Category Archives: Philippians

This is the worst thief of all! How many people have been robbed of peace and fulfillment because of worry!

The Secure Mind (chapter 4). Worry is actually wrong thinking (the mind) and wrong feeling (the heart) about circumstances, people, and things. So, if we have the single mind, the submissive mind, and the spiritual mind, we should not have too much trouble with worry.

This chapter describes the spiritual resources the Christian has in Christ: the peace, power, and provisions of God. We have the peace of God to guard us (vs. 7), and the God of peace to guide us (vs. 9). The peace of God comes to us when we practice right praying (vs. 6-7), right thinking (vs. 8) and right living (vs. 9). This is God’s secret for victory over all worry!

The church of Jesus Christ is under attack, just as Jesus predicted it would be. In John 16:33 He warned, “In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

Timothy, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12). Not surprisingly, the church has faced persecution from its inception (cf. Acts 4:1–31; 5:17–41).

There are hints throughout the epistle of the destabilizing threats facing the Philippian congregation.

• They were experiencing persecution (1:28–30).
• There was a lack of unity, thus Paul urged them, “Make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose” (2:2), and, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing” (2:14).
• False teachers also posed a threat (3:18–19).
• There was the dispute between two prominent women in the congregation (4:2–3). That dispute threatened to split the church into rival factions. The situation was compounded by the failure of the church leaders to deal with it.
• As a result of those destabilizing factors, some of the Philippians had failed to trust God and had given way to anxiety (4:6).

Spiritual instability leads to disappointment, doubt, discouragement, and ineffective witness. Unstable people are likely to be crushed by their trials. They are also susceptible to temptation.

      Prayer and Positive Thinking, Philippians 4:6-9 (ESV) “…do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 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.

What is worry? The Greek word translated “anxious” (careful) in Philippians 4:6 means “to be pulled in different directions.” Our hopes pull us in one direction; our fears pull us the opposite direction; and we are pulled apart!

The Old English root from which we get our word “worry” means “to strangle.” If you have ever really worried, you know how it does strangle a person! In fact, worry has definite physical consequences: headaches, neck pains, ulcers, even back pains. Worry affects our thinking, our digestion, and even our coordination.

From the spiritual point of view, worry is wrong thinking (the mind) and wrong feeling (the heart) about circumstances, people, and things. Worry is the greatest thief of joy. It is not enough for us, however, to tell ourselves to “quit worrying” because that will never capture the thief. Worry is an “inside job,” and it takes more than good intentions to get the victory.

All that we need is something to guard the heart and mind so that worry will not enter. Philippians 4:7: “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

A person can experience the peace of God only as he walks and moves about in prayer. Why? Because only God can deliver man through the most severe circumstances and tragedies of life; only God can infuse assurance and security within the human soul.

People become worried, anxious, and fearful because they do not trust in God’s wisdom, power, or goodness. They fear that God is not wise enough, strong enough, or good enough to prevent disaster. It may be that this sinful doubt is because their knowledge of Him is faulty, or that sin in their lives has crippled their faith.

Peace involves the heart and the mind. Wrong thinking leads to wrong feeling, and before long the heart and mind are pulled apart and we are strangled by worry. We must realize that thoughts are real and powerful, even though they cannot be seen, weighed, or measured. We must bring “into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5).

If we are walking with the Lord, then the peace of God and the God of peace exercise their influence over our hearts. Whenever we disobey, we lose that peace and we know we have done something wrong. God’s peace is the “umpire” that calls us “out”!

Right praying, right thinking, and right living: these are the conditions for having the secure mind and victory over worry. There is no middle ground. Either we yield heart and mind to the Spirit of God and practice right praying, thinking, and living; or we yield to the flesh and find ourselves torn apart by worry.

We worry over things we cannot control…usually do not happen…cause us to lose joy of the day…act as if we do not know God.

Worry is a futile thing It’s something like a rocking chair, It will keep you occupied But it won’t get you anywhere.

It ain’t no use putting up your umbrella till it rains. – Alice Caldwell Rice

It is distrust of God to be troubled about what is to come; impatience against God to be troubled with what is present; and anger at God to be troubled for what is past. – Simon Patrick (1625–1707)

Whatever is true. First, believers should think about what is true (alethe). The word “true” has many meanings. Truth includes facts and statements that are (1) in accordance with reality (not lies, rumors, or embellishments); (2) sincere (not deceitful or with evil motives); and (3) loyal, faithful, proper, reliable, and genuine. Truth is a characteristic of God (Romans 3:4).

