1) The document discusses how to find peace according to Philippians 4:6-9. It says peace comes through right praying, right thinking from God's Word, and right living according to what we learn from God. 2) It provides examples from scripture of each: thankfully praying (right praying), dwelling on virtues from God's Word (right thinking), and obeying God's commands (right living). 3) The document argues that these three lead to the peace of God, while wrong versions of them instead lead to war, according to James 4:1-11. It aims to explain how to experience God's peace in life.

1. PHILIPPIANS 4:9
JULY 8, 2012
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
JACKSON, MS USA

2. Wiersbe's Expository
Outlines on the New
Testament. Copyright ©
1992 by Chariot Victor
Publishing, an imprint of
Cook Communication Min.

3. The MacArthur New
Testament Commentary,
Copyright © Moody Press
and John MacArthur,
Jr., 1983-2007.

4. Philippians 4:9
“The things you have
learned and received and
heard and seen in me,
practice these things, and
the God of peace will be

5. with you.”
Philippians 4:9

6. The things we are to dwell
on and practice are from v 8:
true, honor, righteousness,
pure, lovely things, things of
good repute, excellence,
and things worthy of praise.

7. Warren Wiersbe’s summary
of Philippians, chapter 4:
God’s Presence v 1-5
God’s Peace v 6-9
God’s Power v 10-13
God’s Provision v 14-23

8. God’s Presence
v5 - “The Lord is near”.
God’s Peace
v7 - “the peace of God
which surpasses all
comprehension”.

9. God’s Power
v 13 – “I can do all things
through Christ Who
strengthens me”.

10. Philippians 4:6-9
God's Peace
"Peace with God" is the
result of faith in Christ.
Romans 5:1

11. Romans 5:1
“Therefore, having been
justified by faith, we have
peace with God through our
Lord Jesus Christ,”

12. “The peace of God" and the
presence of "the God of
peace" will come when the
believer practices:
right praying, right thinking,
and right living.

13. RIGHT PRAYING (4:6-7)

14. Philippians 4:6-7
6 “Be anxious for nothing,
but in everything by prayer
and supplication with
thanksgiving let your
requests be made known to

15. God.
7 And the peace of God,
which surpasses all
comprehension, will guard
your hearts and your minds
in Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:6-7

16. Right praying (v.6-7)
“Thankful praying” pleases
God and leads to having His
peace in our lives that
surpasses all understanding.

18. RIGHT THINKING (4:8)

19. Philippians 4:8
8 “Finally, brethren,
whatever is true,
whatever is honorable,
whatever is right,
whatever is pure,

20. whatever is lovely,
whatever is of good repute,
if there is any excellence and
if anything worthy of
praise, dwell on these
things.” Philippians 4:8

21. Right thinking (v. 8)
“Dwell on these things!”
Peace involves the mind
(Isa 26:3 and Rom 8:6).

22. Isaiah 26:3
“The steadfast of mind You
will keep in perfect peace.”
Romans 8:6
“the mind set on the Spirit is
life and peace.”

23. *Our thoughts are powerful;
“As a man thinketh, so is
he."
Proverbs 23:7

24. Wrong thoughts will lead to
unrest and discouragement,
but proper spiritual thinking
will lead to peace.
*Paul tells us in this verse
what to think about;

25. if you compare the eight
virtues found in Phil 4:8 to
Psalm 19:7-9, you will see
that the Word of God meets
all of these requirements.

26. Psalm 19:7-9
7 “The law of the LORD is
perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the LORD
is sure, making wise the
simple.

27. 8 The precepts of the LORD
are right, rejoicing the
heart;
The commandment of the
LORD is pure, enlightening
the eyes.

28. 9 The fear of the LORD is
clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD
are true;
They are righteous
altogether.” Psalm 19:7-9

29. *Meditation on the Word of
God will always bring peace.
165 “Those who love Your
law have great peace,
And nothing causes them to
stumble.” Psalm 119:165

30. 1 Right praying (v6-7)
Thankful praying
2 Right thinking (v8)
from God’s word
3 Right living (v9)

31. RIGHT LIVING (4:9)

32. 9 “The things you have
learned and received and
heard and seen in me,
practice (live) these things,
and the God of peace will be
with you.” Philippians 4:9

33. Right living (Phil 4:9):
If there is something in my
life I dare not pray about,
then I will never have peace.
*Right living always brings
peace: Isa 32:17 & 48:18.

