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Philippians 4:8-23

Paul has been beseeching the Philippians to walk together, united in love. Though he urged all the
believers to follow him, in living out the gospel of Christ to the fullest, Paul gave freedom to those who
were not yet ready for their next step - knowing that the Lord would show them the way.

Paul wanted the believers in Philippi to extend that same freedom to each other, patiently bearing with one
anothers shortcomings and weaknesses - to refuse to be divided over non-essential issues, out of love for
one another - and for Christ.

Meanwhile, Paul urged them all to turn over every care and concern they had to the Lord - who would give
them His heavenly perspective on their difficult circumstances, in their city. The peace of God would guard
their hearts and minds, so that they would not be held captive by fear - and continue to operate out of fear.

As Paul approaches the end of his letter, well see that he continues in his encouragements, even as he
thanks the Philippians for the gift that they have sent him.

[Philippians 4:8-23]

Back in verse 8, Paul has come to his final Finally - that which remains, for the Philippians, following the
exhortation to stand fast in the Lord (4:1). He has already encouraged them not to let fear dominate their
thinking; they are to be anxious for nothing. So having told them what not to think on - their fears - Paul
now produces a list of things that they should think on.

Now some look at this list - true, noble, just, pure, and so on - and they think, all of those things are virtues
that describe Christ; so Paul is telling them to think on Christ. And those virtues do describe Christ; but
Paul is not telling them to think on Christ, here. These are things; not Christ Himself.

On the other hand, these are certainly things that are not of this world. The first one - things that are true -
means things that are conformed to reality. What, of the world, is reality? Its all a virtual system; a
facade.

Likewise the things that are noble - is there anything in the world that has real dignity - that is worthy of
respect, of looking up to? Not in this world, there isnt - its all inflated with pride, with pretense, with
ostentation.

And how about things that are just - are there any right judgments, in this world; is anything truly right?
And forget purity - this world is completely defiled.

Lovely refers to that which is dear, to us. How can anything in this world be really treasured, when it is
all temporary - and is already fading away (1 Jn 2:17)? And when is the last time you heard a genuinely
good report, in this world - something commendable? Its all bad news - and lately, fake news.

There is nothing virtuous, nothing praiseworthy here, is there? We can see that Paul definitely did not
intend the things of this world.

And yet what Paul lists are actually things that can be known to the believer, while in this world. Some
can even be observed, right here on earth - in the world, but not of it.
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So what are these things, that Paul is encouraging the believers in Philippi to think on? Not Christ Himself,
but the things of Christ; especially things that believers have, and are, and do, by virtue of being in Christ.

Now, we understand that Pauls list of these things is just meant to be representative; not exhaustive. But
let me just give you an idea of what Paul might have had in mind.

Whatever things are true; the reality of things. This world system isnt real, but heaven and earth are real.
They had a Creator; God, who is real - the One and only true God.

A creator always has a purpose, for what he creates; and God has a purpose, for the heavens and the earth,
and for the beings that He created to inhabit them: that He might gather together in one all things in Christ,
both which are in heaven, and which are on earth - in Him (Eph 1:10).

All beings ultimately find their purpose and fulfillment, their meaning, in Christ. Thats real - because its
according to Gods design, as the Creator.

Whatever things are noble; that is, they possess dignity; they are worthy of respect. God has purposed His
creation of mankind to receive the dignity of becoming His born sons, through faith in Christ.

Mankind was created a little lower than the angels; but men who believe into Christ will be crowned with
glory and honor. In the church age, these will rule and reign with Christ over the earth as glorified sons in
Gods heavenly kingdom - set over the works of Gods hands, with all things in subjection under their feet -
through Christ (Heb 2:5-10). This noble, dignified destiny awaits those who have chosen to humble
themselves to Christ, as Lord.

Whatever things are just refers to righteous judgment, according to the Divine standard of holiness.
There are no right judgments in this world; every mans standard is relative - relative to how he sees things,
for himself; relative to what is right, in his own eyes (Jud 21:25).

But God has given each believer the Holy Spirit, to lead him into all truth (Jn 16:13) - which includes
discerning what is truly right and truly wrong - so that the believer can think and live in righteousness.
Meanwhile, the believer has the reassurance that God will judge the world, in its unrighteousness - in fact,
that sentence on the world has already been pronounced - at the cross (Jn 12:31).

