Trinity Fellowship
06/01/25
  • Christ Our Hope In Life And Death

      • Psalms 4.1-2ESV

      • Psalms 4.3-6ESV

      • Psalms 4.7-8ESV

  • Trust In You
  • Be Thou My Vision
  • Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)
  • God I Look To You
  • [Me - Personal Story]
    Over the last few weeks, I have frequently found myself waking up at 3 AM. I resist the urge my mind has to focus on one of the several concerns my mental carousel attempts to suggest to me. knowing didn’t that if I entertain of things I couldn't turn off: A fence that had to be built. The sermon I hadn't finished writing. That strange sound my car was making. That difficult conversation I had with a brother…
    I tried all the usual tricks - counting sheep, deep breathing, even getting up to read. But my mind kept spinning. I felt like a fraud. Here I am, a pastor who preaches about God's peace, lying awake consumed by worry. Maybe you know that feeling.
    [We - Shared Problem]
    If I'm honest, I think anxiety might be the most universal human experience in our room today. Whether you're 15 or 75, anxiety doesn't discriminate. Some of you are worried about your kids. Others about your parents. Some about retirement, your health, relationships, or just the state of the world. Some of you hide it well; others wear it on your sleeve. But we all know what it feels like when our minds won't stop racing and peace feels like a luxury we can't afford.
    Reading the Bible shows that this isn't just a modern problem. Two thousand years ago, in a small Roman colony called Philippi, a group of first-century Christians were dealing with their own anxiety epidemic.
    Having come to faith in Christ under the ministry of the Apostle Paul, the Philippians were the first Christians in Europe and like pioneers in a new land they found themselves negotiating uncharted territory.
    Coming to faith in Christ meant they immediately faced significant social and economic pressures. Suddenly becoming part of this tiny, misunderstood religious minority resulted in real social isolation. Many had previously belonged to trade guilds, participated in civic festivals, and attended religious ceremonies tied to the Roman and Greek gods. Now if your were a craftsman and a Christian, attending the guild meetings that were so essential to networking in the labor market, was no longer an option. Why? Well, because it included making offerings to the pagan deities. No, becoming a Christian meant stepping away from these social and economic support structures— putting your very lively hood at stake.
    These new believers also faced physical persecution. Not only had they witnessed their founder being dragged before magistrates and brutally beaten, they themselves now faced the constant anxiety of wondering when the authorities might turn their attention to them.
    Not only was there this trouble present outside the church, conflicts within the church also brewed. Paul makes mention in 4:2 of a dispute between two prominent women in their fellowship, Euodia and Syntyche. Pressures from the outside makes these internal conflicts feel even more threatening and risked splitting their already fragile community— just when they needed unity most.
    Don’t forget about the doctrinal confusion that was abound. False teachers infiltrated the early churches and promoting ideas that mixed Christianity with other religious practices. Paul makes reference to these in Philippians 3:2, calling them ‘dogs’ for promoting circumcision as necessary for obtaining salvation. Imagine the anxiety these new believers faced trying to figure out what they actually needed to believe and do, especially when different teachers gave these conflicting messages.
    The Philippians no doubt worried about Paul himself. He was their spiritual father, and his fate in prison was unknown. Would he be executed? Would they ever see him again? Uncertainty about their beloved leader's future would have created profound anxiety about their own spiritual guidance and protection.
    It is in the midst of this kind of turmoil and uncertainty that the Apostle pens a letter meant to encourage and strengthen this fledgling group of new believers. In the first part of the letter he gives thanksgiving to God for using his imprisonment for God’s glory. He then moved on to encouraging his readers to endure their present hardship as a badge of honor. He pleaded with them to take on the attitude that Christ himself had in the world, and he challenged them to live for God’s glory.
    Then towards the end of the letter, Paul addresses, in very practical terms, how they could, even in the midst of their uncertainty and and worry, experience the peace of God in a real and tangible way.
    Paul, chained to a guard in a prison cell—answers the question all of us wants to know…

    How can we experience the peace of God in our chaotic world?

