Discipleship Week 24: Don't give up...praise God by affirming others!

Philippians 4:17-19

“Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

A word of affirmation has a powerful effect. Thanking someone for their service, recognizing the hard work of an individual or a group, or praising someone for making a hard but Christ-like decision often fuels perseverance in the Christian life. Think about times you have been affirmed, or thanked, or praised for something you did. What was the result? Often the result is a deeper desire to continue in the same work or action. I know that for myself, when someone affirms me, it encourages me to continue in the work that God has called me to, having seen some of the fruit of that work.

But this leads us to somewhat of a dilemma. How do we affirm and praise people without elevating those people over God? It is great to be encouraging, but does our affirmation create a situation where we are focused more on people than on God? D.A. Carson notes that some churches can be so generous in the praise of others that they simply become what he calls “mutual admiration societies” that are no longer focused on God…they simply spend a lot of time patting each other on the back.  

However Carson notes that we can also err too far in the other direction…where our fear of not wanting to elevate anyone above God leads us to never affirm or praise anybody. We never tell the pastor we were blessed by the sermon that morning because we fear the praise will go to his head and make him prideful. Or we do not tell those under our ministry care when they have made a good decision for God, because we don’t want that to lead to self-centeredness and arrogance. So we can err with praise that ignores God, or we can err with not giving any praise out of fear of leading someone to pride and arrogance.

Thankfully Paul, in these closing verses of Philippians, gives us a model of how we can be affirming and encouraging and not make either of these errors. The Philippian church, while still very young in all senses, had supported Paul over and above all expectations as he had moved on to other cities in his gospel ministry. And Paul is thankful for them and expresses his praise of them for their generosity. But notice how he gives out his praise…he does so by including God in it. His praise of the Philippians is not just for their financial support, it is about how he is seeing God work in the Philippians through their support. Carson says it this way:

“But Paul has the matter right. In his letters, he does not simply thank people…he thanks God for God’s grace in them—but he utters his thanks to God in front of the people. In effect, he approaches these believers and says, ‘I greatly rejoice at the grace of God displayed in your life’ or ‘I thank God every time I remember you’ or ‘Your life is a fragrant sacrifice to God, a sacrifice with which God is well pleased.’ That is precisely what Paul does here.” –D.A. Carson, Basics for Believers: An Exposition of Philippians

What does this God-centered affirmation mean for us practically? Well, if our praise of others is first and foremost directed at God, then we can be wildly affirming of each other, knowing that we are not elevating others above God. If the Lord blesses you through a Sunday sermon, tell the pastor that the Lord really blessed you and challenged you through the message. If the Holy Spirit used a certain song in worship to speak to your heart, tell the pastor or worship leader how God worked in you through that song. If you see someone making difficult decisions to honor God in their lives, praise them for how you see God at work in their hearts. If our praise is directed Godward, then there is absolutely no reason for us to be stingy with our praise and withhold our affirmation of each other. If God is receiving the glory (4:20), then our praise and thanksgiving towards God and others can and should overflow.

Finally, there is the benefit that such praise and affirmation has for the one giving the praise. Certainly there is a benefit to receiving God glorifying affirmation; it does drive us to see God glorified more in our lives, and strengthens us in our relationship with God. But the same benefit comes to the giver of such affirmation. Giving God glorifying praise to others directs us to focus on God. Affirming God’s work in others leads us to desire God to work in our lives in a similar manner. And praising God for who he is and what he has done in others gives us the strength to persevere in the Christian faith, even when times are difficult…especially when times are difficult. God-centered affirmation of our brothers and sisters in Christ really does help us persevere in the Christian life! Therefore, this is a fitting end to this section and to this letter as a whole: Don’t give up…praise God by affirming others. 

Discipleship Week 23: Don't give up...be content!

Philippians 4:10-13

^“I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

I am becoming convinced that one of the greatest weapons that Satan uses to derail the Christian life in our culture today is planting seeds of discontent in our hearts and minds. Discontentment runs rampant in our culture today, and it is seen in how people view their jobs, their cars, their studies, their relationship status, their socio-economic status, and so much more. And discontentment is not reserved for those who are poor or in difficult situations. Even those in seemingly wonderful positions are not content with what they have. John D. Rockefeller, certainly one of the richest men in history, was once asked how much money was “enough.” His famous answer: “Just a little bit more.” Regardless of our circumstances, discontentment with our circumstances leaves us wanting something more, something different, or something better. And nothing is ever enough.