Whatever is noble. Believers should think about what is noble (or “honorable” nrsv). These matters are worthy of respect, dignified, and exalted in character or excellence.

Whatever is right. Thoughts and plans that are right (or “just” nrsv; the Greek word is dikaios) meet God’s standards of rightness. They are in keeping with the truth; they are righteous.

Whatever is pure. Pure (hagnos) means free from contamination or blemish; these thoughts are unmixed and unmodified; they are wholesome. Paul probably was speaking of moral purity, often very difficult to maintain in thoughts.

Whatever is lovely. The Greek word for lovely is used only here in the New Testament. Paul was referring to thoughts of great moral and spiritual beauty, not of evil. The nrsv translates the word as “pleasing.” However, because the flesh can perversely find evil to be “pleasing,” the word “lovely” or “beautiful” is preferable.

Whatever is commendable. The Greek word is also translated “admirable” in niv. It refers to things that speak well of the thinker—thoughts that recommend, give confidence in, afford approval or praise, reveal positive and constructive thinking. A believer’s thoughts, if heard by others, should be commendable, not condemnatory.

If there is any virtue. Virtue was prominent in Greek rhetoric and Roman philosophy, but is found only once in Paul’s letters and three times in Peter’s (1 Peter 2:9; 2 Peter 1:3, 5). Evidently Paul brought “virtue” up here to counter the false teachers by using a term with which his audience would be familiar. This small word incorporates all moral excellence (hence the niv translation of this word as “excellent”). In this way Paul summed up what could have been a lengthy list of the qualities that should describe a believer’s thought life.

The Secret Of Contentment Philippians 4:11-13

    ¹¹  Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. ¹²  I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. ¹³  I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

God’s peace surpasses all understanding. We simply cannot comprehend such peace. It is not a natural reaction in calamity, sorrow, or pain. Such peace cannot be self-generated; it comes from God alone; it is his gift to us in a difficult world. As with so much of God’s dealings with humanity, we cannot understand it, but we can accept and experience God’s peace because of his great love for us.

The trouble with many is that we’re a thermometer and not a thermostat!”

A thermometer doesn’t change anything around it—it just registers the temperature. It’s always going up and down. But a thermostat regulates the surroundings and changes them when they need to be changed. Some are like a thermometer—lacking the power to change things. Instead, they change him!

The Apostle Paul was a thermostat. Instead of having spiritual ups and downs as the situation changed, he went right on, steadily doing his work and serving Christ.

His personal references at the close of this letter indicate that he was not the victim of circumstances but the victor over circumstances: “I can accept all things” (Phil. 4:11); “I can do all things” (Phil. 4:13); “I have all things” (Phil. 4:18). Paul did not have to be pampered to be content; he found his contentment in the spiritual resources abundantly provided by Christ.

Contentment is not complacency, nor is it a false peace based on ignorance. The complacent believer is unconcerned about others, while the contented Christian wants to share his blessings. Contentment is not escape from the battle, but rather an abiding peace and confidence in the midst of the battle. “I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content” (Phil. 4:11).

Our society admires people who stand firm, hold to their convictions, are courageous and bold, and cannot be bought, intimidated, or defeated.

Rudyard Kipling described such people in his famous poem “If,” a tribute to the noblest humanism:

“If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or, being hated, don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;

“If you can dream—and not make dreams your master; If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with triumph and disaster And treat those two imposters just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

“Or watch the things you gave your life to broken, And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools; If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone, And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on!”

“If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch; If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you; If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run— Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

If courage of conviction, integrity, credibility, and an uncompromising devotion to virtue are admirable qualities for people of the world, how much more essential are they for Christians?

In Our Daily Bread, Philip Parham tells the story of a rich industrialist who was disturbed to find a fisherman sitting lazily beside his boat.    “Why aren’t you out there fishing?” he asked. “Because I’ve caught enough fish for today,” said the fisherman.

“Why don’t you catch more fish than you need?” the rich man asked.

“What would I do with them?”    “You could earn more money,” came the impatient reply, “and buy a better boat so you could go deeper and catch more fish. You could purchase nylon nets, catch even more fish, and make more money. Soon you’d have a fleet of boats and be rich like me.”

The fisherman asked, “Then what would I do?”

“You could sit down and enjoy life,” said the industrialist.

“What do you think I’m doing now?” the fisherman replied.

