Moderation Philippians 4:5

Paul told the Philippian church to “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, Rejoice” after instructing them to care for the women who were in their church. He began a series of these instructions which would be visible to those who were outside of the church as a witness of their relationship with Jesus Christ. In chapter four and verse five Paul tells the Philippians another way their lives would have an affect upon people around them where he wrote:

Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.

The verse begins, “Let your moderation be known unto all men.” When we see the word “let” we can think “allow, permit, learn to know or understand”, and in this case Paul desires for the church members' allowance to be toward “moderation” which means “equitable, fair, forbearance, mild or gentle” to “be known unto all men”. In other words they were to live their lives in such a gentle and equitable manner that others would notice them.

The verse goes on to say, “The Lord is at hand.” Paul gives the Philippians the reason they should live their lives in “moderation” - “The Lord is at hand” which means the return of Jesus Christ could be at any moment. Although Paul wrote this almost two thousand years ago, there was the expectancy that Jesus' return was imminent. There was no greater reason in which “moderation” living should be exemplified before others.

The premise behind Paul's words is to consider others as we live our lives. We become a witness of whom or what we believe by whether we live in “moderation” or not. As we think about the imminent return of the Lord, perhaps it will help us to examine our lives to discover whether this idea of “moderation” is prevalent in our lives. If it is, let us continue, and if it is not, may the Lord bring to our minds what it means to be moderate toward Him and toward others He places within our paths.

Next time Paul writes about what to do when we worry, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow...there is more...

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