Philippians 4:8 - "Whatever Things Are Just"

"Whatever things are just..."Each of these qualities is anotherfilter through which every thought should pass before it is allowed to remainin our minds. First, we asked, "Is it true?" Then we asked, "Isit honorable?" TodayPaul asks another important question: "Is it just?" The word justmeans righteous, upright, and in harmony with God's holy standards. It speaksof what is fair, right, and pleasing in His sight. Our world no longer agreeson what is right. People often say, "Do whatever feels right." Otherssay, "You have your truth, and I have mine." But God has neverchanged His standard. Malachi 3:6 says, "For I am the LORD, I changenot." Because God never changes, His standards of righteousness neverchange. Psalm119:172 declares, "All Thy commandments are righteousness." EverythingGod commands is right. Everything He forbids is for our good. Everything Heteaches reflects His perfect character. That means when we examine ourthoughts, we should ask, "Would this thought be approved by God? Does itagree with His Word? Does it reflect His righteousness?" That questionalone can save us from countless sins. Manytemptations begin long before an action is ever taken. They begin with athought. James tells us in James 1:14-15, "But every man is tempted,when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hathconceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forthdeath." Notice the progression. The thought comes first. Then desiregrows. Then comes the action. Then come the consequences. If we learn to rejectsinful thoughts at the beginning, we prevent sinful actions later. Yearsago someone wisely said, "You can't stop a bird from flying over yourhead, but you can stop it from building a nest in your hair." Temptingthoughts may come unexpectedly. Even our Lord was tempted by Satan in thewilderness. But Jesus never entertained those temptations. Instead, Heimmediately answered each one with the Word of God. Three times He declared, "Itis written..." Our greatest weapon against wrong thinking is the truthof God's Word. Davidunderstood this battle. In Psalm 19:14 he prayed, "Let the words of mymouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O LORD, mystrength, and my redeemer." Did you notice that? Not only the words ofmy mouth... But the meditation of my heart. David realized that God examineswhat no one else can see. People see our actions. God sees our thoughts. Thattruth should both humble us and encourage us. It humbles us because we realizehow desperately we need God's grace. But it also encourages us because the HolySpirit is able to transform us from the inside out. Asbelievers, we should never be satisfied merely with doing the right thing outwardly.God wants us to delight in what is right inwardly. He wants our minds to loverighteousness. When we read Scripture, meditate on God's character, rememberHis promises, and walk with Him daily, our thinking gradually begins to change.Webegin to love what He loves. We begin to hate what He hates. Our values becomeHis values. Our desires become more like His desires. That is the work ofspiritual maturity. Sotoday, whenever a thought enters your mind, pause for just a moment and askyourself, "Is this thought righteous? Would the Lord Jesus dwell on thisthought?" If the answer is yes, continue thinking on it. If the answer isno, surrender it immediately to Christ and replace it with the truth of HisWord. Remember, the Christian life is not simply avoiding wrong actions. It iscultivating a mind that delights in God's righteousness. Tomorrowwe'll come to one of my favorite words in this verse: "Whatever thingsare pure." In a world filled with moral confusion and impurity, Godstill calls His children to think pure thoughts.