Sharing Bread Philippians 4:6-7

SHARING BREAD

⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Phil 4:6-7 (NIV)

In our verses for today, Paul warns believers against yielding to disturbing and perplexing worries and anxieties over our needs and difficulties this life continually presents.  He issues the great antidote to worry - prayer permeated with petitions and thanksgiving.  This keeps our minds steadfastly focused - in perfect peace - trusting and leaning upon the One who has control over all circumstances.  Isaiah states:

³ You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)

Those who trust in the Lord enjoy a complete and genuine peace – not the paste gem variety which the world offers.  This inner tranquility encourages believers to continue to trust in the Lord – even through trying circumstances - whereas worry robs us of peace and leaves us anxious, fearful and distraught.  The more we focus on the problem or on the crisis the greater and all-consuming the issue becomes.  The magnifying effect it has on our attentions cannot be overstated – the problems often seeming much larger than reality – particularly when we are facing them in our own weak strength.  We begin to sink in the mire and the deep pits of our troubles and despair or fall into a sinful spiral in choosing the wrong paths.  Jesus speaks towards the fruitlessness of worry in the Sermon on the Mount:

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?  ²⁸ And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?”   Matt 6:25-30 (NIV)

Worry is a form of atheism, for it betrays a lack of faith and trust in God.”  Bishop Fulton J. Sheen

At the very essence of our anxious thoughts is wrongly imagining that we are wiser than God and we thrust ourselves in His place reckoning to do for Him which He has undertaken to do for us.  It is great presumption in intruding upon His providence and it is sinful.  We work as unto the Lord and calmly leave our affairs in His hands.  He is in charge of the results of our labors.  It’s as if we believe we are ultimately responsible for the outcome or we are fearful that God won’t give us the results we desire.  It is a lack of trust in the fact that God always has our best interest at heart and if we receive a “No” in our petitions it is for a far greater “Yes”. 

¹⁸ Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice.  Blessed are all who wait for him!   Isaiah 30:18 (NIV)

“All worry is a desperate wanting of my own way.”   Ann Voskamp

Our focus in times when we are tempted to wring our hands over all the worries of this fallen world is to have a dramatic shift of focus - our eyes and hearts need to be off the problem and on the Provider.  We are to turn our full attention and trust to the all-sufficient One in prayer and in gratitude.  His hand is not too short to save and He is ever compassionate and willing to be our great defender still.  It is not only important for us to seek His limitless supplies of good but to recall His past mercies as well - acknowledging them in constant thanksgiving.

¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.   1 Thess 5:18 (NIV)

“Cultivating a grateful heart is not just an add-on nicety, a civil tip of the hat to God as we steamroll through our day. A posture of purposeful, perpetual thanks to God is absolutely central to Christian character. It gives glory to Him. It is the key defense against Satan's temptations to despair, distrust, dysfunction. It protects us from sin and self. It is the hallmark of heaven. It does not exist in hell.”  Ellen Vaughn

The effect of gratitude brings true peace to our hearts.  This is no ordinary tranquility rather a peace which passes all human understanding that garrisons our hearts and minds.  Jesus tells us in John:

²⁷ “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”   John 14:27 (NIV)

What I glean from this:

• ·       I am not to be anxious or worried about anything.
• ·       I am to pray about everything.
• ·       I am to cultivate a grateful heart – it is not something that flows naturally.

          

Sharing Bread Philippians 4:4-5

SHARING BREAD

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

Phil 4:4-5 (NIV)

Surely Paul’s command for believers to “Rejoice in the Lord always” can only be brought into fruition in our lives through the dependence upon the Holy Spirit’s indwelling power.  Circumstances in a fallen, sin sick world can be anything but happy.  We cannot depend upon them to keep us constantly joyful.  Indeed, they most often leave us wringing our hands in despair rather than lifting them up in joy and praise.  The joy commanded by God’s Word is not dependent upon circumstances, people or things.  Sadly and unfortunately, we often allow these to rob us of our joy.  For a Christian, joy can and should be a constant companion.  Paul writes similarly in 1 Thessalonians:

¹⁶ Be joyful always;   1 Thess 5:16 (NIV)

