"Can You Hear Me Now?"

[postlude March, 28, 2006]

Philippians 4: 2-9

Imagine if the apostle Paul were the Verizon wireless guy. I know it’s a stretch, but if you know me then you know I constantly think in terms of stretching our perception or broadening our worldview (in hopes of aligning our lives more with the ‘Kingdom at hand’).

So, Paul is saying to us “can you hear me now – church?”

As often I as I read Paul’s letter (also known as ‘epistles’) I’m blown away by his attention to detail. But, as a writer, I pay close to attention to words; really close attention to words. Not only, words written in the bible and other books, but also in emails and in the conversations that I have with people. We’re probably all guilty of not paying close attention to what we read or what people are actually saying to us, but Paul was very aware of why, what, where and how he was communicating with the communities he had initiated. Looking closer at the words that Paul utilizes in his final thoughts in Philippians 4, hopefully we can all answer YES to the question of “can you hear me now?”

In the latter part the letter to his friends in Philippi (the book of Philippians), Paul directly addresses a conflict between two women within the community, Euodia and Syntyche. He pleads with them to “be of the same mind in the Lord”. But he didn’t leave it for just those women to deal with resolving this conflict. Paul then says, “Yes, and I ask you, my true companions, help these women…”(vs.2) The word ‘companion’ in the original Greek text means: yoked together and those united by the bond of marriage. He asking those who are united in Christ – the bride – in Philippi to get their hands dirty and work through this conflict as a community. Paul knows that true community and friendship is built through sharing the good times and the bad times; those who learn together, grow together.

Can you hear me now?

However Paul, knowing us humans and our natural inclination to condemn people, hedges for this a couple of ways. First, he tells his friends in Philippi to “not be anxious about anything.” (vs. 6) The word ‘anxious’ in the original Greek text means: to seek to promote one’s interests. He’s telling them to NOT be selfish in resolving this conflict and in telling them that, he is also giving them insight into real conflict resolution and in essence true communal intercession for people. As Oswald Chambers says, “intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ regarding the person for whom we are praying”. And I add, for whom we are helping through a conflict. If we bring any other agenda into helping a friend(s) through a conflict other than the mind of Christ (or the heart of the Father) then we are by default going to be anxious because of that selfish, hidden agenda.

Can you hear me now?

Second, Paul lays out a simple checklist that will insure for his friends in Philippi (and you and I) that “will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (vs. 7). It’s as if Paul is saying to us (and them) “before you go and get holier than thou, let’s have a check-up from the neck-up – let’s make sure that we are in the right mindset for this conversation or conflict resolution”. In verses 8 and 9 Paul writes the following:

“Finally brothers and sisters, 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.”

The word ‘true’ in the original Greek text means: living in the truth and speaking in truth. As Mark Twain once said, “if you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.” If we, as friends, live in and speak in truth we have a better chance of creating a healthy future rather than having to live in the past (by trying to remember what we said).

‘Noble’ in the original Greek text means: to be honorable or to be venerated by character - and venerated means to make sacred or have a degree of sanctification. Character is the root of how we make decisions to act in life and if our actions speak louder than our words, then our actions are a direct reflection of our inner character. Is our character becoming honorable or noble?

‘Right’ in the original Greek text means: virtuous or innocent - and virtue means that something is of particular moral excellence. Children, in their beginning years, are innocent. They don’t know what is right or wrong. Fortunately or unfortunately, we adults train the children around us in the paradigms of this world. We, in fact, make them less innocent – both intentionally and unintentionally. Maybe Paul was hinting at the words of Jesus “…unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 18:3 TNIV)

‘Pure’ in the original Greek text means: pure from carnality, chaste and modest. Again, Paul is calling us to be innocent but more specifically innocent in our sexual relations.

‘Lovely’ in the original Greek text means: to be acceptable or pleasing. Maybe Paul is drawing from the words of Jesus, when He said, “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40 TNIV).

Can you hear me now?

‘Admirable’ in the original Greek text means: speaking auspiciously – and auspiciously means intending good or kindly patronage. It’s along the lines of the old adage “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” But it’s not about being fake or superficial. It’s ALL about encouraging and edifying our friends. It’s about seeing what God sees in your friends, or in the words of Oswald Chambers it’s “a practical help in keeping your personal purity unblemished in your relations to other people is to begin to see them as God does.”

‘Excellent’ and ‘praiseworthy’ in the original Greek text mean: a virtuous course of thought, feeling and action that is worthy of praise. Not the praise of others but the praise of your Father and not for the action itself but the change in your character that happens through the continued pursuit of this course of thought and action.

“Think about such things.”

‘Think’ in the original Greek text means: to determine, to purpose and to meditate on. Another way of saying this could read like: “be intentional and determined to absorb these character qualities into your God given personality”.

Two verses (verses 8 and 9) on the first reading might seem like a simple checklist, but in fact, have a lot of depth. But honestly, should that really surprise us? If you spend just a little time understanding Paul’s past and then reading his writings in the New Testament, you’ll notice rather quickly that he doesn’t mince words. Actually, Paul gets a whole lot (and I mean a WHOLE LOT) of information conveyed by utilizing few words.

Paul not only wrote the letters to his friends he lived the very words he wrote. He was determined, thoughtful and intentional with the why, what, where and how he was communicating. For Paul, passing on the liberating message of Jesus to His followers and instructing them on how they should interact with each other and the community around them was a matter of life or death - it would yield life or death to both the individual and the community.

Did Paul’s timeless words land on deaf ears? Or do you hear him asking you: “Can you hear me now?”