As we go through Paul’s letter to the Philippian church, the apostle is giving some final exhortations before closing. He now deals with our thought-life.
Finally, brothers, 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.
Philippians 4:8 NIV
This is one of the most important areas of your life. It will either make or break you. It’s always interesting to see what people do with their “down time”. I’m talking about the time during the day that you’re not having to concentrate on what you’re doing.
This is the time that you’re getting dressed, driving to work, or doing other things that don’t require a lot of thought. These are times where you have nothing but your own thoughts to keep you company. Using the time wisely can be very challenging.
Of course, with many people, this time is filled by their radio or smart phone. The last thing this society wants, is to think too deeply. Like it or not, we need to take the time to think about important issues.
It has become abundantly clear to me, through the Word of God and my own experience, that what you meditate on during these times will ultimately shape your character. If you are to achieve the maximum benefit from this, then you need to focus on what is spiritual – the Word of God, God’s calling on your life, and songs of praise and worship.
As these thoughts start to fill your mind, a change starts to take place in your heart. You start to be drawn upward to God. This idle time will now become a time of spiritual growth, renewal, and refreshing.
Take the opportunity today to turn off the external “noise”. Begin to steer your thoughts toward the things of the Lord. Discover the power you need for living as you fill your heart with the only thoughts that can bring lasting change to your life.
I want to take a couple of posts to talk about these “thought lines” that Paul tells us to dwell on. It’s a very important part of our Christian walk.
He first mentions things that are true. This doesn’t simply mean true things, such as one plus one equals two. The word Paul uses means things that are not hidden. That’s important.
There are times when I’m reading the Scripture, when suddenly it opens up to me. The Holy Spirit shows me something I’ve never seen before. It was always there, but before now, it was hidden to me.
That’s what Paul’s talking about when he tells us to think on these things. Think deeply about the things from God’s Word that He has personally revealed to you. The Lord has a reason that He shows you these things. It’s up to you to find out why.
Next, he tells us to think about things that are noble. That’s a word that not many people use anymore. The Greek word comes from a root that means devout or religious. It’s speaking of something that’s worshipful.
We need to be thinking on things that cause us to worship God. No, I’m not talking about praise. We praise God for things He has done. We worship God for who He is.
We need to be dwelling on who God is. Who is God to you? How has He revealed Himself in Scripture? Healer, Creator, Redeemer, Provider. He is all these things and more. These thoughts bring us into a place of worship. That’s the place of power in the spirit.
Then Paul tells us to think on things that are right. This actually means to think about things that are just. Our problem is that we think about things in terms of fair. Just is very different. One thing you have to realize is that God is not fair – and I’m so grateful for that.
Fair would mean that I paid for my own sin. It was supremely unfair for Christ to take my sin upon Himself and go to the cross. But, justice, was satisfied by what He did. God is not fair, but He is just.
That’s what we need to be thinking on. The justice of God should motivate us to tell others about what Christ has done. Forgiveness is available for all who ask.
In my next post, I’ll continue with this.
Question: How do these things affect your thought life?
© 2023 Nick Zaccardi
The Spirit and the Word 