Live
Prayerfully—4:6-7
Paul
starts this admonition out in the negative: “Be anxious for nothing” (4:6a). While this admonition is given
independent of the state of the nearness of the Lord, it is nevertheless
related. It is because of the nearness of the Lord that anxiety is not
necessary. Again this admonition is emphatic, thus a command. In the Greek text
nothing is the first word, putting it in the emphatic position. This emphasizes
that the statement is negative, and is to be stopped. The negative used with
the present imperative indicates that the Philippians had been anxious, but is
now urged to stop being so.[1]
The word for anxious are the Greek
word merimnao and means to worry or be anxious.
Lightfoot says it means “anxious
harassing care.”[2]
It speaks of unreasonable anxiety, especially about things out of our control. Muller
points out: “To care is a virtue,
but to foster cares is sin, for each anxiety is not trust in God, but a
trusting in oneself, which comes to inward suffering, fears, and worry.”[3]
Some one once said that “Worry
is the misuse of imagination.”[4]
Paul is echoing what Jesus taught in his Sermon on the Mount (cf. Matthew
6:25-29). He is also echoing the Old Testament (cf. Psalm 55:22). This
admonition applies to believers in all dispensations. It is a divine principle
of relationship. God’s people are not to worry. It is true in the past, true in
the present, and true in the future. Now it is one thing to forbid worry and
another thing not to worry. However, Paul gives the solution.
“But” (alla) is
a conjunction which here sets up a contrast or antithesis. Instead of being
unduly anxious, they are “in everything
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to
God” (Phil. 4:6b). Instead of worry, Paul tells us to hand over our
concerns to God. If we worry we are keeping the problem in our own hands, not
God’s, thereby assuming it ourselves. Paul puts the remedy for worry in a
positive injunction to pray. Paul does not say as modern psychologists will:
“Do not waste your time and energy on something that is out of your control.”
This is acceptance. We all agree with the psychologist truth; but it fails to
give a solution. Acceptance is not a solution to worry. “The cure for worry is not inaction.”[5]
Paul instead calls for an action that offers the solution. It is prayer and the
power of God to comfort and give assurance. It is both a positive and active
solution. It sets forth “the
divine remedy for a troubled soul.”[6]
The
characteristics of the action:
- Its
situation—“in everything.” This
is in contrast to “in nothing”
above. “In everything” we are to
pray. It speaks of praying in every situation, every circumstance, and in
all things. This is reinforced by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18.
- Its
nature—“prayer and supplication…let your request be made known to God.”
The nature is threefold: (1) Prayer (proseuche), is the general term for prayer
indicating worship and adoration. (2) Supplication (deesis) is also an element of prayer or entreaty. Supplication is a progressive step of prayer;
it turns from the general to the particular. It is a humble and earnest
asking of God for a need arising out of want or circumstance. This can be
general such as grace, wisdom, encouragement, help or faith. (3) Request
is even more particular, for a specific item that is needed. The antidote
to worry is to communicate the need to God and empower Him to work it out.
This is true in all areas of life—spiritual, financial, and everyday
living. We are to “let our request
be made known….” The Greek verb is gnorizoestho,
meaning to reveal, declare, or present. It is an imperative (voice of a
command), but the expression is unusual because the Greek word suggests
that God is unaware of their request.[7]
However, that is not the case as indicated by Matthew 6:32. Rather, it is
used not because God is unaware, but because of two things: (1) God is
aware of them, but they have not yet been handed over to Him. In the
request, the believer is casting this care upon God (cf. 1 Peter 5:7). He
is giving the responsible to God. (2) He is acknowledging his dependence
upon God. God is not waiting for knowledge of the situation; He is waiting
for the acknowledgement by the believer of his dependence upon Him in the
situation. The word is used because He is unaware of their acknowledgement
until such acknowledgment is made.
- Its
accompaniment—“with thanksgiving.”
Prayer is to be exercised thankfully. Paul regularly uses to denote
gratitude that finds outward expression in thanksgiving. It is to be our
attitude of heart, as well as our expression in prayer. It is an
expression that recognizes God’s ability and His grace for what He has
done and is going to do. It is an expression of gratitude for His
faithfulness. Thanksgiving looks back to His provisions in the past and
expresses gratitude. It expresses two things: (1) Glory to God (2 Cor.
4:15). (2) Confidence in God’s continued working on our behalf, based on
the past. May I dare to say that Paul reminds us of this because when we
get in certain situations we forget for worry can blind us; thus we must
make a deliberate effort to do so. Why? Because it is a part of prayer. It
is a part of adoration to God. We must enter His gates with thanksgiving.
It is a part of our approach to God. Prayer is primarily an act of
worship. Worship is a product of a thankful heart. We must be reminded
that the antidote to worry is primarily worshipful prayer and then making
our requests known.
- Its
promise—“And the peace of God, which
surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in
Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7). Making
our request known by worshipful prayer results in the peace of God. Hendricksen says, “Peace is the smile of God reflected in
the soul of the believer.”[8]
The peace of God is different than peace with God. Peace with God is a
result of our justification (Romans 5:1). However, the peace of God comes
from our relationship with God. It comes through our communication with
Him by prayer. It is a term found only here in the New Testament.[9]
The conjunction and (kai) introduces the result or the consequence of making
our request to God. The term peace
is used in the sense of tranquility. This peace is not passive, but active
in two ways: (1) It “surpasses all comprehension.”
Surpasses is the Greek word hyperecho, a compound word—hyper (above or over) and echo
(to have). It means to have over, stand out above, to surpass, or to go
over the top. It speaks of going beyond a boundary or overflowing a
container. In this case it goes beyond understanding. Some translate it as
“transcends.”[10]
This is not simply a comparison between peace and the intellect; rather it
carries the idea on the uniqueness of peace that goes beyond our
understanding. We cannot fully understand or comprehend the peace of God,
but we can experience it. (2) It “will
guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” The background of
this phrase is military. The word guard is phroureo
meaning to guard, or keep watch over. It was used for a military
detachment to stand on guard duty (cf. 2 Cor. 11:32).[11]
It speaks of a promise of protection. The Bible uses the word to speak of
the divine protection of God over His people (cf. 1 Peter 1:5). The object
of this protection is the heart and mind of the believer. Lloyd-Jones
says,
It conjures up a picture. What will happen
is that this peace of God will walk round the ramparts and towers of our life.
We are inside, and the activities of the heart and mind are producing those
stresses and anxieties and strains from the outside. But the peace of God will
keep them all out and we ourselves inside will be at perfect peace. It is God’s
who does it.[12]
[1] O’Brien, NIGTC: PHILIPPIANS, 491.
[2] Lightfoot, PHILIPPIANS, 163.
[3] Muller, NICNT: PHILIPPIANS, 141.
[4] In the margin of my Bible, author unknown.
[5] Hendriksen, NTC: PHILIPPIANS, 195.
[6] Gromacki, STAND UNITED, 179.
[7] O’Brien, NIGNT: PHILIPPIANS, 493.
[8] Hendricksen, NTC: PHILIPPIANS, 198.
[9] However there is a parallel expression, “the peace of Christ” in Col. 3:15.
[10] NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION.
[11] O’Brien, NIGTC: PHILIPPIANS, 498.
[12] Lloyd-Jones, THE LIFE OF PEACE, 175.
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