“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:9 NIV
Paul is telling the church at Philippi to take what he taught them and put it into practice each and every day. He was showing them how to live as Christians, which is very different than living as the world lives. In the previous verse Paul wrote to them about what they should be focused on, so now he is simply telling them to remember how they saw him practice those traits, that he didn’t just tell them how to focus on those things and then not show them how to live them out.
Those of us who have attended Sunday School as a child can probably think of one or two Sunday School teachers who impacted us, either negatively or positively, hopefully positively. As a child, mine was a woman named Nancy. I don’t remember a lot about the class, as I was only 7 or so, but she always had this warm smile on her face. I always felt welcomed by her to be in her class. It is the small things that sometimes mean the most. I am not sure Nancy even remembers me, but I remember her and what she taught me about being kind.
As a teenager, I had a wonderful woman named Rose as my Sunday School teacher. Rose, along with some strong women in my family, set the bar of how a woman of faith is to walk as a child of God. I have tried to reach that bar all my life. Rose wasn’t a saint, but she took the role of teacher to heart, knowing that her students would be watching her to see how she handled life.
The same is true with Paul, he knew others would be watching how he handled life because not everyone is able to learn what they need to learn by hearing it. Some individuals need to see what it looks like in practice, not just imagine what they are to do. The last part of this verse in Paul’s letter to the Philippians is that the peace of God would be with them. Paul knew what that peace felt like, he experienced it while in prison waiting for his trial. The peace that God gives is a peace that cannot really be explained, it just needs to be experienced. Once you experience it, you don’t want to be without it.
Is there someone in your life who has taught you about God, or showed you how to live life as a Christian? It could be a Sunday School teacher or a family member, it doesn’t matter who it was, just that you take what they taught you and apply it to your life if you haven’t already.
As you face the day, remember back to how you have been taught to handle life by those who were privileged to be your teacher. Have a wonderful day.