Work it Out!
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Sermon 4
Sermon 4
Series: A Beautiful Hope in a Desperate World
Sermon title: Work It Out!
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but 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 work for his good pleasure.
Do all things without grumbling or disputing,
that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.
Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but 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 work for his good pleasure.
Do all things without grumbling or disputing,
that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
Intro:
One raw winter night a man heard an irregular thumping sound against the kitchen storm door. He went to a window and watched as tiny shivering sparrows, attracted to the evident warmth inside, beat in vain against the glass.
Touched, the farmer bundled up and trudged through fresh snow to open the barn for the struggling birds. He turned on the lights, tossed some hay in a corner, and sprinkled a trail of saltine crackers to direct them to the barn. But the sparrows, which had scattered in all directions when he emerged from the house, still hid in the darkness, afraid of him.
He tried various tactics: circling behind the birds to drive them toward the barn, tossing cracker crumbs in the air toward them, retreating to his house to see if they’d flutter into the barn on their own. Nothing worked. He, a huge alien creature, had terrified them; the birds could not understand that he actually desired to help.
He withdrew to his house and watched the doomed sparrows though a window. As he stared, a thought hit him like lightening from a clear blue sky: if only I could become a bird-one of them-just for a moment. Then I wouldn’t frighten them so. I could show them the way to warmth and safety. At the same moment, another thought dawned on him. He had grasped the whole principle of the Incarnation.
A man’s becoming a bird is nothing compared to God’s becoming a man. The concept of a sovereign being as big as the universe He created, confining Himself to a human body was-and is-too much for some people to believe. –Paul Harvey.
Transition:
Last week we read in Philippians chapter 2 about the example of Christ’s sacrifice for us. Paul used the mind of Christ as the perfect example of the submissive mind. We concluded last week with a discussion of Christ’s death and resurrection and how that same death and resurrection power is meant for all Christians now as we pick up our cross and die to self, daily.
This week, we continue in chapter 2 and Paul is continuing his thoughts on this topic as Paul exhorts the Christians in Philippi to consider what Christ did and let that motivate them to live a life of obedience. Lets read the text.
Our text to today is Philippian 2:12-15, but to get the full context we need to start reading in .
RECAP:
Notice the word “therefore”. Whenever we see that we must ask, “What’s it there for?” We see that this referring back to the passage just before it, discussing Christ’s humble obedience to the point of death on the cross and how upon his death, God exalted Him. So, Paul is saying because of the example of Christ, this is your incentive, continue to work out your salvation. So what does this mean to work out your salvation? From the context he is referring to obeying. Obeying what? He is referring to all the exhortations that he had given so far. These were all ways that the Philippians should obey to live lives of authentic Christianity and make the gospel of Christ attractive to the lost. What were they?
· Remember who we are, we are citizens of heaven.
· Remember whose we are, we belong to Jesus Christ and he deserves our full allegiance.
· Have a single mind or be laser focused to spread the gospel of Christ
· Be unquestionably Christian by having convincing conduct and courageous confidence.
· Have a submissive mind, the mind of Christ.
Paul calls all of this activity, “working out our salvation. “
Wait a minute; did Paul say we have to do those 5 steps to be saved? Aren’t we saved by grace? What does this mean?
Yes, we are saved by grace. There are many verses that teach this like:
·
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
So what is Paul talking about, is he contradicting himself here?
The three steps
The Bible teaches that Salvation is a three-step process. Regeneration and Justification of once I was saved, a one time event, next is sanctification, the act of being saved, a life long process of becoming more like Christ, and one day we will finally be saved completely in the step we call glorification.
· Step one is Regeneration and Justification. This is what most people refer to as getting saved or being born again. It is a one-time experience of life where Jesus prompts our heart to respond to Him and ask forgiveness for our sins, we turn from our sins and ask Jesus to live inside us and be Lord of our life. We know from scripture that once this takes place it can not be undone. In that moment we are baptized into the body of Christ, we are made new creatures, Holy Spirit comes to live inside us, and we are declared innocent by God.
o : Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Jesus said in :
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.
28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.
29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. [1]
o Give hand illustration.
o Coffee and creamer illustration.
Born again- You can’t be unborn.
· Step 2 is Sanctification: This is the work of Being Saved. At the moment of conversion, Christ comes to live in us, through the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
But we find that we are still very sinful people and don’t look anything like Christ. We are supposed to be little Christ’s yet, we still act a whole lot like the old creature that we once we were. Because of this we are miserable and frustrated because there is this war going on inside of us. Look at Romans Chapter 7:15. What a struggle! Sanctification is daily discipline of becoming more like Christ. It is a life long process of Salvation on Earth. It is getting to experience heaven on earth. The · Someone said once, that sanctification is being a little more like Christ today than we were yesterday and tomorrow being a little more like Christ than we are today.
