Philippians 4:8 - "Whatever Things Are Honest"

Theword honest in our King James Bible means much more than simply telling thetruth. It carries the idea of whatever is honorable, noble, dignified, worthyof respect, and deserving of reverence. It describes that which lifts our mindsupward instead of dragging them downward. Paul uses this same Greek word inspeaking about the qualifications of deacons in 1 Timothy 3:8, where they areto be "grave," or dignified. Titus 2:2 uses the same idea to describeolder men who are to be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, love, andpatience. The Christian should have a mind that delights in things that arenoble. Thatraises an important question.  Whatoccupies our thoughts? Much of the entertainment in our world today feeds theopposite of what Paul is describing. We are surrounded by mockery instead ofrespect, vulgarity instead of purity, violence instead of kindness, andfoolishness instead of wisdom. It seems that many people today laugh at whatGod calls sacred and celebrate what God calls sinful. As believers, we must becareful about what we continually allow into our minds. Remember, whateverfills the mind eventually shapes the life. Solomonwisely wrote in Proverbs 4:23, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; forout of it are the issues of life." The word keep again means to guard.We guard our homes by locking the doors. We guard our valuables by placing themin a safe. Should we not be even more careful to guard our minds? Someone oncesaid, "You become like what you admire." There is a great deal oftruth in that statement. If we continually admire what is worldly, our thinkingwill become worldly. If we continually admire what is holy, our thinking willbecome holy. Oneof the greatest examples of honorable thinking is found in the Lord JesusChrist Himself. Every conversation He had was marked by dignity. Every actionreflected the holiness of His Father. Even when He rebuked sin, He did so withperfect righteousness and perfect love. Peter tells us, "Christ alsosuffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps."(1 Peter 2:21) If Christ is our example, then our thoughts should increasinglyreflect His character. Thisalso affects the conversations we enjoy. Have you noticed that people usuallytalk about what they think about? If our minds are filled with things that aretrivial, foolish, or corrupt, our speech will reveal it. Jesus said,"For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." (Matthew12:34) What fills the heart eventually comes out through the lips. Perhaps onepractical application today is this: Ask yourself, "Does what I amwatching, reading, listening to, or thinking about encourage dignity,reverence, and respect for God? Does it help me become more like Christ?" Ifthe answer is no, then it probably does not belong in the mind of a believer. TheChristian mind should never be captivated by what is cheap when it has beeninvited to dwell upon what is noble. Paul is reminding us that our minds shouldcontinually rise above the gutter of this world to the greatness of our God. Themore we fill our minds with Christ, His Word, His works, and His glory, theless attractive the things of this world become. That is why the greatestsafeguard for the Christian mind is not merely saying "no" to thewrong things. It is saying "yes" to the better things. Fill your mindwith Scripture. Fill your mind with the character of Christ. Fill your mindwith the greatness of God. Then you will discover that honorable thoughtsproduce honorable living. Tomorrowwe'll look at the next filter Paul gives us: "Whatever things arejust." We'll discover that God not only wants us to think nobly, butHe also wants us to think righteously.