And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.
17 sermons cite this verse
… writes so if you look at the letters of Paul you can tell by what he's addressing that he's addressing specific concerns and so one of the things that he says in Philippians 4 verses 6 through 7 is that be anxious for nothing. He's talking about prayer. But in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known. So, God, let's take a look at that for a minute. He says, be anxious for nothing. When I come to the Lord in prayer, I'm not coming to the Lord in prayer from a place of anxiety. That's the goal. Now, that's not always where I am, but the goal is to not come to the Lord from a place of anxiety. And we come to the Lord from a place of anxiety because we take our fears, our concerns, our doubt, our pride, our ego, and we go into the presence of the Lord and we start begging, Lord, please, please, please, I need you to do it. We do it from a place of anxiety, almost as if we aren't sure whether or not he will do it. But he says, if you're going to master your prayer life, I want you to get to a place where you come into the presence of the Lord where you're not anxious for anything? …
… but with prayer and petition, present that to God and the peace of God. Notice not the peace of the world, but a different kind of peace. The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. If you feel anxious, you take it to God. If it's on your mind, it's on his heart. So don't ever let anxiety drive you away from God. Let it draw you to him. Call on him. Cast your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Kay, in the same vein, asked this question. And she said, is it a sin to have mental health struggles and take medication for your struggles? Someone from Life Church in Albany, New York asked this. If I take anxiety medication, does it mean I don't trust God? The answer is, of course not. If you break a leg and you're a Christian, you're probably going to pray and go to the doctor, right? If you have the flu, you're probably going to pray and take your medication or your essential oils. …
… let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God that passeth all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. But once you don't panic, that's when you recognize now is the time to find out where the bubbles are. How do you find where the bubbles are? That's when you wave your hand. Wave it in the air like you know God cares. And when you wave your hand, that's why when you see me at church some Sundays and my hands go up, I'm trying to find the bubbles because once I find the bubbles, I've got a feeling everything is going to be all right. And once you find the bubble, remember that you're covered. You're covered by something that will pull you all the way back to the top. Somebody came to church, and if you don't believe me, ask our ancestors, those old school deacons who would get down on one knee in the midst of devotion. They didn't have what we call a praise break or a praise time. …
… let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there's any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things and the God of peace will be with you. And then let me borrow really quickly from next week's passage. Verse 11, I have learned, you see, in whatever situation I am, to be content. I know how to be brought low and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. This is the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. You may be seated. …
… But everything you pray about, you're at peace about. Oh, the Bible says in Philippians chapter 4, verse 6 and 7, Be anxious for nothing but in everything, through prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus. and so Jesus goes I'll be anxious about this decision I won't have the the insight on this decision I won't know what to do and he says he's basically saying not my will but your will be done and one of my favorite sayings about prayer is from a man named D.L. Moody he used to say when I stopped praying coincidences stopped happening but you ever notice when you get away and you start praying and you're like, God, I need help with this person. I need this thing in my life. I need you to, and then just boom, boom. And you go, I was just praying about this. I was just praying for them. I was just, and just coincidence, coincidence, coincidence. Why? It's because heaven is getting, you're not getting heaven onto your agenda. You're asking heaven for you to get on their agenda. …
… by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Let your requests be made known to this God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard, same language, your heart and mine in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4, 11, I've learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I've learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Oh, to all who know and believe in this God, look in the mirror with contentment. And the God in whom you can do, you can face, you can endure all things with strength and joy and peace that surpasses all understanding, you can live your life with joyful contentment. And then, when you know, you believe in this God, casual religion will no longer be conceivable to you. For all who truly believe in this God, it is impossible to be bored with this God, to be apathetic toward this God. …
… Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 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's anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 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. This is the word of God for you, the people of God. Thanks be to God. Most people describe themselves as moderates. We do not think our opinions extreme. We are confident that our beliefs and hopes lie somewhere near society's bullseye. We are by nature middle of the road people. National pollsters concur. Gallup reports that a healthy majority of American voters believe that their personal perspectives represent the political, moral, and cultural center of this country. …
Give thanks to the Lord. I'm going to give my life to the worship and the gratitude of God. The Bible says in Philippians chapter four, verse six and seven, put on the screen, be anxious for nothing, but in everything through prayer and thanksgiving. Let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your heart and it will guard your mind in Christ Jesus. The Bible is saying, don't worry about anything. Pray about everything. I am only worried about the things I'm not praying about. You think I'm worried about whether the Seahawks are facing the Rams or the Bears next week? I'm a prayer warrior. we are already blessed be anxious about nothing the bible is literally saying don't worry god's in control don't worry about anything in everything give thanks see prayer is this place where i give thanks to god for past victory thank you god i am so thankful for all that you've done for my family. Thank you for what you've done for my children. Thank you, God, for this building. …
… not peace with God, not peace from God, but the peace of God, which transcends all understanding. In other words, it's so heavenly that you can't even explain it on earth. The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. This peace goes beyond our ability to put English words and have it make sense. Why? The peace of God, it literally guards your heart. The word for guard in the Greek is a military term, and it means like to stand guard. It's like peace stands guard outside of your heart. It's not a passive peace. This is an active peace. It literally, it doesn't just comfort you, but it protects you. Whenever fear tries to come along, peace says, you can't come here. You don't belong here. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a power and love and of a sound mind. If anxiety comes in, peace says, oh, no, no, no, no. I cast my anxiety on him because he cares for me. …
