September 7, 2010
Philippians 4
Pastor Paul Turbedsky
The Keys to Peace
We all were created by God, born by His purpose for His purpose. We also know that it is the purpose of the enemy to kill steal and destroy us through the many avenues of deception, confusion, and temptation – just to name a few.
The Apostle Paul refers to our bodies as God’s “temple” – where the Lord dwells. We are instructed to care for this temple, strengthening and fortifying it to the glory of God. Because of this, there are any number of forces coming at us to destroy God’s temple – greed, addictions of all sorts, drunkenness, acts of immorality, etc. As we grow in our faith and travel the journey of Christ-followers, the enemy looks for entry into our lives through the slightest unfortified areas of our spiritual lives. We must always be alert and not allow the enemy to gain a foothold. When he does, the peace in our lives is disrupted.
Paul encouraged the Philippians (4:9) to put into practice all that they had learned, received or heard from him or seen in him. In the same way, let’s strengthen those areas of our spiritual lives that need to be shored up with “…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable…” (verse 8) and then, “the God of peace will be with you” (verse 9).
Be a believer that is willing to be a lifelong learner. Be open to hearing the Word of God, exercise the gifts that you have received from Him, and model Christ’s example of servant-leadership. In these ways, you will guard yourself from the attacks of the enemy and experience God’s abiding peace.
Congregational care, Men of Grace and Senior Saints are Pastor Paul’s areas of ministry oversight in the life of Grace Covenant.
