The Peace of God

In these verses, Paul strings together several exhortations. The themes in this section have already been touched on previously in this letter. Paul urges unity among believers in 4:2-3. This theme was also in 1:27-2:4. The theme of rejoicing in 4:5 has been highlighted several times (1:18; 2:17; 3:1). The idea of gentleness, graciousness, or forbearance in 4:5 was touched on in 2:1-3. Paul mentions prayer in 4:6-7, and he underscores the importance of prayer in 1:3-11. Additionally, in these exhortations Paul continues to emphasize the gospel, the Lord's presence, and the idea of being "in Christ." It is as though Paul were collecting and restating many of his central ideas from the letter in these exhortations.