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Past Ponderings

Sunday, June 11, 2017

PONDERING...Will You Be Driven By The Right Thoughts? (Philippians 4:8-9)

Will You Be Driven By The Right Thoughts?
GIST: In the face of trials, we must think right and do right in order to be with Him...who is right!
SCRIPTURE: Philippians 4:8-9
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.
We’ve been looking at “how to live in the midst of trials”. This morning, we looked at Philippians 4:4-7. Tonight, we’re going to take a brief look at the two verses which immediately follow. These thoughts are connected, so I won’t keep you long tonight. Nonetheless, they are worth our attention. In the face of trials, we must think right and do right in order to be with Him...who is right!

  1. THINK RIGHT
The mind matters-think about these things.” I listened to a fantastic sermon by Tim Keller on this passage which I found very helpful (and will link below). In it, he pointed out that most self-help books today combat hardship by tells us what not to think about (our problems...etc), and what to do with our bodies and minds instead (yoga, meditation practices, exercise, diet...etc). This text takes a completely different approach. As we saw this morning, we don’t get comfort by “not” thinking. On the contrary, we are called to think. There is a stereotype out there that rejects Christianity because it views Christians as ignorant acceptors of irrational, blind faith. Sadly, there are people out there who also further that stereotype by rejecting all serious study of the Bible and accepting what they have heard in a nominal sort of way without ever coming to know Jesus for themselves. This is not what we’re called to do. We are called to be thinkers. So, the mind matters-->
As does the heart of the matter of your minds :D. On the flipside, this is not calling us to just be intellectual juggernauts either. What is it that we’re to be thinking about? “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,”  
I think there are two things we can pull from this list. One, there are things in this world that are worth our consideration. Some commentators are quick to jump on this as a call not to completely reject the world around us. Music, and books, and television don’t have to be distinctly “Christian” to have qualities that are good and worth our time. There is truth to this. There is a danger in assuming if it has not been label Christian it is automatically evil. Because God is good and causes to His sun to shine on the just and unjust (common grace), there are good things in this world.
However, I do think focusing on this implication is probably putting the emphAsis on the wrong syllAble. Look at the list again: true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, worthy of praise. Only One meets all these criteria. So, while it is true that there are good things in this world we should not ignore, and should even embrace, we do so through the ultimate filter of Jesus Christ. He is the truth--we need to be thinking about His good news--the Gospel. We need to be studying, really diving into, the Word of God. He is honorable; His character has no flaws. He is just; doing what is right; holding us accountable for our sins; because He alone is pure, blameless, perfect. He is lovely and wholly deserving of our love. He is commendable, which means of good repute, well-spoken of...because He is above any real reproach. He alone is fully excellent; therefore, He alone is worthy of our praise.
So, there are good things, but we are called to think on the best things. Flood your mind and heart with God’s word. For...45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. (Luke 6:45). How else are you going to be able to face a world full of lies? And that leads into our second point.

  1. DO RIGHT
9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things
Actions speak louder. We are called to think and live. Paul is bold in calling them to imitate him in so much as he as imitated Christ to them. This might seem arrogant, but shouldn’t that be what we strive for, as well? Aren’t we to be like Jesus. So we should think right, which is to think on Christ and the things which reflect Him, and do right, which is to live our lives like Him. These are so connected. We can’t live like Him unless we know Him, which means we have to spend time with Him, thinking about His word; AND our knowledge of Him is incomplete unless it permeates our lives in practical ways. Consider these familiar passages:
James 1:22 and 2:14-17 22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves….14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
“This text reminds us that the head counts for something, after all; but it must be a sanctified head, ready to practice the gospel it knows through what has been learned and received” (InterVarsity Press New Testament Commentary).

  1. BE WITH RIGHT
and the God of peace will be with you.
Тhe God of Peace will be with you. This final promise is key. Think right. Do right. Be with Him...who is right. Love God more than anything, and you’ll never be disappointed. Not only is He providing us with His peace, as we saw this morning, but He is Himself with us.

Takeaway?
Are you facing trials? Think about Jesus. Live like Jesus. Be with Jesus.

Resources:
I highly recommend this sermon by Tim Keller.



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