"Rejoice Always?" - Philippians 4:4-7

Philippians 4:4-7 – Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.  Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.  Do not worry 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.

At first glance this week’s text from Paul’s letter to the Philippians is enough to make you tear your hair out.  First, he tells us to Rejoice in the Lord, always.  Always?!?  When things are going well, sure, but always?  What kind of carefree, privileged life is Paul leading that he can rejoice always?  And if that wasn’t enough, two verses later Paul instructs us not to worry about anything.  I almost want to scream at Paul, “Hey, maybe you don’t have anything to worry about, but down here in the real world there’s an awful lot to worry about!”

If we take a second to put these verses in context however, they begin to look less like utopian nonsense and more like practical advice for Christian living in difficult times.  Paul wrote this letter from a prison cell.  He wrote it to a community that was facing persecution for their faith and expecting more hard times to come.  They had plenty to complain about, plenty to worry about. Paul, knowing of their troubles, nonetheless reminded them that the Lord was near, that God would be with them in their struggles, and that God would grant them peace in the midst of all the problems that plagued them.

Paul does not deny the difficult times the church at Philippi is facing.  Nor does he promise them that God will answer all their prayers in the way that they expect.  What he does tell them is that ultimately the future is in God’s hands- the God who chose them and loved them in Jesus Christ.  This is a reason to rejoice in all times, both Paul’s and our own.  When they were facing troubles, when they were worried and afraid, Paul told these early Christians that they could turn to God in prayer and God would grant them peace in their hearts and minds.  This holds true today as well. When we are faced with trouble, and worry, and fear, let us remember that in prayer we can find the peace of God sufficient to guide us through every trial.

Rev. Andrew Greenhaw