    We are reading from Philippians 4:6-9, I want you to notice how Paul— through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, reveals that there is a spiritual, a mental, and a behavioral dimensions to experiencing God’s peace.
    Let’s start in verses six and seven where Paul reveals the spiritual dimension to experiencing God’s peace— our prayers. He writes…
    Philippians 4:6–7 CSB
    6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
    Notice here regarding the spiritual dimension of prayer Paul writes that the believers are to…

    I. Pray thankfully in every situation (vv. 6-7)

    Paul uses three words in this passage that are key to understanding it.
    The first word is …
    A. Prayer (Proseuche): Relational Conversation
    The first word, proseuche— translated as prayer, refers to as the relational aspect of your conversation with God. It encompasses worship, praise, confession, meditation, and just simply being in God's presence.
    Proseuche includes times when you're not asking for anything at all - when you're simply just expressing gratitude, acknowledging God's character, or confessing your thoughts and struggles. It's the comprehensive term for all forms of communication with God.
    The second word is the word translated petition…
    B. Petition (Deesis):Specific Requests: It is the word Deesis, and focuses specifically on making requests - asking God for particular needs, interventions, or help. This word carries the sense of urgency and personal need. When you pray for healing for a sick friend, for wisdom in a difficult decision, or for provision during financial hardship, you're engaging in petition.
    These two terms represent the difference between having a general conversation with a close friend versus asking them for a specific favor.
    He isn't just being redundant - he's painting a complete picture. He's essentially saying, "Bring God everything - both your heart in general communion with him AND your specific needs and concerns."
    Many of you are doing this. You might begin your prayer time with proseuche - praising God, reflecting on His faithfulness, or simply enjoying His presence. Then you naturally move into deesis - bringing your specific concerns, your requests for others, and personal needs before Him.
    C. With Thanksgiving: Notice that Paul adds "with thanksgiving" to both. Thanksgiving in prayer isn't just a polite addition Paul tacked on - it's actually the secret ingredient that transforms the entire nature of our communication with God. Why is thanksgiving so important?
    Thanksgiving Changes Our Heart Posture: Think about how you feel when you approach someone from a place of gratitude versus approaching them from a place of complaint or desperation. When you're genuinely thankful, you're already in a position of recognizing good things that have happened. This immediately shifts your perspective from scarcity to abundance, from focusing on what's missing to acknowledging what's already present.
    In prayer, thanksgiving does something similar but even more powerful. It reminds you of God's character and faithfulness before you present your needs. Instead of coming to God like He's a distant vending machine, you're approaching Him as someone who has already proven His love and care for you.
    That is what Jesus was saying in Matthew 6:25-26…
    Matthew 6:25–26 CSB
    25 “Therefore I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?
    Thanksgiving Rewires Our Thinking: . When you begin with thanksgiving, you're actually training your mind to notice God's goodness. In addition, thanksgiving creates what theologians call "holy expectancy." When you're regularly recognizing God's faithfulness, you naturally begin to expect Him to continue being faithful.
    Thanksgiving Builds Trust: Think about your closest relationships. When someone consistently acknowledges and appreciates what you do for them, how does that affect your relationship? You're more inclined to help them again, you feel valued, and the relationship deepens. While God doesn't need our appreciation in the way humans do, thanksgiving still builds something crucial in our relationship with Him - trust.
    I love Psalm 55:22…
    Psalm 55:22 CSB
    22 Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never allow the righteous to be shaken.
    When you regularly acknowledge what God has already done, you're building a mental catalog of His faithfulness. This makes it easier to trust Him with new concerns. You're essentially saying, "God, you've proven yourself before, so I can bring this new worry to you with confidence."
    Thanksgiving Defeats Anxiety at Its Root: Now let's connect this directly back to Philippians 4:6, where Paul says "do not be anxious about anything." Anxiety fundamentally stems from us focusing on what might go wrong or what we lack.
    Thanksgiving does the exact opposite - it focuses on what has already gone right and what we already have. When you combine your specific requests with deliberate gratitude, you're essentially saying, "God, I'm concerned about this future situation, but I'm grounding my request in the reality of your past faithfulness."
    Thanksgiving Reflects God's Character: Thanksgiving in prayer isn't primarily about making us feel better, though it does that. It's about aligning our hearts with reality - the reality of who God is and what He has done.
    Every act of thanksgiving is essentially a declaration of God's goodness, His involvement in your life, and His worthiness of trust. When you thank God for provision, you're acknowledging Him as provider. When you thank Him for comfort, you're recognizing Him as comforter. Each thanksgiving becomes a small act of worship that reminds both you and the spiritual realm of God's character.
    What is the result of this? Paul says that it
    Philippians 4:7 CSB
    7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
    D. Guards The word translated as guard here is a military term. Praying this way places a sentinel at guard over your heart and mind.
    Paul understood this long before modern psychology ‘discovered’ it. He’s prescribing a mental and spiritual discipline that will transform how you experience both prayer and life's challenges. It is a real pathway to experiencing God's peace that "surpasses all understanding."
    I. Pray thankfully in every situation (vv. 6-7)
    So, if to pray thankfully is the spiritual dimension to experiencing peace in verses 6 and 7, then we see in verse 8, the mental dimension to experiencing God’s peace— our thoughts…
    Philippians 4:8 CSB
    8 Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is anything praiseworthy—dwell on these things.
    We see the flow of Paul's argument here. In verse 6, he addresses anxiety through prayer and thanksgiving- the spiritual dimension. In verse 7, he promises that God's peace will guard our hearts and minds. Then immediately here in verse 8, he shifts to the mentall dimension—what we should actively think about.
    we are to…