Clearly the impact of this discontentment on the Christian life can be devastating. If we are constantly in a state of wanting something more, something different, or something better, then we will never be satisfied with what God has called us to and given us for today. And we will certainly not be ready or equipped to endure periods of hardship that God calls us to as we follow him. The result of discontentment is that we begin to look for satisfaction outside of God, we look for solutions on our own, and we often settle for something that is not in line with God’s will for us that causes us great harm down the road. The Israelites in their forty years of desert wanderings are an excellent example of where discontentment leads us. All because we want something more, something different, or something better.

Thankfully Paul gives us the secret to true contentment in these verses, and they hold a powerful key to persevering in the Christian life. And the secret is this: Contentment is found by trusting in God for strength to do anything he calls you to do, regardless of circumstances. And this secret is so wonderful, it deserves a little more reflection:

I. Trusting in God for strength

One of the keys to contentment is trusting in God for strength. Now it is important to remember that Paul is discussing this strength from God not to do anything he wants, but to be content in whatever circumstance God leads him to as he continues his gospel ministry. So we must add an important qualification that God will not give us strength to do things that are outside of his will for us. We cannot use this verse to think that we will have the strength to fly if we jump off a cliff, nor should we think that we will be content if we do jump off a cliff. The result of us jumping off a cliff will be that gravity will do its work, and we will not feel contentment as we fall!

So we cannot use verse 13 as a justification for doing whatever we want, or for convincing others to do whatever we want them to do. Nor can we look at verse 13 as a kind of Superman, self-sufficient kind of strength. No amount of personal self-will brings about contentment. But when we trust in God for strength, we can persevere through any situation that God calls us to, because it is God’s strength, and not our own. When we trust in our own strength, we end up only wanting something more, something different, or something better. But God’s strength enables us, just as it enabled Paul, to be content.

II. Regardless of circumstances

Another key to contentment is that contentment that comes through God’s strength has nothing to do with our circumstances. Paul is clear that he has experienced joys and trials, ease and hardship, riches and poverty. But none of that impacts his contentment as a Christ follower. I think it is easy to only focus on the need for contentment when our circumstances are difficult, or different than what we desire. But there are two problems with this approach. One, if we only work on contentment when our circumstances are not what we desire, then our efforts for contentment invariably gets focused on improving our circumstances, and not looking for God for strength regardless of the circumstances. And two, this approach usually results in us not seeking contentment when our circumstances are by most standards good or desirable. So instead of being content with the blessings God has given us, we still follow Rockefeller and want “a little bit more.” Something more, something different, or something better.

But when we look to God and trust God for strength regardless of our circumstances, then our contentment truly is not based on our circumstances, but based on trust in our sovereign God who sustains and governs all things. And that contentment can be sustained regardless of what circumstances we face in life. And one of the overall keys to standing firm in the Christian faith, this theme that Paul has been developing in these verses, is that we should not focus on our circumstances. We can rejoice in the Lord regardless of our circumstances. We can stop worrying, regardless of our circumstances. We can think holy thoughts, regardless of our circumstances. When we allow our circumstances to dictate our trust in God, then we will struggle in the Christian life, because our trust will change daily with our circumstances. But if all of our circumstances are simply opportunities to trust God more and more, then we will thrive in the Christian life, because we are trusting more and more in an unchanging God who loves and sustains us and is working all things together for good for us.

I confess that far too often my contentment rests on my circumstances, and not in trusting in God’s strength. Most of us have been taught that contentment is based on our circumstances, whether we know it or not. But when I am tempted to be content based on my circumstances, my mind comes back to a well known hymn:

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
when sorrows like sea billows roll;
whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul. 

Refrain:

It is well with my soul,
it is well, it is well with my soul.

What are some circumstances where you are not content? Why are you not experiencing contentment? Are you focused too much on the circumstances, not looking to God for strength to go through those circumstances, not trusting in the strength God gives you, or all of the above? Don’t give up…be content! For when our contentment rests in God alone, trusting in his strength regardless of circumstances, we will never need anything more, anything different, or anything better. 

Discipleship Week 22: Don't give up...think holy thoughts!

Philippians 4:8-9

“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.”

This is a beautiful exhortation to us to think holy thoughts. The mind is critical to the Christian life. If we do not think through life in light of what God desires for us, we will certainly not live life in light of what God desires for us. Actions always begin with thoughts. The things that we do are always connected to the things that we think. This may be for good or for bad. But actions are always tied to thoughts. This is why the following give and take between parent and child isn’t really accurate:

Parent: What were you thinking?