Things. A wealthy man was moving into his mansion, and his Quaker neighbor, who believed in simplicity of life, was watching the activities carefully. The neighbor counted the number of chairs and tables and the vast amount of bric-a-brac that was being carried into the house. Finally, he said to the lord of the mansion: “Neighbor, if thou dost need anything, come to see me and I will tell thee how to get along without it.”

Things! What thieves they can be! Yet Jesus said (Luke 12:15 (ESV) “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

Abraham Lincoln was walking down the street with his two sons, who were crying and fighting. “What’s the matter with the boys?” a friend asked. Lincoln’s response: “The same thing that’s wrong with the whole world…I have three walnuts and each of the boys wants two!”

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warned against laying up treasures on earth: they are not safe, they do not last, and they never satisfy. Yet most people think that joy comes from the things that they own. In reality, things can rob us of the only kind of joy that really lasts.

It is easy for us to get wrapped up in “things,” not only the tangible things that we can see, but also the intangibles such as reputation, fame, achievement.

Paul writes about things in Philippians 3:7 (ESV) But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. (3:13) Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,

In Paul’s case, some of these “things” were intangible, such as religious achievements (Gal. 1:14), a feeling of self-satisfaction, morality. We today can be snared both by tangibles and intangibles, and as a result lose our joy.

But the tangible things are not in themselves sinful. God made things, and the Bible declares that these things are good (Gen. 1:31). God knows that we need certain things in order to live (Matt. 6:31–34).

In fact, He “giveth us richly all things to enjoy” (1 Tim. 6:17).

But Jesus warns us that our lives do not consist in the abundance of the things that we possess (Luke 12:15).

In Paul’s case, the “things” he was living for before he knew Christ seemed to be very commendable: a righteous life, obedience to the Law, the defense of the religion of his fathers. But none of these things satisfied him or gave him acceptance with God.

It was not bad things that kept Paul away from Jesus—it was good things! He had to lose his “religion” to find salvation.

One day, Saul of Tarsus, the rabbi, met Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and on that day Saul’s values changed (Acts 9:1–31).

When Saul opened his books to evaluate his wealth, his ‘life gains,’ he discovered that apart from Jesus Christ, everything he lived for was only refuse.

He explains in this section that there are only two kinds of righteousness (or spiritual wealth)—works righteousness and faith righteousness—and only faith righteousness is acceptable to God.

The example (Philippians 3:4-6 (ESV) …I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: ⁵  circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; ⁶  as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

Paul was not speaking from an ivory tower; he personally knew the futility of trying to attain salvation by means of good works.

As a young student, he had sat at the feet of Gamaliel, the great rabbi (Acts 22:3). His career as a Jewish religious leader was a promising one (Gal. 1:13–14); and yet Paul gave it all up—to become a hated member of the “Christian sect” and a preacher of the Gospel!

In this intensely autobiographical section, Paul examines his own life. He becomes an “auditor” who opens the books to see what wealth he has, and he discovers that he is bankrupt!

Paul’s relationship to the nation. He was born into a pure Hebrew family and entered into a covenantal relationship when he was circumcised.

He was not a proselyte, nor was he descended from Ishmael (Abraham’s other son) or Esau (Isaac’s other son).

Paul’s human heritage was something to be proud of! When measured by this standard, he passed with flying colors.

Paul’s relationship to the Law. (Phil. 3:5-6 (ESV) “…as to the law, a Pharisee; ⁶  as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

To the Jews of Paul’s day, a Pharisee had reached the very summit of religious experience, the highest ideal a Jew could ever hope to attain. If anybody was going to heaven, it was the Pharisee!

He held to orthodox doctrine (see Acts 23:6–9) and tried to fulfill the religious duties faithfully (Luke 18:10–14).

While we today are accustomed to use the word “Pharisee” as the equivalent of “hypocrite,” this usage was not prevalent in Paul’s day. Measured by the righteousness of the Law, Paul was blameless. He kept the Law and the traditions perfectly.

Paul’s relationship to Israel’s enemies. But it is not enough to believe the truth; a man must also oppose lies. Paul defended his orthodox faith by persecuting the followers of “that pretender,” Jesus (Matt. 27:62–66). He assisted at the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:54–60), and after that he led the attack against the church in general (Acts 8:1–3).

Even in later years, Paul admitted his role in persecuting the church (Acts 22:; 26; 1 Tim. 1:12–16).

