4 Verses We Take Out of Context

I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13

The context here is not Paul saying that he can do whatever he wants, or that everything is possible if we only put in the work. The context here is contentment. He is saying that he has learned to be content, no matter the circumstances, and he can endure all things through Christ. Philippians 4:13 is not a mantra for success but the secret of contentment.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

I have seen this verse used as the basis for various platitudes and hopes that somehow “everything will work out.” That is something we would be foolish to promise. Something else I hear often is “God works all things for good.” Whose good? What good? Our situation may not work out as we had hoped or planned. The “good” here is not God working all things for our comfort but (as we see in the context) to conform us into the image of Christ.

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

Naturally, we tend to reinterpret and focus on the last half of this verse—God will give me what I want—when that is not the message at all. Our focus should be on delighting in the Lord, which will impact, renew, and transform our desires to match His. When we “take delight” in the Lord, our desires become His desires, not vice versa. In the words of St. Augustine, “Love God and do as you please: for the soul trained in love to God will do nothing to offend the One who is Beloved.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Romans 8:37

This verse has been tweaked in a similar way as Philippians 4:13. It may be pleasing, acceptable, convenient, and politically correct to ignore the Jesus part and tell people that they are “more than conquerors” and can do the impossible. However, we are more than conquerors in Christ. We are alive in Christ. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ. We cannot lose sight of the Person who changes everything. Paul does not go on to talk about the first part of the verse (“we are more than conquerors”) but about the second (“through him who loved us”).

It is easy to take biblical principles, even verses, and turn them into an excuse for self-empowerment. “You are more than conquerors.” “All things are possible.” “You can do all things.” What about being more than conquerors through Christ? Jesus declared that all things are possible with God (see Mk. 10:27) and that I can do all things through Him who gives me strength. This is not generic self-help stuff. When we take God out of the center and put ourselves there instead, He becomes something like a celestial medicine man whose advice we were wise enough to take. There is danger in arrogantly thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought (Rom. 12:3). Throughout the Old Testament Israel is commanded to not forget the Lord or His deliverance (Deut. 6, 8). There is only room for one superhero, and it is not us.