Whatever things are pure. This world that we were born into is defiled; and we were born into it, defiled;
and as we have taken in what the world has to offer, we became more defiled.

But now, we have purified our souls in obeying the truth - the gospel - as the Spirit enlightened us to it, and
we received that light, believing (1 Pet 1:22). We were washed, we were sanctified, we were justified in the
name of the Lord Jesus and in the Spirit of our God (1 Cor 6:11).

And the Spirit has continued His work of sanctification in us (1 Pet 1:2), preparing us for the day when
Christ will return and present us to Himself, a church of glory - not having spot or wrinkle or any such
thing - but holy, and without blemish (Eph 5:27); pure.

Whatever things are lovely - dear to us, treasured by us. Treasures are often buried; they have to be dug up,
from the ground. They may not seem like treasure, when they are first unearthed; but once the value of a
treasure is determined, it certainly becomes dear to us; it is lustrous, lovely in our eyes.
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Take, for instance, your salvation. Did you know at first what a treasure that was? You just believed into
the Lord Jesus Christ, and He saved you. But did you understand how He really did that - or why?

Were you aware that it was Gods plan for His creation of mankind - and for you - all along? Did you
understand the fullness of what that salvation really entailed? Did you even understand completely what
you were being saved from? None of the above, right?

But as you began to understand those things, that salvation became more and more precious to you. The
Father gave His Son, to accomplish your redemption. The Son shed His blood, to deliver you from sin and
death. And the Spirit came to indwell you, to guarantee its completion (2 Cor 5:5).

And there was even more to this treasure, than met your eye, at that point. Turns out theres an inheritance
involved - having believed into the death of Gods Son, you became one of the heirs - now that youre part
of the family of God.

Theres great riches, with this inheritance - your heavenly reward - and even some property - in the New
Jerusalem. And eventually, you came to see that the best part of this treasure is that you gain Christ, and
you keep on gaining Him, in ways that you never could before - until one day, the ultimate gain - youre
present with the Lord (2 Cor 5:8) - and will be, forever.

Then Paul continues - whatever things are of good report - speaking of commendable character or conduct.
This would be true of those believers who are abiding in Christ, so that the character of God is being
worked into them; which is then worked out in their lives as the fruit of righteousness (Jn 15:5); theyre
worth talking about.

And lest his listeners take the list to be exclusive, Paul adds - if theres any virtue, if theres anything
praiseworthy. So then, what should the believers do, with these things? Meditate on them.

Now, mediation in Scripture is not to be compared to the Eastern meditation that is prevalent in our culture,
today. Eastern mediation involves a suppression of the conscious mind, in order to empty and open the
mind to spiritual encounters.

What kind of spirits do you think are encountered, by that form of meditation? Evil spirits - demonic
spirits. These spirits are perfectly willing to masquerade as God, or whatever the person is seeking to
encounter - and meanwhile, through that persons wide-open mind, they exert their spiritual influence -
directly inserting the thinking of the spirit of this world, the Evil One, into it.

There is a movement in the church in our day to meditate in this way, although it is not generally called
meditation, but instead has the spiritual-sounding name of contemplative prayer, or centering prayer -
nonetheless, Eastern meditation, just by another name.

The Bible clearly prohibits such contact with the spiritual realm (Deut 18:10-14). Instead, mediation as
spoken of in both the OT and NT involves active thinking, with the mind fully conscious (Josh 1:8, Ps 1:2,
1 Tim 4:15).

The Greek word Paul uses here means to put together in ones mind; to occupy oneself with reckonings or
calculations. And Paul uses the verb form here for continuous or repeated action.

Believers are to be constantly considering these things - exploring them, with their minds - making them
the object of their careful attention and study. Why should they always be thinking on these things?
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Paul gave a very good answer to that, in his letter to the Colossians. Turn to Colossians chapter 3.

The assemblies to which Paul wrote were trying to achieve sanctification through a false doctrine they had
taken in, which involved mysticism, legalism and even asceticism.

Paul has been emphasizing that in Christ, they already have everything they need for living a sanctified life.
In chapter 3, Paul starts to teach them how to live this life. It begins with the thinking.