· Some people view their Christian walk as moving forward, standing still, or backsliding. Its either forward or stagnant or backwards. But I have found it not to be true. It’s more like going upward or going down. Like a rocket, when we become a Christian we often take off fast in the faith, but then sin creeps back in, the world entangles us and suddenly our engines cool down and we fall. I have never found in my experience a period of stagnation, I am either moving upwards or I am falling downwards. There is no static position in the Christian walk.
· “Peter commands us to grow in Grace”
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
· “Christ accepts us as we are, but when he accepts us, we cannot remain as we are.” (Walter Trobisch).
· “Christ accepts us as we are, but when he accepts us, we cannot remain as we are.” (Walter Trobisch).
· William Evans: One day Billy and Ruth Graham were driving thru a long stretch of road construction. They had numerous slowdowns, detours, and smooth pavement stretched out before them. The sign caught Ruth's attention: "End of Construction. Thanks for your patience." She commented that those words would be a fitting inscription on her tombstone someday.
· In Justification we are declared righteous, that in sanctification we may become righteous. Justification is what God does for us, while sanctification is what God does in us. Justification puts us into a right relationship to God, while sanctification exhibits the fruit of that relationship.
The final step is Glorification; this will not take place till Christ returns. We will finally be saved.
, our true identity is not in our "outer man" but in our inner man". We are spiritual beings who are temporarily clothed with perishable and mortal. But time is coming when "this perishable will put on imperishable, and this mortal put on immortality" ().
So those are three types of salvation mentioned in the Bible. Since the same word is used for all three it can get confusing. So it is necessary to look at the context of the passage to determine which one the author is referring to.
The Work Out
So it is pretty obvious Paul is referring to Sanctification here, the process of being saved while on earth. He uses the words Work out your salvation. He did not say work for your salvation. The work has already been done and the price has been paid by Jesus Christ.
The words work out mean to solve or to work towards completion. It also would have created a vivid image in the minds of the congregation of the Philippian church. These were also the words used by the people of the day when they would refer to mining. Philippi was a mining town. Or at least it had been. There were abandoned gold and silver mines all over the area. It is possible that many older people in the church were former miners. The words “work out” were used in the mining industry to mean mine for the gold and bring it out. Chisel it free from the rock and bring it to the surface. The Gold was no good to anyone buried deep inside, it had to be sought after, worked for, and brought out to be of any value.
Paul is painting a picture in the minds of the readers of our souls being like a gold mine. Christ has placed salvation in us, Christ himself indwells the believer, but this is of no value buried beneath our own worldly remaining sin. He must be sought after and worked for so he can shine out of our lives and be of value to others and us to the glory of God.
In today’s mining, dynamite is often used to blast away the rock to bring out the gold. Caesar Augustus had developed a technique for mining that only recently has been discovered. He obviously didn’t have dynamite but there are some mountains where 300 yard sections have been removed violently like dynamite would have done. He did it with water! He dug long thin shifts down the mountain and then turned them outward at 90 degrees. Then, water from a nearby reservoir was unleashed into the shafts. The force of the water as it traveled created the same explosive energy as dynamite, blowing up the mountain. Literally Moving the mountain! So we need dynamite like explosives to blast away the hard rock of our remaining sin! You know what it is? Obedience to the Holy Spirit.
When this happens, Christians transform from a life of frustration to a life of resurrection power, they experience a little heaven on earth. In the next chapter Paul refers to himself as “Straining” and Pressing on” towards the goal of Christlikeness.
In
Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;
for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.
Paul wrote, train yourself for Godliness Working out body is important, Spirit more so.
Salvation is a great mine…a great wealth inside of you..not just a ticket to heaven for one day but for heaven on earth today.
Salvation should be enriching your life today.
Not just fire insurance for something down the line. Great comfort and problem solving in your salvation…not just solving the problem of where you go when you die…its to solve all problems in life
I. There is not one bad circumstance in your life that is not made better by a proper understanding and application of the Gospel.
1. Christians today bored…going thru the motions. Why..haven't applied the gospel. There is a purpose for history and plan for His creation. A Magnificent plan
as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
…gather together in one..all things in Christ. Unified after fragmented by Sin..we will have a paradise again.
…gather together in one..all things in Christ. Unified after fragmented by Sin..we will have a paradise again.
Jesus has done the work but we are part of the program.
…we are to preach the gospel.
2. Some are depressed and some are without Joy, we have forgotten all the blessings of our salvation. Citizens of Heaven. Joy is not dependent on circumstance.
