Don’t Just Be an Expert in What Things Don’t Mean

In our study of Philippians, I got a chance to teach Philippians 4:10-13. As it is when you dig into God’s word, I was very encouraged to consider Paul’s Christian contentment in every circumstance. And then… there was that verse. You know… the one. The verse that makes it into every pre-game speech and every pre-test declaration. The one that makes you roll your eyes. Even without saying it, you know which one I’m talking about. And you definitely know what it doesn’t mean. And as I was studying it, I had a list of about ten things that it didn’t mean. But here’s the problem: I had to teach that verse. I couldn’t just be an expert in what it didn’t mean. I needed to know what it actually meant.

It is really easy to be an expert in what things don’t mean. I hear that verse, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13), and I immediately have my defenses up. My mind says, “That’s not what that means!” But unfortunately, that’s normally where it stops. All I’ve done is to discard a false idea, while failing to replace it with a true one. That’s the danger of only being an expert in what things don’t mean. You can miss the actual encouragement that God intends to deliver to you.

And what a shame to miss out on such sweet encouragement! All of God’s word is truth, even when people misunderstand it. So that means that I need to be able to say, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me,” without feeling embarrassed. I’ll be honest. I can be embarrassed by verses like that. I know how they’re misused, and I’m so concerned with how people will perceive me that I shy away from actually digging into the real meaning.

This is another problem with being an expert in what things don’t mean: it can lead to pride. When you only know when people are wrong, you read the Bible and think, “I can’t believe people use this verse to mean that!” It swells our pride that we would never use that verse to mean that. To be sure, you know you have not read enough of the Bible if it has caused you to be proud. The habitual reading of God’s word is supposed to humble you, “that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers” (Deut 17:20). When we actually take the time to understand what God is really saying, we can be humbled and encouraged and exhorted, not filled with pride.

So let’s refuse to be those who only know what the Bible doesn’t mean, and let’s find out what it actually means. God’s word is profitable, even those verses that are misunderstood and abused. I’m glad I dug in to learn what Philippians 4:13 meant. It is incredibly encouraging, and I want more to be strengthened and satisfied in Christ alone through it. So let’s be a people who love to know our God and live on every word that comes from His mouth. Let’s be those faithful workers who do not need to be ashamed, “rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Tim 2:15).

Jacob Crouch 2023

For an explanation of Philippians 4:13, click HERE.