Peace
“Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things. Do what you have learned or received or heard from me. Follow my example. The God who gives peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8,9 (NIRV)
That’s quite a list of things to think about. When my thoughts are centered on those things, my day just has to go well. Thinking on those things doesn’t leave room for depressing or worrisome thoughts. The last part of the verse tells us to follow Paul’s example, and then we will receive peace from God. Part of following Paul’s example must be to think of the things he has listed in the previous verse, so let’s think on those things.
Think about what is true. The greatest truth we have is that Jesus is Lord, that is, if we have accepted Him as Savior. Those who have not accepted Jesus as Savior cannot claim Him as Lord to their detriment.
Think about what is noble. The apostles demonstrated great nobility by standing up to the Jewish leaders and their Roman rulers. They defied their demands to stop speaking of Jesus, and all but John were put to death for their refusal to deny Jesus as the Son of God.
Think about what is right. It is right to love our fellow man and to show preference to him in our dealings. It is right to help those in need, physically, mentally, or spiritually.
Think about what is pure. There is nothing more pure in nature than mountain spring water. A cool drink from a mountain stream or spring while on a hike is most refreshing.
Think about what is lovely. To my heart, there is nothing lovelier than a mother with her young baby. I know that some of my memories of loveliness involve my wife holding one of our babies.
Think about what is worthy of respect. Those who have devoted their lives to studying the Word of God, growing close to Him, and who then import what they have learned in study and prayer to His people are certainly worthy of respect.
Think about what is excellent. Gospel groups who sing of our Lord in striking harmony exhibit excellence to my ear.
Think about what is praiseworthy. Our Lord and His sacrifice on our behalf is the most praiseworthy thing I know.
I encourage you to develop your own list of what things you think of as examples of what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, worthy of respect, excellent, and praiseworthy.
Peace
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:8,9 (NIV)
I wrote about peace and my need for it in the last post, and this post continues that discussion. In verse seven, just before the above quote, Paul speaks of the peace of God, and its presence and help in our lives. So now, two verses later, in verse nine, he again speaks of God and His peace. Only this time it is “God of peace,” and previously it was the “peace of God. They both sound good to me.
We are usually reminded of this passage because of the things we are told to think about—true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy things , but these two verses end with “And the God of peace will be with you.” For me, that moves the emphasis from the things we are to think about to the presence of the God of peace. Paul tells us that if we think on these awesome things, our minds will have no room for negative thoughts, nor worries, nor anxieties because the God of peace will be with us.
As was my search in my previous posting, I am looking for peace, and here I have been told that the God of peace will be with me. What a great combination we have in these few verses, Philippians 4:4-9, the “peace of God” and the “God of peace.” So, be still my soul, when you have need to get rid of worry and anxiety, read these six verses and be blessed by God and His peace.
When I think of these verses and back them up with John 14:27: “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.” (NIV), I am greatly buoyed up. So I can say to my mind and to my heart, “You have the peace of God from the God of peace, and you have been given peace directly from Jesus. Now, FRET NOT!”
Peace
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)
I have been dealing with a problem that has persisted for close to a year, and it has caused me much anxiety. I know Psalm 27 tells us several times to “fret not,” but I’ve had difficulty doing that. Paul’s words to the Philippians (quoted above) were more able to bring me peace. There is no evil person behind my difficulty; it is a misunderstanding that was supposed to have been resolved several times during the past year, but just when I thought it was handled, it popped up again. This has happened month after month, and it has been weighing on my mind. Because I have prayed about it but, it hasn’t yet been resolved, my tendency is to believe that my faith is not strong enough to conquer this problem. God has told me that He is taking care of it, but every time it pops up, I think it’s because I haven’t believed strongly enough. So, I’m in a spiral, but I think these words from Paul will help me.
If I follow what Paul says, I will have the peace of God, not just the peace of man. If I will rejoice always, that will get my mind off the problem. If I will show my gentleness, it will be returned to me, if from no one else, it will be returned to me by God. Now the hard part for me, “Do not be anxious about anything.” But I think if I will follow all of Paul’s other instructions, the anxiousness will be washed away. When I present my problem to God in prayer WITH THANKSGIVING, the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard my heart and my mind in Christ Jesus. Peace from God will be mine not only in my heart, but also in my mind. And His peace “transcends all understanding.” I don’t have to understand where the peace comes from, and I don’t have to understand why I have His peace. It’s just mine, and it came from God! “Problem, quit bothering me! I’m rejoicing in the peace of God!”
