“The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, 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 understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Recently I was asked about what I was preaching through in morning worship at our church (fortunately this was not from one of our members). As I began to explain that we are in the midst of the book of Philippians, the follow up question surprised me, ‘yeh, but how has this been made real to you and your church? You know you never preach anything that God doesn’t make it real.’ This scared me. Even though there is a thread woven through the book of Philippians of profound joy, it is not the common theme or the purpose of this book. Joy wouldn’t have scared me. Dealing with conflict within the church, partaking in suffering for the gospel, straining ahead and advancing the good news of Christ, all issues which Paul addresses to the Philippians, they would cause me alarm. If my friend’s assertion was true, and I knew it was, what was in store?
It’s been nearly 7 months of preaching though this book and I find I have either a keener awareness of people’s daily struggles and the struggles within church life or we have been prepared for the trying of our faith. Our people have faced and are facing serious struggles of living the gospel in a fallen world.
But praise God, our studies have included the above verses. It has become apparent to me that in the midst of all these struggles, what people crave is peace. An inner peace that says regardless of my situation there is a peace which floods my inner being, my soul is at rest. The book of Philippians has revealed that we can have that peace.
The promise of the scripture is that when we bring our concerns or requests before God, and by the way these represent any possible source of anxiety in our lives; do they not, and they are brought with thanksgiving on our lips, God has promised not the granting of that request necessarily but a granting of a peace that cannot be described in human terms. A peace which cannot be comprehended apart from God because as the verse says it is the peace OF God. His own holy serenity envelopes us, a supernatural peace. The peace which God Himself enjoys. A peace which knows no end, knows no conflict. Wow, what a promise!
If we will bring all of our anxious requests before the omnipotent Father with the humility of a desperately needy child, and a heart that overflows with the thankfulness of His grace already bestowed, then he promises us HIS peace. Thankfulness of His grace to us for our salvation, thankfulness of His grace in all good things is the key to the verse. If we come with thanksgiving in our hearts for His abounding grace than He promises us peace beyond description. Now that is a comfort. A peace and comfort which guards our inner beings from all anxiety and worry. A peace which says, my soul is at rest regardless of my struggle.
So I have realized that as God begins to hold us accountable for the preaching and teaching of His word, He also includes His good promises. My prayer is that the folks of Center Hill find ourselves strengthened in the Lord and in His word, seeking this peace, seeking His peace.
soli deo gloria
