Philippians 4:2-6
Paul’s Exhortations (2)
Phil 1 - Paul’s Heart
Phil 2 - The Mind of Christ
Phil 3:1-14 - Paul’s Quests
Phil 3:15-4:9 - Paul's Exhortations
We are in a section where Paul is exhortation his Christian friends to live what
they know. I told you before that these things are not deep in doctrine. They
don’t need to be studied or explained much. They just need to be done.
I. \\#Phil 3:14-16\\ Go the Right Direction
II. \\#Phil 3:17-21\\ Follow the Right Leaders
III. \\#Phil 4:1\\ Take the Right Stand
IV. \\#Phil 4:2-3\\ Work with the right spirit - unity.
A. Paul does not issue any rebukes to the Philippians but he does offer
two encouragements.
1. \\# 2\\ Eudias and Syntyche were obvious not of the same mind on something.
a. No details are given of the incident and no rebukes are issued.
b. That makes us think the issue was not of doctrine and had not
grown to the place where it was causing any major problems in
the church.
c. It was big enough that Paul heard about it in a Roman jail
(over 500 miles away by land 1,000 miles away by sea).
d. That fact should warn us how fast and how far news of problems
in the church will spread.
e. Paul’s remedy is to encourage them to get along.
2. \\# 3\\ Paul encourages "yokefellow" to help the women who had and were
laboring for Christ.
a. Since the epistle is not addressed to an individual, many
believe that YOKEFELLOW should be translated a proper name.
(1) I have no problem with those kinds of discussions in the
Scripture because it does not call into question the
original text.
(2) The discussion is only a matter of which way should it be
translated to understand what God wanted us to know.
b. However, some things are apparent.
(1) Women had an important role to play in the early church.
(a) \\#Acts 16:13\\ Lydia was important to starting the
church at Philippi.
(b) Paul acknowledges the role of other women in other
churches.
Romans 16:1 I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the
church which is at Cenchrea:
(c) Paul says here that there were "women which labored
with me in the gospel."
(d) While the Bible does forbid women having a leadership
role over men, it in no way limits their other
ministry opportunities.
(e) It is obvious that men could not care for their
farms and crops on a daily basis and for the widows,
orphans, and the sick.
(f) Probably more so then than now, the role of a deacon
in the church was a husband and wife duty with much
of the caring work falling to the women.
(2) "Yokefellow" seems to be a man who is being instructed to
help the women in the church.
(a) These women were obviously assuming much of the
responsibility for caring for the sick, elderly,
and the orphaned of the church.
(b) Paul is instructing some of the men to help the
women in that ministry—as men should do.
(3) The point to be made here is that it is Scriptural for
the women in the church to minister for Christ, to be
honored and encouraged in their ministry for Christ, and
to be helped by the men of the church in the
accomplishment of their ministry for Christ!
B. \\#Phil 4:3\\ Yokefellow is also encouraged to help Clement.
1. This is the only reference to Clement in the Bible.
2. Most believe this is the Clement of Rome whom historians have
discovered.
a. The historical Clement was ordained by Peter and most likely
served after Peter as the bishop (pastor) at the church of
Rome, during the last years of the first century.
b. An epistle from Clement to the church at Corinth still exits
today. In that letter, Clement was attempting to correct
a problem within that church.
V. \\#Phil 4:4\\ Keep the right attitude - rejoice.
A. Again, to rejoice is the theme of this book and it is repeated 10
different times in this book.
B. Paul inserts it into this list of admonitions.
VI. \\#Phil 4:5\\ Manifest the right temperament - moderation.
A. The English word "moderate" means to have a little bit of.
1. That is close to what Paul meant.
2. The word is translated "gentle" 3 times and "patient’ once.
3. These are definitely terms to describe a person's temperament or
his emotional state.
4. I like to think of the command as to be balanced in our emotions,
dispositions, and attitudes.
B. We should be moderate in everything that is fleshly.
1. We should be moderate, tempered, balanced when it comes to our
temper.