At this point we might ask: “How could a sincere man like Saul of Tarsus be so wrong?” The answer is: he was using the wrong measuring stick!

He saw himself as compared with Jesus Christ! It was then that he changed his evaluations and values, and abandoned “works righteousness” for the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Saul of Tarsus was looking at the outside and not the inside. He was comparing himself with standards set by men, not by God.

As far as obeying outwardly the demands of the Law, Paul was a success, but he did not stop to consider the inward sins he was committing.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus makes it clear that there are sinful attitudes and appetites as well as sinful actions (Matt. 5:21–48).

Paul’s losses (But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.). To begin with, he lost whatever was gain to him personally apart from God.

All of these things were valuable to him; he could profit from them. He certainly had many friends who admired his zeal. But he measured these “treasures” against what Jesus Christ had to offer, and he realized that all he held dear was really nothing but “refuse” compared to what he had in Christ.

Paul’s gains (v. 8: Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ).

Jim Elliot’s words: “He is no fool to give what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

This is what Paul experienced: he lost his religion and his reputation, but he gained far more than he lost.

The knowledge of Christ (v. 8).

To “know Christ” means to have a personal relationship with Him through faith.

The righteousness of Christ (vs 9) “…and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith).

Righteousness was the great goal of Paul’s life when he was a Pharisee, but it was a self-righteousness, a works righteousness, that he never really could attain.

Paul looked at his own record and discovered that he was spiritually bankrupt. He looked at Christ’s record and saw that He was perfect.

When Paul trusted Christ, he saw God put Christ’s righteousness to his own account! More than that, Paul discovered that his sins had been put on Christ’s account on the cross (2 Cor. 5:21).

The fellowship of Christ (vv. 10–11) “…that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹  that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

When he became a Christian, it was not the end for Paul, but the beginning. His experience with Christ was so tremendous that it transformed his life.

And this experience continued in the years to follow. It was a personal experience (“That I may know Him”) as Paul walked with Christ, prayed, obeyed His will, and sought to glorify His name.

When he was living under Law, all Paul had was a set of rules. But now he had a Friend, a Master, a constant Companion! It was also a powerful experience (“and the power of His resurrection”), as the resurrection power of Christ went to work in Paul’s life.

It was also a painful experience (“and the fellowship of His sufferings”). Paul knew that it was a privilege to suffer for Christ (Phil. 1:29–30). In fact, suffering had been a part of his experience from the very beginning (Acts 9:16).

Walking with Christ was also a practical experience (“being made conformable unto His death”).

Yes, Paul gained far more than he lost. In fact, the gains were so thrilling that Paul considered all other “things” nothing but garbage in comparison!

No wonder he had joy—his life did not depend on the cheap “things” of the world but on the eternal values found in Christ.

Paul had the “spiritual mind” and looked at the “things” of earth from heaven’s point of view. People who live for “things” are never really happy, because they must constantly protect their treasures and worry lest they lose their value.

Not so the believer with the spiritual mind; his treasures in Christ can never be stolen and they never lose their value.

Maybe now is a good time for you to become an accountant and evaluate in your life the “things” that matter most to you.

An author told of his daughter who one day jumped off the school bus as it stopped in front of her house and slammed her way through the front door. She marched defiantly up the stairs into her room and again slammed the door. All the time she was muttering under her breath: “People—people—people—PEOPLE!”

He went to her door and knocked softly. “May I come in?” She replied, “No!” He tried again, but she said even more belligerently, “No!” I asked, “Why can’t I come in?” Her answer: “Because you’re a people.”

All of us have lost our joy because of people: what they are, what they say, and what they do. What they don’t say, what they don’t do. And no doubt we have contributed to making somebody else unhappy…it works both ways!

But we have to live and work with people; we cannot isolate ourselves and still live to glorify Christ. We are the light of the world and the salt of the earth. But sometimes the light grows dim and the salt becomes bitter because of other people. Is there any way to have joy in spite of people?

I have come to greatly appreciate the encouragement of Charles Hodge: “We need to stick with those we’re stuck with!”

Or Warren Wiersbe: “To live above, with those we love, Oh that will be glory. But to dwell below with those we know, well that’s another story.”

Paul’s Answer: The Submissive Mind. This chapter focuses on people, and the key verse says: Philippians 2:1-3 (NIV) If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ²  then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. ³  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.

When Epaphroditus brought a generous gift from the church in Philippi, and good news of the church’s concern for Paul, he also brought the bad news of a possible division in the church family.

