Paul finishes Philippians 4:8-9 with the third and final thing that will cause you worry and anxiety which is a loss of perspective. The first thing we note here is that having the right perspective involves two things:
•Vs. 8 Right heart: Paul says first we need to search our heart with regards to 8 things: True, noble, just, pure, lovely, good report, of virtue and praiseworthy. Oftentimes our worry and anxiety is because we have not placed our lives within those 8 things and because of it we have lost perspective on life. Refuse the negativity and choose to think about the positive relationship you have with Jesus.
•True: We are told that 92% of our anxiety and worry is on things that aren’t true. Satan will try to rip us off of our joy in Christ by causing us to focus on the 92% of things that aren’t true.
•Noble and Just: Things that are not worthy of respect and are not right will cause us anxiety and worry. Paul is saying don’t make your focus the things that are unpleasant as they can control your heart and your head.
•Pure, Lovely and of Good Report: “Pure” means moral purity, and “lovely” means beautiful and attractive whereas “good report” means worthy of talking about. Paul is saying that when our mind is in the gutter our heart will be filled with anxiety and worry, so don’t let your heart go to those places or even engage in talking about those things.
• Virtue and Praiseworthy: If something has “virtue” it will motivate us to do better and if it has “praise” it will be worthy of commending to others. Anxiety and worry will control our lives when what our heart is set on are things that don’t make us better and we can’t commend others.
•Vs. 9 Right head: Then we are to meditate or think on those things. Paul mentions the balance between four things:
•Learned and received: Perhaps you have experienced that it is one thing to have “learned” something a quite another thing to “receive” it and make it a part of your life. “Facts in the head” are not the same as “truths in the heart”.
•Heard and saw: James said in chapter 1 verse 22 that we must be doers of the word and not hearers only. Effective teaching isn’t just in what a person says, it’s also visible in the way they live their lives.
How do you know if you have the right perspective in having the right heart and right head? You well have the peace of God with you. Conversely if you aren’t experiencing the peace of God then your perspective may be off. God’s peace is the “umpire” that calls us out! Our faith in Christ was meant for life!
When you read the words of Jesus while here on earth you never see Him speak about theology and religion, He spoke to people about living and enjoying what God attended. Jesus demonstrated the victorious life He desires to give each person. There was no sense of anxiety in Him, He wasn’t concerned about where His next meal was coming from or where He was going to lay His head. Instead He said, look My Father knows your needs before you ask, He sees every bird and we are worth more than that to Him.