Philippians 4:8-9 Land of the Living!

Philippians 4:8-9  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.  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.

Paul says our thoughts should be focused on a higher and more positive level than the negativity we often find around us.  He exhorts us to put faith into practice, to have an eternal focus, to display the image of God.  He knows that IN CHRIST we have a wonderful future: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.  (1 Corinthians 2:9)  Therefore, why should we think and act as the world does?  Why should we live our lives as if God is not in us?  Why should we spend our time concentrating on the beggarly elements of this world?  This world and all that is in it will pass away someday, but the eternal, the thoughts and actions of God, will exist forever.  Consequently, our lives, thoughts, and actions should be set upon what the eternal God desires, not focused on what our finite flesh wants.  When we become earthly bound, we think and do things that are not good for us or for others.  The product of such thinking and behavior leads to division and even destruction.  Waywardness from God's ways and ideas ultimately leads to death.  As we learned in studying Galatians: A man reaps what he sows.  The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.  (Galatians 6:7-8)  That is why the earth is not the land of the living, but the land of the dead: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.  (Romans 3:23)  People's waywardness leads them away from whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable.  Instead, sinfulness, violence, hatred, wickedness, lying, deceit, hostility, arguments, and all else that is negative and part of the sinful nature surfaces in their minds and actions.  Today's verses provide the basis or the mindset for loving others as ourselves.  We are to start that process by thinking correctly, by putting aside the darkness in the fleshly soul and instead thinking of 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.  Earlier in this letter when Paul tells the church to look after the needs of others above their own,  he also provides the answer for performing this task, Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 2:5)

To have the mind of Christ, to think clearly about others, to project the image of God, we must eat the right food.  As the saying goes in the natural world, it is the same in the spiritual realm:  We are what we eat.  When our lives concentrate on the negativity of life, when we entertain negative or disruptive thoughts, when we allow our minds to stray to images of sin and debauchery, we fall into thinking that is contrary to the will of God.  When we allow the sinful nature to take over, we become as the world is, given over to the lusts of the flesh.  This does not necessarily mean we are tempted by sexual lust; but when we stray from the leading of the Holy Spirit, the lust of the flesh to do its own thing begins to take control.  When violence and disruption gives us contentment and fails to make us uneasy, we must question whether our minds are in the right place.  As children of the King, we should be heavenbound, not earthbound.  John said this well: Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.  If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  (1 John 2:15-16)  It is amazing how much time we can spend on worldly activities and amusements, not realizing that we have done nothing to feed our spirits.  Then we wonder why we are restless, ill at ease, anxious, irritable with others, including those we love and should cherish with our words and actions.  The laws of sowing and reaping remain constant in a believer's life.  If we want to reap a spiritual harvest in our lives, then we must plant good seeds in ground that has been tilled by the Holy Spirit.  We must tend our hearts' gardens carefully to make sure we are bringing forth a bountiful harvest of the fruit of the Spirit we mention so often in these breakfasts: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  (Galatians 5:22-23) But the planting comes first.  As we read in the Word, Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.  (2 Corinthians 9:6)

As we approach the idea of setting our thoughts upon things that are excellent or praiseworthy, we might think this a difficult task.  Actually, what Paul asks of the church is not as hard as it may seem.  He points us toward a closer relationship with the lover of our souls.  He says, come closer to Jesus, seek him, and the rest will fall into place.  Have you noticed when you read the Word or pray, your attitude changes.  As a couple, we try to read the Bible and pray each day.  We find when we read the Bible and pray together, a peace envelopes the room, a sense of love and togetherness with the Lord.  It is not that there was a negative presence previously, but the Lord seems to honor the event with a special blessing.  We always thank the Lord for his Word and for what we read because the words encourage us and comfort our souls.  We know the Holy Spirit is there to teach us and to guide us when we study the Bible and pray.  We have certain prayers that we pray often, but we also believe the Spirit brings individuals to our minds that God wants us to pray for at that particular time.  Surely you have had the privilege of saying to someone, "I had you on my mind this week, and I prayed for you."  Then that person answers back, "Oh, I needed prayer.  I was having a really difficult time.  Thank you for praying."  That is one way God can use us when we put our minds on the things of God.  Another example of God's motivation is going to the computer and sending someone an encouraging email.  Recently, an email came from a friend right at the perfect moment, on just the right day.  God knew that email would be a blessing, so He prompted the writer to send it, but she had to have an ear to hear what the Spirit was saying to her.  After telling one of his parables, Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”  (Mark 4:9)  We all have ears, but what are we hearing and what channels are our favorites?  We used to tell our children, "God is talking to you.  Listen to him."  This is true.  When you quiet yourself and draw away from this noisy world, you can hear that still small voice.  He wants you to know He loves you, you are precious, greatly loved, a jewel in his crown.  When you begin to listen to the Holy Spirit, you will find whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable.  Bless you today in your listening.