Ramesh C. Reddy
Editor in Chief
Hi everyone :)
May you know the love of your Heavenly Father now and forever as you receive His grace in your life through Jesus Christ, our Lord! Amen!
Quiet Times (Psalm 150 and Philippians 4:20-23)
“Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.” (Psalm 150:6)
“To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen! Greet all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send greetings. All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Ceasar’s household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.” (Philippians 4:20-23)
What stuck out to me was Paul giving glory to God even after everything he’s been through. His circumstances are not what he bases God getting glory. After letting the Philippians know that God will supply all their needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus, he praises the Lord with the words ‘be glory forever and ever’
What I found significant is that Paul addresses God more personally as Father. God is seen not only as his Father but the Father of the Philippians too. There is a son-Father relationship here. No matter what is happening to Paul, he knows that God deserves to be glorified. That is exciting! For me this statement also lets the Philippians know that God is their Father too.
I am so excited to claim the promise ‘what great love the Father has lavished upon us that we should be called His dear children.’ (1 John 3:1)
Isn’t that amazing? It is for me because no matter how our earthly father is, we always have a Heavenly Father we can depend on and turn to. I know no matter what Paul is going through, he has his trust and faith in His heavenly Father and gives Him the glory.
The next I see Paul doing is speaking to the children of God. The exhortation is for one another to greet all in Christ Jesus even as they are greeted, especially those of Ceaser’s household. This is very significant because he is letting the Philippians know there are children of God even in Ceasar’s household now.
That becomes that much more significant when we realize that many people thought they had no king but Ceasar. Now there is a band of believers within Ceasar’s household that do not give him the allegiance but to God, their Father. It is possible it could be those who are related to Ceasar too. God is their King now!
After talking about God and exhorting them to greet others, Paul ends the letter with a blessing. The blessing itself is very profound because it starts out with ‘GRACE’ and the entire letter is concluded with ‘GRACE’
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen!”
What came to my mind is whether it is Paul, the Philippians, or Ceasar’s household, they all have one thing in common. That is having God as their Heavenly Father so they can be saints in Christ Jesus and brothers/sisters to one another. But all this has only been possible because of GRACE. It is the Lord’s grace that allowed them all to be His children and experience their Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ our Lord. That is exciting. Those are important implications for my own life that I learned.
I ask you now dear friend, how do you see Father?
Dear friend, as I have worked with many students, I have noticed the concept of father differs for students based on someone.
When students have a negative image of God can you guess what I do?
I ask them what is their relationship to their earthly father?
I have found ninety-percent of the time those who have a negative image of God and who see God ready to strike them with lightning or a bat even if they mess up little bit, have had bad experiences with their earthly fathers. Once that is discovered it is much easier to work with them and help them through.
Friend, I don’t know what kind of earthly father you have been exposed to. I used the word exposure because any kind of exposure of anything or anyone can affect us positively or negatively. It could also affect how we perceive other areas of our life. No matter how your earthly relationship has been, I want you to know that your Heavenly Father loves you so much. Oh yes, He does!
Maybe you may wonder then why He has not intervened in your life right away if you don't experience his intervention. Friend, I don’t have an answer for that. This I do know that even though Paul was shackled in chains and prison, he knew the love of the Father and wanted to share it with all the Philippians. He then wanted them to share the love of the Father with others including people of Ceasar’s household.
For me love of the Father is something implied in this letter even if ‘love’ is not directly mentioned. Friend, God loves you. God loves you! Yes, He does! I believe our God has His timing and His timing brings the best intervention even when we cannot understand it.
His grace is for you too friend! You can receive it and become a child of God. He will take care of you and get you through. You can experience His grace in Christ Jesus for your spirit. For the Lord heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.
May you turn to your Heavenly Father who loves you so much that He has given you His Word full of promises! Amen!
"Faithfully Answers Today Helpfully Everlasting Redeemer!" (F.A.T.H.E.R)
Prayer:
Oh Heavenly Father, O Light of the world, I seek you. I know that step by step you can guide me and lead me. I want to thank you for your awesome love and everything you do that shows your glory. Lord, many times our concept of you is based on our own concept of our earthly father. Our concept becomes distorted especially when we do not have a positive encounter with our earthly father. Forgive us Lord when that happens, we can sometimes project that to you. I am so thankful that no matter what negative concepts come to our mind about you, it is not true. Father God, thank you for your awesome love that you have lavished upon us that we should be called your dear children. This alone makes me excited Father God for my view of you does not have to be based on my interaction here on earth. On the contrary, your Word is filled with how much you love me and have encompassed me with your grace. Thank you Father God. Thank you for all that you have helped me learn from the book of Philippians. Please help me to always look to you and depend on you Father God. Thank you that I can call you Father. You will be there for me always and your love will never cease. Every thing that has breath should praise you Lord. Forgive us of our sins and please help us to live for you. Thank you for the grace you bestow upon our spirit as your children in Jesus Christ. Thank you for hearing us and answering us. In Jesus Name I Pray Father God! Amen!
Love in Christ,
Ramesh
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