Prayer: O Lord, set us, Your church, free from the anaesthetized state that we are slumbering in. Set us free to engage in the vibrant life that You have for us. A life in Your Presence, inspired by Your plans and Your wisdom…undergirded by a real knowledge of You and the resulting faith that comes from truly knowing You.
Lay an axe to the roots of everything that is smothering the life that You died to redeem. A people in Your image. Cut us off from the distractions that are numbing true life.
Our attentions are captured by things that are so base. It is like we are living in a cloud not realizing that the vistas beyond the cloud are astounding, filled with endless possibilities. Open the eyes of our spiritual understanding. Clear away the debris of this world and its systems and help us to see the Kingdom of God, our home, even now.
But more than anything, help us to really know You. Strip it all away my Lord…anything that steals our heart’s affections. We don’t need it anyway if it leads our hearts astray because true life is found ONLY in You…the Light, the Life, the Way and the Truth.
Our very essence flows forth from You. We only exist because of You. By Your Will we exist. From the fountain of Your creativity, You brought us forth. Lord have You way in our lives. Let all that You have desired BE the reality of who we are. Open the eyes of our hearts this morning.
That is our prayer my Lord. We ask in Jesus name.
That day
The day that you heard the good news of the gospel – that you could receive the gift of salvation if you believed in what Jesus did for you… that day… when you surrendered your life at the Cross so that you could receive the gift of salvation… that day, at that very moment… you stepped through the Cross and into Him, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, the second Adam, the One (the ONLY One) who fulfilled ALL righteousness, the Lamb of God and the covenant partner of God in the New Covenant… signed in His Blood.
That day, IN HIM, because of His Blood, because of His death, because of the price He paid, you were raised from spiritual death and became ‘born again’. You were translated BY God the Father, out of the POWER of darkness and into the Kingdom of the Son of God, the Son of His love.
That day, IN HIM, you became a beneficiary of the New Covenant, IN HIM, you became an heir of God. IN HIM, you received the gift of His righteousness and the ability to be in the presence of Almighty God. You were able to approach the throne of God BECAUSE IN HIM, you were reconciled to God.
All of this was what the Lord Jesus Christ purchased for you and for me. He is the ONLY Way back to the Father. He IS the Truth and He IS the Life. It is ONLY IN HIM!
Yet… it was about even more than that…
The day that you stepped through the Cross and into His Kingdom…. THAT DAY the work that is Gen. 1:26 could now begin in you.
Then Paul comes along and says to the Church at Philippi:
Phil. 2:12 – 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.
This is Paul speaking to the church, the ones who are already in the Kingdom… the ones who have already been saved so what is he talking about?
Why is this important? Because if it applies to them, it applies to you and I.
Saved from wrath VS Saved by His life
Saved from wrath.
Rom. 5:9 – Much more then, having now been justified (how?) by His Blood (the reason), we shall be saved from wrath (Gr. Orge) through Him.
Justified: Dikaioo (Phonetics -Dik-ah-yo’-o).
Strong’s definition: to render just or innocent. Free, be righteous.
Thayer’s definition: to render righteous, to declare one to be just or righteous.
Saved: Sozo (Phonetics – Sode’-zo).
Strongs: To deliver, protect, heal, preserve, make whole.
Thayer’s: To keep safe and sound. To deliver from the penalties of the Messianic judgment. Wrath: Orge (phonetics – Or-gay).
Strong’s: violent passion, by implication punishment – anger, indignation, vengeance, wrath. Thayer’s: Anger exhibited in punishment.
How did you and I become justified / made righteous? By His blood and ONLY by His blood. We shall be saved from wrath (the penalties of the Messianic judgment) because we have been justified…and that only because Jesus blotted out the handwriting of requirements that was against us by shedding His Blood on the cross – Col. 2:14.
It stands to reason then, that without His blood, we are not justified and if we are not justified, we will NOT be saved from wrath (the penalties of the Messianic judgment).
Yet, we only access this when we believe…if we do not believe that we need Jesus, then we reject the price that He paid AND we cannot be justified and we will NOT be saved from wrath.
Don’t you dare question the love of God!
If the Lord Jesus Christ did not shed His blood on the Cross, we would NOT be justified NOR would we be saved from the wrath of God which IS to come!
Col. 3:5-10 – Therefore, put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath (Orge) of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience (Gr.Apeitheia), in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.
Disobedience: Apeitheia (Phonetics – Ap-i’-thi-ah). Strongs and Thayers: Disbelief, obstinate opposition of the divine will.
In this word Apeitheia, we find that disbelief manifests itself in disobedience.
Let us not beat about the bush…it is disbelief in Jesus and His great sacrifice on your behalf that will bring the wrath of God down on you at the very end! And LOVE is warning you NOW!
Question? If disbelief manifests itself in disobedience…then surely belief will manifest itself in obedience? Remember this – Both disbelief and belief are heart issues.
Saved by His life.
