previous verses. Learning how to be content with a lot.

Learning how to be content with nothing. In any and all circumstances, he says, I have learned the secret of both being based and abounding. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. That's the context for this verse.

Paul, the I in the verse, is the one doing all things. See, here's where... What we're going to look at here is just a little exercise. How is this verse misapplied? It's in the extremes. Notice, Paul is the one doing all things.

The him, Jesus Christ, is the one who enables him by giving him the strength that he needs. What are the two errors? I have to do it all. That's an error. If you try to do it all, guess what? You're going to get depressed.

What's the other error? I don't have to do anything. Christ is going to do it all. Guess what? You do that, it's not going to happen. You're going to get depressed, because you're not going to see any change.

You have to take what the Scripture says. Paul is actually the one who is doing it. The self is not completely eliminated. You are responsible. Remember, just because we're Calvinists and we understand the sovereignty of God, we understand the decree of God and those things, that doesn't alleviate us from the responsibility to do what he has commanded us to do.

The problem arises when the two are not seen in the proper balance. We must, therefore, if we are to be just to this doctrine, safeguard the true position. The Christian life is not a life that I live by myself and by my own power.

Neither it is a life in which I am obliterated and Christ does all. No, I can do all things through Christ. There's the balance. So how do you get this power to live the kind of life we see in the New Testament?

Remember, Paul said it was a secret that he had learned. The secret has been unfolded in all of the previous chapters of this book. Think back to all the various causes and cures for spiritual depression we've examined.

And there's a lot of them. Remember, we had 20 chapters, each one picking up a different aspect of how to fall into spiritual depression, or rather, how to get out of it. Ending with learning contentment last week.

The power of God comes to the person who is walking in obedience to the law of God with a humble spirit and a grateful heart. I can, therefore, summarize the teaching like this. The secret of power is to discover and to learn from the New Testament what is possible for us in Christ.

Now, I want you to just look at that one again for a minute. There's faith. It's doctrine. This is doctrine. In other words, you have to know it first. Remember 2 Timothy 3, 16 -17? What does it say? All scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Right? Okay. First step of change from the scriptures is doctrine. If you don't know what to do, how are you going to do it? So that's the first step. So it says, therefore, he's summarizing the teaching.

The secret power is to discover and to learn from the New Testament what is possible for us in Christ. So what's the first step? You've got to be reading the Bible. And more than just reading the Bible, you've got to be studying the Bible to understand what it's saying.

In the same way, if we do not keep the spiritual rules, we may pray endlessly for power, but we shall never get it. There are no shortcuts in the Christian life. There is the practical application. Right?

Remember the one chapter we looked at, and he says, you may be on your knees and praying for all it's worth, but if you're not doing the other things, why are you praying? Prayer is not mystical. It is pleading with your Heavenly Father to act on your behalf.

Sometimes, let me give you a perfect example. And this has happened to me numerous times. Somebody comes into the counseling room. They present a problem. I sit down with them. I say, all right, here's, this is what you've told me.

This is what the scripture says. So now what do you think? This is what you need to do. And the person sits there, looks at it, and says, I'll have to go home and pray about that. And I told, and you know what my answer to him is?

That would be the most ungodly prayer you've ever prayed. You don't pray to see if the scripture is true. You pray because the scripture is true. So don't tell me you're going to go home and pray to see if you need to obey the scripture.

All right? So, and that's what he's saying here. You may pray endlessly for power, but you're never going to get it if you're not doing the things the scripture is already telling you to do. This is what Jesus called abiding in him in John chapter 15.

Remember, he gives us the example of the branch and the vine. And as long as you're plugged into the vine, you get power. That's abiding. Abiding means to be obeying him, to have that personal relationship with him.

That's, where does the branch get its power from? And it's life from, from the vine. But it's the branch that actually bears the fruit. Exactly what we've been studying, just a different analogy. It is what Paul describes in verses 8 to 9 of Philippians 4.

These are some of my favorite verses. I always have, you know, the chapel students at some point within the year or couple of years of learning these, because these are crucial verses. And it's right in the wheelhouse what we're talking about.

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence, if anything worthy of praise, what?

Dwell on these things. Before you ever get down and start praying, start dwelling on these things. All right? And then what does he say? The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things.

You need to be practicing these things. All right? And the God of peace will be with you. If you're living a life and you're not following these things, these things, then why are you praying? You have to be, it's both.

You have to know what the right thing to do is and then to actually do it. The hymn writer said it so well, trust and obey, for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus than to trust and obey. Trust and obey.

That's, you want the Christian life in three words? There it is. Faith and obedience. Want to be happy? Want to be joyful? Trust and obey. That then is the prescription. Do not agonize in prayer, beseeching him for power.

Do what he has told you to do. Live the Christian life. Pray and meditate upon him. Spend time with him and ask him to manifest himself to you. And as long as you do that, you can leave the rest to him.

He will give you strength. As thy days, so shall thy strength be. He knows us better than we know ourselves and according to our needs, so will be our supply. Do that and you will be able to say with the apostle, I am able, made strong for all things through the one who is constantly infusing strength into me.

That's the ending quotation from the book. Any questions?

Yes, Norma. Can you go back to the slide where it had the two ways that scripture is misinterpreted? I think there's a third that a lot of churches do. Was it one before that? I think it was before that.

No, it was before that. No, before that. Do you remember what it was? The one where you had, that one right there. Okay. So, I think another one that's misconstrued is the all things because there are like the prosperity churches.

Yes. They will, the word, I can do all things through Christ, so they actually misinterpret the all things. Yes, well that's what I did in the beginning if you remember. That's why I spent time talking about what is the all things.

Right, yeah. Because they don't include the verses before it. Right, yep. So, there's three ways that that verse is taken. Yes, well there's actually more than three ways. Well, I mean, okay. Okay, any other questions?

Comments? Convicting stuff, isn't it? Okay.