3. Some are worried...day in and day out...they have forgotten the gospel…or have not carried that truth to its logical conclusion….God gave His son! …he will give us all things, god is not withholding from His children.
If you don’t have you don’t need it or you haven't asked for it (James)
4. Physical problems…let the Gospel sink into your heart. Me to live is Christ and to die is Gain…
Christ was the source and secret of His Life and Joy. He is going to continue to reflect the Glory of Christ.
To die is gain….more of Christ….they have sent me home to the one that I love.
How frustrating that must have been to Nero and Paul's other enemies.
The worst thing that can happen to you is you die…you go to the most beautiful place with the one who loves you like you never have been loved, you go to paradise.
II. If you believe the gospel, it solves all problems of life but you have to mine them out…work them out in your life.
In Philippi were problems…why, they had forgotten the Gospel.
Christ came to change us and make us like Himself. It’s a glorious thing we can see him reflected in our life.
For someone whose salvation is just fire insurance. That salvation is questionable. Its hard to believe that a child could go his entire life without knowing the benefit of being a family member, same with a child of God
Fellow man expects you to bring riches out of it too…if you proclaim you are a Christian then those around are looking to see what is the difference it makes in you.
Work out your salvation. Mine it out…bring it out the effects of change that God has made in your life when you ere brought out of darkness into marvelous light.
· With fear and trembling:
Rather than fear and trembling, it could be reverence and awe.
Warren Wiersbe tells story of Girl being pressured to go somewhere she shouldn’t go. The girls said, what's wrong Gloria, are you afraid your father will find out and hurt you. She said no, I am afraid my father will find out and I will hurt him.
We don’t want to displease God.
We should work our salvation as it relates to other people because of the example of Christ.
III. Example is not enablement is it. We need the example to be an enabling power on the inside!
Imitate Christ. What would Jesus do? It is not imitation, it is incarnation. God is living in us.
Your desire comes from God.
Sharing faith, serving in some capacity, tithe, GOD has put that will. Don't let doubt creep in.
To will: I just can’t get my self to do what I know is right. God is responsible.
Pray, "Lord here I am, I know what I should do but just don’t want to. Help me want to! He will do it. Over time, he changes our desires and gives us will power. HE really does this doesn’t he.
I don’t have the will, I need it, give it to me! He will do it.
Might not happen in a flash of lightening, but over time he will do it.
Many people believe that once a person becomes a Christian they suddenly have the power within themselves to overcome sin and grow more like Christ.
“According to this idea the teaching of the New Testament is Justification by Faith and Sanctification by Struggle. But this is an utter mistake” (Thomas 206). Christians don’t just “fight the good fight”, but rather “fight the good fight of faith” (Thomas 206). Christians overcome sin, not by self- struggle but “through the mighty energy of the Holy Spirit within,” (Thomas 207).
Well that concludes our study in the book of Philippians. Lets look at our key verse for the series one last time and I just want to say a few more words.
Read .
The Billion-dollar question
Have you ever considered the difference between a million and a billion?
A million seconds is about 11 days. So if you were to start counting at 1 and continue counting at a rate of one number per second, it would take you 11 days to reach a million.
Do you know how long it would take to count to a billion? 32 years!
When Paul wrote this letter, the telescope had not been invented yet so the stars in the sky that were visible with the unaided eye were all that were known. That would have been just a few thousand at the most and the universe though breathtaking I am sure would have appeared far less impressive than what we now know it to be. The telescope was invented in the 17 century and more stars were discovered but even as late as the 1920’s the Milky Way was thought to be synonymous with the Universe. This alone would have been awesome to consider since our spiral galaxy contains more than 200 billion stars and extends to a diameter of 100,000 light years (remember that a light second is more than 186,000 miles!) The 93 million miles between the sun and earth is 8 light minutes). But more recent developments in astronomy have revealed that our galaxy is a member of a local cluster of about 20 galaxies and that this local cluster is but one member of a massive super cluster of thousands of galaxies. So many of the super clusters are known to exist that the number of galaxies is estimated at more than 100 BILLION.
In , "When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon, and the stars, which you have ordained; what is a man that you take thought of him? And son of man that you care for him?"
So why should we work out our salvation with Fear and Trembling and without Grumbling or complaining? Because the same God who made this amazing, incomprehensible universe, is living inside you and me! He worked for only 6 days and made the entire universe! Imagine the masterpiece he can produce in us over a lifetime! How long has he been working in you? Like the bright stars in the darkness of night, God wants to make you beautiful from the inside out. Let Him shine out so you can attract the lost to the Gospel of Christ and offer a beautiful hope in a desperate world.
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2001). (). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
[2] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.