Use Your Power for Others – Philippians 4:4-7

A text – Philippians 4:4-7

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. ⁵ Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 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.

A reflection:

This brief passage from the letter of Paul to the Philippians is beautiful for many reasons. Let’s look at the four things Paul is urging this congregation to do, and then let’s look at who made up this congregation, to see how these things go together.

Here are the command verbs Paul gives them: do rejoice, do be known for gentleness, do not be anxious, do let your requests be known to God (by prayer and supplication). Those are Paul’s urgings.

Now who made up this congregation? The town of Philippi was created as a result of a war between the men who had assassinated Julius Caesar and the men who thought his death was wrong. An army lined up behind each side; the pro-assassination side led by Brutus and other senators who stabbed Caesar, and the anti-assassination side led by Mark Antony and Octavian. The assassination side lost the war in the great battle at Philippi, far to the east of Rome in mainland Greece. Rather than bring those legions all the way back to Rome at great expense, the soldiers were settled at Philippi, and a small town became a big one filled with military and ex-military folks.

Does knowing something about the Philippians affect how you look at the actions Paul is exhorting the believers to take? Rejoice always? Be known for gentleness? Do not be anxious? Ask God for everything? These verbs don’t seem to fit warriors too well. Especially “be known for your gentleness.” However, that phrase ought to be translated “use your power to care for and love others.” Yes, maybe that sounds like advice one might give to soldiers.

Also, believers at this time were being persecuted for following Christ, so those many new believers probably were anxious. But Paul tells them here and in other letters that to suffer for following Jesus links us into Christ’s own suffering and death, an act of God’s deep love, an honor to take part in.

So for us in Advent, as the commercial world is telling us to be merry and bright, we also have Paul telling us to rejoice, no matter our circumstances, because we are participating in the life of God and God’s son Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us. We then, like the Philippian soldiers, ought to use our strength in support of others. The great love of God will shine through our care for our neighbor.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for the encouragement Paul gives the Philippian congregation. Thank you for his urging them to have joy and be especially good to one another. Help us to do what Paul urged: be joyful and delight in helping others, to the glory of God. Amen.