“Circumstances do not have the power to steal your joy.  Joy is the by-product of experiencing God’s sovereign grace even in the midst of seemingly impossible circumstances.”   Anonymous

God desires for His children to be joyful and He gives them every reason to be.  Indeed, we were destined for joy.  God sent His Son that our joy would be made complete and abundant in Him and certainly not just on pleasant days only.  I am reminded of the Baptist’s words regarding his complete joy in the Son:

²⁷ To this John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves can testify that I said, 'I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.' ²⁹ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. ³⁰ He must become greater; I must become less.”   John 3:27-30 (NIV)

Interestingly, John was joyful even in the womb.  The Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit prior to birth.  Elizabeth, John’s mother, exclaimed the following when Mary, the Lord’s mother, spoke her greetings:

⁴¹ When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! ⁴³ But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.”   Luke 1:41-44 (NIV)

This joy commanded springs from the blessings that are ours in Christ.  Yet it takes more than mere words and commands to muster up joy in the human heart.  It is not about rolling up our sleeves and putting on a happy face.  True joy is a Fruit of the Spirit (the second mentioned) and is a high standard only obtainable and continually sustainable by the Spirit’s power.  If we allow Him, the Holy Spirit can fill us daily with His power and presence enabling us to manifest Christlikeness in our spheres of influence.  As we yield ourselves to the Lord Jesus the Spirit fills us and we become more and more like Christ.  We can never attain the Fruit of the Spirit apart from His powerful help.  The more we depend upon Him the more we will evidence His character in our lives.  Our jobs are to maintain a proper focus – not on our circumstances – rather on Jesus the Author and Perfecter of our faith, asking Him to supernaturally change us.  The writer of Hebrews states:

² Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.   Heb 12:2 (NIV)

“Lord guide me in this Christian race, And keep my mind intent on thee; Rejoicing when I see thy face, And trusting when I cannot see.”  K. H. Von Bogatzky

“It is our duty and privilege to rejoice in God, and to rejoice in him always; at all times, in all conditions.  There is enough in God to furnish us with matter for joy in the worst circumstances on earth.”    Matthew Henry

        

The apostle did more than proclaim this command, he lived it.  Rarely, if any of us, have experienced the trying circumstances which Paul did - beaten, chained and thrown into prison, flogged, left for dead, shipwrecked, hungry, destitute – yet he still maintained his joy by depending upon the One who bestows it:

“In a command to ‘be joyful,’ self-discipline isn’t the goal.  It isn’t an effective response or even a realistic one.  We can’t change our hearts simply by telling them to change.  We can, however, realize that our attitudes are off-kilter and ask Him to supernaturally change them.  He holds hearts in His hand; He can certainly sway them with His thoughts and fill them with His Spirit.  If we are going to be people who are always joyful, this is how it has to be.  We can’t follow this instruction in the midst of trying circumstances unless we have a radical change of perspective and supernatural help.  Biblical commands to rejoice – especially in suffering, persecution, and the intense trials of life – can only be fulfilled when we depend on Him.”   Chris Tiegreen  

   

What I glean from this:

• ·       I am to be joyful always.
• ·       In Christ, circumstances do not have the power to steal my joy.
• ·       I am to be focused on Jesus - not on the happenings of my life. 

Sharing Bread Philippians 4:2-3

SHARING BREAD

² I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. ³ Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Phil 4:2-3 (NIV)

I don’t know about you, but I would hate to be memorialized in Holy Writ as not being able to get along with my sister in Christ!  Surely, Euodia and Syntyche - at the very least – would have wished they had agreed to disagree!  They had contended at Paul’s side for the cause of the gospel which now seems to pale in comparison when singled out as arguers and troublemakers.  Since Paul pleaded with these women to agree it seems they must have been causing some amount of dissention within the body of believers and he now calls on a loyal yokefellow to help these women work it out.  Interestingly, “Euodia” means “prosperous journey” and “Syntyche” means “pleasant acquaintance”.  They certainly appear to be falling short of the meaning of their names!

