Think On These Things

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.

Philippians 4:8-9

Recently I taught on this passage as part of our GL Morning Devos on Facebook Live. This passage is not a call to shove away impure thoughts with thoughts of good moral things. What is it?

Paul had been talking in the previous passage, specifically verses 6-7, about worry and anxiety. Encouraging the hearer to not be anxious for anything. I love how Matt Chandler words this when he says,

“But when we pray we are ‘worrying’ at God. We take those anxieties and direct them Godward, taking them to Him, placing them before Him, and—of utmost importance—handing them over.”

Matt Chandler, To Live is Christ, To Die is Gain

So we come to verse 8 where Paul tells us,

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.

These virtues are not just good ideas or moral things to replace the wicked things or the worry we dwell on. Rather, we are called to set our mind on things that come from Christ, commend Christ, and consummate in Christ. All of these things will lead us to Jesus because they all come from Jesus.

I remember hearing a teaching once on the radio, when I was a teenager. Someone saying that if you wanted to fight off temptation, specifically of lust and the influence of the world, you just needed to think pure thoughts. If you’re tempted to cuss think about pure words. There’s no power in that. That won’t help. I need a rock solid truth to anchor my heart in.

What we need is the Gospel. At it’s simplest the Gospel is a message, a message to believe in. The message to believe is that Jesus came, died, rose again, and if you believe this message you will be born again. This belief is not simply the beginning to the story either. It’s the whole journey. To battle our anxieties and worries we’re called to believe. It’s a call to trust in Christ, to look outside of ourselves and fix our trust on the one who conquers our worry.

Worry is, in a way, only looking inside for the answer to an outward situation. It is dwelling inwardly and focusing on things that are not true, or pure, or worthy of praise. Paul is directing us to look outwardly, to feed our faith on the things of Christ rather than to feed our fear and anxiety on the hopelessness of self-sufficiency. So be careful to the voice you listen to. Be wary of the voice of the media, social networks, and others who feed fear and doubt. Be careful of your own voice when it says there is more I must do or that I must fix this.

Why does Paul have to tell us to think on these things? Why, in verse 9, does he essentially say practice what you’ve seen me say and do? Well, because we’re not there yet. He’s telling us to practice because our natural fleshly reaction to things is to worry and be anxious. He’s said this now a few times, to strain, to press on, to work out. This is an active faith. Paul is saying “do this,” but what is the “do?” To believe. The answer to the struggle for peace is not try harder, it’s to believe. Continue to believe that it is God doing the work. That it is God who has saved you and will keep you. Paul has taught this over and over and he has lived it in front of them. He has no fear of reminding them of the simple truths of the Gospel.

Paul ends verse 9 with a great promise, the presence of God. Paul is saying that God who gives peace will be with you. When you’re tempted to doubt, to fear, and to worry about the troubles of tomorrow. The fear of government. The fear of what prolonged affects this will have on our economy. Paul is saying don’t think on those things, don’t dwell on them. Don’t try to answer your problems by looking inward or even by looking outward to things that don’t matter. Look to Jesus and experience his peace.

Remind yourself of these truths often. Our minds stray from this and so we must continually encourage our heart in the Gospel. That you are loved, you are chosen, and that Jesus will fill you the peace of God.