    II. Think biblically in every moment (v. 8)

    This isn't coincidental - Paul understands that lasting peace requires both divine intervention through prayer and human responsibility through thought management.
    He's essentially saying: "God will give you peace, but you have a role in maintaining it by what you choose to dwell on."
    What are the things we should dwell on? He gives eight of them…
    True (alethes) - Not just factual things, but reliable and trustworthy things. This counters the lies anxiety and worry tells us.
    Noble (semnos) - Dignified, worthy of respect. This elevates our thinking above petty concerns and gossip.
    Right/Just (dikaios) - Morally upright and fair. This focuses us on justice rather than bitterness or revenge.
    Pure (hagnos) - Clean, innocent, free from contamination. This protects against corrupted thinking.
    Lovely (prosphiles) - Pleasant, agreeable, beautiful. This actively seeks out beauty rather than dwelling on ugliness.
    Admirable (euphemos) - Well-spoken of, having a good reputation. This focuses on the positive rather than scandal or criticism.
    Excellent (arete) - Moral excellence, virtue. This seeks the highest standard rather than settling for mediocrity.
    Praiseworthy (epainos) - Worthy of praise and commendation. This looks for what deserves celebration.
    This peace isn't about the absence of external problems - it's about the quality of our internal mental environment. Think about how anxiety actually works: it's sustained by dwelling on worst-case scenarios, replaying past hurts, imagining future disasters, or focusing on what's wrong with people and situations.
    Notice here how Paul's eight-fold focus does the exact opposite. It systematically redirects our mental energy toward what builds peace rather than what destroys it.
    Because our brains literally form pathways based on our repeated thought patterns, consistently dwelling on anxious, negative, or destructive thoughts, strengthen those neural pathways. But, when we intentionally focus on what is true, noble, right, and lovely, we build different pathways.
    This isn't just positive thinking - it's strategic mental training. The Holy Spirit is teaching us here to become curators of our own thought life, deliberately choosing what deserves our mental attention.
    We are to do what 2 Cor 10 says…
    2 Corinthians 10:3–5 CSB
    4 … We demolish arguments 5 and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ.
    When anxiety tries to make you imagine worst-case scenarios about your health, finances, or relationships, the same test applies. Instead of fighting the anxious thought directly (which often makes it stronger), you take it captive, you crowd it out by focusing on something that does meet Paul's criteria.
    When our minds are cluttered with anxiety, resentment, impurity, or negativity, there's little room for us to experience God's peace. It's not that God withdraws His peace, but that we're not in a mental state to receive it.
    By training our minds to dwell on what is excellent and praiseworthy, we create the kind of internal environment where God's peace can be experienced. We become more sensitive to His presence and more aware of His goodness around us.
    Paul isn't suggesting here that you ignore reality or pretend problems don't exist. Rather, he's says we are to be intentional about what we allow to dominate our mental landscape. You can acknowledge a problem without dwelling on it. You can be realistic about challenges without letting them consume your thought life.
    Finally, in verse 9, Paul reveals the behavioral dimension to experiencing peace— our obedience.
    Philippians 4:9 CSB
    9 Do what you have learned and received and heard from me, and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