“It’s hard enough resisting the real enemy.  If we start fighting other Christians, we’re fighting two wars – and one of them is suicidal.”   John Wimber

There is no wonder Paul places such emphasis in many of his writings on unity in the body of believers.  Apparently it has been a problem since the “get-go”.   He writes in Colossians:

¹² Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.   Col 3:12-14 (NIV)

“Love one another that it may at last be said of Christians as it was at first:  ‘Behold how they love one another.’”   Ralph Venning

“Too many Christians mark their Bibles, but their Bibles never mark them!”     Warren Wiersbe

¹ We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. ² Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. ³ For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.” ⁴ For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.   Romans 15:1-4 (NIV)

Believers are to clothe themselves – take a decisive action – to live according to appropriate attitudes and attributes.  We are children of the King and we are to behave accordingly and bear the resemblance of our high positions in Christ.  Our words and actions are to be compassionate and kind, as well as gentle, humble and patient and we are called to forgive whatever grievances we may have against one another – just as we have been forgiven.

 

“Remember Whose you are and Whom you serve.”    Oswald Chambers

³ Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.   Eph 4:2-3 (NIV)

Ever been crucified by Christians?  To be sure, it wounds deeply and does much to damage the body of Christ.  Not one of us possesses all spiritual knowledge and understanding.  Not one of us possesses all the gifts of the Spirit given for the body to function properly.  We need each other and while our personalities may differ greatly we are not only called to get along but to love each other.  Sadly, many people would come to know the Lord Jesus if it weren’t for the poor behavior of believers.  And really, who could blame them? 

 “The Gospel is God’s explosive power that changes everything. The Gospel makes us Christians…God forgives your sin, declares you righteous in Christ, gives you eternal life, adopts you as His child, and ushers you into an intimate relationship with Himself, through the Holy Spirit. Secondly, the Gospel grows us.  The Gospel is not merely the way we enter, it is the way we make all progress…it is the ‘way of righteousness from first to last.’…Since the Gospel not only makes us Christians, but also grows us as Christians, the most desperate need of both unbelievers and believers…is to hear and appropriate the Gospel to their lives. Thirdly, the Gospel empowers us to serve…with a whole new motivational structure…setting us free to love and serve unconditionally in response to God’s grace in Christ.”  Rev. Dick Kaufmann

“It is a bad world, Donatus, an incredibly bad world.  But I have discovered in the midst of it a quiet and good people who have learned the great secret of life.  They have found a joy and a wisdom which is a thousand times better than any of the pleasures of our sinful life.  They are despised and persecuted, but they care not.  They are masters of their souls.  They have overcome the world.  These people, Donatus, are Christians…and I am one of them.”   St. Cyprian, 200-258

What I glean from this:

·       I am to love my fellow believers in Christ.

·       I am called to bear and forgive grievances – forgive as I have been forgiven.

·       The Holy Spirit empowers me to love like Jesus loved.  

Sharing Bread Philippians 4:1

SHARING BREAD

¹ Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

Phil 4:1 (NIV)

Paul’s love for the Philippian believers is evident throughout his letter to them but it is particularly brought to light in our verse for today.  As a father with his child, they were his joy and his crown.  Indeed, he loved them and loved them dearly.  Part of walking as Jesus walked is being emotive – as Paul was here.  Jesus was moved on many occasions with compassion – He wept with those grieving, He was angered over hypocrisy and greed, He greatly rejoiced when His disciple’s “got it”, He offered up prayers with loud crying and tears – yes, Jesus demonstrated emotion.  Our Lord desires for our heart to beat as His – our feelings to be aligned with what makes Him joyful or mournful.  We can be sure that whenever our hearts are as His, we are privileged to more fully experience His presence.  Once one has tasted and seen that the Lord is good, everything else pales in comparison.  Like Jesus, we here see Paul passionately loving and longing for his “joy and crown” - the believers at Philippi – teaching them how to stand firm in the Lord.

