Paul’s Recipe for PeacePhilippians 4:1-9

This article was first published in French at TPSG.

Does peace at times elude you? Do you feel anxious and overwhelmed by the responsibilities of work and family and ministry? Do divisions in your church leave you feeling discouraged? Would you like to discover the key peace in our troubled age? If so, I invite you to discover Paul’s recipe for peace in Philippians 4:1-9.

 

The passage opens in v. 1 with the word, “Therefore.” In Ephesians 3:12-21, Paul exhorts his hearers to forget what lies behind and press on toward the prize that is Christ, being careful to avoid the traps of the false teachers along the way. 

 

1^st Ingredient for Peace: Stand Firm (v. 1)

And in v. 1, with great tenderness, he issues an imperative to the beloved saints at Philippi: stand firm. If we want to know how to find peace, we need to first know when to fight.

 

2^nd Ingredient for Peace: Help (Be a Peacemaker) (vv. 2-3)

In v. 2, Paul appeals to two sisters at odds with one another: “I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord.” Paul doesn’t employ an imperative. This is a request. Paul doesn’t say: “Do this or else.” He is gentle in his approach.

 

Paul issues an imperative, rather, to his “true companion.” We don’t know who he is, but Paul is calling on this trusted brother to help these women work out their differences. When we see divisions arising in our midst, we are to help bring reconciliation. So, if our first ingredient for peace is to know when to fight, our second is to know when to make peace.

 

Euodia and Synthyche (v. 3)

Paul goes on to describe Euodia and Syntyche with three phrases:

1.     Who labored side by side with me: This phrase means to struggle or contend together. These women weren’t on the sidelines while Paul fought the battle. They were his co-combatants.

 

2.     Together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers: Others Paul describes as his “fellow workers” include:

·      Priscilla & Aquila (Rom. 16:3)

·      Urbanus (Rom. 16:9)

·      Timothy (Rom. 16:21, 1 Thes. 3:2)

·      Titus (2 Cor. 8:23)

·      Epaphroditus (Phil. 2:25)

·      Aristarchus, Mark, and Justus (Col. 4:10-11)

·      Philemon (Philem 1)

·      Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke (Philem 24)

 

3.     Whose names are in the book of life: This theme of hope beyond this life is a recurring one in Philippians. Paul is confident that these women will indeed heed his admonition, reconcile, and persevere to the end. 

 

Having no further comment to make on that situation, Paul returns to more general instructions. In v. 4 we discover the next ingredient for peace:

 

3^rd Ingredient for Peace: Rejoice (v. 4)

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice.” Paul has been building on this theme of joy throughout the epistle, and in this verse, he adds “always.” Because Jesus is Lord, I can rejoice in all circumstances, in spite of my suffering. Then, in v. 5, he adds another ingredient to the sauce:

 

4^th Ingredient for Peace: Let your gentleness be known to everyone (v. 5)

Gentleness is the quality of fair-mindedness and gracious forbearing; to be yielding, kind. In context, Paul is saying that whether we’re fighting for the faith or making peace, gentleness should govern our conduct. But notice that Paul doesn’t simply say, “Be gentle.” Rather, he commands them to be known for, to have a reputation for gentleness! 

 

5^th Ingredient for Peace: Do not be anxious about anything (v. 6)

Next, Paul invites his recipients to a life free from anxiety. For many of us, worry can seem like the excusable sin of a caring Christian. After all, doesn’t our worry stem from love? And yet, deep down, worry says that we think that: 

·      God won’t take care of us the way he does the lilies of the field and the birds of the air.

·      We could to a better job running the universe. 

·      We love those we worry about more than God does. 

 

Anxiety is a slow poison that will ruin our relationship with God and with one another. But what is so wonderful is that this passage gives us a precious remedy for this besetting sin: 

 

6^th Ingredient for Peace: Pray (v. 6)

Prayer breaks the power of anxiety in our hearts. Paul employs three different overlapping terms.

·      Prayer: Intercession for others

·      Supplication: urgent request to meet a need

·      Requests: specific desires of our hearts

 

Paul includes two further descriptors:

·      With thanksgiving: Just as we pray for specific desires, we can thank him in equally specific ways. 

·      In everything: Nothing is too trivial or insignificant to pray about. If it’s important to you, it’s important to him! 

 

The Main Entrée: The Peace of God (v. 7)

We finally arrive in v. 7 at the main dish:

 

The peace of God: God’s shalom is tranquility, a cessation of stress, worry, or troubles. This peace is not concealed and inward; it is a form of external well-being and is emphatically social. Here’s how Paul describes it:

 

1.     It surpasses all understanding: It’s not mild peace, a little relief, or momentary rest from strife. It is a deep, rich peace, which is far beyond all human capacity for understanding. A peace the world can’t give, and the world can’t take away. 

 

2.     It will guard your hearts and minds: Paradoxically, Paul uses a military term to speak of God’s peace watching over our hearts like a sentinel. So, the lesson here is, fight for the faith, be a peacemaker, and at the end of the day, let God fight for you and give you his peace.

 

3.     It is in Christ Jesus: This is the key. Because we are united to Christ, his peace is our peace. He experienced our anguish at the cross in order to deliver us from the power of sin. Praise God!

 

Extra Ingredients

Paul concludes by adding two extra ingredients to the sauce:

 

7^th Ingredient for Peace: Think about such things (v. 8)

A mind governed by God’s peace is characterized by the right kind of thoughts. That is, whatever is:

·      True: rejecting lies for what is authentic

·      Honorable: rejecting what is vulgar for what is awe-inspiring

·      Just: rejecting oppression for righteousness

·      Pure: rejecting guile for integrity

·      Lovely: rejecting ugliness for beauty

·      Commendable: rejecting negativity for winsomeness 

 

Paul then tells us that all of these objects of thought are “excellent and worthy of praise.”

 

8^th Ingredient for Peace: Practice these things (v. 9)

Lastly, Paul calls upon the Philippians to imitate him in what they’ve:

·      Learned & received: His teaching.

·      Heard & seen: His practice. 

 

Before the New Testament was compiled, believers didn’t have written accounts of the life of Jesus. Nor were they eyewitnesses of our Lord’s earthly ministry. So, Paul was that living link that showed them how to walk with Christ. 

 

Our Ultimate Longing: The God of Peace (v. 9)

In the concluding words of this passage, Paul proffers a promise: “and the God of peace will be with you.” This is a wonderful promise because it’s what we long for most. Not merely peace for peace’s sake, but rather intimate communion with the God of peace. The invitation of Philippians 4:1-9 is:

 

Seek your peace in communion with the God of peace.

 

May this truth nourish our affections for Christ as we fight for peace in a troubled age.