[Colossians 3:1-3] The first word of verse 1 is the Greek if that reflects no doubt. In English, it would be
better translated since - Since you were raised with Christ.

Paul is speaking to the believers, as if they have already been resurrected, in glory. This tells us hes taking
the heavenly perspective - outside of time - its as good as done. Thats the eternal reality.

Since that is so, Paul says, seek those thing which are above - continuously - always. And by above, we
can clearly see Paul means heavenly things - for that is where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
Seek those heavenly things out continuously, and then set your mind there - and not on the things on the
earth.

Why should the believers do that? Paul gives the reason - For you died - a one-time action. When did
you die? When you believed into Christ; you were crucified with Him.

And where is your life now, in verse 3? With Christ in God - its hidden there. The life cant yet be seen -
youre still in the same body - but you have eternal life in this body, for a body of glory. That body will fit
you for life, in heaven.

So Pauls point is that shouldnt you begin to mind heavenly things now, since you already possess
heavenly life? Of course you should! Should you waste even one thought on the things of the earth - to
which youve died? Not even one! That would leave you with less gain - for the life that youre living
now, and will be living, forever.

[Return to Philippians 4]

And thats why Paul has given this list of things, for the believers in Philippi to think on. These are
heavenly things - things that are of Christ - and if they will meditate on them, putting them together in their
minds, they will construct the reality of heaven there; and that will then become the framework for their
thinking - giving them Gods perspective, on all the circumstances in their lives.

And as they choose to set their minds there, they will be disinclined to set them on earthly things (3:19) -
and have the thinking of this world - and put their confidence in the flesh (3:3-4).

This is what Paul had learned to do, so that he ran his race well, and as he continues, he will once again
offer himself as an example, to his friends in Philippi.

v. 9 Paul had taught the Philippians these things, over the years, so that they could have them in mind.
They knew that Paul himself lived by them. Now Paul is calling them to do the same - to practice, practice,
practice, living with that heavenly perspective. And if they will do so, Paul says, the God of peace will be
with them.
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Is Paul saying that God will not be with them, if they dont do this? No; hes saying peace will not be with
them, if they dont do this.

Paul uses the term God of peace in his letters in contexts where strife or unrest are close at hand (Rm
15:33, 16:20, 1 Th 5:23). Both are close at hand, in Philippi; members are striving with one another,
because their hearts are not at rest; theyre anxious (4:6).

But if they will pray about everything, and practice setting their minds on the things above, they will have
the peace of God, ruling over their hearts and minds - and their assembly.

Paul now addresses the gift that they have sent him.

v. 10-12 Now, to our ear, it might sound as if Paul is ungrateful - even that he is critical of them. We have
now at last your care for me has flourished again - as if to say they should have sent a gift sooner; and,
not that I speak in regard to need - as if to say he didnt really need their gift.

And anyway, wheres the thank you? And why does Paul mention their gift at the end of the letter - as if
to relegate it to the position of least significance?

But Paul actually has mentioned the gift before - twice. As he began his letter, he wrote of the Philippians
fellowship in the gospel with him - an indirect reference to their support, of him - from the first day, until
now (1:4).

And Paul has also written about Epaphroditus, who brought the gift - your messenger, and the one who
ministered to my need, who supplied what was lacking in your service toward me (2:30), meaning
Epaphroditus was filling in for them.

Now Paul acknowledges the gift more directly - and at the end of the letter - so as to leave the Philippians
on the sweet note of their friendship.

When gifts were given, it was not customary to express thanks as we would do today, in our thank-you
notes. Instead, it was taken for granted that the friend was grateful for the gift, and he would instead
express his thanks indirectly, in a letter - acknowledging the gift, and the friendship.

Thats why Paul never directly says thank you, in his letter - it wasnt the convention. But he refers to
the gift over and over - which shows his gratitude for it.

In verse 10, Paul is careful to qualify what he has said, about their care for him flourishing again - at last.
He wants them to know he doesnt mean to say theyve neglected him; he knows they were unable to send
him support, for a time - as he said, they lacked opportunity.

