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answer affirmatively, and in kind. He has however pledged that, whether we are abashed
or whether we are exalted, whether we suffer hunger or are full, whether we abound or
suffer need, the peace of God shall "garrison our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus"
and, like Paul, we shall be able to say:
"I have learned in whatsoever state I am, to be independent . . . . . I have strength for
all things through Christ which empowereth me" (Phil. 4: 11, 13).
So then, moderation and yieldingness do not involve supine dependence: they can go
with a downright independence of man's frown or reward.
Somewhat parallel with this prayer, and much in the same spirit, is the language of
Matt. 6: 31-34:
"Do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or
Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For all these things the nations seek after, for your
heavenly Father knoweth that ye are needing all these things. But be seeking first the
Kingdom of God and its righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you."
Prayer therefore is the cure of anxiety, but to be effective it must flow from a gentle
spirit that has grown up in the conscious presence of the Lord. It goes without saying that
anxiety cannot live in His Presence.
The prayers of Philippians are intensely practical: "That ye may be sincere." "That
ye be not anxious."
#6.
Walk worthy; Stand Perfect. (Col. 1: 9, 10 and 4: 12).
pp. 61 - 63
Two more prayers complete the number that is found in the prison Epistles. These are
written in Col. 1: 9, 10 and 4: 12. Let us look at the earlier one and see what light we
receive upon the purposes of prayer.
"For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to
desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding: that ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in
every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God" (Col. 1: 9, 10).
Like the parallel prayer of Eph. 1: 15-19, this prayer is the outcome of the Apostle's
hearing of their faith and love, and like that prayer it speaks of epignosis, or realization.
Like the prayer of Phil. 1: it speaks of fruitfulness and, further, expresses a desire which
is not found in either Eph. 1: or Phil. 1:
"That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing."