I'M GONNA LET IT SHINE!

We’ve been going through Paul’s letter to the Philippians…

Last week Pastor Jake talked about one of the most beautiful passages about Christ’s humiliation and exaltation…

This week, we are going to build on Christ’s example, and see how that should affect our own lives.

My title this morning is “I’m Gonna Let It Shine”…

Christ’s Example Motivates Us To Work Out Our Own Salvation

Philippians 2:12–13 ESV

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.

The Philippians were very faithful in their obedience in the past when he was with them.

We remember that Paul had visited them on three different occasions.

On his first visit he started a church, and he came back a second and third time to support and encourage them.

Here Paul reminds them of how faithful they had been to obey God’s Word while he was with them.

Now his concern is their continued obedience in his absence.

WHY??

Because most people tend to work less hard when the leader or the boss is away. We are not paying as close attention to what we’re doing when no one is watching us.

Most of us have heard the saying...

When the cat’s away, the mice will play. This is a proverbial saying that means when the person in charge or authority is not present, people will take advantage of their newfound freedom to behave as they please, and thus will disregard and break the rules.

In other words, when their boss is not around, employees will not do their work or will break the rules.

Last week, I was reintroduced to a guy I remembered working with as a teenager. We had the joy of corn-detassling. Many of you have probably done this job at some point in your life as well.

Detassling corn is done to create a hybrid between two varieties of corn. The tassle from one variety is removed to allow the seed from the other variety to pollenize it. This creates nicer looking corn, as well as a higher yield.

But more importantly for young teenage boys at least, the tassle itself can become a weapon! Many of you know what I mean.

The tassle has a harder piece at the bottom, and if you whip it just right against the bottom of your shoe, that piece breaks off and launches fast and far.

We had to be constantly reminded not to do it because it could actually be quite dangerous. But when the cat’s away… As we would get to the end of the row, you would begin collecting tassles from the last few plants, and start firing tassle missiles at your friends.

Paul now urges them to obey “much more in my absence.” He is no longer there to teach them, to guide them, to correct them, to watch over them. They are now on their own.

Rather than working less though, Paul is trying to motivate them all the more to work hard.

He does that by showing them that they are owners/leaders of their own salvation. He says, “Work out YOUR OWN salvation.”

Last week in our time of singing we read John 10, where Jesus call Himself a shepherd and speaks of His willingness to lay down His life for the sheep. This is because they are HIS sheep. The hired hand flees when he sees the wolf coming. He is not willing to risk his life for the sheep because they are not his.

This is exactly how Paul is encouraging them to think of their salvation.

You must take ownership of your own salvation

When Paul says, “work out your own salvation”, he is not in any way talking about working FOR salvation.

Remember that he is writing to the SAINTS in Philippi. They are already Christians.

Besides that, Paul will go on in Philippians chapter 3 to say that he puts no confidence in the flesh. He desires to be found in Christ, “not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ,”

What Paul is saying, is BECAUSE God has saved you, work out your salvation.

True faith never remains passive; it immediately goes to work – not as a means of earning divine favour but as a consequence of having received the grace of God that works mightily within us. – John MacArthur

God has poured out His amazing grace on us, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have anything to do.

This should lead us to making every effort to work for the glory of God.

Paul goes on to say that we should work out our own salvation with “fear and trembling”

We need to have a healthy fear of offending God. We pursue godliness with the utmost awe and respect for God. We don’t take His grace and mercy lightly.

As if we didn’t already have enough motivation to work out our own salvation, Paul goes on to give the Philippians one more reason...

“for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

God is working in you to make you the man/woman HE wants you to be.

We’ve all worked with someone who doesn’t pull their weight. It’s frustrating!

If you are a believer, God has already done the work of salvation in your heart. You now have the Holy Spirit dwelling in your heart, and therefore have all you need to live victoriously in Christ.

you have the same power that raised Christ from the dead.

you will never be tempted beyond what you can bear

You have every spiritual blessing in the heavenly pl

So if we are struggling in our spiritual lives, what’s the problem?

We are reason we aren’t growing in our spiritual lives

Are you frustrated in your spiritual life? Are you discouraged in your Bible reading, your prayer life? Do you feel linadequate as the spiritual leader of your home? Do you constantly feel like you are disappointing God?

WHAT ARE YOU DOING ABOUT IT?

