Dr. Manny Arango (0:00)

Hey, Bible nerds. This is Dr. Manny Arango, and I'm your host for the Bible department podcast powered by Arma. This podcast follows a Bible reading plan we created to help you read the entire Bible in a year. You can head to the show notes or thebibledepartment.com to download our reading plan and join the Journey family. If there are, like, two chapters of the Bible that I think are just hall of fame chapters of the Bible, uh, it's right here. Everyone loves Philippians chapter 4, verse 13. It's in every, you know, semi Christian, full Christian ratchet Christian girls bio on Instagram. I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength. And today we're gonna put Philippians chapter 4, verse 13 in context. And so we're gonna have a lot of context clues. Today we may have more context clues than anything. We may not even get to a nerdy nugget or timeless truth. I really do wanna, like, put that one verse in context. I've been waiting, like, 38 days to get right here. And so if you haven't done today's reading, go ahead and do that. I wanna challenge you. Read all of Philippians chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4. I know today's reading is just 3 and 4, but come on, double up. You got this. If you haven't done the reading for the day, just go ahead, stop, pause, don't watch, Go to the reading, come back. It'll only take you 15 minutes, really, to read the entire book of Philippians. Come on back, and then we'll dive in. Okay. Philippians chapter 3, verse 20. Before we get into the most famous, like, the. Like for real, Philippians chapter 4, verse 13 is, like, top five most famous verses of Scripture. Like, I would say, like, for God to love the world, he gave his only begotten Son. Right? And then I would say maybe something from the 23rd Psalm, maybe. And then I would say, like, Philippians or. Or Jeremiah 29:11. Right? Is is up there in the Mount Rushmore of, like, Bible verses taken out of context. And then right up there with those is is this one. I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength. So we're going to get there, but first I just want to, like, give just a little. Maybe a little nerdy nugget. It's a context clue for Philippians chapter 3, verse 20. I think Paul uses a buzzword and I just want to call some attention to it says, but our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, Philippi is a hotbed, okay? It's a hub for patriotic nationalism. And so I think that Paul is using that word citizenship, like on purpose. That as Christians we are dual citizens, okay? I'm a citizen of these United States of America, proud, patriotic, taxpaying citizen of these United States of America. But I can't forget that I'm also an immigrant, okay, not in a literal way, but like spiritually. That my home is not here, that my values come from this place that I also have citizenship in. And that is the kingdom of heaven, not necessarily the realm of heaven. We don't have an escapist mentality, but the kingdom of heaven, the values of heaven that I am walking this earth with the values of heaven. And I want the values and the power and the, the presence of heaven to invade this earth, okay? And so I think citizenship language is huge, that we are citizens of the kingdom of heaven. And so I think that's awesome. Okay, let's tackle Philippians chapter four, verse 13. And honestly, I think that by tackling it, we will get nerdy nuggets and timeless truths and all of it. But I really want to get to Philippians 4:13. I'll just read it, I'll read it out of context the way most of us always read it. And I hope that you don't hear cynicism in my voice. I hope you genuinely hear humor. Like, I, I, I just think it's funny. Philippians chapter 4, verse 13. I watched this girl vlogging like on YouTube. She was talking about her angel numbers, which is straight demonic, okay? And she was like, and girl like, my angel numbers is 4 13. Cuz, you know, Philippians 4 13. I was like, you are a straight heathen. Like, what are we talking about? Like, you don't know anything about the Bible. Clearly you're already talking about angel numbers and your angel numbers include a Bible verse. Like, come on, come on. So for real, just in terms of culture, non Christians, culturally appropriate, this Bible verse right here, okay, we want to talk about cultural appropriation. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. So what is the context of the passage? And we are literally just going to take that verse and then that verse is verse 13. And we're just going to go to verse 12, 11, 10, 9, 8. And we're just going to get context for what are the things that Paul's saying he can do, okay? Because it's not. Go to my yoga class with my Lululemon pants and my freaking overpriced latte like, I could do all things through Christ who strengthens me. You know, it's like, that's not what. That is not what Paul's talking about. So what is he talking about? And I want you to know as a believer, what are the things that you can do through the power of Jesus who strengthens you? I have eight things here. Well, that's seven. Okay, eight. I've got eight things that Paul was actually talking about and that you and I can do because of Jesus who gives us strength. Number one, numero uno. If you just let your eyes go to the verse right before it, it says this. Not that I'm speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. He is in prison, but he's saying I'm content. Verse 12. I know how to be brought low. I know how to abound in any and every circumstance. I've learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and. And need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. So what's the first thing that you and I can do through Jesus who gives us strength? We can figure out how to be content. We can find the secret of contentment. And the secret of contentment is that whether you are in need or whether you are not in