This probably corresponds to the time when Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea, for two years - before being
transferred to Rome. Since Paul was kept under tight wraps in Caesarea because of the Jews, it may be that
some of the churches did not know he was imprisoned there - and so they would not have known where to
send support. There are no letters to the churches from Paul that correspond to that time period.

The unbelieving Jews would have been intent on restricting Pauls efforts to continue his ministry from
prison, and the Roman governors would have been perfectly willing to comply with the Jews - in order to
keep the peace. Here, Paul is letting the Philippians know that he understood the situation, at the time.
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But now that their care has resumed, Paul is rejoicing - in who? In the Lord. Paul recognized that the gift
was ultimately from the Lord; that the Lord made Pauls whereabouts known, and put it on the hearts of the
Philippians to send support to him - at just the right time.

While he was appreciative of the gift, Paul didnt wish to imply that his gratitude was because his needs
were being met - as if he just saw the Philippians in an instrumental, utilitarian kind of way - for what he
could get out of them. And so as he continues in verse 11, he is saying it isnt because of having his needs
taken care of, that he rejoices.

He goes on to explain this. Paul didnt rejoice in the Lord that his needs were finally being met, because he
had learned to be content, in that state - in a state of need - lacking, in material things.

In fact, Paul continues, he learned how to be content in every state - whether the circumstances of life were
humble, or abundant - whether his body was deprived, or had all of its needs met - and then some. As we
think about Pauls travels, we realize he had many opportunities to learn this, in his life.

The word that Paul uses in verse 12 for learned means to initiate into the mysteries, to introduce to things
not known before. Paul is using the word to mean that he learned the secret - the secret of being content, in
whatever state he was in. Would you like to know the secret? Its in verse 13.

v. 13 Its too bad that this verse is taken out of context so often. When we do that, we rob it of its power,
because we put the emphasis on ourselves - on what we can do - all things. I can accomplish everything,
through Christ. Wow, that sounds so self-sufficient!

But this unusual Greek verb translated can do involves the idea of enduring. Hmmm. So lets consider
what Paul would have actually meant, here.

He is saying that the secret to being content, no matter what your state - to enduring patiently, joyfully, no
matter what your circumstances - is the realization that Christ Himself is your strength - Christ is your
sufficiency, within the circumstances.

For Paul, to live is Christ (1:21); he lived, moment by moment, depending on the Lord, to see him through.
When he lacked, Paul learned to simply turn to the Lord, with his need - to trust in His provision and His
timing - and to be satisfied with the Lord Himself, in the meantime.

And when he had plenty, Paul learned not to trust in the sufficiency of the provision. He just kept trusting
in the Lord, knowing the Lord was the One who supplied all his needs.

This is the opposite of self-sufficiency; this is complete dependence - on the One with the wisdom and the
power to see him through his circumstances in life. What every believer really needs is to learn this secret -
of relying on the Lord, moment by moment, to live.

Do you think Paul was making a point, to the Philippians? Of course he was! Are they content, with their
current lot, in Philippi? No. They needed to learn Pauls secret - to completely depend on the Lord; to trust
in His sufficiency.

Doesnt the Lord know their circumstances? Yes. Wont He show them the way through it? Yes. And as
they learn to trust Him with their current situation in Philippi, their hearts will be satisfied; theyll have the
peace of God, and peace with one another; and theyll find rest for their souls - content, no matter what
state they are in.
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But even though Paul was content while in need, he is still thankful for the Philippians and their gift - and
goes on to commend them.

v. 14 Paul rejoiced in the Lord, not because his needs had been met, but because of the friendship he had
with the Philippians - for their partnership in the gospel (1:5).

Paul now rehearses to the Philippians their own history with him - which of course, they would know,
perfectly well.

v. 15-16 When Paul speaks of the beginning of the gospel, he means when he first preached it in
Macedonia - the province in which Philippi resides. Paul also preached it in two other locations in
Macedonia - Thessalonica and Berea - before Paul departed for Greece.

What Paul is saying here is that of those churches, only the church in Philippi supported his ministry; and
from what he says in verse 16, it is apparent that they did so immediately after they were established, after
Paul left their city, to preach the gospel in Thessalonica; and that they did so, repeatedly. If you think about
it, this is remarkable, for new believers to immediately begin to support a ministry, and on a regular basis.

