{"id":26734,"date":"2023-06-14T22:00:45","date_gmt":"2023-06-15T05:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/philippians_2_1-11-copy\/"},"modified":"2023-05-30T13:09:21","modified_gmt":"2023-05-30T20:09:21","slug":"philippians_2_12-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/philippians_2_12-18\/","title":{"rendered":"Press on in Shining the Light"},"content":{"rendered":"

Philippians 2:12-18\u00a0\u00a0 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

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Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

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Today\u2019s passage is Philippians 2:12-18.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Philippians 2:1-11 (NIV)<\/strong><\/p>\n

12\u00a0<\/sup>Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed\u2014not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence\u2014continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,<\/span><\/p>\n

13\u00a0<\/sup>for it is God who works in you\u00a0to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

14\u00a0<\/sup>Do everything without grumbling\u00a0or arguing,<\/span><\/p>\n

15\u00a0<\/sup>so that you may become blameless and pure, \u201cchildren of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.\u201d\u00a0Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky<\/span><\/p>\n

16\u00a0<\/sup>as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ\u00a0that I did not run\u00a0or labor in vain.<\/span><\/p>\n

17\u00a0<\/sup>But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering\u00a0on the sacrifice\u00a0and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.<\/span><\/p>\n

18\u00a0<\/sup>So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.<\/span><\/p>\n

I was reading news this week and saw an article. The title was \u201cResearchers have created an embryo containing both human and mouse cells in a major advancement of genetically modified organisms.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is called a human-mouse chimera. And apparently there are examples of human-pig and human-monkey and pig-monkey chimeras among others. It is a blatant blurring of the lines of God\u2019s creation. The article was not calling out the scientists behind this as being unethical or dangerous, but commending them for their so called \u201cmajor advancement.\u201d<\/p>\n

The world is getting to be a darker and darker place. God\u2019s natural design is being twisted, and perverted.<\/p>\n

In this backdrop, God calls us to shine as lights in the darkness.<\/p>\n

I. Press on in sanctification (12-13)<\/h1>\n

A. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 This verse is very often quoted. It is a great verse, of course. But what does it mean?<\/p>\n

It is often understood to mean we should examine ourselves and make sure that we are genuinely saved. The idea of \u201cworking something out\u201d can mean this. We work out math problems. We work on a puzzle. This interpretation conveys the idea that you should evaluate your own salvation as a mental exercise, looking at Scripture and asking the vital question, \u201cAm I saved?\u201d<\/p>\n

I wrote about this in a Bible study before and found my old notes. Here is a quote of what I wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe command here to \u201cwork out your salvation\u201d goes back to verses 10-11. In those verses we saw that every person will one day bow the knee to Jesus and confess He is Lord. This will either happen voluntarily now or if people refuse to bow themselves, then one day God will force them to. If a person is not saved, judgment in hell will follow their forced acknowledgment of Christ. And that is why Paul says to \u201cwork out your salvation.\u201d In other words, \u201cmake sure you are saved!\u201d<\/p>\n

Every believer should periodically perform self-examination. Do not rely on a decision that you made when you were a child or raising your hand during an altar call.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, I realized while studying this passage again that my previous understanding was wrong. Isn\u2019t it amazing that no matter how much we study the Scripture He is still teaching us? And our understanding of the Word and of Him keeps growing. That is why our theme this year is to press on! None of us have reached the level of knowledge, or the level of sanctification which we should.<\/p>\n

So yes, we should perform self-evaluation. That is healthy. But that is not really what Paul is saying in this passage.<\/p>\n

The original Greek word comes from the word \u201ckatergazomai.\u201d This is actually a command with a continuing emphasis. It means to \u201ckeep on working out to completion, to ultimate fulfillment,\u201d or to \u201ccontinually work to bring something to fruition.\u201d<\/p>\n

This refers to the process of sanctification. A famous Chinese proverb says that \u201cevery journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.\u201d That is the idea here. Salvation is the first step. After that, a believer needs to practice obedient daily living following Jesus. Sinful habits and lifestyles should be rejected. A love for Christ and for others should be growing.<\/p>\n