If you were to honestly evaluate the amount of time you spend working toward your spiritual growth as a disciple of Christ, VS how much time you spend on your phone, watching tv, working on projects… or however you typically spend your time… what would you find?

You are your own worst enemy! I am my own worst enemy! We are the reason we aren’t growing more in our spiritual lives.

If you are a believer, God has already worked in you giving you salvation, and now He is working in you by the power of His Holy Spirit, giving you the desire to obey, and He will continue to work in you to form you into the image of Christ, but He’s not going to do it for you.

God loves you enough to send His Son to die on a cross for you, but He is not going to twist our arm into obedience. He has given us His Holy Spirit who prompts us, reminds us, teaches us… the problem is our flesh.

We need to determine to work our hardest for our spiritual growth!

You will not be motivated to change until you get so sick and tired of being where you’re at that you will make major changes in your life.

The good news is that God is working in us. He is on our side.

He is for us! He wants us to grow, and will work alongside us for that growth.

Let’s not leave Him hanging!

CHRIST’S EXAMPLE MOTIVATES US TO WORK OUT OUR OWN SALVATION

Christ’s Example Motivates Us To Shine As Lights

Philippians 2:14–16 (ESV)

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

Paul has encouraged the Philippians to work hard for their own salvation, and here he tells them how.

“Do ALL THINGS without grumbling or disputing”

What things? ALL THINGS… without grumbling or disputing.

We remember the Israelites and all of their grumbling and complaining at what God allowed them to experience.

The reason we must avoid this sort of attitude, is because

A person who grumbles, complains, and argues, is rejecting God’s providence, will, and circumstances for their life.

God has allowed that circumstance into your life. You may not know why, but to grumble and complain about it shows that your heart is not submissive to God’s sovereignty in your life.

The attitude of a servant of Christ is to be willing to do anything that doesn’t violate God’s law and cause you to sin.

We could probably find many reasons/excuses from our human perspective why we would justified to grumble or argue about something, but when we think of Christ’s example, it all falls flat.

Pastor Jake talked last week about how Jesus humbled Himself. He said, “The gap between His place as God in heaven, and Him hanging on the cross is greater than we may ever know.”

If Christ was willing to humble Himself that much for our benefit, then how much more willing should we be to lower ourselves to serve others?

John Flavel, an English Puritan Presbyterian Minister once said,

"They that know God will be humble. They that know themselves cannot be proud." — John Flavel

When we truly know God, and truly understand ourselves, humility is the only option.

Christ followers are humble people.

We are to have this sort of attitude…

“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.”

To be blameless and innocent means that no one is able to accuse us of any wrongdoing.

Daniel is a perfect example of this sort of lifestyle.

The book of Daniel is set during the time that the Israelites are in exile, suffering punishment from God because of their sin. God allowed Nebuchadnezzar to conquer Jerusalem, and take the Israelites back to his land.

This would have been the perfect opportunity to grumble and complain, but instead we see Daniel setting a perfect example of obedience. Daniel was so diligent in his work, that in Daniel 6, King Darius made him 1 of 3 of his top officials, and planned to set him over his entire kingdom. Then we read:

Daniel 6:4 ESV

Then the high officials and the satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him.

Think of how incredible that testimony of Daniel is. Even when they tried to find dirt on him, they couldn’t find any because of his faithful obedience.

The world that we live in does not follow this set of high standards. They are willing to do almost anything to get ahead, even if that means doing something to slander someone else.

Our world is full of people who claim to be good, but at the end of the day, they will protect their own interests above anyone elses.

When we live differently than the world by following Jesus’s example, we shine as lights in the darkness.

This is an intentional lifestyle. You will not wake up with a desire to live this way. You will need to spend time in prayer in the morning, asking God to fill you with the Spirit, giving you the desire to live as a light in the world by doing all things without grumbling or arguing.

If you live intentionally this way, it will open up doors for you to share the gospel. People are going to notice, and they will ask why you work as hard as you do, or why you’re willing to do certain things without complaining.

That’s an opportunity for you to share your faith. You could say something like: “I am a Christian. I believe in Jesus, who was God, yet He came to this world as a man so that He could die as the sacrifice for my sin. If He was willing to do that for me, how could I not be willing to humble myself to serve others?”

This is exactly what verse 16 is referring to when it says, “holding fast to the word of life”

The original text here is more accurately represented by the Amplified Bible which says,

“holding out and offering to everyone the word of life”

When we live as examples of Christ’s life, we will shine as lights in this world, which will give us opportunities to give the reason for the hope that we have.

This last Spring, I had the privilege of attending a conference known as T4G, Together 4 the Gospel. About 12,000 church leaders from different denominations came together to be encouraged to fulfill the mandate of Christ to go into all the world preaching the gospel of Christ Jesus.

- I stumbled upon an opinion article this week and the title caught my attention. “When 12,000 Evangelical Leaders Saturated Louisville, Was a Gospel Impression Left?” Jesse Jackson begins his article this way,

“On the afternoon of the third day, a thought came to my mind while eating at a well-known restaurant chain: “If 12,000 people who love the Lord and have been encouraged by the Word of God over the last 36 hours visited the establishments in downtown Louisville, wouldn’t the scent of the gospel have been left among those working at these places?””

With a friend, he visited 7 food establishments, and interviewed cashiers, hostesses, baristas, and other workers to ask about their experiences with the thousands of conference-goers who came to grab food and drinks.

Some workers said that they had been rude, left a mess, others said they hadn’t been too bad. When asked if they knew why they were all there, some had no idea, others knew it was some sort of religious conference.

Jesse then says:

How is it that thousands of those whom God has entrusted to teach His sheep about His Word, share His gospel throughout their everyday encounters, and make disciples, didn’t leave a gospel impression on the establishments they frequently visited, letting them know that they were their for the gospel?

As Christians, we are to be the aroma of Christ.

We are to shine as lights in this world. It is embarrassing to think that church leaders from all over North America left a less than adequate aroma of Christ.

The truth is, if we’re all honest, we have all failed to give a good representation of Jesus Christ and the gospel we represent. There are times where we are just plain rude and disrespectful. There are times where we felt like we had a perfect opportunity to talk about our faith and didn’t.

The last paragraph of Jesse’s article states:

Christian, you are being watched, even when you think no one knows you are a follower of Christ. Let’s live like our encounters with people have the power to change their lives, because the Holy Spirit lives in us, and we have been entrusted to spread the gospel to all who have ears to hear it. — Jesse T. Jackson

CHRIST’S EXAMPLE MOTIVATES US TO SHINE AS LIGHTS

Christ’s Example Motivates Us To Serve One Another

Philippians 2:17–18 (ESV)

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.

The initial statement here is taken from the end of verse 16. Paul is telling the Philippians how they ought to live in light of Christ’s example, doing all things without grumbling so that they will be lights to the world around them.

One of the reasons he gives for them to live this way is:

“so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.”

On first reading, this sounds kind of selfish. It seems like Paul is concerned about his own reputation here.

He’s actually not being selfish. Paul is actually showing that he doesn’t care as much about the work that he did, as much as the fruit that God brought about through it.

But like anyone, he wants to know that the work he did made a difference.

Hard work makes us weary, and if we feel like its pointless, then we are prone to discouragement, burnout, and eventually will quit.

But on the other hand,

Hard work that produces fruit energizes us to continue.

This is one of the hardest parts of being a Bible teacher. Whether you teach SS, youth, men or women. You can’t always see what is going on in their hearts and lives. You pour so much effort and energy into studying, preparing, and then delivering your study, and when it’s all done you’ve emptied yourself. And sometimes you feel empty afterward.

You have taught the people what God has said, but what will happen from here you have no idea.

It’s not like building a house, working on a car, cooking a meal, or doing someone’s taxes where you can see the fruit of your labour.

But every once in a while, God allows you to see some fruit from your work.

There is no greater blessing than to hear of the fruit in someone’s life because of your work. We you do, it energizes you to push all the more to give yourself for others.

Paul continues and makes this point even stronger…

Philippians 2:17 ESV

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.

Paul had stated earlier in chapter 1 that he believed he was going to be released from prison.

However, he states here that even if his imprisonment leads to his death he is glad. WHY?

Because it has brought about the Philippians faith!

Paul willingly accepts his physical death, since it was brought about as a result of the Philippians eternal life.

Remember that Paul was in prison for preaching the gospel. He was set apart by God to share the message of the gospel with Gentiles, and through his ministry he:

Preached the gospel in at least 59 cities, many of which he visited on more than one occasion.

Through his ministry we know of 14 churches that began because of God’s work through him, and who knows how many churches that began as out-pourings of those churches.

All of the work, all of the travel, all of the beatings, floggings, shipwreck, hunger, mocking, and now even the possibility of his death was all worth it knowing that men and women were saved from their sin, and were going to spend eternity in heaven glorifying Christ because of their faith in Him.

Paul is so satisfied with the life that he lived, he says in verse 18…

Philippians 2:18 ESV

Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

It’s as if he’s saying you don’t need to mourn my death. I am happy to be poured out as an offering if it means your faith.

Paul recognizes what is trule valuable. He is living with eternity in mind. He can rejoice in His life lived for Christ, and has no regrets.

We’ve all seen movies or shows where a person finds out they have a serious disease, or are on their death bed, and they talk about all the things they didn’t have time to do, and the regrets they had.

Owning a house in that vacation spot you’ve always wanted won’t satisfy you.

Getting the kitchen of your dreams won’t satisfy you.

Watching your team win the title won’t satisfy you.

The only way to live a life with no regrets is to live it to the fullest in service to others to the glory of God.

Then you will look back on your life and see that you lived a life of purpose. A life of meaning.

Are you living that way now?

As you think about your life, do you feel satisfied?

If you knew you were going to die today, would you have peace knowing that your life meant something for eternity?

This is what Solomon is talking about when he of vanity of life in the book of Ecclesiastes.

You can work incredibly hard your whole life, build up a bunch of wealth, enjoy the greatest things of this life, but when you die you have to leave it to someone else who didn’t work for it. you can’t take it with you.

this is why we need to be intentional to live with an eternal mindset storing up treasures in heaven.

Paul did that through giving his entire life for the spreading of the gospel, the salvation of souls, the edification of believers, helping them become more faithful and obedient to Christ.

we ought to imitate him, and follow his example in giving his life for his fellow believers, because he is following Christ example.

Hebrews 12:1–2 ESV

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

In view of the great heroes of the faith who gave up their fleshly desires to live a life of eternal purpose, we too should give up the fleeting pleasures of this life to leave a legacy that extends through the ages.

We do this looking to Jesus, the one who saved us, in the one who is able to bring us into God’s presence holy and blameless.

He himself was willing to endure the cross. Why?

Because of the joy that was set before him.

What joy is the author of Hebrews speaking of?

He is speaking of the joy that it would bring him to save a multitude for his glory. To save you. To save me.

Dane Ortlund, speaking on this passage in his book Gentle and Lowly, says this...

It was the joyous anticipation of seeing his people made invinciby clean that sent him through his arrest, death, burial, and resurrection. When we today partake of that atoning work, coming to Christ for forgiveness, communing with him despite our sinfulness, we are laying hold of Christ’s own deepest longing and joy. — Dane Ortlund Gentle & Lowly

It is his deepest longing to save sinners from their sin.

So it should be our joy for us to see sinners repent and believe in the One who can save them.

If we are going to spend ourselves for anything in this life, there is no greater joy than to spend it filling heaven with souls who will bring glory to God, and enjoy his presence for all eternity!

Key Takeaways

How are you doing in terms of working out your own salvation with fear and trembling, knowing that God is working in you?

Take inventory of how you spend your free time and make a plan to grow as a disciple of Jesus

This may involve looking at your screen time on your phone, or asking a trusted friend to give input.

This is not easy. The reason we don’t want to is because we’re scared what we will find.

Press on with boldness and confidence, knowing that God is working with you, and desires you to grow.

How are you doing shining as a light for Christ?

Ask family, friends, coworkers to tell you how bright your light is shining

I suggest you don’t bring a bat or anything else with when you ask them.

Ask them what others think of you. What aroma you’re giving off.

This may be painful, but is important since we can be blind to these things.

How are you doing giving yourself as a sacrifice for your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ?

In what ways are you serving the body of Christ?

Maybe you’re already serving as much as you can and you shouldn’t take on anymore.

Maybe you’re serving a little, but with all the extra time you’ll have after you look at your screen time on your phone, you think you can serve in another area.

Maybe you’re not serving in any area of church.

We would love to talk you about what gift the Holy Spirit has given you, and how you can use it to build up Christ’s church.

There are always ways to serve.