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Philippians 4:1-9 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion,[a] help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my coworkers, whose names are in the book of life.

4 Rejoice[b] in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.[c] 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about[d] these things. 9 As for the things that you have learned and received and heard and noticed in me, do them, and the God of peace will be with you.

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Whatever Is Gracious…

The Apostle Paul didn’t write a Gospel of his own; but he did write letters-a bunch of which make up a good chunk of our New Testament. And in those letters we certainly can discover the Gospel according to Paul.

Today’s reading comes from one such letter: Phillipians- which is a thank you note to the congregation at Phillipi for the caring and generous manner in which they ministered to him while he was in jail on account of his faith.

At the end of today’s reading, Paul commends to the church a list of admirable qualities which are compatible with comparable lists from philosophers of his time. It’s as if he is encouraging followers of Jesus to emulate the best of humanity-the true, the honorable, the just, the pure, the lovely, the excellent, and the praiseworthy! Qualities embodied by Jesus himself. Quite a list!

The first thing that comes to mind as I consider this list of virtues, is that Paul’s letter itself is commendable and excellent, don’t you think.

A quick perusal of this epistle yields so many notable verses. Let’s recall a few:

2:12: “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for God’s good pleasure”

4:13’: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”

And let’s not forget one of the gems from today’s scripture reading, found on the front page of your Bulletin: “The peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus our Lord. ( 4:7)

We are living in a day and age when we are constantly bombarded with bad new, shocking news, of greed and hubris, meanness and indifference, hatred and violence -instances of humanity at its worst. However, in spite of this, if we have eyes to see and ears to listen, we also may witness many more examples of humanity at its best!

Recently, I was in conversation with a clergy colleague who lives in Bath. His church, and others in Southern Maine, have been involved in the task of finding places for immigrants to live and work in their communities for a while now. Given the recent surge of ICE to arrest and deport supposedly illegal aliens, those immigrants here legitimately live in fear that they may be arrested and deported.

One particular family, that my friend knows, is from Angola. They were seeking asylum from political violence that killed their father in 2021. They are legally asylees. However, every day now, the families, including the children and teens, are fearful that someone in their family will be snatched up and taken away while they are dropping them off to school or picking them up. Fortunately, people in the church and community are working together to give these youth rides to school and home again.

My friend found out that one day, the principal at the High School and some of the teachers called immigrant families who had teenagers at home, and told them that they felt it would be wise for the students to stay home for that day, because they had been alerted about the presence of ICE nearby the schools. They told them that they would make sure their students would receive their homework materials and assignments.

As far as I am concerned, this High School principal and these church folks exemplified so many of the virtues that Paul encourages us to put into practice. Virtues representing the best of human conduct, regardless of one’s religion or faith.

In this passage of the letter before us today, Paul is not having us consider just good ‘Christian’ behavior, but exemplary ‘human’ behavior as well. For each of these qualities or virtues has its source in God, in whose image we were all created.

Another teaching from today’s lesson may be the most challenging of all, especially in these days of increased anxiety and fear.

Paul tells us to “Rejoice in the Lord, always”. (Not just once, but twice, for special emphasis).

This imperative, “to rejoice”, which may seem impossible at times, and absurd at others, is not so strange when we remember that the source of our joy is the Spirit who is readily at hand. In between the imperatives “rejoice always” and “don’t worry” is a fundamental affirmation of our faith: “The Lord is near”.

We don’t rejoice abstractly, or at will, just because someone tells us to. We rejoice in the Lord, the Holy one, who is our Shepherd; we rejoice in the Holy One, who walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death; we rejoice in the Holy One, because we are rooted and grounded in the love of God which has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.

One particular paraphrase of Psalm 23 that I have found especially meaningful comes

from a Navajo tribe. It goes like this:

“The Great Father above a Shepherd is. I am his and with him I want not.

He throws out a rope and the name of that rope is love. And

He draws me to where the grass is green and the water is not dangerous.

And I eat and lie down and am satisfied.”

I am very moved, especially, by the line referring to the rope. For I have known times in my own life when I have felt unmoored and lost. I also know that those times have often been the times when I’ve been thrown a rope named love. And that has made all the difference.

In this same passage Paul also reminds us of a very practical way of handling adversity.

He writes, “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with

thanksgiving, let your requests by made known to God.”

It seems clear to me that Paul is passing on what he first learned from Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount:

“Therefore, do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat? Or “What shall we drink?... Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all ese things will be given to you as well”.

Notice that when Paul encourages us to pray, he adds a simple phrase that can help diffuse our anxieties and fears and help us draw closer to God: The phrase is: ‘with thanksgiving’.

It’s been my experience that gratitude has a way of recalibrating our mindsets and our nerves by awakening our faith. For the practice of gratitude involves remembrance: remembering the many ways that God has remembered us; the times that God has blessed us; moments when God has helped us; occasions when we have felt as though God’s light has shined upon us; moments when we have been “wowed” by God!

When we find ourselves wondering “where is God?”, another question we might ask instead is: “When is God?”

One such moment occurs when our worries are replaced by a deep peace-a peace that surpasses all human understanding- a peace that is not a human achievement, but a gift promised by the Jesus himself at the Last Supper:

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let

your hearts be troubled; neither let them be afraid.” Jn 14:27

Amen.

Delivered October 11, 2026

Union Congregational Church of Hancock, UCC

By the Rev. Dr. Nick Davis