Peace of God
"PEACE OF GOD"
Phillipians 4: 1-19

THESIS:Happiness is not a pursuit, it is a possession. Peace depends not on WHAT you have or WHERE you are, but WHO you are

It was said by an automobile company president many years ago that the intrinsic value of an automobile was about $24.00 and that the actual value, at that time was about $3,000.00. The actual value was the result of labor, manufacture, advertising plus profit.

It has also been stated that the intrinsic value of a man is about $31.04. What then would be the actual value of man? It depends on you!! The application of life, workmanship, and investments.

The preamble of the Constitution of the United States says, "We hold these thruths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. They are endowed with certain inalienable rights. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."
Happiness is not a pursuit but a possession, The abiding presence of happiness is related directly to peace and contentment. Paul, in his letter to the Phillipians puts forth the formula for this abiding peace.

We find here that this peace is related to four things; to God, to Prayer, to our Minds, and to our circumstances.

I. Peace and its Relation to God. verses 1-4

  1. The Lord in the Midst. v.1 Secret to Security
    "Stand fast in the Lord." One of the problems that affect our peace is a lack of security. If we are not secure in the Lord, our life is filled with unrest and worry. Our position, as a believer, is IN CHRIST and Christ now sits at the right hand of the Father. That position is secure and we were placed in that position at the instant of our new birth. God did the work, not us. Eph 2:6-7 "And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." Unfortunately, our position and our condition have not yet been brought into proximety and harmony, but the possession of abiding peace depends on our sense of security in Him.

  2. The Lord in our Mind. vs. 2-3 Secret of Unity
    "Be of the same mind in the Lord." These two women had apparently been great workers for the Lord in Phillipi, but something cause a division among them. The matter was so small there was no need for Paul to mention it. The plea was that they were to agree with each other IN THE LORD. In order for us to experience peace, there must be unity. We are told to be of the same mind and judgement. A divisive matter can only cause a problem if we allow it. The Scripture tells us that "a house divided will fall"

  3. The Lord in the Heart. v.4 Secret of Tranquility
    "Rejoice in the Lord." There are times when because of a state of health or economy, its hard to rejoice but we are urged, because of our position in Christ, to rejoice in the Lord, always. Paul was in a Roman prison at the time of this writing and he rejoiced. When he and Silas were in prison, they rejoiced and praised the Lord and the walls crumpled, the jailer and his family became believers. In order to experience peace, we must rejoice in the Lord.

II. Peace and its Relation to Prayer. verses 5-7

Prayer is our ability to speak to the Father. We know that He knows our needs before we ask and the very intents of our heart. But, through an effective prayer life we are more aware of our dependance on the Father. We are told to trust the Lord, commit to the Lord, and present ourselves a living sacrifice.
Two conditions are presented here as it relates to abiding peace through prayer.

  1. First Condition. v.5 Human Relationships
    Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Another problem that exist involves relationships with others. Our gentleness or moderation is to be apparent to all men. The motivating factor to the early Church and their conduct was that the Lord is near implying His parousia, coming for the Church. This pressed them in the proper frame of mind. It also could imply His ever abiding presence in each of us. This requires that the gentleness, meekness and love of Christ be manifested through us.
    What affects relationships?
    1. the extremes of emotion produce explosives tempers which make for bad public relations.
    2. the extremes of desire breeds greed and greedy ambition causes discontentment.
    3. the extremes of the will breeds resistance, and we must be pliable. A willingness to disagree without division.
    4. the extremes of opinion breed division and antaganism. An unwillingness to yield.

    Because of the Lord, these extremes should not manifest themselves in our character (see Gal. 5:22) If we are to experience peace, we are to "be at peace with all men"

