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The secret is in Philippians 4:13: “I am able to do all things in Him who empowers me”:
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Paul was a man in Christ (2 Cor. 12:2), and he desired to be found in Christ by others; now he declared that he was able to do all things in Him, the very Christ who empowered him:
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This is an all-inclusive and concluding word on his experience of Christ; it is the converse of the Lord's word in John 15:5 concerning our organic relationship with Him: “Apart from Me you can do nothing.”
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The Greek word for empowers means “makes dynamic inwardly.”
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Christ dwells in us (Col. 1:27); He empowers us, makes us dynamic from within, not from without; by such inward empowering Paul was able to do all things in Christ.
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Paul had been altogether in the Jewish religion under the law and had always been found by others in the law, but at his conversion he was transferred from the law and his former religion into Christ and became “a man in Christ”—2 Cor. 12:2.
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Now he expected to be found in Christ by all who observed him—the Jews, the angels, and the demons; this indicates that he aspired to have his whole being immersed in and saturated with Christ that all who observed him might find him fully in Christ; only when we are found in Christ, will Christ be expressed and magnified—Phil. 3:9a; 1:20.
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On the one hand, by the empowering of Christ, we can live a contented life (4:11-12); on the other hand, by the empowering of Christ, we can be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of (v. 8).
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Paul's word about Christ as the empowering One specifically applies to Christ's empowering us to live Him as our human virtues and thereby to magnify Him in His unlimited greatness; to live a life of these virtues is much more difficult than doing a Christian work.
Morning Nourishment
Col. 1:27 To whom God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.Phil. 4:13 I am able to do all things in Him who empowers me.
In Philippians 4:13...we find the secret [of sufficiency in Christ] to which Paul refers in verse 12: “The secret both to be filled and to hunger, both to abound and to lack.” Christ was his secret of sufficiency.
To be empowered by Christ is to be made dynamic inwardly. Christ dwells in us (Col. 1:27). He empowers us, makes us dynamic from within, not from without. By such inward empowering, Paul could do all things in Christ.
Paul was a person in Christ (2 Cor. 12:2), and he desired to be found in Christ by others. Now he declared that he could do all things in Him, in the Christ who empowered him. This is an all-inclusive and concluding word concerning his experience of Christ. It is the converse of the Lord's word concerning our organic relationship with Him in John 15:5: “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” As long as we have Christ and are in Him, we can do all things in Him. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 3529)
Today's Reading
The “all things” in Philippians 4:13 refer to the things mentioned in verse 12 and to the virtues listed in verse 8. This means that the application of verse 13 is limited by the context of verses 8 through 12. On the one hand, by the empowering of Christ, we can live a contented life (vv. 11-12). For us to be able to do all things in Christ who empowers us is to be satisfied in any circumstance through Christ who empowers us as the secret of our daily Christian life. On the other hand, by the empowering of Christ, we can be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of. This means that we are persons in Christ, who empowers us to live out every kind of virtue. This is to live Christ, to magnify Christ in His virtues.We need to realize that Paul's word about Christ as the empowering One specifically applies to Christ's empowering us to live Him as our human virtues and thereby to magnify Him in His unlimited greatness. The six virtues mentioned in verse 8 are actually the image of God. God created man in His image, that is, in His attributes of love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The fact that man was made in the image of God means that he was made in the form of love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The six items—what things are true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of—are in these four divine attributes of love, light, holiness, and righteousness. These are the real virtues, for they are the expression of Christ. Christ empowers the believers to live Him and magnify Him in all these virtues. In Christ who empowers us, we can practice these things, expressing these highest human virtues; in Christ who empowers us, we can be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of.
To live a life of all these virtues is much more difficult than doing a Christian work. Many can preach the gospel, teach the Bible, and even establish churches, but they are not able to live this kind of life, a life full of the virtues of being true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of. In order to live Christ as our human virtues for the expression of the divine attributes, we need to be empowered by the indwelling Christ.
If we would experience Christ as the empowering One enabling us to do all things in Him, we need to let Him live in us (Gal. 2:20), be formed in us (4:19), make His home in us (Eph. 3:17), and be magnified in us (Phil. 1:20). If we fail to do these things, He will not have the way to empower us, but when Christ lives in us, is formed in us, makes His home in us, and is magnified in us, the way is prepared for Him to empower us. Then, empowered by the indwelling Christ, we will be able to do all the things spoken of in Philippians 4:8 through 12. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 3529-3530)
Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 351