WEEK SIX
Day One
DAILY SCRIPTURE
Philippians 4:6
LEADER GUIDE QUESTIONS
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Know: Read Philippians 4:6-7
Note: Read slowly, carefully marking keywords.
Anxious, Peace of God, Guard your hearts and mind.
Observation:
How does peace come, according to Paul?
What are we to be anxious for?
What: Consider the pagan version of god. Is your image of God based on paganism or on the God revealed through Jesus?
“Be anxious for nothing, 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 minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
In Paul’s world, grand feasts, festivals, and games were organized to celebrate their gods (including Ceasar) and cities. Why shouldn’t God’s people celebrate as well? The word “rejoice," which Paul has repeatedly used, had another meaning besides inner satisfaction. It also means “to celebrate.” In verse 4, Paul encouraged the church to celebrate publicly but with the sensitivity of one filled with Christ. Thier world had no problem with public displays of celebration filled with wine and idolatrous worship, but to celebrate God meant to do so without drunkenness or forcefulness. This gentle and gracious community considers others better than themselves and creates an inviting atmosphere of worship.
If the worship celebration is joyful and gentle, the three main things that will come into line are the prayer that overcomes anxiety (vs. 6-7), the patterns of thought that celebrate God’s goodness (vs. 8), and the style of life that embodies the gospel (vs. 9).
Anxiety is not just a modern problem. It was a way of life for the pagan world. Consider the many deities they worshiped.
Zeus, for example, was the Greeks' chief god. He was the god of sky and weather, identical to the Roman god Jupiter. Zeus was regarded as the sender of thunder, lightning, rain, and winds, and his traditional weapon was the thunderbolt. He was called the father of both gods and men. Zeus was thought to omnisciently observe the affairs of men, seeing everything, governing all, and rewarding good conduct and punishing evil.
Zeus’s son Apollo was a god who threatened from afar. He was the god who made men aware of their guilt and purified them of it. He presided over religious law and the constitutions of cities. He communicated with mortals through prophets and oracles regarding his knowledge of the future and his father's will. All the gods except his mother feared him, and none could endure his presence.
Diana (akin to the Roman goddess Artemis) was the goddess of wild and domestic animals and the hunt. The goddess of fertility, she was invoked to help women conceive and have safe deliveries. The city of Ephesus housed one of the ancient wonders of the world- the temple dedicated to this goddess. Paul was referring to the practice of worshiping this goddess when he wrote his letter to the Ephesians in the care of Timothy (1 Timothy 2:9-5). The Greek pagan culture taught that faithful worship of Artemis/ Diana meant you would be saved in childbirth; unfaithfulness to her meant you would be infertile or die in childbirth. Paul had urged the women to trust God in childbirth, for He saved, not Artemis.
These are just three of the twelve main deities, not to mention the hundreds of minor gods the people worshiped. The amount of fear that worship of these gods invoked was the cause of anxiety. Anger the gods, and you will be punished; suffering in any way resulted from inadvertently making the gods upset with you. The trinkets and worship required to appease the gods caused the people to live in constant anxiety. The gods were potentially out to get you for some offense you may never even know you committed. You never knew if something bad was waiting for you just around the corner.
With the God who had revealed himself in Jesus, there was no guarantee against suffering, but there was a guarantee that this God was not the one who brought on the suffering or punishment. He was the God of love, not the god of fear.
The pagan gods were too busy to be bothered; they required sacrifice and appeasement. Yet, Paul says we should talk to God about every aspect of our lives. Some people feel God is too busy to be bothered with trivial requests, but Paul assures us that the opposite is true. God is concerned and interested in every detail of our lives- down to the very hairs on our heads. He wants us to know Him, and He wants to speak to us. If it matters to you, it matters to God. This relationship with God brings His peace that will guard our hearts and minds. When you know God loves you, your spirit will be at peace instead of driven by anxiety. You will not live in fear when you know that God is for you and not against you. When you pray, don’t beg God for what He’s already said ‘yes’ to. Thank Him for His provision and learn to dialogue with the One who longs to reveal Himself to you.
“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you.” Isaiah 26:3