    III. Live obediently in every circumstance (v. 9)

    Paul shows remarkable confidence in pointing to himself. This is extraordinary when you consider that Paul wrote this letter from prison. Yet he's essentially saying, "Follow my example of how to live, and you'll experience God's peace." He can make this claim because his life demonstrated the very principles he taught.
    The progression Paul uses is instructive. He mentions four ways the Philippians encountered his teaching:
    Learned (emathete) - Formal, systematic teaching. This is the theological foundation.
    Received (parelabete) - Traditions passed down, like receiving a treasured inheritance. This includes the practices and wisdom of the faith community.
    Heard (ekousate) - Direct, personal communication. This is the relational dimension of learning.
    Seen (eidete) - Eyewitness observation. This is where teaching becomes embodied reality.
    This passage reveals something profound about the nature of peace itself. Paul's bold statement about following him here isn't arrogance; it's the completion of a comprehensive strategy where peace comes through the embodiment of obedience, not just mental exercises or prayer practices.
    James says…
    James 1:22 CSB
    22 But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
    Peace doesn't come from knowing about God's ways - it comes from walking in them. When the Philippians put Paul's example into practice, they weren't just learning doctrine; they were entering into the same relationship with the "God of peace" that Paul experienced.
    Peace isn't just a feeling or even just a divine gift - it's the natural result of living in alignment with God's design.
    In what way does obedience bring peace?
    Integrity Brings Inner Peace: When your beliefs, words, and actions align, you experience what psychologists call "cognitive consonance." There's no internal conflict between what you know is right and what you're actually doing. Paul lived this integration, and that's why he could point to himself as an example.
    Proven Principles Reduce Anxiety: Paul's teachings weren't theoretical - they were battle-tested. When the Philippians followed his example, they were following strategies that had already proven effective under pressure. Paul had experienced imprisonment, persecution, shipwrecks, and countless hardships, yet maintained peace. His methods worked.
    Obedience Creates Predictable Outcomes: When you consistently live according to God's principles, you begin to experience the reliability of His character. You're not constantly wondering what will happen if you trust God, forgive others, or choose contentment - you've seen these principles work in Paul's life and increasingly in your own.
    Notice the specific promise Paul makes: "And the God of peace will be with you." This isn't just peace as an emotion or mental state - this is the God who IS peace dwelling with you. The promise is relational, not just experiential.
    This connects directly to Jesus' promise in John 14:23
    John 14:23 CSB
    23 Jesus answered, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
    Obedience creates the conditions where God's presence becomes more tangible, more real, more experienced.This explains why Paul could be peaceful in prison. His circumstances were terrible, but his Companion was constant. When we live in obedience to what we've learned, received, heard, and seen in faithful examples like Paul, we don't just get peace - we get the God of peace Himself.
    Let’s look at the complete framework for peace with God:
    Verse 6-7: Replace anxiety with prayer and thanksgiving → God's peace guards your heart and mind
    Verse 8: Replace destructive thoughts with noble ones → Your mental environment becomes peaceful
    Verse 9: Replace worldly living with godly obedience → God's presence becomes your reality
    Notice it's a three-dimensional approach: spiritual (prayer), mental (thought management), and behavioral (obedience). Peace requires all three dimensions working together.

    We experience peace with God when we pray thankfully, think biblically, and live obediently.

    How do we do this? Explain the cardsl
    front
    back
    End

      • Philippians 4:6–7CSB

      • Matthew 6:25–26CSB

      • Psalm 55:22CSB

      • Philippians 4:7CSB

      • Philippians 4:8CSB

      • 2 Corinthians 10:3–5CSB

      • Philippians 4:9CSB

      • James 1:22CSB

      • John 14:23CSB

  • Hymn Of Heaven

      • 1 Timothy 1.17NKJV

Trinity Fellowship
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