Working at Joy - Philippians 2:12-13

Introduction

On June 2, 1945, President Harry Truman placed the Medal of Honor around the neck of a 20-year-old Army officer named Audie Murphy. The Medal of Honor is the highest award this nation can give. There is nothing above it. It is reserved for courage “above and beyond the call of duty.” In fact, Murphy would become the most decorated American combat soldier of World War II.

But that ceremony began in a frozen field in France. Murphy’s company was overwhelmed by a massive German assault — tanks, infantry, relentless fire. He ordered his men to pull back to safety. And, while his men were falling back, Murphy stayed and fought in the midst of the gunfire alone.

Wounded, he climbed onto a burning tank destroyer and manned its machine gun, fully exposed. For nearly an hour he held off the enemy advance by himself, even calling artillery down on his own position. He quite literally absorbed the fire so his men could live.

And when the German attack finally stalled, he stood up, turned to his men, and ordered them to counterattack. And they followed him. Why? Because they had just seen his courage and sacrifice for them. And, when a man has risked everything for you, you do not hesitate when he says, “Follow me.”

God’s Word

(slide) This helps us to understand what’s happening in Philippians 2. After Paul explains Jesus’ self-sacrificing obedience in the Christ hymn, there are two “therefores” — one in verse 9 and one in verse 12. The “therefore” in verse 9 shows us God’s response to the humiliating obedience of Jesus, and the “therefore” in verse 12 shows ours. God declares Jesus’ worth by exalting him as the Name above every name, and we declare Jesus’ worth by following him with a similar self-denying obedience. And, in the process, Paul shows us “How to Imitate Christ:” (Headline)

Work “out” your “salvation.”

Philippians 2:12 “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,”

Philippians 2:8 “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

There’s a real sense in which this text gives us the what, the how, and the why of the Christian life. It shows us how to do the right things, by the right means, for the right reason. That’s what it means to imitate Christ. The specific “what” Paul has in mind is obedience — obedience like “becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

My son Josiah has helped me see that there are two ways to obey. I can say, “You need to clean up all of your Spiderman toys in the playroom,” and he’ll slump his shoulders and shuffle off. He obeys because he doesn’t want to be wrong with his dad, but there’s no eagerness in it.

But if I say, “When it’s clean, your friends can come over and play — and by the way, y’all can have some cookie dough ice cream too,” he goes off in his joy. The task is the same. The heart is different.

It’s that joyful obedience that’s meant to mark the Christian life — as we follow a Savior who “endured the cross” “for the joy that was set before him.” Paul (and Josiah) teach us that if we’re going to obey with joy, we have to understand something crucial.

Obedience is “purposeful” work.

Philippians 2:12 “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,”

The difference in Josiah’s attitude isn’t the task he’s assigned. It’s the purpose he sees. This is in Paul’s mind when he says that you should “work out your own salvation.” When Paul says, “work out your own salvation,” it can sound confusing to those of us who know we’re saved by grace alone through Christ’s finished work. But our salvation has two dimensions.

The first is justification — when we are declared righteous before God because of Jesus’ finished work. That is by grace alone, and it is final. The second dimension is sanctification — the ongoing work of becoming more like Christ, putting to death the old nature and living out the new. In one sense, we have been saved. We’ve been justified, declared righteous, and passed through judgment. In another sense, we are being saved. God’s salvation is meant to reach into every corner of our lives, and that work is still unfolding. Justification is your position. Sanctification is your progress.

It’s this second sense — sanctification that Paul means here. He’s writing to believers who “have always obeyed.” Now, he’s calling them to do it “much more.” To “work out” is to make a deliberate, sustained effort toward maturity. The invitation is to press into the fullest experience of the salvation you’ve been given. God has brought you into His Kingdom, handed you the keys, and said, “Go explore. Go enjoy. Go live in it.” He’s made you someone new, and now invites you to become even more of what you now are.

So, we’re meant to see this is purposeful work, and…

Obedience is “serious” work.

