Lesson for April 19, 2020
The Book of Philippians
Chapter 4:1-7
Verse 1
“Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.”
This is a command to advance to ultra-super-grace and do not retreat. This is the most wonderful and most difficult advance in all of the spiritual life of the believer. My beloved brethren is used to indicate the Royal Family of God. It is used to distinguish between the believers of this dispensation and believers of all other dispensations indicates some of the privileges that belong to us as royal family. Paul had a definite relationship with the Philippian believers through his authority as an apostle, plus being the founder of that local church.
Paul also recognized the principle that the Royal Family of God is a special designation for the Church Age believer only, and consequently he made it a special point to use “brethren” quite frequently in his epistles, not to promote the brotherhood of man but to promote consciousness of the tremendous privilege and opportunity that belongs to the Royal Family of God. This is the only age in which all believers are royal family.
My beloved is used as a title for the Lord Jesus Christ and for believers. It was used in Matthew 3:17 and 17:5 for the Lord Jesus Christ. It was used as an attitude of God the Father toward God the Son. He was the object of the Father’s personal love. At the point of our salvation, not only were we born into the family of God, but God the Holy Spirit also took us and entered us into union with Christ, seated at the right hand of the Father. Beloved is used for believers in Romans 12:19; Hebrews 6:9; I Peter 2:11; 4:12; II Peter 3:1,3; I John 3:12.
Crown is the Greek word “stephanos,” which is a wreath given to Roman athletes. The crown in this verse is the believers who Paul had taught and who had advanced in their spiritual lives.
In this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved is a reference to the status of spiritual maturity. The Philippians were super-grace believers. Paul was now leading them to ultra-super-grace and telling the Philippians, “Follow me.” To stand firm was a command given to the Philippian believers who had reached spiritual maturity and had reached the super-grace status. Now they needed the stability (stand firm) to reach the next objective of ultra-super-grace. The command, to stand firm or to be stabilized introduced the principle that no believer can remain the same. Either you are advancing or retreating but you never stay in the same spot. Everything depends upon your continued attitude toward Bible doctrine.
In the Lord calls attention to the source and means of standing strong. We are unable to stand firm in our doctrinal beliefs without the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, our source of Bible doctrine (the mind of Christ), our Prototype, our provider of the Holy Spirit, our protector, our union with Him, our encourager, etc.
Verses 2-3
“I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord. Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.”
Even in churches where accurate Bible doctrine is being taught and the congregation for the most part is growing spiritually and advancing toward spiritual maturity, conflicts between believers happen. Such was the case in Philippi between these two women that Paul mentions. Paul’s solution was a command from the apostle who had authority to make such a command. Paul urged or commanded these two believers to live in harmony in the Lord, which could be accomplished only through the use of the Rebound Technique and application of Bible doctrine. Interesting, these two women along with Clement and others had helped Paul in evangelizing the people of Philippi. So, it seems that we have two spiritually mature women in conflict which could lead to reversionism if not dealt with. Timothy was tasked with this job upon his arrival in Philippi.
Verses 4-7
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, 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 comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Rejoice in the Lord means to share the happiness of God. Sharing the happiness of God is a result of spiritual growth and is one of the Problem-Solving Devices. Even though it is an emotional response, it is an emotional response to a doctrinal truth and not emotion controlling your soul. And believers are to keep sharing the happiness of God as they continue to advance in their spiritual lives which causes rejoicing. Then the command is repeated for emphasis.
Let your gentle spirit be known to all men is an interesting principle and one that we all should have. Gentle is the Greek word “epieikes,” which means not insisting on the letter of the law, being considerate when looking at the facts of any case in a humane and reasonable manner or a quality of wisdom from God. A gentle spirit is a patient, kind spirit and is often listed with spiritual attributes like peaceable and considerate. (I Timothy 3:3; Titus 3:2; James 3:17)
The Lord is near. There are five different ways in which near can be understood from Greek. First, it can mean “near” a place, as in Luke 19:11. Second, it can mean “near” as in the sense of time, as in Matthew 24:32-33. Third, it can mean “near” in a salvation sense, as in Ephesians 2:13. Fourth, it can mean “near” as in near to God, as in Ephesians 2:17, meaning to be near to God as in a relationship. Fifth, it can mean “near” in that the Lord is always near to us to provide for us, which is the meaning in our passage.
God’s grace provision is near to provide everything a growing believer needs. This is why we not to be worried (anxious) about anything in life. God’s grace provision for believers in the intensified stage of the Angelic Conflict is an absolute necessity if they are going to win the tactical victory over Satan and the fallen angels. This is the reason that God provides greater blessings on earth for those believers who are executing the Protocol Plan of God.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Being anxious is worry and is a mental attitude sin. Worry makes the believer vulnerable to satanic attacks and stops spiritual growth if not dealt with through the Rebound Technique.