need, whether you're in abundance or need, facing plenty or hunger, the presence and power of Jesus is with you. And Jesus faced all of those dichotomies. Jesus fasted and feasted, Jesus had needs, and Jesus had those needs met. That the Christian life is not always designed to be rainbows and butterflies. Clearly Paul is in prison and he's saying, mo, but I know how to be content. There's a lot of us. You struggle with covetousness. You don't know how to be content. And so the all things that's here, you don't need the power of Jesus. There's so many things that people say they need the power of Jesus for. And I'm like, there are non Christians who can do that. You know what I'm saying? And I don't want to be controversial, but there's even some marriage content that I've seen people like. And Jesus had to help me not have an attitude. That's what you need Jesus for, to not have an attitude. You can't just do that on your own power. You need Jesus to help you not have an attitude, man. That's a lot. How about being content? I need the power of Jews to not be. To actually be content. Okay, so all Right. What's the next thing? Just back up. Just back up. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever's honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if anything is excellent, if there's anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What's the second thing that I can do through Christ, who gives me strength, Control my thought life, control my inner thoughts. Well, Pastor Manny, what I think about isn't hurting anybody. It's hurting you. Self harm's not okay. It's poisoning you, the stuff. If you. If your thoughts, thoughts are lustful, if your thoughts are full of trash and garbage, if your thoughts, if your thoughts are full of depression and suicide and anxiety, if that's what's going on in your mind. And guess what? You can do all things through Christ, who gives you strength. You can think about things that are commendable, just pure, excellent, worthy of praise. And you can have an active relationship with your mind instead of a passive relationship with your mind. I don't allow my mind to just think about whatever it wants to think about. My mind is a trained dog. My mind thinks about the things I set it to think about because I have an active relationship with my mind. I've set my mind to understand the scriptures. I've set my mind to attain wisdom. I've set my mind to figure out how to be an entrepreneur and to unlock wealth, generational wealth for me, for my family. I've set my mind on being a good father. I've set my mind on being a good husband. I've set my mind to these things. And I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength. What if I told you that what you're learning in this video was just the tip of the iceberg? The Bible department is actually powered by arma. What is arma? I'm so glad you asked. ARMA is an online subscription based platform that we design to help people, everyday people, learn the Bible for themselves. We started ARMA so that anybody, anywhere could have access to trustworthy and entertaining Bible and theology content. In addition to this podcast, we have over 60 courses on individual books of the Bible, on theology topics, and on some hot topics like homosexuality, tithing and women in ministry. But really, ARMA is a community. A community of people that I've gotten to know. A community where thousands of people are currently finding family, asking questions and nerding out on the Bible together. If you want a community to read the Bible with you this year, or if you want to dive into some deeper theological content, or if you want more exclusive access to me and the entire armor team? How about you go to thebibledepartment.com I'll be sure to post the link in the description of this video. Let's make this your year to become a Bible nerd. Let's keep backing up. Verse 6 of chapter 4. Do not be anxious about anything. Whoo. But in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God. What's the third thing that I have the power to do? What's the all things that I have the power to do? Not be anxious. I have the power to not be anxious. Right there. But by prayer and supplication, I have the ability as a believer to let anxiety trigger prayer and give those things that I'm anxious about over to the Lord and stop being anxious about them. That's the power that I have. I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength. Okay, I don't have to be anxious. What's the next thing? Verse 4, chapter 4, verse 4. Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say rejoice. What's the all things that I have the power to do through Christ, who gives me strength. Choose joy. Rejoice. Rejoicing doesn't have nothing to do with how I feel. It's an action of my will. I'm having a bad day. I'm still going to rejoice. What? Yo. There's. I'm in prison. Paul's literally locked up. Still going to rejoice. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. I have the power to rejoice. Number five. Still in chapter four, verse two. I entreat Udia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. Yes, I asked you also true companions, help these women who have labored side by side with me in the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life. What do I have the power to do? Agree with people. Agree with other human beings. I can do all things through Jesus Christ, who gives me strength. I have the power to walk in supernatural agreement. Number five. No, sorry, Number six. What do I have the power to do? To place no confidence in the flesh. Here we go. Verse 3. 