The Place to Be #58

 

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. 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.

We have seen in this chapter Paul's final plea for joy.  It is how God wants us to live. Paul had seen that in Christ and pursued it himself. He now wants us to experience it, and to deal with anything which would hinder the flow of that joy in our lives and in our churches. As we have seen that means dealing with any unresolved arguments that divide us from fellow believers, as well as any anxieties which disturb us and our relationships with one another. In these verses he goes even deeper to the things upon which we meditate, we dwell upon.  As Paul tells us elsewhere, there is a battle doing on in our minds, where we need to "take every thought captive."(II Corinthians 10)  Rather than dwell upon our worries and anxieties, we need to focus our thoughts (and energies) on those things that move us and the church forward in our pursuit of Christlikeness.  Once again, Paul has the courage to invite them to examine his own life - not as a point of bragging, but as a way of saying: "Look what God can do through Christ working in you." When we allow Him to do so, we will experience His peace, and the joy that accompanies it.