The Christian with the submissive mind does not expect others to serve him; he serves others. He considers the good of others to be more important than his own plans and desires.

The Thief that rob us of our joy (Jesus, Others, You)..PEOPLE.

There is selfish ambition. There is always the danger that people should work not to advance the work but to advance themselves. It is extraordinary how time and again the great princes of the Church almost fled from office in the agony of the sense of their own unworthiness.

There is the desire for personal prestige. Prestige is for many people an even greater temptation than wealth. To be admired and respected, to have a platform seat, to have one’s opinion sought, to be known by name and appearance, even to be flattered, are for many people most desirable things.

But the aim of the Christian ought to be not self-display…he should do good deeds, not that men may glorify him, but that they may glorify his Father in heaven. The Christian should desire to focus men’s eyes not upon himself but on God.

There is concentration on self. If a man is forever concerned first and foremost with his own interests, he is bound to collide with others. If for him life is a competition whose prizes he must win, he will always think of other human beings as enemies or at least as opponents who must be pushed out of the way.

Concentration on self inevitably means elimination of others; and the object of life becomes not to help others up but to push them down.

THE CURE OF DISUNITY

In face of this danger of disunity Paul sets down five considerations which ought to prevent disharmony.
1. The fact that we are all in Christ should keep us in unity. No man can walk in disunity with his fellow-men and in unity with Christ. If he has Christ as the companion of his way, he is inevitably the companion of every wayfarer.

2. The power of Christian love should keep us in unity. Christian love is that unconquered good-will which never knows bitterness and never seeks anything but the good of others. It is not a mere reaction of the heart, as human love is; it is a victory of the will, achieved by the help of Jesus Christ.

It does not mean loving only those who love us; or those whom we like; or those who are lovable. It means an unconquerable good-will even to those who hate us, to those whom we do not like, to those who are unlovely.

Richard Tatlock in In My Father’s House writes: “Hell is the eternal condition of those who have made relationship with God and their fellows an impossibility through lives which have destroyed love…. Heaven, on the other hand, is the eternal condition of those who have found real life in relationships-through-love with God and their fellows.”

3. The fact that they share in the Holy Spirit should keep Christians from disunity. The Holy Spirit binds man to God and man to man. It is the Spirit who enables us to live that life of love, which is the life of God; if a man lives in disunity with his fellow-men, he thereby shows that the gift of the Spirit is not his.
4. The existence of human compassion should keep men from disunity. Aristotle had it long ago: men were never meant to be snarling wolves but to live in fellowship together.
        5. Paul’s last appeal is the personal one. There can be no happiness for him so long as he knows that there is disunity in the Church which is dear to him. If they would complete his joy, let them complete their fellowship. It is not with a threat that Paul speaks to the Christians of Philippi but with the appeal of love, which ought ever to be the accent of the minister, as it was the accent of his Lord.

To insist on one’s own way in such things is sinful, because it senselessly divides believers.

It reflects a prideful desire to promote one’s personal views, style, or agenda. Believers must never, of course, compromise doctrines or principles that are clearly biblical. But to humbly defer to one another on secondary issues is a mark of spiritual strength, not weakness.

The “submissive mind” does not mean that the believer is at the beck and call of everybody else or that he is a “religious doormat” for everybody to use!

Some people try to purchase friends and maintain church unity by “giving in” to everybody else’s whims and wishes. This is not what Paul is suggesting at all.

Unity was manifested in the infant church following Pentecost. The thousands of new believers (most of them previously strangers and some perhaps even former enemies) “were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship …. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common …. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart” (Acts 2:42, 44, 46).

He Thinks of Others, Not Himself (Phil. 2:5-6)

⁵  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ⁶  who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,

Certainly as God, Jesus Christ did not need anything! He had all the glory and praise of heaven. With the Father and the Spirit, He reigned over the universe. But Philippians 2:6 states an amazing fact: He did not consider His equality with God as “something selfishly to be held on to.”

Jesus did not think of Himself; He thought of others. His outlook (or attitude) was that of unselfish concern for others. This is “the mind of Christ,” an attitude that says, “I cannot keep my privileges for myself, I must use them for others; and to do this, I will gladly lay them aside and pay whatever price is necessary.”

We expect unsaved people to be selfish and grasping, but we do not expect this of Christians, who have experienced the love of Christ and the fellowship of the Spirit (Phil. 2:1-2).

