Worn-Out Knees: Living a Peaceful Life
Philippians 4:4–7 (ESV)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Our country is in dire need
We are hurting and confused with the latest incident that has happened in South Florida…yet again, a senseless act
You and I amid such things may not feel very peaceful
Our world and our country are certainly not peaceful
But the Bible speaks of a personal peace that is not dependent on what is happening in the world around us: the peace of God from the God of peace
That’s what we need this morning: peace
Yet what we may have is fear and anxiety over the state of our world
I am here to tell you this morning, that the answer to fear and anxiety is a commitment to Jesus Christ
Yet many Christians wrestle with fear and anxiety…and yet it must not be just a problem with us, it was happening when Paul wrote the words of Scripture that we just read
At that time, the city of Philippi was part of the Roman Empire in which an emperor named Nero was in charge
Nero was killing Christians because of their belief and faith in Christ
Christians at that time needed to know how to trust God with every possible point of stress in their lives…and so do we
- Worry is the problem
V6 said: “do not be anxious about anything”
The word Anxious is a synonym for worry, so that verse is telling us not to worry about anything
Not saying there are not times when we worry; someone is not being truthful if they say they never worry
But the kind of worry v6 is talking about is the kind of worry that consumes us; something that is a burden to you constantly
A worry that consumes is a worry that destroys
The state of our world alone is enough to worry us, let alone the day to day worries of life itself
We must do something about the kind of worry that destroys
Here’s the medicine:
- Prayer is the Medicine
Again: v6 tells us not to worry about anything, but pray about everything
Pray about everything
In our Scripture passage this morning, Paul uses four different words to describe the kind of prayer that will keep worry at bay:
- Prayer
Christian: are you a man or woman of prayer?
Prayer is simply coming to God with words of reverence and respect…and remember those words don’t have to be specific
There is not a magic formula for praying…just share your heart with God
- Supplication is another word Paul uses
Supplication means to entreat or ask
You are coming to someone who has everything and you are asking him for what you need
God has everything that you need
Supplication means to ask from God what you need
- Requests is a third word used here
What is meant here is that we need to bring our requests specifically to God
We sometimes forget to pray specifically!
I’m not sure why we do that with God and we don’t do that in any other area of life
When Susie wants me to stop at the store and get something on the way home, she doesn’t just say “stop at the store”
Then I would say, “What for?” No, she would say stop at the store and get milk or whatever
For example, when we are tempted to worry, we need to tell God specifically, why—and ask for His help with that specific concern[1]
- Thanksgiving is the fourth word used to describe prayer
Notice in v6, the word “with”
“but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God”
When you pray, do it with a thankful heart
Thankfulness is the attitude of gratitude that shows we are aware of just how much God has blessed us!
Staying in a mindset of thanksgiving puts our worries in proper perspective
What God has already provided for you and me, is far beyond whatever it is that might worry us in this life
Worry is the problem, prayer is the medicine:
- Right Thinking and Right Action is the Therapy
- To avoid worry, we must think proper thoughts
Philippians 4:8-9 (ESV)
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.
To think about these things means to ponder them or consider them
It means to give value to these things…think, consider these things as very important to help you with fear, anxiety and worry
- Think about whatever is true: what causes a lot of worry is directed toward what is unknown. You are worrying about something that may or may not happen.
- Think about whatever is honorable: there isn’t much honor in our society today. Think about higher things
- Think about whatever is just: in other words, focus on the righteous things of God, and not fill your mind with the garbage of the world. That’s how you’re going to have peace in this life
- Think about whatever is pure: We follow Christ. We follow what is pure. The world is brimming over with impurities. Think on things that are pure; the things of God. And you will have peace
- Think about whatever is lovely: lovely, as it is used here means things that are pleasing and orderly. Mind off the chaos in this world that you can’t do much if anything about
- Think about whatever is commendable: commendable communication with words that are true, honest and fair. Not gossip and lies.
These are 6 things that will help you to live a peaceful life…and I think we all could use help with that
It’s impossible to live a peaceful life if we are filling our minds with lies, unrighteousness, ugliness, impurity, gossip and speculation
If we’re not careful, our minds can be filled with these things without even trying by living in the world that we live in
So, we must do more than just ignore the bad thoughts.
We must go on the offensive and seek to fill our minds with positive thoughts—thoughts that meet the high standards that are on this list we just looked at
And the best way to fill out minds with the right things is to stay in the word of God
There are more ways to read the Bible than ever before…there’s really no excuse that a Christian can give for not reading and studying the Bible!
By the way, regular church attendance; gathering with fellow believers and worshipping God and studying His word is a really good way to keep your mind right
I don’t care what is said; church is vital to your survival in this world!
Worry is the problem, prayer is the medicine, right thinking and right action is the therapy…and:
- God’s Peace is the Promise
God has promised us 3 things if we will commit ourselves to godly praying, thinking and living
- God has promised us protection
V7 said that God’s peace will guard our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus
God’s peace will be like a troop of soldiers camping around your heart and mind, keeping out the worrisome thoughts of the day
God’s peace is like the soldier marching back and forth, protecting your heart and mind from worry and anxiety
- God has promised that he will be with us
V9 tells us that the God of peace will be with you
Philippians 4:9 (ESV)
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.
He will be with us if we will put in practice what we have learned in the Scripture
When you pray, think, and behave in a godly fashion, God’s presence will be in your life
- God has promised His peace to us
God’s peace is the peace that passes all understanding
In other words, it’s impossible to explain
When someone asks, “how did you get through that situation without losing your mind!” you can say, “I really can’t explain it. I just know that God was with me and gave me peace”
Jesus said that God’s peace is not like the world’s peace
To the world, peace means the absence of trouble
To the Christian, peace means the presence of God no matter the trouble
When you have a worry problem, the medicine is prayer, the therapy is right thinking and right doing, and then comes the peace of God
[1] Jeremiah, D. (2007). Signs of Life (Study Guide) (p. 57). San Diego, CA: Thomas Nelson Publishers.