34. Isaiah 32:17
17 “The work of
righteousness will be peace,
and the service of
righteousness, quietness
and confidence forever.”

35. Isaiah 48:18
18 “If only you had paid
attention to My
commandments! Then your
peace would have been like
a river…”

37. It is not enough to use the
Bible as a basis for praying
and claiming its promises;
we must also use it as a
basis for our living and
obeying its precepts.

40. John 14:21
21 “He who has My
commandments and keeps
them is the one who loves
Me; and he who loves Me
will be loved by My Father,

41. and I will love him and will
disclose Myself to him.”
John 14:21

42. Right living (Phil 4:9)

43. James 4:1-11 says that:
wrong praying (4:3),
wrong living (4:4), and
wrong thinking (4:8)
bring war instead of peace!

45. James 4:1
1 “What is the source of
quarrels and conflicts among
you? Is not the source your
pleasures that wage war in
your members?”

47. James 4:3 (Wrong praying)
3 “You ask and do not
receive, because you
ask with wrong motives, so
that you may spend it on
your pleasures.”

49. James 4:4 (Wrong living)
4 “You adulteresses, do you
not know that friendship
with the world is hostility
toward God?
Therefore whoever wishes

50. to be a friend of the world
makes himself an enemy of
God.” (Wrong living)
James 4:4

51. James 4:8 (Wrong thinking)
8 “Draw near to God and He
will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands, you
sinners; and purify your
hearts, you double-minded.”

53. James 4:1-11 says that:
wrong praying (4:3),
wrong living (4:4), and
wrong thinking (4:8)
bring war instead of peace!

54. Philippians 4:6-9 says that:
right praying (v6-7),
right thinking (v8) and
right living (v9)
bring the peace of God!

55. Warren Wiersbe’s
summary:
God’s Presence v 1-5
God’s Peace v 6-9
God’s Power v 10-13
God’s Provision v 14-23

56. God’s Power v 10-13
Philippians 4:10-13
10“But I rejoiced in the Lord
greatly, that now at last you
have revived your concern
for me; indeed, you were

57. concerned before,
but you lacked opportunity.
11 Not that I speak from
want, for I have learned to
be content in whatever
circumstances I am.

58. 12 I know how to get along
with humble means, and I
also know how to live in
prosperity; in any and every
circumstance I have learned
the secret of being filled and

59. going hungry, both of having
abundance and suffering
need.
13 I can do all things through
Him Who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:10-13

60. Philippians 4:10b
“indeed, you were
concerned before but you
lacked opportunity.”

61. The Philippians had
generously supported him
when he left Philippi to
minister in the cities of
Thessalonica, Berea, Athens
and Corinth.

62. Now, Epaphroditus arrived
in Rome, bringing with him
another generous gift from
the Philippians (4:18) for
which Paul rejoiced in the
Lord greatly.

63. He rejoiced primarily not
because the gift met his
need, but because it gave
evidence of their love for
him.

64. His joy overflowed because
now at last, after ten years,
they had revived their
concern for him.

65. The Greek verb translated
revived is a horticultural
term describing a plant
flowering again.

66. The Philippians' generous
affection for Paul, after lying
dormant for nearly ten
years, had once again
bloomed.

67. Paul's gracious attitude
reflects his patient
confidence in God's
sovereign providence.
He was certain that God in
due time would arrange his

68. circumstances to meet his
needs.
There was no panic on his
part, no attempt to
manipulate people, no
taking matters into his own

69. hands.
Paul was content because
he knew that the times,
seasons, and opportunities
of life are controlled by the
sovereign God “Who works

70. all things after the counsel
of His will" (Eph 1:11),
thereby causing "all things
to work together for good
to those who love God, to
those who are called

71. according to His purpose"
(Rom 8:28).

72. Those who seek to control
their own lives will
inevitably be frustrated.

73. A confident trust in God's
providence is foundational
to contentment.
1) Providence and
2) Miracle are the two ways
God acts in the world.

75. A miracle is God's direct
intervention into the natural
world.
It is an event so contrary to
the normal course of events
that there is no scientific or

76. naturalistic explanation for
it other than the power of
God.
There is no natural insight to
explain the parting of the
Red Sea, restoring the sight

77. of those blind from birth, or
raising people from the
dead.