Rom. 5:10 – For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God (how?) through the death of His Son, MUCH MORE, having been reconciled, we shall be (future tense) saved (how?) by His life.
There’s a MUCH MORE? Yes…Now that you are reconciled you can be saved (made whole) by His life. What does ‘made whole’ mean? It means to become ALL you were created to be.
- You and I needed to be justified and saved from the wrath that is to come.
- You and I needed to be reconciled to God SO THAT Gen. 1:26 (the image bearer) could become a reality in our lives!
Christ in you…the hope of glory! Col. 1:27.
Saved: Sozo – (Phonetics Sode-zo) – to deliver, protect, heal, preserve, to make whole. Life: Zoe – Thayer’s definition – the absolute fullness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to God.
So now, knowing this… let’s read Rom. 5:10 again.
Rom. 5:10 – For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God (how?) through the death of His Son, MUCH MORE, having been reconciled, we shall be (future tense) saved (delivered, protected, healed, preserved, made whole) (how?) by His life. (The absolute fullness of life which belongs to God).
This verse is speaking about the transformation that is Gen. 1:26.
The bride of Christ is the transformed one. Transformation is about birthing Christ in you by the power of the Holy Spirit – 2 Cor. 3:18.
Yet, we only access this when we believe…if we reject the price that He paid we cannot be justified and therefore, it is impossible for us to be saved from the wrath that is to come. Secondly, if we reject what He did for us, we cannot be reconciled to God and obviously we can never be saved by His life.
So going back to Paul speaking to the church in Philippi:
Phil. 2:12 – Therefore, (for this reason…because of what I have just shared) 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 (in what manner?) with fear and trembling; for it is God who works (to put forth power, to be operative) in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Again, this is Paul speaking to the church, the ones who are already in the Kingdom so what is he talking about?
Well the answer is of course in what Paul had just shared with them.
Phil. 2:5-8 – Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, BUT made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant (someone who was a freed slave but chose to stay and serve his master), and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, EVEN the death of the cross.
So Jesus, even though He was God the Son, humbled Himself, chose to be obedient and to serve God the Father and become a man to redeem you and I. Jesus, humbled Himself to the point of death, EVEN (here Paul is emphasizing a comparison – which tells us that Jesus humbled Himself and became obedient by dying to Himself more than once) EVEN the death of the cross.
So if we are to let this mind be in us which was also in Christ Jesus, then our walk will require us to be bondservants – freed slaves who choose to stay and serve our Master. How? By humbling ourselves by being obedient to whatever our God requires of us.
Question? If disbelief manifests itself in disobedience…then surely belief will manifest itself in obedience? Remember this – Both disbelief and belief are heart issues.
So to go back to V12 once more…
Phil. 2:12 – Therefore, (for this reason…because of what I have just shared) 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 (in what manner?) with fear and trembling; for it is God who works (to put forth power, to be operative) in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Work out your own salvation – your transformation into His nature and character (His image) with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to do.
Who is doing it in you?
It is God who provides the power IN YOU to will, to desire to change in an area that needs transformation AND it is God who provides the power IN YOU so that you can do it.
True transformation can only be birthed by Him (why?) because it IS Him. He is in the process of writing His law in our minds AND on our hearts by His Holy Spirit. Heb. 8:10-11. Out of our hearts spring forth the issues of life. Prov. 4:23.
Nobody was able to keep the laws of the Old Covenant in their own strength. The New Covenant enables God to write the law in our hearts so that it becomes a part of who we are. Yet, as with everything else, our God wants us to choose to surrender to His Will.
Will we humble ourselves as Jesus did?
This brings us to ‘work out your own salvation with fear and trembling’.
1 Cor. 2:1-4 – And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power (Why?) that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
What is Paul saying here? I would not dare to minister to you in my own strength and ability. It all had to be ministry BY the Holy Spirit so that your faith, your belief had to be in the power of God…not just the smart words of men.
Paul was in fear that Paul would be accumulating disciples instead of hearts being turned to God. He knew that he had to allow the Holy Spirit to do the miracles that revealed the presence, the power and the glory of God.
So it must be with us. A transformed heart has died to the flesh and has no desire to sin. But that transformation can only be a work of the Holy Spirit that reveals the presence, the power and the glory of God in any given situation.
We saw that Jesus humbled Himself to the point of death, EVEN the death of the Cross.
Paul writes in Gal. 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Yet… just as it was with Jesus – His death led to redemption and spiritual resurrection so it was for Paul, as he died to himself daily, his obedience to God led to the redemption and spiritual resurrection of thousands upon thousands and so it will be for us.
By picking up our cross and dying to ourselves, it will lead to the redemption and resurrection of our original purpose, which is Gen. 1:26, AND ultimately it will lead others to redemption and spiritual resurrection as well.
Fear and trembling. Reverent, holy awe that humbles you and leads you to bow before the King of Glory in obedience. ‘Your Will my Lord and not mine’.
This is the response of a heart that is captivated by Him. This is ‘first works’…the response to ‘first love’.