Philippians 4:7

June 24, 2012 First Baptist Church Jackson, Mississippi USA

Wiersbe's Expository Outlines on the New Testament. Copyright © 1992 by Chariot Victor Publishing, an imprint of Cook Communication Min.

*Barclay's Daily Study Bible (NT) *J. Vernon McGee's Thru The Bible*Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

Matthew Henry Unabridged

The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Copyright © Moody Press and John MacArthur, Jr., 1983-2007.

Philippians 4:7 7  “And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:7

Notice that we entered this passage in anxiety, with worry, and we came out of the passage with peace. *Between the two was prayer.

Have things changed? Well, not the circumstances. The storm may still be raging, the waves still rolling high, the thunder still resounding.

Although the storm has not abated, something has happened in us.

*Something has happened to our soul and to our mind.

In our anxiety we want God to change everything around us. "Give us this." "Don't let this happen." "Open up this door, now!"

But we come to the point where we pray, "Oh, God, change me!" Prayer is the secret of power. We enter with worry, we can come out in peace.

“And the peace of God … will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” God’s peace, like a sentinel, by Christ’s intervention, guards and patrols before

the heart’s door, preserving it from the intrusion of anxious fears and alarms.

God's peace guards us from anxiety, doubt, and worry.

Phroureo (froo-reh'-o)means “will guard” –is a military term used of soldiers on guard duty.

*The picture would have been familiar to the Philippians, since the Romans stationed troops in Philippi to protect their interests in that city.

Just as soldiers guard and protect a city, so God's peace guards and protects believers who confidently trust in Him.

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19 “When my anxious thoughts multiply within me,Your consolations delight my soul.” Psalm 94:19

Even if you think you don’t have very much to offer God, but you give Him everything, it will be enough, more than enough!

Even the smallest amount placed in His hands can be magnified and multiplied beyond what we can imagine!

The Feeding of the 5,000, (Miracle of the Five Loaves and Two Fish), is the only miracle (apart from the resurrection) which is present in all four Gospels.

John 6:5-135 “Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that

these may eat?” 6 This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. 

7  Philip answered Him, “ Two hundred denarii (8 months wages) worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little.” 

8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9 “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these

for so many people?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.

11 Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted.

12 When they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost.” 

13 So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.” John 6:5-13

All 12 disciples failed the test- of seeing the power of Jesus to provide.Jehovah Jireh – My LORD shall provide.PRO - VISION

Their faith failed but their obedience did not fail – “have the people sit down”.

God works through weak, fallible humans. Jesus delivered the food through the 12 disciples. God used Moses, the most humble guy on the face of

the earth to deliver Israel from bondage in Egypt.

He used Gideon, the youngest child in the least important family in Manasseh (Judges 6:15) to deliver Israel from the Midianites.

He used David, the unknown shepherd boy to kill Goliath and deliver Israel from the Philistines.

God uses the weak things of the world to shame the wise(I Cor 1:27).

Everyone ate as much as they wanted that day.

God always provides ample ( not only a taste as Phillip had said in v 7). Jehovah Jireh – my LORD shall provide!PRO - VISION

No waste as Prov 25:16 says: 16  “Have you found honey? Eat only what you need,That you not have it in excess and vomit it.” Proverbs 25:16

Twelve basketfuls leftover, Jesus takes care of His workers.

The other Gospel writers tell us that the disciples advised the Lord Jesus – “lets send them away”. They wanted to be on the board of directors.

They said, "Why don't You send the multitude away?" Our Lord answered, "We're not going to send them away. We're going to have them sit down and

we're going to feed them" (Luke 9:12-15). These men who had elected themselves to the board of directors found themselves waiters, serving the crowd.

And that is what they should have been doing all the time. If you have fifteen thousand people to feed, that is certainly a liability.

If you have five loaves and two fish and also the two hundred denarii (8 months of wages), then these are your total assets.

If a committee would have handed in a report that day with those assets and those liabilities, they would have said, "There's nothing we can do about this."

Someone has called a committee a group of people who individually can do nothing, and collectively they can decide that nothing can be done.

A committee is also a group of people who keep minutes but waste hours. So here is the committee report: to feed them would be impossible!

But what we need in this equation is what is called the mathematics of a miracle! We need Jesus! If you have the five loaves

plus the two fish plus Jesus, then we've got something! Without Him, you don't have anything at all.John 15:5 (vs) Phil 4:13Nothing (vs) Everything!

When you add Jesus to the side of the assets, you have more than enough! In fact, you have twelve baskets of leftovers which means everyone had plenty.

There were twelve baskets of sandwiches that weren't even touched. Do you know what this means?

The grace He used would be the one that was used in every home: "Blessed Art Thou, O Lord, our God, Who causest to come forth bread from the earth.”

We ought to give thanks to God for our food, for it is a mercy to have it, and we have it from the hand of God, and must receive it with thanksgiving (1Tim4:4).

1 Timothy 4:4-5 4 “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified by means

of the word of God and prayer.”

1 Timothy 4:4-5

When the people had eaten their fill, Jesus instructed His disciples to gather up the leftover fragments.

Why the fragments?

At Jewish feasts the regular practice was to leave something for the servants. That which was left was called the Peah; and no doubt the people left their

usual part for those who had served them with the meal.Of the fragments, twelve baskets were taken up.No doubt each of the disciples had his own basket.

A basket was two gallons, bottle-shaped and no Jew ever traveled without his. Twice Juvenal (3: 14; 6: 542) talks of "the Jew with his basket and his truss of hay."

(The truss of hay was to use as a bed, for many of the Jews lived a gypsy life.) The Jew with his inseparable provision-basket was a notorious figure.

He carried it partly because he was characteristically acquisitive, and partly because he needed to carry his own food if he was going to observe the Jewish rules

of cleanness and uncleanness.

From the fragments each of the disciples filled his own basket.

“Qui panem contemnit in gravem incidit paupertatem”- was a usual saying among them: “He who despises bread falls into the depths of poverty”.

Though Christ could command supplies whenever He pleased, yet He would have the fragments gathered up.

See how large the divine bounty is; it not only fills the cup, but makes it run over; bread enough, and to spare, in our Father's house!

The fragments filled twelve baskets, one for each disciple; they were thus repaid with interest for their willingness to part with what they had for public

service.2 Chronicles 31:1010  “Azariah, the chief priest of the house of Zadok, said to him, “ Since the contributions began to be

brought into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat with plenty left over, for the Lord has blessed His people, and this great quantity is left over.”