Meditate on These Things
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
Listen to the "Verse by Verse" episode covering this scripture.
What do we normally focus our minds on? Bad news, scandals and problems fill our media and our minds. The apostle Paul encourages us to focus instead on the things of God, the things that are truly pure and praiseworthy, and that ultimately lead to the best news that can be reported—the coming Kingdom of God.
We can’t hide our heads in the sand to the bad news of today. Jesus Christ told us to watch world events and to be aware of the signs of the times (Luke 21:36; Matthew 16:3). But we don’t have to look for the juicy details of the latest scandal. We can focus instead on the words of God and the just and virtuous things that are the hallmarks of His coming Kingdom.
We are to meditate or “think on” (King James Version) these things for a purpose. “Think on—have a continual regard to, so as to ‘do’ these things (vs. 9)” (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary on Philippians 4:8). Our thoughts should guide our actions. Christians are called to not only meditate, but to do.
For more about Philippians 4:8, see our blog series beginning with “Meditate on These Things: ‘Whatever Things Are True.’” For more about meditation, see our article “What Is Meditation?” See also “Reading the Mind of God.”
