Philippians 4:4-7 “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Chapter four of Paul’s epistle to the Philippians lays a grand template for experiencing the peace & joy of Christ, particularly in times of trouble. It frames three means of engaging the grace of God, that when utilized in accord with each other and the vitalizing ministry of God’s gracious Spirit, will breathe fresh life into the window of the soul.
When the storms of life blow trouble into the portals of the soul, & they will- John16:33, the first means of grace we should access is prayer composed of worship and earnest entreats for Him to supply all of our needs in Christ Jesus. But, more so, Paul communicates our worship in prayer should be founded upon a joyful, faithful gladness for God’s glory & goodness. All our supplications have their basis in the faith that God in Christ has done great things, is doing great things, & will do great things in the future, for He is both entirely sovereign & wholly good.
“But my faith is too weak to maintain that manner of prayer, & I don’t know how to change that.”
We praise God because He never gives us imperatives without undergirding indicatives. With exceptions to the times God desires to stifle our pride (e.g. Job 38ff, Matt. 5:48), our merciful Lord never commands His elect to do the impossible. He doesn't expect or desire that we fill our lives mouthing empty, vain platitudes of prayer. If He wills worship, & He certainly does- Luke 19:37-40, then He will cause us to be willing worshipers.
The key to growing our faith in prayer & engendering the companion promise of an inestimable peace which will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus is found in the pressing on into the next two imperatives-
Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
“Okay, I see the call to build faith by changing my thinking, but I can’t do that either.”
So the command to think of good things while feeling ensnared in the bowels of bad things seems to be yet another impossibility. Don’t be fooled here, this is no call to a Robert Schuller-esque positive thinking platitude. This is true religion, and that means true engagement with the Founder & Perfecter, the Alpha & the Omega, the first & the last, the beginning & the end of our faith- the Spirit of Christ. Jesus promised- John 14:16ff- that the Father & He would send this “Comforter” to us to abide in us forever, & through the wonder of the Trinity, He (Jesus) would also “manifest” Himself to us!
“Well maybe I’m not even saved, because I’m not feeling His comfort down here under all this trouble. I need something more down to earth”
The “down to earth” thing many of us are lacking here is, quite simply, the Bible. If we desire to experience the spiritual manifestation of the Comforter, there is no better place to be than this. This is the closest we can come to His physical manifestation before His return. Think about that- in the realm of the material senses, there is nothing like the word of God, except the Word of God!
Modern day “apostles” & “prophets” love to claim manifestations of His presence and the breathing out of prophecy, but we should retort that we have easy access to something far greater- a foundational testimony of true Apostles & Prophets confirmed by untold millions of believers over the course of thousands of years. Think about that- we have 24/7 tangible access to the very breath of Almighty God! (2Tim. 3:16) With God’s Word in our heart & His word in our hands, our thoughts & ways can come into accord with His thoughts & ways. We can carry it with us, we can put it in our pocket, put it on our phone, put it on our car stereo, or we can put it on a shelf & wonder why God seems so far away when we need Him most. The word of God is truly near you & you can fully assured it is in you anytime you take hold of a Bible & read it or even just listen to it!
“Well, I’ve been reading & praying God’s word a lot, yet I still don’t have this “peace” everybody talks about. I feel like the young rich man, who appears to be doing everything right, but still feels lacking” (Matt.19:20)
Yes, it may be with us as it was for that man, we lack only one crucial thing. Paul presses forward with a third fundamental instruction...
Philippians 4:9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Ah, the dilemma of the Christian who desires to practice his belief only in the sanctity of the soul. We are saved with Scripture alone, by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, for God’s glory alone. That puts the reclusive believer at ease, for it seems he can do everything “alone”! It is like a pandemic- it appears to be a paradise for the private person.
But as we press on with the word of God alone, we find this “paradise” fading away, if we read it with any degree of comprehensiveness & exegesis. Christ commands us “follow Me”, & we can, as long as He is headed up the mountain to pray in private. It’s when He comes back down to practice the purposes of prayer that many of us fall short.
We adore the faith alone & grace alone taught in Ephesians 2:8-9, but verse 10’s teaching that these are purposed for good works does not hold such a hallowed place in our heart. But right exegesis demands we consider that we are His workmanship. God has worked towards us in so many ways to cause our salvation; consequently, true sanctification is our likewise working outward with all that God has already worked inward…
Philippians 2:12-13 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Apart from this, we should not be surprised if we do not sense the presence of the God of peace, for He only promises a continuing peace to those who put into practice what they have heard & seen in Christ & the mature believer. At best, we would lack His comfort, but at worst, we may be judged as the ungrateful servant or the fruitless fig tree.
Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
The following prayer utilizes this basic framework of Philippians 4, with added supplications & rejoicings from Romans 8, Psalm 51, Psalm 1, Isaiah 9, Ecclesiastes 12, & John 4.
My God & Savior, may You bless me to lead me to rejoice in Your nature which You cause to dwell in me! I will rejoice in all things!
Oh blessed & only sovereign King, I know that You work all things together for Your glory & our good! What may be meant for evil, by any power, in all of creation, will be turned around for good for those called according to Your purpose, for You alone are Creator & all creation bows before You!
Therefore, my omnipresent Lord, knowing you are near, I will not be anxious in anything. Instead, I will bare the full depths of my heart, mind, & soul to You. Indeed, my omniscient Lord, You already know me better than I know myself, but in the pursuit of Your peace, I have seen that You delight in truth in the innermost being. My Father, may You plumb the depths of my soul to purge the old creation & flood with the new, for only then do I fully sense being purged & clean, washed & whiter than snow- as You work joy, gladness, & rejoicing to the full depth of all that I lay down before You!
So, Spirit of Christ, my Bright & Morning Star, this day illumine all You choose to make evident to your new creature in Christ. I will make everything known to You in these means of grace You have given- prayers, supplications, & thanksgivings. Dear Father, in this You deliver to me by the works of Your kinsman, the Prince of Peace, such of His dominion that it surpasses all carnal understanding! Oh glorious Lord, lead me to not only dwell, but also delight in the vastness of the truthful, honoring, just, pure, lovely, commendable, & praiseworthy aspects of Your Son, Your Word, & Your Kingdom, meditating on them day & night!
Wonderful Councilor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, & Prince of Peace- may we see the world as You saw it when You walked this earth. You saw everything as passing away, save the elect of God. Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, all is vanity.
Lord Jesus- so You saw all of creation, save Your Father’s elect children. You worked for Your Father & for these alone. In the course of Your walk, there was much in the temporal to distract Your gaze from Your goal, but You refused to look away from the blessed culmination of Your work for the Father in Jerusalem. You refused to stop until You could say in that place “It is finished” & You gave up Your spirit.
Holy Father, may I be blessed to likewise have a portion of such determined vision for Your work. May I be blessed with eyes that see the work that You have prepared beforehand for me. May You fix my gaze upon Christ, & all that You have for me to accomplish in Him. My Lord, this can appear as a formidable goal, but I can do all things through You Who strengthens me.
This is the end of the matter- may I never depart from the fear of God & the keeping of Your commandments, for this is my whole duty. Pilate posed the query “What is truth?” Such irony- in that Truth personified was standing in his very presence! May I never be so blind! Only in worshiping You Father, in Your Spirit & Your Truth, through both word & deed, am I able to find the place of my purpose- the place where I offer my greatest praise & reside in righteous worship of Your eternal glory!
