Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with 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.
Be glad in the Lord always! Again I say, be glad! Let your gentleness show in your treatment of all people. The Lord is near. Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.
Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
I like to compare translations, especially where there might be some differences, and I like to go back to the Greek, Bill Mounce and SBL Greek NT online, handy for me nowadays. And while headings are mostly just useful for me to find specific passages, they can be helpful in getting at the heart of a passage. For Philippians 4:4-7, I found that true with the NABRE’s heading, “Joy and Peace.”
I think I’ve done both before, but I wanted to zero in on Philippians 4:6-7 instead of including verses 4-5 in my consideration of dealing with anxiety. But in reality it’s one package. It’s all meant to go together. I can’t expect to have an anxiety-less existence if I’m not rejoicing in the Lord always. I can’t expect to have the peace promised here without the joy that is to mark one’s existence in Christ. Joy is a big theme in this letter. Paul is writing from prison, but nevertheless is full of joy. And he considers that an important part of the believers’ existence as well, the ones he’s writing to (see Philippians 3:1 footnote; NABRE).
So joy in the Lord and gentleness and kindness are to mark our existence. With that we consider the issue of anxiety. The idea Paul expresses is that the believers are to avoid anxiety altogether. That seems like a mighty tall order, not only formidable, but well-nigh impossible. Let’s just say it: Impossible. I’ve really not taken this passage seriously in that way, though I surely have wished for that, or maybe imagined it possible for a short time. Instead I’ve turned to Philippians 4:6-7 for the most part when I’m already on the edge of anxiety, or more likely have crossed that line. But when one’s progress seems checkered, it’s easy to stop turning to that passage, and more or less give up and into anxiety as in some measure where one lives. I speak for myself here.
I like the suggestive NABRE rendering which may have put me on this track of thinking with regard to this passage this morning:
Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.
What we’re talking about here is both a lifestyle and a practice. It seems to me that we have to determine that come what may, we’re not going to be anxious. It’s like there’s an alternative to the anxiety we would consider all but natural in many given contexts or maybe simply in general considering the world and existence as a whole. It’s not like we should not be aware of what could be dangerous or oblivious to something difficult that we’re going through. Numbness can take over as a kind of safety mechanism against the abject fear and anxiety felt. Obviously, that’s not what Paul was referring to here. Instead what is promised is a peace which goes beyond and we might well say cancels what otherwise would be troubling thoughts. Instead, the peace of God.
I don’t live in a world or existence of perfection. Although I’ve come a long way in some things, I’m not beyond what the Bible calls sin or the effects of sin, nor will I ever be in this life. Nor am I beyond the problems of being a very fallible, mortal human being in a very fallible human existence. We might say that some imagined perfection is an enemy of faith, and I believe that’s true. Those who struggle the most might end up with the deepest-rooted faith when it’s all said and done. That said, I also don’t want to deny exactly what the text is saying.
I like the CEB rendering on what this peace of God does:
Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.
If God has for us an anxious-free existence, even though we likely won’t always reside there, we still ought to work at learning how to live in it more and more. This is not merely some kind of self-help instruction so that we can “succeed” in life. It’s a part of the full life that is ours individually and especially together in Christ. We don’t want to let go of ideals we find in Scripture, but instead seek to lay hold of them and grow in grace towards their full realization in our lives. No less what is promised here.
This post in NO WAY is meant to suggest that we might not need professional help and medication for an anxiety disorder, because that might well be the case. The human being is complex and to deny that possibility can be a grave mistake. In such cases, the words in Philippians can help us, but being bodies and spirits, we may still need professional help. Remember, Paul had his own physician, Luke, who at times traveled with him.
Jesus community 