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  • Writer's pictureBible Brian

The truth about Philippians 4:13


I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Therefore I can win that sports game, get that job, pass that college course, and become a multi-billionaire! Slow down there, Road Runner. If you take this verse to mean Jesus will enable you to do anything you put your mind to, you're going to end up disappointed.


Backing up a few verses, we see that Philippans 4:13, which Paul likely wrote while he was in prison (Philippians 1:7,13), is not saying Christ wants us to live a prosperous life living out all our wildest dreams, but rather we are to be content in all things. Christ gives us the strength not to be the world's greatest boxer, but to know how to be abased, and how to abound. To both be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. How can I say this? Because of verses 10-12.


As always, it's important to take the Bible in context. A good saying to live by is "never believe a Bible verse". If you take a Bible verse on its own, you can make the words of Satan himself sound very inspiring (Luke 4:7). One interesting strategy is the so-called 20/20 rule: Always read 20 verses in front and 20 verses behind. That way, you will have a good idea of the context, enabling you to understand the verse.

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