Prayer is the grace system of communication with God for the believer. The purpose of prayer is to communicate with our Heavenly Father. God communicates with us through His Word. We communicate with God through prayer. God, therefore, expects all believers to pray on a consistent basis. We are actually commanded to pray without ceasing, which means to have a consistent prayer life. Prayer can be powerful for a believer who knows how to apply it properly. There are correct principles and procedures for praying, and it is important that we learn and use these principles and procedures. (I Thessalonians 5:17; Ephesians 6:18; Philippians 4:6; Hebrews 4:16)
There is tremendous power in prayer. It is the privilege of every believer to have a part of another person’s life or ministry through prayer. We all need the prayer of others. Therefore, it is important that we all develop a consistent prayer life. In James 5:16 it tells us that the effective, continuous prayer of a righteous person has great results. It is impossible to pray effectively without knowledge of specific and essential needs. So, we should keep an updated prayer request list. These are tools we can use to pray effectively for others. (Acts 12)
There is an order for prayer. The first item of our prayer should always be to name or admit our sins, if necessary, using the Rebound Technique. This restores the control of the Holy Spirit and fellowship with God. The believer is now in a position to be heard by God. This should be another encouragement to keep “short accounts” (name your sins immediately) with God. (I John 1:9; Psalm 66:18)
Secondly, we should give thanks for the spiritual and material blessings that God has graciously given to us. This includes divine discipline and divine guidance. We should then pray for others, intercessory prayer. This means we must know the needs of others, which would necessitate an up-to-date prayer list. Prayer for the unbeliever is primarily for their salvation. Since God does not force a person to believe in Christ, our prayer should be that they will hear a clear Gospel message. We could also pray that God would provide us the opportunity to present the Gospel. (Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:28; Ephesians 6:18; James 5:15-16)
Finally, you should pray for your own needs, petition (supplication). Remember that there are some things that you don’t have to pray about. For example, we are commanded to be filled with (controlled by) the Holy Spirit. We are controlled by the Holy Spirit when we have used the Rebound Technique of naming or admitting our sins to God, and we are executing the Christian Way of Life. So, we don’t have to pray, “Fill me with your Holy Spirit,” which would show our lack of knowledge of God’s Word and is an insult to God. If there is not a direct solution to your need in the Scriptures, then take it to God in prayer. (Philippians 4:6)
With thanksgiving means with gratitude. Gratitude means thankfulness, appreciation, or gratefulness. Knowing who we are and what we have as a result of being in union with Jesus Christ should cause us to be grateful. As we grow up spiritually, our gratitude will also grow. If we understand that our lives are in God’s hands and that He will direct our paths if we choose to allow Him to, we can have gratitude in any circumstance of life. (Colossians 2:6-8)
We must also learn to be grateful for even the hardships in life. Quite often these situations are used by God to teach us valuable lessons. They can also reveal areas of weakness with which we need to deal. How we handle these hardships can be a springboard to advance us in the Christian Way of Life by increasing our faith in God and our dependence upon God. (I Corinthians 15:54-57; I Thessalonians 5:18)
Christ’s obedience to the Father’s plan is the example for us to follow. Did Christ complain about or find fault with the Father’s plan? Of course not! His attitude was one of humility and obedience. Jesus Christ had a personal sense of destiny. He knew exactly what the plan entailed and willingly executed it. We should be grateful that He did, because it was for our benefit, not only for salvation, but also as an example of how to live the Christian Way of Life. (Philippians 2:5-16)
A part of gratitude is being content with what you have. God warns against a lustful attitude and encourages us to be satisfied with what He has already provided. His promise to all believers is that He will never leave us nor forsake us. God knows even before it happens what each of us will face in life, and He has made every provision for us. Our responsibility is to exercise our faith by always giving thanks regardless of circumstances, knowing that God is working things out to benefit us. (Philippians 4:11; Ephesians 5:20; Romans 8:28)
Gratitude is a matter of having the right attitude. And attitude is everything! Our attitude is a mirror into our soul. God’s Word is very clear on this subject. We are told time and again throughout the Scriptures
that we are to do everything without grumbling and complaining. (Philippians 2:14-15) An attitude of gratitude and an attitude of grumbling, complaining and fault-finding are mutually exclusive. Our attitude lets us know whether or not we are trusting God in every situation. Life is not always easy but trusting God should be. After all, doesn’t He have the best in mind for us? (Ephesians 4:29-32)
When we complain, we are voicing dissatisfaction and discontentment with our situation to God. Therefore, we are complaining about what we think He is or is not doing, instead of trusting Him and using the Faith-Rest Technique. I wonder if we have considered that when we have a complaining and worried attitude, that we are actually criticizing God? Is this not the height of human arrogance? We cannot be trusting God and complaining and worrying at the same time. Remember many situations that we face are of our own doing, not God’s. God however will often use those situations to teach us valuable lessons. And God is always there to help us through those situations. An attitude of faith brings victory in every trial or test we face. If we pass the test with a good attitude, we have benefited ourselves. God never tests us beyond what we can handle, but we don’t know what we can handle until He tests us. And just because we can handle our situation doesn’t mean that we will handle it correctly. Proper application of the truth from the Word of God is the key to victory in any test. (I Corinthians 10:13;I Thessalonians 5:18; I Peter 4:12-14)
Let your requests be made known to God. God knows from eternity past what your prayer requests were because there never was a time when His omniscience didn’t know every prayer you have ever prayed or will pray. But He still wants it coming from you to Him from your positive volition.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. The peace of God is the spiritual prosperity that comes from His grace provision. In the context of Philippians, it is a reference to God’s grace provision for those believers advancing to spiritual maturity, super-grace and ultra-super-grace. Spiritual prosperity is based on spiritual growth. Therefore, the peace of God is an experiential truth and different than peace with God, which is a positional truth. The peace of God is tantamount to a relaxed mental attitude toward God, self, others and circumstances. It is this relaxed mental attitude based on the Bible doctrine in your soul that guards your heart and mind and is impossible to fully comprehend because it is based on God’s essence and character.