More than 20 times in the New Testament, God instructs us how to live with “one another.” We are to prefer one another (Rom. 12:10), edify one another (1 Thes. 5:11), and bear each other’s burdens (Gal. 6:2).

We should not judge one another (Rom. 14:13) but rather admonish one another (Rom. 15:14). Others is the key word in the vocabulary of the Christian who exercises the submissive mind.

He Serves (Phil. 2:7)

⁷  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

Thinking of “others” in an abstract sense only is insufficient; we must get down to the nitty-gritty of true service.

Paul traces the steps in the humiliation of Christ: (1) He emptied Himself, laying aside the independent use of His own attributes as God; (2) He permanently became a human, in a sinless physical body; (3) He used that body to be a servant; (4) He took that body to the cross and willingly died.

He Sacrifices (Phil. 2:8)

⁸  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Many people are willing to serve others if it does not cost them anything. But if there is a price to pay, they suddenly lose interest.

His was not the death of a martyr but the death of a Savior. He willingly laid down His life for the sins of the world.

The person with the submissive mind does not avoid sacrifice. He lives for the glory of God and the good of others; and if paying a price will honor Christ and help others, he is willing to do it.

Paul gives us examples: Paul’s attitude (Phil. 2:17), Timothy’s (Phil. 2:20), and also Epaphroditus’ (Phil. 2:30).

It is one of the paradoxes of the Christian life that the more we give, the more we receive; the more we sacrifice, the more God blesses.

This is why the submissive mind leads to joy; it makes us more like Christ.

One of the most revealing instances of that humility was His washing the disciples’ feet during the Last Supper. The menial task of washing dirty feet was reserved for the lowest servants.

He was well aware “that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God” (13:3).

Yet in gentle humility He “got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded” (vv. 4–5). This act was especially poignant because the disciples, insensitive to Jesus’ coming suffering, were engaged in wrangling with each other over which of them would be the “greatest” in the Messiah’s kingdom (cf. Luke 22:24).

Afterward the Lord asked, “Do you know what I have done to you?” Knowing full well that they did not understand the significance of what He had just done, He did not wait for an answer but continued to explain: You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. (John 13:12–17)

He Glorifies God (Phil. 2:9-11)

⁹  Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰  so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹  and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

This, of course, is the great goal of all that we do—to glorify God.

The kind of rivalry that pits Christian against Christian and ministry against ministry is not spiritual, nor is it satisfying. It is vain, empty. Jesus humbled Himself for others, and God highly exalted Him; and the result of this exaltation is glory to God.

People today are consumed by the passionate pursuit of happiness. Self-help books, motivational speakers, and advice columnists claim to offer the key to happiness, but for many people the door remains locked.

Unable to control their circumstances, they find themselves instead controlled by their circumstances. When their job, relationship, or house (or, in the case of Christians, church) fails to make them happy, they dump it and look for a new one.

But on the merry-go-round of life, they can never quite seem to reach the brass ring. Having fruitlessly pursued happiness through pleasure and self-gratification, they arrive at the jaded view of life expressed by the Preacher in Ecclesiastes 1:2: “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.”

But if happiness, the fleeting feeling of exhilaration, is elusive, joy is not. Biblical joy, the settled conviction that God sovereignly controls the events of life for believers’ good and His glory, is available to all who obey Him.

In fact, God commands believers to rejoice:

Philippians 2:18 (ESV) …you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

Philippians 3:1 (ESV) Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you.

Philippians 4:4 (ESV) Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

One of the key themes in Philippians is joy. “Joy” is mentioned in one way or another 19 in these four brief chapters.

Another emphasis is the mind. As we read Philippians, note how many times Paul talks about remembering and thinking. We can summarize the theme of the book as “the Christlike mind that brings Christian joy.”

By joy, the Bible does not mean going around with a continuous grin on your face. Nor does it mean denying grief or sorrow in times of trial.

But it does mean an inner state of contentment and thankfulness toward God for His abundant grace and goodness toward us in Christ. Godly joy is marked by hope in the promises of God concerning our salvation and future with Him. It is a solid, steady-flowing stream that is not diminished by difficult circumstances, because its focus is not on circumstances or self, but on God and His purpose.

The circumstances of both the writer and the recipients of this brief epistle were not those that would be expected to produce joy and happiness.

When the apostle Paul wrote this letter to his beloved Philippian congregation, he was a prisoner in Rome. Little in his tumultuous life since his dramatic conversion on the Damascus Road three decades earlier would have been expected to produce joy.