79. On the other hand, God's
providence is not miraculous
in the sense that it does not
interrupt the natural order.

80. Rather, it allows for all the
contingencies, events,
words, acts, decisions, and
elements of normal life.

81. God supernaturally weaves
them all together to fit His
purpose exactly.
This is as supernatural as a
miracle.

83. Solomon acknowledged
God's providential control
over events when he wrote,
"The mind of man plans his
way, but the Lord directs his
steps" (Prov 16:9; 19:21).

85. God providentially arranged
for Joseph to rise to a high
position in Egypt to
preserve His people.
As Joseph explained to his
brothers, "As for you, you

86. meant evil against me, but
God meant it for good in
order to bring about this
present result, to preserve
many people alive"
(Gen 50:20).

89. God also providentially
arranged for Esther to be in
a position to save Israel, as
Mordecai reminded her:
"For if you remain silent at
this time, relief and

90. deliverance will arise for the
Jews from another place
and you and your father's
house will perish.
And who knows whether
you have not attained

91. royalty for such a time as
this?" (Esther 4:14).

93. An understanding of God's
sovereign, providential
control of events is critical
to contentment.

94. Philippians 4:11
11“Not that I speak from
want, for I have learned to
be content in whatever
circumstances I am.”

95. Lest the Philippians
misunderstand his
statement in verse 10, Paul
quickly added a disclaimer.
He did not mean to imply
that he spoke from want

96. when he thanked them for
their gift.
In fact, he had learned to be
content in whatever
circumstances he found
himself.

97. Though his situation was
extremely difficult, Paul was
not discontent.
It did not matter that he was
a prisoner, living in a small
apartment, chained to a

98. Roman soldier, subsisting
on a sparse diet.

99. None of that affected Paul’s
contentment, because he
was satisfied with what little
he had.

100. His contentment was not
affected by his physical
deprivations since true
contentment comes only
from God, and enables
believers to be satisfied and

101. at ease in the midst of any
problem. (joy vs happiness)
The contented attitude of
someone like Paul is rare in
today's society.

102. People are not content even
when they have a lot.
In fact, it seems that those
who are the wealthiest are
often the most miserable
and discontented.

104. Instead, people are obsessed
with delineating their needs
and loudly demanding that
those needs be met & be met
now.
“Hey! What about me?”

105. “Meeting my needs” has
become the number one
value in our culture.
Starting from the
humanistic premise that
God does not exist and man

106. is therefore ultimate, the
goal of life for many people
becomes getting their needs
met.
Adding to the discontent is
the blurring of the

107. distinction between needs
and wants.
In actual practice, today
virtually everything has
become a "need“ not a want.

111. Philippians 4:19
19 “And my God will
supply all your needs
according to His riches in
glory in Christ Jesus.”

113. Today men "need" the latest
hunting equipment, the
largest screen TV, and a
fancier car; while ladies
"need” nicer clothes, plastic
surgery and a better house;

115. children "need" the freedom
to express themselves
outside the "bondage" of
parental control.
Like a hamster running
around and around on a

116. wheel and going nowhere,

118. people desperately chase
the contentment that is
always tantalizingly just out
of reach.

119. Even many churches have
begun to build their
ministries around people's
"felt needs."

120. But Paul knew that the chief
end of man is not to have his
needs met, but to glorify
God and enjoy Him forever.
Because of that, Paul was
satisfied with whatever God

121. graciously granted him.
As he wrote to Timothy, "If
we have food and covering,
with these we shall be
content" (1 Tim 6:8).

122. Paul was content to let God
control things.
When difficult times came,
he remained content
because he was satisfied
with whatever he had.

124. Philippians 4:12
12“I know how to get along
with humble means, and I
also know how to live in
prosperity; in any and every
circumstance I have learned

125. the secret of being filled and
going hungry, both of
having abundance
and suffering need.”
Philippians 4:12

126. The twice-repeated phrase
“I know how . . . I also know
how” reveals that he had
learned by experience and
spiritual maturity to live
above his circumstances and

127. not to let them affect his
contentment, his joy.
That is an important lesson
for believers to learn, for it is
the difficult circumstances
in life that most frequently

128. steal our contentment.
Steve Saint update:
http://youtu.be/N2jfgR0cCGc