Child: I…I guess I wasn’t thinking.

Parent: That’s right! You weren’t thinking. Now go to your room and think about what you didn’t think about!

Whatever it was that got the child in trouble, he or she certainly did think of something that led to those actions. Maybe it was thinking about a selfish desire, or maybe it was thinking about rebelling against their parents. There is always a thought process which leads to actions. Which is why Paul calls us in this passage to think holy thoughts. As D.A. Carson notes, “If you think holy thoughts, you will be holy; if you think garbage, you will be garbage.” If we want to live holy lives, as God calls us to do, we have to begin by thinking holy thoughts. So perseverance in the Christian life really does begin first with our minds, then our actions.

Now this idea that actions always begin with thoughts is not a unique idea to Christianity, it is very widely accepted. And it is fairly widely accepted that changing your thinking will change your actions and your life. But the question then becomes, how? How do we change our thinking? How do we think these holy thoughts? Our culture will tell us that we have enough goodness to think these thoughts on our own, so they will look at this exhortation from Paul as a challenge to work hard to raise their thought level to this standard.

However the Scripture is clear that we are incapable on our own of raising our thoughts to holiness. The universal brokenness and sinfulness of humanity (Romans 3:23) impacts our entire being, which includes our minds. So our own efforts to improve our thought life will inevitably lead back to our sinful desires. To use Carson’s terminology, our own efforts to elevate our thoughts only lead to garbage. It is only through the gospel and the work of the Holy Spirit that we can have a renewed mind (Romans 12:1-2) that can think about these wonderful, holy things. Holiness in our thought life must, first and foremost, be an act of God, graciously working in our lives.

And yet, we do play a role in our sanctification, we do play a role in this renewal. Part of our role of course is recognizing that the majority of the work of renewal is done by God, and not by us. And yet as we submit ourselves to God and to his sanctifying work in our lives, there are several ways that we can apply this passage into our lives.

1. Think God’s thoughts. Our own thoughts will lead to back to our sinful nature, and then to sinful actions. God is holy, and his thoughts lead to holiness. So instead of trying to elevate our thought life on our own, a far more fruitful work is to begin to understand what God’s thoughts are. One way we can do this is through prayer. A great question that we can pray to God in ANY situation that we face is this: “God, what do you think about this?” If our default thought process is our selfish and sinful desires, asking our Father what he thinks about something is a great way to cause us to slow down before we make a decision (because so many of our foolish actions come very quickly after foolish thoughts!). It is a great way to filter out voices and opinions of others that might be leading us away from God. And it is a great way to orient us away from ourselves and towards God and his will.

2. Saturate yourself in God’s Word. The best way to think God’s thoughts is to read what God has spoken. If our minds are saturated in God’s Word, then we will naturally move away from our sinful mindsets and move towards holy thoughts, because God is holy. The more we have God’s Word hidden in our hearts, the easier it becomes to recall God’s Word to mind when we face difficult decisions and temptations to sin. There are several ways we can take in God’s Word, but I think it important to note here that the task of memorizing Scripture, while daunting and challenging for many, bears great fruit in the Christian life. When we are tempted to sin we often do not have an hour to sit down and read God’s Word to saturate our minds. However the Scripture that we have memorized is already right there, and can be called to mind very quickly to help us think God’s holy thoughts in the face of temptation, which leads to holiness in us. So let us give ourselves to this task!

3. Learn how to think from your spiritual mentors. We often look at our mentors to see how they live, and Paul has made an excellent case earlier in Philippians that we should emulate the spiritual mentors who God has placed in our lives. Here Paul applies that same principle of following the example of strong spiritual role models to the task of thinking holy thoughts. So as you seek to follow the example of your role models, don’t just look at how they live their lives, but also look at how they think. Get inside their heads, and understand their thought processes. When faced with a difficult decision, how do they think through their options? When confronted with temptation, how do they look to God? When experiencing trials and suffering, what do they think about? When celebrating success (or processing failure), where are their minds focused? If holy thoughts lead to holy lives, then it is critical that our growth in the Christian life focuses just as much, if not more, on our minds than on our actions. And learning how our role models think holy thoughts can train us to do the same.

We can persevere in the Christian life by thinking holy thoughts. We can continue to grow in holiness as our minds are renewed more and more, day by day. And while recognizing that much of this is God’s work in us, we still have work to do ourselves. So how do you need to grow in thinking holy thoughts? What leads you away from thinking holy thoughts? Don’t give up in the Christian life, think holy thoughts, and persevere in holiness.