3 of chapter 3. For we are the circumcision who worship by the spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh. People ask me, why aren't you ever alone with women? Because I don't put confidence in the flesh. I Have no confidence in my flesh. I know that under the right circumstances, man, I will fall into sin. I place no confidence in the flesh. I'd rather avoid sin than fight sin because I'm not putting confidence in the flesh. There are some people, they fall into sin because they trust their flesh too much. Why would you be out at 2 o'clock in the morning with your girlfriend in a car late at night? Of course you're gonna do something that you shouldn't be doing. You've placed confidence in the flesh. Okay, so what's the sixth thing that I have? The all things I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength, I place no confidence in my flesh. Number seven, I count what I've lost as rubbish in comparison to knowing Jesus. And then number eight, I have the ability to forget what lies behind me and straight and strive forward to what is ahead. I have the ability to not be stuck in my past, not be constantly thinking about what I used to do. There's a lot of us who the reason you're stuck in sin is because you keep reliving moments of sin, moments of pleasure. I remember, you know, I was not. I married a woman who was a virgin, but that was not my testimony. So I remember before I got married, I genuinely asked the Lord to wipe my memory clean of any woman that I had had intimate moments with. Because the last thing I wanted to do is go back into my memory bank and enjoy things that are detestable to God. If this doesn't honor God, then how can it bring me pleasure? And so I asked God, God, can you just delete this stuff out of my mind? I remember one day me and my wife were joking around and she brought up an ex girlfriend. And I was like, who are you talking about? And she thought I was joking around. And finally she realized that I was totally confused. She was like, your ex girlfriend. Like, I'm making fun of you for this girl you dated. And I said we had probably been married for like four or five years. And I said, honestly, babe, the Lord straight men and blacked me like straight. I don't have memories of any of the foul, detestable stuff that I did before I was married to you. Because what keeps people in sin is reliving a highlight reel of all these things you did that were offensive to the Lord. And you know what? The all things I have, I have the power to do all things through Christ, who gives me strength. Guess what? One of those all things is forget all of the pleasures of sin that I took part in before I came into a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. I have the power to do that. I have the supernatural power to offer my memories to the Lord and say, God, would you wipe this stuff clean? There are some of us you're still living in trauma because there are memories that God needs to heal. Memories of molestation, memories of sexual abuse, memories of being neglected. And these memories are keeping you trapped in an identity that is not the identity or the fullness of the identity that God actually wants you to walk in. And what's the all things I don't have the power to go to my yoga class and do a good job. That's taken this totally out of context. But what do I have the power to do based on the work of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit on the inside of me and his strength, I have the power to not be stuck as a victim based on trauma that's happened in my past. But say I'm forgetting what lies behind me and I'm striving towards the goal, the mark of the call that God has on my life. If you look at Philippians chapter 3 and 4 and you see Philippians chapter 4, verse 13 as a look. These are the things that Paul's saying he has the power to do through Christ man. Those. These things are powerful. Now I may not have the ability to fly, but baby, I can control my thoughts. I can be content. I can not be anxious. I can rejoice in all scenarios. I can walk in supernatural unity. I can learn how to place no confidence in the flesh. I can count what I've lost as rubbish in comparison. You know how many times where the Lord's asked me to give financially or give something away? The reason it's easy to give is I count that as rubbish. That's not easy to do. There are people who offer things to the Lord and they miss the things that they offer to the Lord. It's a supernatural thing to say. I don't even miss that because I count that as rubbish. Not in and of itself, but in comparison to. To knowing Jesus. If giving away this car is going to mean that I know Jesus more, I'll be broke all day long. Absolutely. I'd rather know Jesus than to have all the money in the world and gain the world and lose my soul. It takes the power of God and the strength of God to get to a place or place of maturity where you count all things rubbish in comparison to knowing Jesus. And last, I. I can forget the things in my past. I can Forget trauma. I can forget sin that's trapping me in guilt. I can actually forgive myself. I can access this sea of forgetfulness that God throws my sin into. Oh, man. Yeah. Yeah. When we put this verse in context, the all things that I now have the power to do are actually things that I need in order to be a mature Christian. And that. That's our timeless truth. That's our nerdy nugget. That's our context clue. Like, I know today's episode is a little different than all the others, but want a bit of a soapbox, because this verse has so much power, and we rob it of its power, but by putting it into context that it was never designed to be in. And so tomorrow, we're gonna hop into Colossians, okay? We're gonna continue with the prison epistles. I am so, so, so, so, so proud of you for developing this habit of reading the Word every day. And I will see you right here tomorrow. I love you. Peace. Thanks so much for joining us on the Bible Department podcast. You can find us online and learn more about the show and on instagram @thebible department. If you enjoyed this episode and want to dive deeper into the Bible, you can get free access to our library of courses at thebibledepartment. Com. We'll see you back here tomorrow.