TUESDAY September 10, 2024

Obedience

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Philippians 2:12-13

Paul was having a difficult time, because he would have liked to visit the Philippian church; but in his absence, he continued to exhort them to remain in unity and live in obedience to the Gospel. Paul was not asking the believers in Philippi to reach for the stars. He set before them a divine pattern––to have the mind of Christ.

As Christians, we are to submit our lives to Jesus Christ and rely on the divine power of God to accomplish the task, for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Notice, it is God who works in us and through us. We can do nothing in our own strength.

Then we come to the next verse that many people take out of context. They think what Paul is saying is that we are saved by works; not so, we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus––period. What they have forgotten to read is the next verse: ...for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Place these two verses in Philippians together and you see salvation is a work of God, not man. Ephesians 2:8-10 makes clear the case for God’s grace through faith for our salvation:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

As we become active in serving in the church, we naturally begin to produce spiritual fruit. Our works come from a desire to serve Him, because we love Him. Understand, our works do not save us––it does not work that way. We have accepted the Gospel of grace, by faith.

Revival is a renewed conviction of sin and repentance, followed by an intense desire to live in obedience to God. It is giving up one's will to God in deep humility.
~Charles Finney~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!