Grumbling and Disputing
“Do all things without grumbling or disputing”
After some of the most important verses on Christian living in the Bible, Paul exhorts the Philippians to ‘do all things without grumbling or disputing’. When I first read this, I thought, ‘why grumbling and disputing’? And as I began to think about it, I realised this is so central to Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Let me first talk about what these words mean, what is grumbling and disputing?
In this verse Paul is alluding to the Israelites in the wilderness when they grumbled against Moses and Aaron and ultimately God, complaining of their hunger and their thirst, and blaming God and Moses for bringing them into this wilderness. The Israelites grumbled and murmured, and they burned with anger and frustration at their circumstance. So Paul is saying don’t do this,
Jesus, he didn’t murmur or complain against God’s will, and he was brought lower than anybody,
“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,so he opened not his mouth.”
Isaiah 53:7.
When Jesus was in the wilderness, with no food or water, he didn’t murmur, or complain, he passed the test, he perfectly fulfilled what Israel couldn’t. Grumbling and disputing is not the mind of Christ and therefore has no part in Christian living.
Paul had the right to tell others not to do this, for if anybody had the right to grumble, it would have been Paul, he was writing from prison when he had done no wrong. And people were wishing to afflict him in his imprisonment, but in this circumstance he wrote,
“I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:12-13.
I think another reality that connects this verse to the previous verses is that so often obedience is accompanied by grumbling, when obeying a command we so often complain about it. And you know, it is impossible to grumble and dispute, and to be joyful at the same time, grumbling will suck the joy out of your heart, it is so destructive to our souls, and once we begin to grumble, it is so hard to stop, it grows and grows in us, and festers until it takes over our mind and our actions. Grumbling will kill our joy and contentment. And living in a world that is very often unfair, being prone to grumble will harm us so much, and it will make life so much harder live, than if we didn’t grumble.
Finally, I will add that grumbling will cause disunity, it will tear us apart, and it will tear us away from the people around us. A healthy person and a healthy church is one that is free from grumbling.
So, this exhortation to do all things without grumbling and disputing is very close to the heart of this letter, and is very important for us to take seriously as it has vast application to all areas of life.
May we be free from grumbling and disputing so that we can live with joy.