Philippians 2:12 “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,”

When Paul says “with fear and trembling,” he’s reminding us of the weight of what we’ve been entrusted with. The picture isn’t anxiety — like driving with a state trooper behind you. It’s privilege. Imagine you were homeless, and the president brought you off the street into the White House to serve as his ambassador. You would feel the weight of that honor and the depth of the privilege. You would be aware of every action in light of his glory and your calling, not because you were anxious but because you wanted to live up to the privilege you’ve received. That’s the picture. It’s the refusal to coast. The refusal to treat holy things casually.

(slide) When Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling, he labored over tiny details no one on the floor would ever see. The ceiling was sixty feet above the ground. Why exhaust himself over what seemed invisible? His answer was simple: “I will see it.”

He understood the weight of what he’d been entrusted with, so he worked with seriousness and care. You don’t coast on a masterpiece. That’s the picture of what it means to “work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” It means to take seriously what God has entrusted to you. To labor carefully and deliberately. To refuse casual Christianity. To give yourself fully — not to earn your place in the Kingdom, but to most fully live in and enjoy the place you’ve already been given.

Work “with” God’s “energy.”

(slide w/graphic) Everywhere you look, our culture is chasing energy. Walk into any gas station or grocery store checkout, and you’ll see refrigerators lined with bright cans promising focus, endurance, intensity. In fact, even the stock market bears this out. Over the past twenty years, Monster Beverage stock increased by more than 100,000%, dramatically outpacing Apple, Google, Facebook, and other tech giants over the same stretch.

Why? Because people are craving energy. We’re tired. We’re stretched thin. We want fuel that keeps us going. And the message we’re sold is simple: if you’re going to keep up, you need more energy.

Now think about what Paul has just called us to. He calls us to do the hard work of taking responsibility for our own growth: Work out your salvation. With fear and trembling. Serious obedience. No coasting. No casual Christianity. If that’s the calling, it’s fair to ask: where are we supposed to get the energy for that? Man, we feel that, don’t we? Like, I don’t know if there’s enough Monster energy in Shelby County for that!

Well, if verse 12 shows us the “what” of the Christian life, verse 13 let us know the “how.”

God “enables” us.

Philippians 2:13 “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

We’re obsessed with output. That’s why we chase coffee with Monsters and download the latest hacks. We feel pressure to produce more — even while we’re already running on empty. So when we hear, “work out your own salvation,” we may feel exhausted before we even begin.

That’s why the “for” in verse 13 matters. This isn’t self-generated effort. This is you working out what God has worked in. “For it is God who works in you.” You’re not working for salvation. You’re working from salvation. You’re not mustering; you’re channeling. We aren’t the fountain; we’re the faucet. We aren’t the power plant; we’re the lamp.

The word “works” is where we get our word energy. The God who spoke the universe into motion, who breathed life into Adam, is the God now working in you. The One who animated dust now animates the new birth. That’s the promise of the New Covenant — not just forgiveness, but new capacity. God gives what He commands.

(slide) J.I. Packer says, “Those who know God have great energy for God.” When God works in you, obedience isn’t drudgery; it’s desire. They want to know God as well as they can and enjoy God as much as they can. So, we ought to stop and contemplate why it is that much of the modern church seems to be so low on energy.

You see, what we have to realize is that as God is enabling us, he’s also reshaping us…

God “reshapes”us.

Philippians 2:13 “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

The question ought to be: How does God energize us to “work out our salvation?” What does that look like in real life? That’s how we are to understand God working in us “both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” What is He saying? God is at work in you to transform your will, and by transforming your will, He changes your work.

That’s New Covenant transformation. In Scripture, the heart isn’t just emotions; it’s the control center — what you think, believe, desire, and decide. And Paul is saying God is working there. He isn’t satisfied with mere behavior modification. He reshapes your thoughts, reforms your desires, redirects your decisions. He doesn’t just want your hands and feet — He wants your loves.

And that’s where freedom is found. Freedom is not doing whatever you want. Freedom is wanting what is right — and then doing it with joy.