“Human love is capable of great things.  What then must be the depth and height and intensity of divine love?”   Lord Shaftesbury

¹⁶ “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”   John 3:16-17 (NIV)

The words John penned in 2 John come to mind:

⁴ It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us.   2 John 1:4 (NIV)

Paul always had the Philippian believer’s best interest at heart.  He greatly desired for them to be characterized by the fruit of the Spirit – uppermost in his heart and mind being the beautiful graces of love, joy and peace.  Those who shine forth these graces are greatly compelling in the cause for Christ.  Paul was well aware of the blessings he so desired for these saints and he longed for them to grab hold of it.  Nothing is worse than a life wasted.  He writes in 1 Corinthians:

⁸ Love never fails.   1 Cor 13:8 (NIV)

¹³ And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13 (NIV)

“Our task as laymen is to live our personal communion with Christ with such intensity as to make it contagious.”   Paul Tournier

Every believer should have such a high desire for themselves and for those whom they love.  Paul knew that for the Philippian’s to be characterized as such, Christ must be at the center of their hearts and minds.  Flesh is not capable of producing and sustaining such a high calling, it comes only through the Spirit’s power.
     
“The truly meek man is humble, gentle, patient, forgiving, and contented; the very opposite of the man who is proud, harsh, angry, revengeful, and ambitious. It is only the grace of God, as it works in us by the Holy Spirit, that can make us thus meek.”   Charles H. Spurgeon 

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”   John 15:5 (NIV)

Lastly, the apostle urges the saints at Philippi to “stand firm in the Lord”.  He desired for them to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding so that they may live a life worthy of the Lord.  Paul writes this prayer in Colossians – a great one for us to pray for ourselves and for our families as well.  This, of course, would be how they would be able to stand firm in the Lord:

⁹ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. ¹⁰ And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, ¹¹ being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully ¹² giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.   Col 1:9-12 (NIV)

What I glean from this:

·       Jesus demonstrated great emotion and I should as well.  It is walking as Jesus walked.

·       Love, joy and peace are compelling graces for the cause of Christ.

·       Apart from the Holy Spirit I can do nothing eternal.  I don’t want to waste my life therefore I desire to go forth in His power. 

Sharing Bread Philippians 3:20-21

SHARING BREAD

²⁰ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Phil 3:20-21 (NIV)

“Our duty as Christians is always to keep heaven in our eye and earth under our feet.”   Matthew Henry

God desires for us as believers to set our sights on heaven where our citizenship lies rather than to waste our lives wantonly wishing for worldly wants – as if they could ever fully satisfy our inmost longings.  Indeed, God wants His children to long for their heavenly home - eagerly awaiting our Savior from there. 

Believers now have a dual existence – we are in Christ yet we are also in this world.  When we are in union with Jesus, He supplies His disciples with peace and nothing, Scripture states, can make them stumble.  Yet, we are so conditioned to yearn for what our eyes can see and what our hands can touch that we can easily become consumed with the temporal things of this world which ultimately (and often constantly) rob us of our peace and joy. 

The Lord calls our hearts and our focus away from the love of the world with all its sin and its fullness of brokenness, labor, heavy burdens, sorrow and death.  He desires for us to fix our eyes on the eternal, on His kingdom coming.  Presently, we suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  This is something all humans have in common – no one is immune because we live in a fallen world.  Until Jesus returns, it will always be so.  Jesus tells us:

³³ “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  John 16:33 (NIV)

“A Christian, being only a traveler through the world, must expect a traveller’s fare; bad roads sometimes, bad weather, and bad accommodations; but since his journey’s end and city are in heaven, all his actions, sufferings, prayers, trade, and conversation turn that way.  O Lord, grant that mine eyes may always be fixed upon this mark, so as to regulate all my designs and doings accordingly; asking myself in everything, whether it be fit for heaven, and agreeable to the mind of the heavenly Bridegroom, and to the manners of the heavenly citizens.”    K. H. Von Bogatzky 

The wonderful promise of Scripture is that this world and all its evil will one day pass away.  Peter writes:

¹⁰ But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. ¹¹ Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives ¹² as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. ¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.   2 Peter 3:10-13 (NIV)

“If you do not wish for His kingdom, don’t pray for it.  But if you do, you must do more than pray; you must work for it.”   John Ruskin  

We get a glimmer into the glorious description of the new heaven and new earth found in Revelation which should whet our appetites:

¹ Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ² I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” ⁵ He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”   Rev 21:1-5 (NIV)

“Most of us find it very difficult to want ‘Heaven’ at all – except in so far as ‘Heaven’ means meeting again our friends who have died.  One reason for this difficulty is that we have not been trained:  our whole education tends to fix our minds on this world.  Another reason is that when the real want for Heaven is present in us, we do not recognize it.  Most people, if they had really learned to look into their own hearts, would know that they do want, and want acutely, something that cannot be had in this world.  There are all sorts of things in this world that offer to give it to you, but they never quite keep their promise.”   C.S. Lewis

What I glean from this:

·       My duty is to keep heaven in my eyes and the earth under my feet.

