by Pastor James Lee

“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. 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. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you.” (Philippians 4:4-9)

To think well is to think obediently, applicationally, affectionately, devotionally, however you might want to express it. Paul next commands in v.9, to “practice these things.” In other words, don’t just be hearers of the Word, but be doers of the Word. The Greek word for “practice” refers to repetition, continuous action, or habit. We might speak of a lawyer or doctor having a practice, because their profession maintains a normal routine. And Christians likewise, are called to make it their practice to lead godly, obedient lives. We can’t do that, if we don’t think well. But that also means it can’t be just head knowledge, just orthodoxy, without orthopraxy. Our hearts and lives need to be truth on fire, not on ice. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. We have to practice what we preach. We can’t just love the truth; we have do the truth in love. We have to get the log out of our own judgmental eye. The Lord explicitly commands us through Paul to “practice these things”, not just to ponder, but ponder to practice. Now I think it’s a welcome and good trend recently that people want to know why they do what they do, that they want to rightly look at heart motivations. It is necessary. But let me say this… it’s a wrong trend that our generation delays obedience by discussing and self-analyzing to no avail “why” and “when” one should obey, when the Word of God is so clear. That alone should be enough for our immediate obedience. In reality, the truth is that we haven’t really learned “these things” until we have lived them out…at home, in private, on the way to work, in the office, with our children, in our relationships and in our ministries. Dr. Bob Somerville asks practically, “Does your mind center on your problems or the goal of God’s glory?”

Finally, to think well is to think globally, responsibly, and maybe the best way of saying it…generationally. We are stewards in passing on what we’ve been given and all that we sought to take in by the practice of thinking biblically. Paul offers himself as a paradigm and model for what we should all be doing, to practice, “What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me.” He says “Follow me, imitate me, as I follow Christ”. Not that everything about Paul, of course, is perfect, but imitate everything that is true, good, pure, lovely, excellent, and worthy of God’s praise. Don’t center on what’s not there. Life is not all about you and me. We have to get over ourselves. None of us are all that. But what we have been given from God, we have to be faithful to pass it on, to live it out with humility. As Paul exhorted in 2 Timothy 2:1-2 “You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

Whatever the Lord has entrusted to you, pass it on. Don’t just keep it to yourself. We have a generational responsibility! Are we seeking to be examples of genuine godliness, contentment, love, and hopeful living for others to imitate? Or, are we a critical spirit, a complainer, a malcontent, a perpetual pity-party? Do we trust God and rejoice even when life is difficult? Do we show by our faith that we believe Christ alone is fully sufficient for our lives? That Christ is enough? That in Him, we have everything, and without Him, we have nothing? Is that joy, a vivid and obvious part of our discipling of others? That we are convicted about our profound and eternal blessedness in Christ? That our real joy is not conditioned upon our circumstances, but immovably rooted in our Redeemer? So that we are willing to endure and labor as good soldiers of the One we adore? That our joy in Christ makes a concrete difference in our lives, and how we live day to day? That we are willing to suffer for His name’s sake? That we are committed to the work of missions and evangelism, the extension of His Church among all the nations? Are we sacrificial givers to the work of the gospel and His global cause? Are we a godly influence on others? Are we taking every reasonable opportunity to pass along our faith, to proclaim the good news, to understand others, to pray for others, to serve others, to open up our places and our wallets and our hearts to people without predefined limits? The word for “example” is manthano, the same root word for “disciple”. Is it that our thinking reflects a faithful discipleship to our Master and Lord Jesus Christ? Are we a model of how God takes sinful, broken, and weak people to transform and use them for His glory? Are we like Paul, shown mercy, so that others might through our witness, be shown mercy too? Are we the public display that the “God of peace” is with us promised at the end of v.9? That we don’t think there is anything remotely better than having the God of peace on our side? That the reward is the “God of peace” Himself, that He’s the treasure, rather than simply the “peace” He offers? That we love Him, cherish Him, and dwell on Him? That we want to know Him? That we are seeking to find our joy in Him, our joy…in Him…alone?

Paul urges us in v.6-7, “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.” As we believe that promise, seek His face, find our strength in our weakness. Dear brothers and sisters, He will renew your joy! That joy will allow you to influence this world with His glory and His grace. That joy will make you more spiritually powerful. Your life is meaningful, Christ did die for you. You are not an accident. You have been given holy purpose, for your blessing and to bless others. As 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Cast all your cares on Him, because He cares for you.” Paul commands, “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say, rejoice!” Why are we commanded to rejoice? Because we don’t always rejoice. Rejoice in the Lord, right now and always, let us rejoice!