People often ask how to discern God’s will — who to marry, where to go, what job to take. Those are real questions. And, Paul reminds us of the answer: we should do everything we can to have our will tuned into God’s will (“his good pleasure”). We should know God so well that we think like him, believe like him, want like him, feel like him, and obey like him. And, when we — with great energy — learn to think like him, believe like him, and want like him, when the big questions of life come, do you know what we should do? Whatever we want to do. We should marry the person we want to marry and go to the school we want to go to and take the job we want to take. Why? Because we have aligned our hearts with God’s heart, our will with his will, and now we will do the works he has for us to do. God has enabled us and reshaped us to will and to work for his good pleasure. That’s the transformation that we’re after.

Work “for” God’s “pleasure.”

Our text now brings us to the “why” of the Christian life. We don’t just need the what and the how — we need the why. Because life is complicated. And if we’re honest, so are we. It’s easy to lose the bigger picture.

If we really believe we’re an ongoing work, then we have to admit something: ongoing work means ongoing frustration. Our character is still being shaped. Our desires are still being retrained. Our instincts are not yet fully aligned. Some days obedience feels natural. Other days it feels hard.

So let’s ask the honest question — the one that makes the “why” so necessary: What do you do when you don’t want to? When the energy feels low. When the joy feels distant. When you don’t feel like “working out your salvation with fear and trembling.” When obedience feels more like pressure than privilege.

The secret is found in that tiny phrase at the end of verse 13: “for his good pleasure.” It’s an invitation for us to…

Focus on “God’s” joy.

Philippians 2:13 “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

Deuteronomy 7:7 “It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples,”

When Paul speaks of God’s “good pleasure,” he is reminding us of something breathtaking: God is not compelled. No one pressures Him. No one advises Him. No one forces His hand. He acts because He wants to. He saves because it pleases Him.

And for thousands of years, that has been the comfort of God’s people. Moses said it plainly in Deuteronomy 7:7: “It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples.” In other words, there was nothing about them (or you) that cornered God into loving them (or you). Nothing impressive. Nothing strategic. Nothing necessary.

He wanted you. And, what God wants always comes to pass. He wanted to set His love on you, to choose you, to bring you into His family, and to give you Himself. That decision is not fragile. It is settled. Your position is secure because it rests on His pleasure, not your performance.

What is God’s joy? Saving you. Choosing you. Adopting you. Adoption exists because the world is broken — because sin leaves children without homes. But adoption also exists because love is decisive. Because someone looks at a child and says, “I want you. Not because I have to. Because I want to.”

That is the picture of your salvation. God did not take you in reluctantly. He did not sigh when He signed the papers. He rejoiced. It was His good pleasure. So when your energy wanes and your passion cools, remember this: it pleased God to make you His child. Let that steady you. Let that warm you. Let that awaken your heart again.

And, when you find yourself with low energy, you should…

Focus on “your” joy.

Philippians 2:13 “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

Paul doesn’t just say that God operates at his “pleasure,” though that’s true. He says it’s according to his “GOOD pleasure.” It isn’t just that God’s will always comes to pass. It’s that God’s will always comes to pass, and it’s always “good.”

So, what should you do when you don’t want to do? What should you do when feel low energy? You should press on by faith that God’s way is really good, even when it doesn’t feel good. In fact, when you don’t feel like it, that’s the exact opportunity of faith. To work against what feels natural because you trust that God’s way is best. To work against what feels good right now because you trust his way leads to joy in the long run. It’s living by faith that God’s pleasure is actually what’s best for you.

We remember that on Palm Sunday Jesus rode into Jerusalem willingly. On Palm Sunday, Jesus rode into Jerusalem knowing the cheers of “Hosanna” would turn to “Crucify Him,” and that He would stand alone absorbing the fire of judgment so His people could live. Like the soldier who risked everything and then said, “Follow me,” our true Captain went first — not reluctantly, but willingly, endured the cross. Now, having proven himself trustworthy, He says, “Follow me.”