Philippians 4:8,9 - Whatever is pure

4:8

What we do with our bodies matters, but so also does what we do with our minds. So here we are encouraged to think about things that are noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable or praiseworthy. The world often encourages us to think about things that are the exact opposite of these things. Now Paul is not advocating some form of escapism. Paul himself was in prison, and was often beaten up. Paul knew how cruel life could be. But we need to focus on good stuff.

4:9

Paul then encourages them to make the most of anything they have learned from Paul, or things they have seen him put into practice. Earlier on in this letter Paul made it clear that he did not think he had achieved perfection, but that does not mean he has learned anything! This should be true of all of us. There should be somethings in our lives that others can learn from. Learning the peace of God is not just a mental exercise, we also achieve it by doing.

Deuteronomy 9:24,25 - You have been rebellious against the Lord

9:24

"You have been rebelling against the Lord ever since I have known you". There is a hint of exasperation here. Moses had had to deal with this rebelliousness from the outset. Even so, he had prayed for them on many occasions. Jesus too expressed frustration with the people.

9:25

The reason the Israelites had not been destroyed was that Moses had stood in the gap for them, praying earnestly for them. The only reason any of us have any hope is that Jesus died on the cross for us. There is this great choice, heaven or hell, that all of us have. By nature we deserve hell, and denying this is to deny reality. But if we accept our guilt, and believe in Christ then we receive eternal life.

Philippians 4:7 - The peace of God

4:7

4:6 tells us what we are not to do, and what we are to do. But we are not in this battle alone. God also helps. For we are told here that “the peace of God that transcends all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus”. So first it is God Himself who helps us. Next, the peace of God transcends all understanding. We may think a situation is impossible, but nothing is impossible for God. We do not need to be able to work out how God can get us out of a situation, or through a situation. It is the heart of God that is for us, that is the grounds for our trust, not our being able to work out how we will be rescued! As Prob 3:5,6 says, lean not on your own understanding. Finally, God guards our hearts and minds. If you have ever tried to stop worrying (and who hasn’t done this?) you will in all likelihood have found it difficult or impossible. It is God who guards our hearts and minds, through the Holy Spirit He brings about changes in our innermost being.

Deuteronomy 9:20-23 - And the Lord was so angry with Aaron

9:20,21

Aaron is now mentioned specifically. Aaron was the chief priest, and he had gone along with the people's wishes. The account in Exodus gives more details. Moses also prayed on Aaron's behalf. Moses then destroyed the calf idol, grinding it down to powder. Presumably he had some help with doing this. Idols need to be destroyed.

9:22,23

While the golden calf was perhaps the most egregious example of their sinfulness, it was by no means the only one. There was a "pattern of behaviour", with Taberah, Massah and Kibroth-hattaavah being named.  This hardness of heart came to a head at Kadesh-Barnea. The people were told to go into the land, but they did not believe or obey the Lord. Faith is sometimes portrayed as if it was an alternative to obedience. This is not something you find in the Bible. Faith and obedience go together. Obedience is the fruit or the evidence of believing God.

Philippians 4:5,6 - Do not be anxious

4:5

“Let your gentleness be evident to all”. We do not seek to overcome evil with evil, but with the goodness of the Lord. Jesus told us to love our enemies. Now the temptation to use worldly weapons when faced with opposition will be strong, but we need to resist this. Gentleness is the opposite response to what the world expects. It expects either bitterness, cowering fear, or similar reactions. It does not expect gentleness. Why can we adopt such an approach? Because the Lord is near. We are not in this on our own.

4:6

It is part of our fallen nature to be anxious about all sorts of things. If a church is facing opposition, then part of our reaction will be to worry. Paul offers a counter to that reaction in this and the following verse. First of all there is an instruction not to be anxious about anything. Sometimes we may hear sermons saying that worrying is a sin. In one sense it is, for it is a denial of who God is, of His perfect care for us. However, I am not sure that this is a helpful way to look at things. Worry is not a sin that anyone willingly chooses to do. No one thinks it is beneficial to them! People may sin sexually thinking it will be fun, someone may lie thinking it will help them in some way, but no one wants to worry. Worry is just part of our fallen condition. So what are we to do instead? We are to present our prayers and petitions to God, and to do so with thanksgiving. We should also take strength from the command not to be anxious about anything. When faced with testing circumstances we will feel that we almost have a duty to worry, that it would be irresponsible not to. Whatever the situation we are faced with we have been told not to worry, so that includes whatever circumstances we are facing now. On a positive note, I find it helpful to make an extra effort to pray for others, to pray for their needs, and their blessing in the Lord, and to do things for others, or for the church. Worry is a tactic the enemy uses to distract us from doing what we are meant to be doing.

Deuteronomy 9:17-19 - I lay prostrate before the Lord

9:17,18

Moses shattered the two tablets of stone. We are not told here why he did this, but going by other events in his life, it was probably a fit of temper, something he was prone to.  Even if it was temper, Moses then adopted a more helpful approach. He fasted and prayed again for forty days and nights. He did this because the sin the people had committed was provoking God to anger. We tend not to like the idea of God being "provoked" to anger, but this is because we do not take sin seriously enough.

9:19

Moses was afraid that God would actually destroy the people. However, the Lord listened to Moses. The people needed to appreciate their true nature, their need for salvation. This was the problem of the religious leaders in Jesus' day. They rejected Jesus because they would not admit their need of a saviour.

Philippians 4:2-4 - I plead

4:2,3

We are not given any information about Euodia and Syntyche. They may well have been involved in church leadership in some form, possibly as deacons. However, this is speculation. What is clear from Acts and Paul’s writings is that women (and the gospels, for that matter) played an important role in the early church. Debates on women and leadership tend to focus on what women must not do, or what women must be allowed to do, depending upon which side of the argument one is coming from. I think this is unhelpful, and not a particularly Biblical approach. It seems that there was some sort of disagreement between the two of them. Paul affirms the two women, and urges. Whoever the “true companion” is, he is urged to help the two women sort out their differences.

4:4

“Rejoice” has been a recurring theme in the letter. They are urged to rejoice in the Lord always. It is not just something to be done in the good times. The church was experiencing increasing opposition, in the midst of these circumstances the church was told to rejoice.