  2. Second Condition. v.6b Divine Relationship
    let your requests be made known unto God. Unfortunately, many only speak to God in times of grief, distress or hardship. He seeks a close relationship with His children. Jesus communicated with the Father in everything.
      How can an effective prayer life relate to our peace?
    1. Be careful for nothing; We are told not to worry about anything. This does not imply a lack of sincere concern. But when that concern causes unrest it robs us of peace.
      Worry implies a lack of trust in the Lord's ability to provide.
      Worry is Satan's tool to rob us of peace. Unrest is not a character of peace.
    2. in every thing; We ought to be dependent on the Father for everything. A child in the home who is secure in the family knows no worry. He depends on the parents to take care of everything. We must be the same to know peace in our lives.
    3. by prayer and supplication; Prayer is an act of worship and praise. Supplication is our requests. 1 John 5:14-15 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
    4. with thanksgiving; We give thanks for what is given or received. When we ask, we thank Him for giving it. Give thanks as though we have already received our request. If God said it, He will do it. This enforces our peace.
      An effective prayer-life when these things are in place results in Phil 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Keep is from a Roman term to mount a guard, post sentry. God will post a sentry at the gate of our heart (emotions) and our mind (intellect)., and in this way providing God's peace the world has never known nor can understand.

III. Peace and its Relation to the Mind.verses 8-9

This is the second Finally Paul uses here. In 3:1 he says "finally, brethren rejoice" here it is "finally. brethren...think"
There are two things referenced here about peace and how it relates to the mind, Thinking and Doing.

  1. THINKING. verse 8.
    We are what we think. Prov 23:7 "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:" If we were to analyze our thinking habits, we would be surprised. We may find we are absorbs with:
    i. market-thinking
    ii. money-thinking
    iii. pleasure-thinking
    iv. self-thinking
    v. scandal-thinking.
    These are the though processes of the natural man. Our thoughts are manifested in our character. These patterns lead to unrest, envy, greed, desire, jealousy, and other traits that are not of God and rob us of God's peace. Paul tells us what we should think or meditate on:
    1. TRUE., thruthful
    2. HONEST, noble.
    3. JUST, right.
    4. PURE.morally pure
    5. LOVELY, loveable.
    6. OF GOOD REPORT, excellent or praiseworthy.
      Think or meditate on these things.

  2. DOING. verse 9.
    Praying and thinking is to reselt with action. Paul is one of the few who could say, "be ye followers of me as I am of Christ," The things that we hear, see, received and have learned, we are to do. In luke 6:45, The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. Brings, is the doing that comes from our thoughts.

  3. RESULTS. verse 9b.
    "the God of peace shall be with you."n verse 7 we have the peace of God standing guard in our hearts and mind. Here we have the God of that peace abiding with us.
    To experience the abiding peace involves a new thought process that produces Christ-like actions.

IV. Peace and its Relation to our Circumstances.verses 10-19

Christians, for the most part, allow themselves to be controlled by their circumstances. What makes us a separated and different people? The fact that we respond differently to events and circumstances in our life. In every situation that presented itself to Jesus Christ, He influenced the outcome. If that same Spirit that was in Christ is in us, why are we defeated by our circumstances?
Paul used two educational terms in this passage:

  1. Verse 11. I have learned,
    This was not merely theory from some academic institution. It was from the School of Life. It was the experiences he had faced. He knew what it was like to be well off and to be without. He knew what it was like to held in high-esteem and to be abased. He experienced joy and sadness, good times and bad times. These all were lessons he learned and from these experiences he learned to be content, satisfied. He knew he was in the Father's perfect will regardless of the circumstances and could rejoice. We must learn this lesson as well. Whatever our portion in life is, be content. This, of course, provides peace to our souls.

  2. Verse 12. I am instructed,
    He had learned the secret of being content through application of God's principles.
    God's Word is our instruction book and all we learn will only be theory unless it is applied in each and every situation. Because of his experiences he could now say with all authority, I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
      What can we do through Christ?
    1. We can be "Salt" and Light", Matt.5:13-14. What we are we can do.
    2. We can be a "Witness", Acts 1:8. What He's called us to do, we can do.
    3. We can maintain "Good Works". Titus 3:8. What we are instucted to do, we can do.
    4. We can "Serve". Rom.12:1. What we can do, we ought to do. What we ought to do, we must do.
    5. We can be "Fruitful". Jo.15:16. What we are ordained to do, we must do.

Paul teaches us that in doing all things in the strenght of Christ, God will supply all our needs.

God's peace is:
i. Contentment in ALL CIRCUMSTANCES
ii. Strength in ALL THINGS
iii. Supply for ALL OUR NEEDS.

We all desire to have peace and contentment in our lives. We want to be happy. "Happy is the man whose God is the Lord" We can have the abiding peace of God and it comes through the investment of our life in Christ.
What is the actual value of a man. It depends on you.

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