Simply put it means that believers should GROW! A person should not place faith in Christ and then make no effort to obey Him. A person should not pray a sinner\u2019s prayer and then remain the same.<\/p>\n

We see this fits with the context because Paul says in the first part of verse 12 that the Philippians have obeyed in his presence. Now while he is gone, they need to continue to work out their salvation through diligent obedience to what they have been taught. And Paul stresses the same idea in verse 16 when he says to hold fast to the word and to run.<\/p>\n

A believer works out his salvation through obedience, and also through perseverance. We are to persevere to the very end. The Christian life is filled with \u201calready but not yets.\u201d We already are forgiven, but are not yet perfect. We already are friend with Jesus, but do not yet see Him face to face. We already are a new creature, but are not yet completely rid of the old. We already have eternal life, but are not yet with God in heaven.<\/p>\n

Therefore you cannot quit now. You cannot give up. You cannot stop following Jesus. You must persevere. You must press on. Paul talks about this even more in the next chapter which is our key verse for they year, \u201cNot that I have already obtained this\u2026 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many people raise their hands in church and make a decision for Christ, but do not finish the race. Many people pray the salvation\u2019s prayer, but do not obey God.<\/p>\n

Jesus said that a good tree bears good fruit. Asking yourself \u201cAm I saved?\u201d is a very important question, the most important question you can ever ask. But this is not a mental puzzle to solve.<\/p>\n

Instead the answer is proved through fruit, the fruit of daily obedience to Jesus, the fruit of perseverance, the fruit of sanctification. All of which are made possible only through His grace and dependence on Him.<\/p>\n

With fear and trembling<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013<\/p>\n

This shows us the attitude which we are to have in pursuit of sanctification. Why should we have this attitude? It may be helpful for a moment to consider the opposite attitude. The opposite would be something like glib and flippant. In other words, God wants us to take it seriously. Salvation is important.<\/p>\n

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Isaiah 66:2 \u2013 To this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.<\/p>\n

Proverbs 1:7 \u2013 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The fear and trembling does not mean that we hide in the corner shaking with depression at our certain doom. Its a healthy, reverent fear for God Almighty, who sits on His throne. He is the King of Kings and the Lords of Lords. He is the judge and we will stand before Him.<\/p>\n

But be very clear. This work does not save you! Let me say that again. This work does not save you! Paul is not saying that you must work to get salvation. That is made very clear in the next verse.<\/p>\n

B. God works in you<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.<\/p>\n

Is salvation 50\/50? Fifty percent God, fifty percent us? Is it 90\/10? Ninety percent God, ten percent us? Neither. It is 100% God. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us salvation is a free gift. A free gift is not something you can earn or work for.<\/p>\n

Salvation is through God\u2019s grace. He started the work in us. We learned this in Philippians 1:6, \u201cHe who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salvation is God\u2019s work. He saved us. He took the initiative. And He continues to work in us after salvation.<\/p>\n

These two verses side by side show us very clearly two truths that are often held in tension throughout the Bible.<\/p>\n

#1 God is sovereign.<\/p>\n

# 2 People are responsible. We are responsible to respond to what God has done on our behalf by placing our faith in Him, repenting, and then persevering in obedience.<\/p>\n

Theologians and Bible scholars have debated for centuries how these two truths work together. We may never solve it this side of heaven. But we must nonetheless stand firm on these two truths.<\/p>\n

II. Press on in shining the light \u2013 Verse 15 tells us that we should \u201cshine as lights in the world.\u201d<\/h2>\n

Paul described the world as a \u201ccrooked and twisted generation.\u201d The darker the world is, the brighter the light will shine. If the world at Paul\u2019s time was a crooked and twisted generation, then how much more it is now! Almost every time I read the news, I am reminded about just how dark the world is. Here are some of the dark things going on in the world:<\/p>\n