I stopped by a lemonade stand several weeks ago. It was several of our children in the church. They were five six and seven-year-olds, Lauren and Annabelle and five of their friends. And I'd gotten wind that they were putting on this lemonade stand, raising money for Do Good for Aaron. Now, Do Good for Aaron is a foundation that was started by Tom and Marcy Langhofer, members of our church, after the death of their daughter. You remember six years ago, Aaron Langhofer was shot and killed at First Fridays down in downtown Kansas City. And in the aftermath of that, her mom and dad said, we want to try to bring as much good as we can from the loss of our daughter. And so they started this foundation, and they've been doing amazing and great work. And the kids were going to raise money for this year's project with Do Good for Aaron. And it's through the Friends of Yates. And this is in Kansas City, Kansas. …
And what happens? The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. He said, I'm not asking for peace. I asked for his power. But peace is the result that I didn't even ask for. It's a prayer that came about as a result of the other prayer I prayed. Whenever I talk to people who have had to bury children, and they ask, how am I going to do this? And I always say to them, I have no idea. I have no idea how you're going to do it. And I have no idea how I did it. All I know is when I trust God, he gives me peace that actually bypasses my understanding. People would say to me, I don't think I can do this. And I would say, I don't think you can either. I don't think it's going to come in our rational minds. I think if we actually thought about it, we wouldn't do any of the things God called us to do because they're all crazy, right? …
… on you. In everything, with prayer and petition, we present our request to God. And then when you dig the ditch, the water will come and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds and your souls in Christ Jesus. Do you realize if you're living in anxiety and if you're living in fear, you're not living in the will that God has for you? Because he promises peace. He promises love. He promises a sound mind. It is available for you. dig a ditch and receive what God has for you. Can I push? Can I push? Can I push? Jesus does not look and say, are they on the right or on the left? Jesus looks and says, are they lost or are they found? and I don't care which way you vote if you don't know him you don't know the hope of who he is you don't know the hope of who he is and you stand up for every cause you want but if you're not standing up for him one day when you stand before him it's not going to be a good day so may I say lovingly to you people who go to church just because you go to church doesn't mean that you know him. How do I know? When you see more outrage and more anger than you see humility and love, you have to wonder, where are the fruits of the Spirit? Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. Some of you …
… then in that moment, something happens. what happens? The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Now, the way this translation works, it really is speaking this way, that the peace of God will stand guard at your heart and stand guard at your mind. God's peace will stand as a sentry saying, no, you're not coming into his heart. No, you're not coming into her mind. That thought's not coming into her mind. That thought's not coming into his mind. That fear's not coming into her heart, not coming into his heart. Why? Because they have brought what was troubling them to a sovereign God. And in the confidence of knowing that he sees what's troubling me, but I see that nothing's troubling him. peace comes into my life. David wrote it in a way that all of us know it. But I want to read the words and not just say, yeah, we kind of all know them. …
… Today, we're going to close out this section. Philippians chapter 4 verses 4 through 9 on anxiety in a week when people across our church received news that schools would not be starting in our counties this fall, leading to all kinds of questions and concerns and anxiety and worry about how this is going to work and how you are going to work and how this will affect the economy and our lives and our country as this pandemic continues to have so many different effects in so many different ways and into the middle of this precise moment, unlike anything any one of us has ever experienced in this world, God's word is saying to us. So I want us to read it out loud together. Again, if you're memorizing it, just close your eyes. But wherever you are, let's read this out loud. And as we do, hear it as the word of God to us right now. Philippians chapter four, verse one, we'll go through verse nine today. This is the word of God. Let's say it out loud together, wherever we are in this room and all kinds of places where we're gathered, literally around the world. Let's say it together. …
… let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there's any excellence, if there's anything worthy of praise, think about these things. How can you not be anxious about anything? Here's how you think about what is true. It's the same exact word that Paul uses in Ephesians chapter six, verse 14. put on truth some people say you have to check your mind at the door to become a Christian to have faith and that is the farthest thing from the truth faith in Jesus revolves around and requires thinking all the time about what is true worldliness involves not thinking just go along with what the world says about money and sex and ambition and a million other things Christianity says, no, think about what's true. Do you see the spiritual battle that is taking place between your ears every day? …
… Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me, put it into practice and the God of peace will be with you. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you that your word is a lamp into our feet and a light into our path. God, we open up our hearts to hear from you today. Lord, we know that sometimes Mother's Day can be a day that is painful, but we're here, Lord, and we want to hear from you. Would you shine your light in the darkest areas of our hearts today? Lord, use me now. It's in your name I pray. …
… Let me read it again out of the New Revised Standard Version. Philippians chapter 4, verse 4 through 9. and I'm gonna dance around and I want you to get some new insights that you didn't even get last week Philippians 4 verses 4 through 9 out of the new revised standard version is coming up on your screen reads like this rejoice in the Lord always again I will say rejoice let your gentleness be known to who everyone why the Lord is near read it with me come on do not worry about anything but in everything come on by prayer and supplication with what thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus come on let's keep reading verse 8 finally beloved whatever is true whatever is honorable whatever is just whatever is pure whatever is pleasing whatever is commendable if there is any excellence if there is anything worthy of praise think about these things verse 9 keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me and the god of peace will be with you now if you want a recipe for joy if you want a recipe for celebration in your life incorporating this in your life you need these verses but you just don't need the text you need the context Paul is in jail writing to the first church he planted on on European soil the …