·       My citizenship is in heaven.

·       In this world I will have troubles.

     

Sharing Bread Philippians 3:17-19

SHARING BREAD

¹⁷ Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. ¹⁸ For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹ Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.

Phil 3:17-19 (NIV)

As believers, we are to be careful whom we mimic, whom we choose to follow, whom we count as our examples, our role models, our close companions and confidents.  Scripture tells us that a companion of fools will suffer harm:

²⁰ He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.   Prov 13:20 (NIV)

Certainly, folly is found in the advice of the foolish.  In contrast, we are to emulate those who we desire our lives to mimic.  In the book that bears his name, James takes it even further by equating friendship with the world with hatred towards God:

⁴ You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.   James 4:4 (NIV) 

 

“When sin penetrated the hearts of Adam and Eve, they not only became alienated from God, but they also became alienated from each other. When Jesus died on the Cross, He made it possible for all who believe in Him to be in fellowship with God—and also in godly fellowship with one another. Godly friendships are the evidence of our belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ. But godly friendships are not found; they are made. They are built up stone by stone. They are established on biblical principles.”  Michael Youssef

In our verses for today, Paul urges his readers to follow his example and not the ways of the world.  Prompted by love, he urges the Corinthians as a father would a son.  He genuinely longed for their best; his goal was to bring about a change of heart and manner in them:

¹⁴ I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you, as my dear children. ¹⁵ Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. ¹⁶ Therefore I urge you to imitate me.   1 Cor 4:14-16 (NIV)

These were not merely idle words for Paul whose personal mandate was to passionately pursue walking in a manner worthy of Christ.  He was not equating himself with Christ rather Paul by precept and example sought to imitate His Lord:   

¹ Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.  1 Cor 11:1 (NIV)

“Take heed that you do not glory in your graces, but let all your glorying and confidence be in Christ and His strength, for this is the only way you can be kept from falling.  Pray more often.  Spend longer periods of time in holy adoration.  Read the Scriptures more earnestly and constantly.  Watch your lives more carefully.  Live nearer to God.  Take the best examples for your pattern.  Let your conversation emit the fragrance of heaven.  Let your hearts be perfumed with affection for the souls of others.  So live that others may recognize that you have been with Jesus, and have learned of Him…On, Christian, with care and caution!  On, with holy fear and trembling!  On, with faith and confidence in Jesus alone, and let your constant petition be, ‘Sustain me according to your promise.’  He, and He alone, is able ‘to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy.’”  Charles H. Spurgeon

 

Lastly, it broke Paul’s heart that many continued to live as enemies of the cross of Christ - seeking and keeping their minds saturated on earthly things.  Paul warns the Philippian believers against their being consumed in such a way with the perishing things of this world.  He writes in Colossians similar words:

¹ Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.   Col 3:1-2 (NIV)

We are to “put to death” practices that harm both ourselves and others and “”clothe ourselves” with the virtues of Christ which will clearly affect our relationships with our families and our spheres of influence.  Remember as well, we are controlled by what our hearts and minds are set upon.  When our minds are set on what our sinful flesh desires it ultimately leads to death but if they are set on what Christ desires it leads to life and peace.  This is why Paul was so torn in his spirit in writing to the Philippians as one choice leads to death and the other to life.  Oh that we should all be so moved as Paul.  He writes in Romans:

⁵ Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. ⁶ The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; ⁷ the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. ⁸ Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. ⁹ You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.   Romans 8:5-9 (NIV)

“An awakened heart trembles at the audacity of sin, and stands alarmed at the contemplation of its punishment.  How monstrous a thing is rebellion!  How direful a doom is prepared for the ungodly!  My soul, never laugh at sin’s fooleries, lest thou come to smile at sin itself.  It is thine enemy, and thy Lord’s enemy – view it with detestation, for so only canst thou evidence the possession of holiness, without which no man can see the Lord.”  C.H. Spurgeon

What I glean from this:

• ·       I am to be careful who I follow.
• ·       Godly friendships are built stone by stone – based on Biblical principles -they do not just happen.
• ·       I am to set my mind and heart on things above.  