He had faced fierce and unrelenting opposition, both from Gentiles and from his unbelieving Jewish countrymen (cf. 2 Cor. 11:23–30).

Immediately after his conversion, Paul’s bold, fearless proclamation of the gospel aroused the ire of Damascus’s Jewish population. They sought to kill him, and he was forced to flee the city by being lowered from the city wall at night in a basket (Acts 9:20–25).

Later he was forced to flee from Iconium (Acts 14:5–6); was pelted with stones and left for dead at Lystra (Acts 14:19–20); was beaten and thrown into jail at Philippi (Acts 16:16–40); was forced to flee from Thessalonica after his preaching touched off a riot (Acts 17:5–9); went from there to Berea, from where he was also forced to flee (Acts 17:13–14); was mocked and ridiculed by Greek philosophers at Athens (Acts 17:16–34); was hauled before the Roman proconsul at Corinth (Acts 18:12–17); and faced both Jewish opposition (Acts 19:9; cf. 20:18–19) and rioting Gentiles at Ephesus (Acts 19:21–41; cf. 1 Cor. 15:32).

(And that was only the beginning of his hardships: time doesn’t permit us to see all of them now)

The Philippian church also had its share of problems. Its members were desperately poor, so much so that Paul was surprised at their contribution to the offering he was collecting for the poor in Jerusalem (2 Cor. 8:1–5).

Like Paul, they were being persecuted for the cause of Christ (1:27–30). Worse, they were being attacked by false teachers (3:2, 18–19).

On top of everything else, a feud between two prominent women in the congregation threatened to shatter the unity of the church (4:2–3; cf. 2:1–4, 14).

Yet despite the circumstances of both writer and recipients, joy permeates Philippians, so much so that it may be called “the epistle of joy.” R. C. H. Lenski wrote, “Joy is the music that runs through this epistle, the sunshine that spreads over all of it. The whole epistle radiates joy and happiness” (The Interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistles to the Galatians, to the Ephesians, and to the Philippians [Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1961], 691).

Jesus Christ was a “Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53). Yet He possessed a deep joy that was beyond anything the world could offer.

As He faced Calvary, Jesus said to His followers, “These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” (John 15:11).

Those who have trusted in Christ through baptism have the privilege of experiencing “fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11). Yet, few Christians take advantage of this privilege. They live under a cloud of disappointment when they could be walking in the sunshine of joy. What has robbed them of their joy?

The Thieves that rob us of our joy: Chapter 1: Circumstances. Most of us must confess that when things are “going out way” we feel a lot happier and we are much easier to live with…right? “Daddy must have had an easy day at the office,” little Peggy said to his visiting girlfriend. “He didn’t squeal the tires when he pulled into the driveway, and he didn’t slam the door when he came into the house. And he even gave Mother a kiss!”

But have you ever stopped to consider how few of the circumstances of life are really under our control?

We have no control over the weather or the traffic on the expressway or over the things other people say and do….or don’t say or do.

The person whose happiness depends on ideal circumstances is going to be miserable much of the time!

The poet Byron wrote, “Men are the sport of circumstances.” And yet here is the apostle Paul in the worst of circumstances, writing a letter saturated with joy!

The attitudes that maintain our joy: chapter 1. The Single Mind (chapter 1).  To use the old Latin proverb: “when the pilot does not know what port he is heading for, no wind is the right wind.”

The reason many Christians are upset by circumstances is because they do not cultivate “the single mind.” Paul expresses this attitude of single-hearted devotion to Christ thus: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (1:21).

In chapter 1, Paul discusses his difficult circumstances and faces them honestly. But his circumstances cannot rob him of his joy because he is not living to enjoy circumstances; he is living to serve Jesus Christ.

He is a man of purpose: “this one thing I do”(3:13). He does not look at circumstances in themselves, but rather in relationship to Jesus Christ.

He is not the prisoner of Rome; he is “the prisoner of Jesus Christ” (Eph. 3:1). The chains he wears are “my bonds in Christ” (1:13). He is not facing a civil trial; he is “set for the defense of the gospel” 1:17).

He did not look at Christ through his circumstances; rather, he looked at his circumstances through Christ – and this changed everything.

Paul rejoiced in his difficult circumstances because they helped to strengthen his fellowship with other Christians, gave him the opportunity to lead others to Christ, and enabled him to defend the gospel before the courts of Rome.

