Working Out God's Work

What is your response to authority? Is it that of a rebel? Is it that of a fake? Is it that of submission?

Paul is writing to the church of Philippi and up to this point in ch. 2 was talking about humility. He mentions God works in us. Do you know that God works in you, and you need to have the right response. Many Christians do not respond correctly to God, and waste years of their life living in the filth, and pigpen and sin.

What is our response to God’s work in our life?

God’s Work

Look at chapter 1 verse 6

He saved you…but He did not just leave you there

He is going to change you…and He is wanting to change you more and more to be like Jesus until you see Jesus in glory and we will be like Him

2 Corinthians 3:18 “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

1 John 3:2 “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”

How does He do that?

Will

God works in our hearts to change our desires. We are not animals, or robots. There is a reason that I try not to allow anger to control me or desire the same things, the same position or popularity or whatever that I used to do. God transforms our will. Psalm 37:4 “Delight thyself also in the Lord; And he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Rich Tozour said that God either fulfills godly desires (he used his desire to travel, which someone who wants to be an evangelist needs. He gave me a desire to preach, when I did not get baptized for 3 years because I did not want to give my testimony in front of everyone) or changes evil desires. I do not desire to listen to the same music I used to. I do not desire to be who I used to. I used to want to be seen as a rebel and a punk. We as Christians should not desire the things that the world does because we have been changed.

Do

God works in our hearts to do what He calls us to do. There is a reason I cannot watch certain shows without being convicted. There is a reason I cannot do the same things I used to do because God has worked in my heart. The reason I try to give out tracts, and pray and read my Bible and do all these things is because God has worked in my heart.

God changes our desires which change our actions. The reason people do all of these evil things is because of their evil desires

James 4:1-3 “From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.”

So God changes our desires which should change our actions

He does this for His pleasure. He does what He pleases. Many times we think of God on our level. Where we can challenge what He wants from us, but as Psalm 115:3 “But our God is in the heavens: He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”

Our work

We are not robots so it is not just have God do His part, and we’re good. Now it says we need to work out our own salvation in fear and trembling. Because God works in our life, we need to work out our own salvation.

What does it mean to work out your own salvation? It means what is said in the first part of the verse to obey. Obey the work that God is going to do in you. With fear and trembling is in regard to having humility before God.

God’s Word exposes what needs to go on. About 9-10 years ago my dad, brother and I were remodeling our basement. We were putting fiberglass insulation and then we made these frames that we nailed, where we put the fiberglass, and then we put paneling on it. I was working and I saw a snake, I tried to kill but it went into the insulation. My dad and I did not just leave it there, but rather had to take out the insulation and we found it and killed it. I saw this video of a snake, and these people were trying to catch it. the ceiling collapsed and 3 snakes then dropped out of the ceiling. What would your response be? It needs to be get rid of the snakes. Some of you, the Word of God exposes what sin is in your life, and rather than getting rid of it. You’re keeping it in and it is destroying your house.

This school year, the series I am doing is probably going to be very convicting because I am doing the theme next week, and will jump straight into our verse-by-verse study, I know where we are headed and I can just think of different parts, where I know it will just convict me. We shy away from that…but that is God working in us. When we feel conviction our response needs to be not complaining, or refusing but instead obedience.

What is your response? Do you just hold onto it, and say this is my pet sin? When someone speaks something convicting do you just

Conclusion: It says in v. 15 that we may be blameless and harmless, that we can be lights in this world. The world should be able to witness God’s change in us and it testifies of Him. He