Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.Wherefore, my beloved, as ye 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.So then, my beloved, even as ye 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;
4 sermons cite this verse
… with some healthy fear and trembling, like the Bible says in Philippians 2, verse 12. Twenty minutes later, they pull back into the lot. How'd he do? Dad asked the officer. He passed. Perfect score. No mistakes. Really? Perfect? Praise Jesus! Hallelujah! Dad says, giving the lawman a high five. So, perfect score. How often does that happen? Just about never, he said. Getting there was no cakewalk, nor is our life of faith. But because Christ went through the crucible, everybody in him wins. And everybody learns. I asked Sam what he learned through his crucible. He said, pay attention to the little things, always use your signals, and make sure you know where the defroster is. In the name of Jesus, amen. Schwamm, who was lecturing on the book of Numbers. Here's part of their conversation. So Shelly, the book of Numbers is the time when God's people are in the wilderness, and wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, it's not something we have, most of us have firsthand experience with. How did you relate that wilderness time in a way that might be comparable and maybe more relatable? Pretty much anyone can name a time that you've been through a transitional period in life. Those times of transition and in-between, when we're leaving something behind and maybe not quite figured out what is up next and haven't really stepped fully into what's next, that in-between time that can be just a little bit chaotic and unfamiliar and uncomfortable. Yeah, I really appreciate how you mentioned in your teaching about how Jesus led …
… Both to will and to work for His good pleasure. See Philippians 2, verses 12 and 13. In other words, God is totally responsible for making good come of this life, and we are totally responsible. It's not half and half. It's not 50-50, but 100%, 100%. It's all on God. It's all on us. Now, that doesn't compute, does it? Maybe you've tried working out the numbers, but you haven't been able to solve it. But that's okay, because God isn't a problem to solve, and this life isn't a computation to calculate. Life is a mystery to embrace, and God is a person with whom to relate. God is a wise and loving Father who wants to relate with you through His Son, Jesus, from Nazareth, who is called Christ. Jesus reveals this truth about our situation. It's all on God. It's all on us. In one moment, Jesus says, come to me. Come to me and live. He puts it on them. Come to me, He says, and if you refuse to come, that's on you. …
… cross. So all this gospel is happening, but the very next part of Philippians 2 says, therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed, this is Paul writing to these believers, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence. Look at this line. Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. This is salvation. God did it. Now you work it out. Oh, how am I going to work it out? Well, God's going to help you work it out because God is at work in you to do two things. I love this. When I saw this for the very first time as a 20-something-year-old, it absolutely changed everything about my walk with God. God is working in me both to will and to act. Some translations say to do, both to will and to do. In other words, when I don't want to, I pray that God would give me the want to. …
… and hopefully this will help us to apply what God has planted in our hearts. We're going to go to Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 and 13 for a moment. I'm preaching from my daughter's Bible today so you will notice an extra anointing, gentleness, vivaciousness. I've given all three of my kids Bibles that I preached from. I preached five years from the Bible then give it to a kid, give it to another. And so we'll see if Abby's is more anointed than Elijah's and Graham's today. I cycle through them, see which one of them has been praying for me the most. All right, listen to this verse. Just because I said it's short or just because I said it's simple, don't disengage your brain because I really want you to pay attention to what the Lord is saying here through the apostle Paul, the apostle Paul in this epistle to the church at Philippi. Through the apostle Paul in this epistle to the church at Philippi. The word of the Lord says, therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. Verse 13, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. …