“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Romans 12:4,5 (NIV)
I really enjoy listening to Christian singing groups, particularly those who sing acapella. Solos can be beautiful and stirring, but there is something about the dynamic of groups singing harmony that touches my heart. I enjoy trying to figure out who is singing which part, but sometimes it is not easy to do because the blend is so beautiful. It takes close listening and close watching of expressions and mouth movements to know who is who. I spent a long time listening to several groups the other day and was greatly blessed by them.
To be effective as an acapella singing group, each singer must put as much effort in listening as he/she does in singing. If a singer cannot hear the other voices, chances are that his/her voice may be dominant, disturbing the overall blend. Even when singing a solo with the rest providing background, the soloist must listen to the others to make sure that the total sound is the best it can be. The word “harmony” even has a pleasant sound. Webster’s New World dictionary defines “harmony” as “a combination of parts into a pleasing or orderly whole.” That certainly describes my favorite, which is four-part harmony. Successful quartets are known by the group name without undue emphasis on any one singer. The group is know as a group not four individuals. It seems that harmony takes effort. Even though some members of a quartet may have an easier time finding the correct or good sounding harmony for his/her part, he/she needs to work with all the other members to be sure that the overall sound is harmonious.
After I had spent a long time listening to acapella quartets, the following words came to my mind. I take them as a word from the Lord: “Harmony that is shown in music is the harmony I want throughout my Church and in each individual church. Stop fighting each other! When you sing harmony, you listen for the other voices so that you know you blend and give the best sound. Just be sure that you, as a church, are singing a song that you know I would like and enjoy.” I believe that the harmonious song that God wants to hear is based on the knowledge of the deity of Jesus Christ and His value as Messiah and Savior with the harmony provided by the Holy Scriptures. If I am speaking things that are not supported by the Word of God, or if I am making derogatory statements about other Christian churches whose day-to-day operations aren’t the same as those of my church or who may interpret some portion of scripture differently from what my church does, then I am not in harmony and my song is not pleasing to God. Lord, help me to listen to my brothers and hear their hearts before I criticize them. Lord, help me to be part of the harmony that pleases you.
“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; One Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” Ephesians 4:4-6 (NIV)
There is one body, and that’s us, and this body has been given many gifts of the Spirit. These gifts differ according to the Scripture passage, but here is a list made of those listed in several scriptures: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of God, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, tongues and interpretation of tongues. Perhaps your list contains more. Today, I would like to speak of other gifts or abilities or roles necessary, used, and present in the collection of various churches, depending upon their focus and ministries. It’s a longer list than the one written above and probably not as well known: ushers, pray-ers, greeters, security, singers, AV techs, secretaries, friends, pastors, listeners, treasurers, decorators, youth leaders, schedulers, janitors, kitchen workers, maintenance, service coordinators, children’s teachers, worship leaders, volunteers, volunteer coordinators, copy machine operators, praisers, encouragers, intercessors, intercessory prayer coordinators, Bible study teachers, and receptionists.
Did you find yourself in that list? You should have because some of them are roles and gifts given and needed to be used by all of us in every church. Others are more specific and may not be present in each church. One interesting fact of Christian churches is that when a role needs to be filled, or a task needs to be completed, God taps someone on the shoulder and says, “Here’s your chance to further my kingdom.” Join Isaiah, who said in Isaiah 6:8: “Here am I, Lord, send me.” (NIV) It may not seem to be as important as God’s call to Isaiah, but if it is important enough for God to ask you to do it, then it is important enough to say, “Send me.”
The point is that we are all called by God to fulfill some vital part of His church, but not everyone answers the call, and the church is just not quite as effective as it would be if each of us answers. But remember that our God is a forgiving God, and He will ask you again, giving you the opportunity once more to serve, once more to earn the accolade: “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Matthew 25:21a (NIV)
Please forgive me if I have omitted a role that you are fulfilling in your church. You can be sure that God has noticed and He will express His thanks at some point.