When you have the single mind, your circumstances work for you and not against you.

We were taught a way to handle our frustrations while being in China for nearly three years: when something frustrating was happening (and they did very often!), just say to yourself (or out loud) “that’s is so fascinating!”

We tried it and, yes, it works. It’s amazing how that way of thinking and then saying it to ourself or out loud really worked! I encourage you to try it.

It’s similar to the idiom “when the world gives you lemons, make lemonade.”

Much of Paul’s joy was based on the pleasant, loving recollections of believers who, like those in Philippi, were consistently faithful to the Lord, to their fellow believers, and to him.

Having a genuine desire to remember and focus on the goodness, kindness, and successes of others does not involve denying their weaknesses and shortcomings but rather looking past them.

We live in a generally sad world, a fallen world well acquainted with despair, depression, disappointment, dissatisfaction, and a longing for lasting happiness that often never comes to pass.

Moments of pleasure and satisfaction are scattered through the general pain and sorrow of life. Many people have little hope that their situation in life will ever change much, if any, for the better.

Hopelessness tends to increase with age. Long years of life often become long years of sorrow, unfulfillment, loss of loved ones and friends, and often physical limitations and pain. Such decreasing times of happiness tend to produce a morbid sadness and lessening satisfaction with life.

Most people define happiness as an attitude of satisfaction or delight based on positive circumstances largely beyond their control.

Happiness, therefore, cannot be planned or programmed, much less guaranteed. It is experienced only if and when circumstances are favorable. It is therefore elusive and uncertain.

Spiritual joy, on the other hand, is not an attitude dependent on chance or circumstances. It is the deep and abiding confidence that, regardless of one’s circumstances in life, all is well between the believer and the Lord.

No matter what difficulty, pain, disappointment, failure, rejection, or other challenge one is facing, genuine joy remains because of that eternal well-being established by God’s grace in salvation.

Scripture makes it clear that the fullest, most lasting and satisfying joy is derived from a true relationship with God. It is not based on circumstances or chance, but is the gracious and permanent possession of every child of God.

Therefore it is not surprising that joy is an important New Testament theme. The verb rejoice appears 96 times in the New Testament (including those times when it is used as a greeting) and the noun joy another 59 times.

Several things need to be said about the believer’s joy.

1. Joy is divine. It is possessed and given only by God. Its roots are not in earthly or material things or cheap triumphs. It is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. (John 15:11; Acts 13:52; Romans 14:17; Galatians 5:22; 1 Thess. 1:6).

A person who constantly focuses on the negatives, faults, shortcomings, and slights of others is a person not controlled by the Holy Spirit, and is perhaps an unbeliever. Bitterness, resentment, a critical spirit, holding grudges, and the like are works of the flesh, not of the Spirit.

2. Joy does not depend on circumstances or happiness. Happiness depends upon happenings, but the joy that God implants in the believer’s heart overrides all, even the matters of life and death (Psalm 5:11; 2 Cor. 6:10; 2 Cor. 7:4).
3. Joy springs from faith (Romans 15:13; Phil. 1:25; 2 Tim. 1:4; cp. Matthew 2:10).
4. Joy of future reward makes and keeps the believer faithful (Matthew 25:21, 23; Acts 20:24; Hebrews 12:2). Paul says that he always prays for the Philippians with joy.

It is closely connected to feelings of well being and a deep and lasting peace grounded in the personal knowledge of God’s presence and sovereignty over all peoples and events.

The source of the believer’s joy is many-fold.

1. The fellowship of the Father and His Son brings joy (1 John 1:3-4).
2. Victory over sin, death, and hell brings joy (John 14:28; John 16:20-22).
3. Repentance brings joy (Luke 15:7, 10).
4. The hope of glory brings joy (Romans 14:17; Hebrews 12:2; 1 Peter 4:13).
5. The Lord’s Word—the revelations, commandments, and promises which He made—brings joy (John 15:11).
6. The commandments of Christ and the will of God bring joy. Obeying and doing a good job stirs joy within the believer’s heart (John 15:11; John 17:13; Acts 13:52).
7. Prayer brings joy (John 16:24).
8. The presence and fellowship of believers brings joy (1 John 1:3-4).
9. Converts bring joy (Luke 15:5; Phil. 4:1; 1 Thes. 2:19-20).
10. Hearing that others walk in the truth brings joy (3 John 1:4).
11. Giving brings joy (2 Cor. 8:2; Hebrews 10:34).