But theres something even more remarkable about it, which we find in Pauls second retained letter to the
Corinthians. Turn to Second Corinthians chapter 8.

[Second Corinthians 8:1-5] Paul is speaking of the alms that he is collecting for the impoverished saints in
the Jerusalem church. All of the churches in Macedonia were contributing to this collection.

What I want you to notice is how Paul describes the churches in Macedonia; they were enduring a great
trial of affliction - that is, persecution.

In addition to what we know about Philippi, Pauls letters to the Thessalonians bear witness to the
persecution that was being endured there, as well, at the hand of the pagan Gentiles. This presumably led
to financial hardship - perhaps the loss of work - which is why Paul describes these churches as deeply
impoverished.

Yet they gave generously to another church, experiencing the same kind of persecution and hardship - a
demonstration of their love, of fellow Christ Ones.

[Return to Philippians 4]

This shows us that the believers in Philippi did not giving out of their abundance. They didnt have much;
but what they had, they shared - time and again. It is no wonder that Paul commends them for it.

But once again, he wants to make sure they dont misunderstand him.

v. 17 Paul makes it clear, this is not a solicitation, for them to give more! In fact, his joy is not in the gift,
but in the givers - because the more they give, the more treasure they will have, in heaven. This is just
some of the fruit of righteousness, for which Paul had prayed at the beginning of this letter that they would
be filled (1:11).

And as for himself, Paul has all that he needs.

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v. 18-19 Mutual giving and receiving was the fundamental indicator of friendship, in Pauls day. Paul
actually used just those terms back in verse 15 - giving and receiving. By doing so, he was saying that the
believers in Philippi were true friends of his.

Now Paul is indicating he has received their gift, and it has more than met all his needs; it was a most
generous gift. According to the etiquette of friendship in that day, this now put the obligation back on Paul
to reciprocate - as a demonstration of his friendship, in return.

But how can Paul reciprocate? For that, he turns to the One who has the sufficiency to do this, for Paul.

First, Paul describes the gift of the Philippians using the metaphor of a sacrifice - and indeed, they did give
sacrificially. The gift becomes an offering, whose sweet fragrance rises upward to God - and it is well-
pleasing to Him; acceptable; the offering is received by God Himself.

This now makes God the One to reciprocate, for the gift. And how will God do so? Paul says, my God
shall supply all you need. Do the Philippians need boldness, to share the gospel in their city? Do they need
wisdom, to know how to deal with their adversaries? Do they need patience and love - humble hearts, to
serve one another? Paul says, my God will supply it.

And the supply will abound, because its according to Gods glorious riches - which have no bounds. All is
available through Christ Jesus - the One with the sufficiency, to meet every need.

And this causes Paul to break forth in praise, to God.

v. 20-22 Letters of the day often ended with greetings. Paul wants to include every single believer, in his
greeting, individually - every saint - he may very well know them all, personally. Next, he sends greetings
from those currently working with him at present, in his house - where hes imprisoned.

Then Paul extends greetings on behalf of all the believers in Rome - all the saints - and he has a very
definite reason for doing this.

Paul goes on to cite a particular group of these saints - those who are of Caesars household. This could
include anyone who lived or worked in Neros household - relatives, slaves, freedmen, even the palace
guards.

You might remember that in the beginning of the letter, we learned that a member of the Praetorian guard -
the guards of the imperial household - one of these guards was chained to Paul, day and night, in four-hour
shifts. And it would seem that some of these guards - and perhaps even others, of Caesars household -
heard the gospel of Christ, and believed into the Lord, for themselves.

Just imagine how encouraging this would be for the believers in the Roman colony of Philippi - to know
that their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, had penetrated right into the heart of Rome, and taken members of
the imperial household - adversaries of Christ - as His prisoners; they became prisoners of His love. What
a victory! What confidence they could draw from that; confidence that would help them to endure, with
joy.

And on that note, Paul ends his letter.

v. 23 The grace by which the believers in Philippi have been saved is the grace that is sufficient to supply
all their needs - according to Gods glorious riches - in Christ Jesus. Amen? Amen!
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And that ends Pauls letter to the Philippians.

Summer Reading: Matthew