James 1:19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow
to speak, slow to wrath:
20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.
2. We should be moderate, temperate, and balanced in our spending.
a. Don't spend yourself into eternal debt for temporal toys.
b. Balance yourself so that you will be free to do for God with
your money and your time.
3. We should be moderate, temperate, and balanced in our secular
employment.
a. Don't spend all your time working for mere money!
b. Balance yourself so that you will have eternal as well as
temperate rewards.
C. However, we should not use the idea of moderation in connection with
sin.
1. i.e. lying, stealing, drinking, using drugs or tobacco, etc.
2. A little bit of sin is still sin!
D. Neither should we use moderation in connection with our Lord either!
1. If there is anything Christians ought to be fanatical about, it’s
Jesus!
2. You can’t give too much, do too much, go too far, or stand too
fast for Jesus.
VII. \\#Phil 4:5\\ Look for the right event - the coming of Jesus.
A. Like the "therefore" of \\#Phil 4:1\\, the coming of the Lord Jesus
is given as the motivation and reason for the Christian’s behavior.
B. I find three matters what should motivate the Christian to do all
that Christ has instructed us and to endure all that Satan and this
world will heap upon us.
1. The love of Christ
2. The coming of Christ
3. The wrath of Christ
C. One of these three ought to move you no matter how you feel or what
the task.
VIII. \\#Phil 4:6\\ Invest in the right labor - prayer, supplication, and
thanksgiving.
A. To "be careful for nothing" means do not be filled with care, concern,
or worry. There are some things we need to remember about worry.
1. You don’t have to worry.
a. You may have problems but worry does not have to come with
them.
b. Problems and worry are not synonymous.
c. Problems can come uninvited, but worry must have your
invitation.
2. Worry never helps.
a. In all the history of mankind, not one problem has ever been
fixed by worry.
b. There are some things you can do which might help.
(1) Thoughtful consideration may help.
(2) Seeking advice and council may help.
(3) Action may help.
c. Worry has never helped and will never help.
3. Worry always hurts.
a. Worry hurts you emotionally.
(1) Worry occupies your mind and depresses your spirit.
(2) There are people who have worried themselves into
psych wards.
b. Worry hurts you physically.
(1) Worry deprives you of sleep, increases stress, and
and drives up your blood pressure.
(2) Worry can and does cause insomnia, hypertension, strokes,
heart attacks, weight loss, weight gain, and just plain
foolishness.
c. Worry hurts you spiritually.
(1) Worry is sin.
(2) Anytime you sin, you hurt yourself and others.
4. For many, worry is just a habit.
a. It is a bad habit.
b. But it is an automatic habit.
(1) They don’t consciously choose to worry anymore.
(2) They have done it so many times and for so long, it
is just what they do.
(3) The older you get, the more ingrained the habit an become.
B. The Bible gives three helpful alternatives for worry.
1. We can pray.
a. Unlike worry, prayer does help.
b. It helps us to talk our problems and cares over with Someone.
c. Prayer moves God to change the circumstances.
2. When you can’t pray, supplicate.
a. According to Strong’s, the definition has two parts.
(1) need, indigence, privation, penury - extreme poverty
(2) seeking, asking, entreating
b. From a personal experience, I have come to think of
supplication as a need so great that words will not describe
it.
c. To me, supplication is when your prayer with God must be deeper
than words will carry you. You must let God "feel" your need,
your hurt, your request.
d. I associate the word SUPPLICATION with the action described
by Paul.
Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not
what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for
us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
3. After you have prayed, thank God.
a. Thanking God is not just the conclusion of prayer. It is part
of the prayer.
(1) We have seen from the Scriptures that God sometimes does
not move until thanksgiving and praise is offered,
(2) If that is the case, you might pray until your knees fall
off but still not get what you have asked God for until
you praise and thank Him.
b. Thanking God is also good therapy for the worriers.
(1) It forces you to consider just how good God has been.
(2) It would be a good practice to thank God for two things
every time you ask Him for one.
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