Hidden Gems: Discovering the Depths of Scripture

By Dean Collins

It always amazes me the things we miss in Scripture when we read the Bible regularly. I am not sure if we actually fail to see some things, or if we just ignore them because they present us growth opportunities that do not reconcile with our current thinking and behavior.

Here is an example from a very familiar passage in Philippians 4:

 “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 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.”

Over the years, I bet you've heard many sermons and sung many songs that remind us to rejoice in the Lord always. I suspect that our minds grab hold of the word "rejoice" and often miss the “in the Lord” that is in the middle of this directive.  

There are many things in daily life that bring joy to our hearts and minds and are causes of celebration. The birth of a child, an anniversary, winning an award or a game, etc. Logically, we know that we do not experience these “joyful” moments always. They may be frequent in some seasons, but in this world, there are so many things that interrupt or delay our times of rejoicing. The three little words between "rejoice" and "always" are critical to our understanding and can change everything. We are instructed to rejoice “in the Lord” always.

Reading Colossians 1 can help us consider why the phrase "in the Lord" is critical to our ability to rejoice always.

 “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (16-17)

We can rejoice in the Lord always when we remember that the Lord created all things, all authority is his, all things were created for him and for his purposes, and he holds all things together! We can rejoice in the Lord because we know that the Lord knows everything that is going on in our lives and will be with us in every difficult moment.

The other part of the Philippians 4 passage that we have heard many times from the pulpit and have had sent to us in cards and notes when we go through tough times says:

“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.”

 Financial challenges, health issues, family tensions, broken relationships, and problems at work can all bring moments where we become anxious and start us down a path of worrying about what is next and how bad the situation will become. Paul reminds us to pray and petition God, but with thanksgiving. So how and why should we be thankful in such times? For the same reason that we can rejoice: we are in the Lord. The Lord is never surprised by our circumstances and is always working on our behalf, even before we pray. God doesn’t really need our prayers to remind him of what to do. Our prayers remind us that he is with us, and since we are in him, and he is in control, we can offer our prayers with gratitude and thanksgiving.

But maybe the most ignored portion of this passage is verse 5: 

“Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;”

I don’t think I have ever heard a sermon on this one verse. Maybe because being reasonable isn’t always top of mind when facing difficult situations, and especially when dealing with difficult people. Yet that is exactly when we need to be reasonable. 

I wonder what the impact would be in current American culture if more of us practiced verse 5.  Let’s read it one more time:

“Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand.”

 Between now and November 5th, and then even until the inauguration, I doubt that we will see much reasonableness in our political parties. Their defense will certainly be that they are in a battle to win the election for their respective parties, both for the Office of President and for the down-ballot races. What if, instead of reposting and repeating any ugliness, arrogance, or inaccuracies over the next several weeks, we who follow Jesus allowed the world to see our reasonableness, our gentleness, our kindness, in how we treated people who may disagree with our opinions?

And note how Paul ends this verse: the Lord is at hand. God is present always. We as his image bearers are to allow others to see him present in us as we interact with each other and with the world. The Lord is absent when we who profess Christ act arrogantly and unkindly to others – even to those who do not align with our views and our profession of faith.

As I continue to read Scripture, I am challenging myself to look for the parts of the passages I am apt to miss or, worse, ignore. In those verses may well be the things God is trying to correct in us. As we submit to him, we will see the kingdom advance, no matter who is leading our company, our community, and our country.

 Father, we pray that your Holy Spirit would bring to our attention the truth of Scripture that we often ignore. Correct us when we wander from your truth or resist the Holy Spirit when he speaks to us. Today we choose to rejoice in you and practice kindness, because you are with us and guiding our hearts and minds to reflect you in every way. Today we will say "no" to anxiety and worry, because we know that you were before all things, are in all things, will see us through all things, and will one day reconcile all things in Christ. In Jesus's name, amen.

 Your Time with God’s Word
Philippians 4:4-7 ESV

Photo by Studio Kealaula on Unsplash
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