   

     

Sharing Bread Philippians 3:15-16

SHARING BREAD

¹⁵ All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. ¹⁶ Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

Phil 3:15-16 (NIV)

Sadly, many believers do not live as children of the King.  Rather than walking in a manner worthy of the Lord Jesus, we often discover ourselves wallowing in a way which is far below our exalted positions in Christ.  Paul encourages us here in our verses for today to live up to the high calling we have already attained in Jesus.  I don’t believe God relishes in His children being fence walkers, blenders with the world, lukewarm, indifferent, soaking in sin, weak willed and weak minded.  It is His desire for us to go forth in His mighty power as we carry around this precious Treasure in our vessels of clay.  He wants His life revealed - fleshed out - in our bodies to point others to Christ and to bless us in being all we were created to be.  So how are we doing in this?

⁷ But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.   2 Cor 4:7 (NIV)

“Every Christian life ought to be a force among men, a witness for Jesus and an influence for blessing and good. I know that there are few people like Billy Graham, whom God calls to do great things for Him. For men like  me, and perhaps you, the best thing that we can do in the small time allotted to us in this world is to live out a genuine, simple, beautiful, strong Christian life. In our little measure we can repeat the life of the Lord Himself, doing in our imperfect way a few of the wonderful things He would do if He were Himself in our place.”  Wales Goebel

Indeed, Jesus came down hard on the Church at Laodicea in Revelation for being halfhearted.  He states would rather them be either cold or hot over indifferent and lukewarm:

¹⁴ “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. ¹⁵ I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! ¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.”   Rev 3:14-17 (NIV)

“The hypocrite soars like the kite, with his eye on the prey below.  The true Christian soars like the lark, higher and higher, forgetting the things that are beneath.”  Matthew Henry

I am reminded in 1 Kings of the showdown between God’s man Elijah and the prophets of Baal and Asherah in the presence of the lukewarm (at best) people from all over Israel who continuously danced in love affairs between the world and God.  Elijah poses a question to this tepid group of wavering Israelites which, btw, could be posed to modern day believers as well (the word “waver” used in the passage below in Hebrew meaning “a limping dance”):

²¹ Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”  But the people said nothing. 1 Kings 18:21 (NIV)

God’s man Joshua asked the Israelites a similar question when he led them.  Make a decision, he states, Joshua’s mind being resolute and his choice clear.  If you are going to belong to God, belong to God.  The Lord continually seeks from His follower’s wholehearted devotion and a willing mind – His eyes searching to and from throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him:

¹⁴ “Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. ¹⁵ But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”  Josh 24:14-15 (NIV)

“Ultimately the man who comes to obey God will love Him first…Let us therefore learn that the love of God is the beginning of religion, for God will not have the forced obedience of men, but wishes their service to be free and spontaneous…Lastly we learn that God does not linger over the outward sign of achievement but chiefly searches the inner disposition (motive), that from a good root good fruit may grow.”   John Calvin

“Take heed that you do not glory in your graces, but let all your glorying and confidence be in Christ and His strength, for this is the only way you can be kept from falling.  Pray more often.  Spend longer periods of time in holy adoration.  Read the Scriptures more earnestly and constantly.  Watch your lives more carefully.  Live nearer to God.  Take the best examples for your pattern.  Let your conversation emit the fragrance of heaven.  Let your hearts be perfumed with affection for the souls of others.  So live that others may recognize that you have been with Jesus, and have learned of Him…On, Christian, with care and caution!  On, with holy fear and trembling!  On, with faith and confidence in Jesus alone, and let your constant petition be, ‘Sustain me according to your promise.’  He, and He alone, is able ‘to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy.’”  Charles H. Spurgeon  

What I glean from this:

·       I am to live as a child of the King.

·       God desires my wholehearted devotion and a willing mind.

·       God searches the motives behind my actions.