Work Out Your Salvation with Fear and Trembling

Lights in the World

This summer 2 of my children discovered the beauty of the stars in the sky. They camped across the lake with cousins and friends where they spent much of the night watching the stars. Because it’s so remote the stars are far brighter than they are from the city. It’s spellbinding to watch, especially in August at the height of the meteor showers. Light, particularly lights in the dark, are intoxicating. They fill with you a sense of wonder and awe. The sky at night along the shores of Lake Michigan is a canvas for the creator’s art.

Like those stars, the lives of those who follow Christ are meant to shine.

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14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, 15 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

There are moments in history where this is clearly the case. One of those moments started in the Berkshire mountains of Massachusetts.

“In 1806, a Williams College student named Samuel Mills began to pray for the cause of foreign missions. Until then, the missionary organizations in the United States were solely dedicated to domestic missions, both in the Western frontier and among Native American tribes. But Mills prayed that the Lord would raise up men to take the gospel to other nations.

One August day, Mills assembled a small group of spiritually minded friends who prayed together outside of campus for foreign missions. Some accounts say there was a sudden thunderstorm as they were praying, which caused the five men to take refuge under a haystack.

Afterward, they continued to gather weekly for what became known as the Haystack Prayer Meeting. In answer to the prayers from among the haystacks, God established the American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions, the American Bible Society, and the United Foreign Missionary Society. Through those organizations, the Lord sent many laborers into his ripened field.”(Megan Hill, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/4-lessons-the-haystack-prayer-meetings-teach-us/ accessed 9-6-19)

Lights in the darkness. Through the prayer of a group of young people in the middle of nowhere, God brought light into many dark corners of the world.

While there are exceptions, the church across the US doesn’t seem to give off much light. People who identify as Christians live like those around them who don’t identify as Christians. Where is the light? I think part of the problem is that people who identify as Christian don’t understand what that means. To be a Christian is to be like Christ. He lived a radical life, in case you aren’t aware. There is a temptation to drift into a “it doesn’t matter what you do” mentality. We think of the good news—that Jesus died on the cross for my sins—and conclude that that’s all that matters.

Paul has some direct words for us:

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work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

“Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Wait a minute, you say. I thought my salvation was already worked out? I thought Jesus worked it for me? Isn’t that the case? Doesn’t the Bible say we are justified by faith and not works? (Gal 2:16)

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we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

It does say that, as we see. So we must solve the apparent dilemmas we find here. The first is one of orthodoxy and the 2nd is one of orthopraxy. As we do, we will see that a Christian is someone whose life is a light in the darkness.

The Dilemma of Orthodoxy

So which is it? Am I saved by grace or by works? Ah, the question of the day, or the year, or the last 2 millennia.

During the time of the Reformation in the 1500s Martin Luther confronted the Roman Catholic church over this very issue. Is salvation a work of free grace or a synergy between grace from God and works offered up by man? In answer, reformers coined the term “sola gratia” i.e. grace alone. They championed Paul’s teaching summarized in Ephesians 2:8-9,

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For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

They were struck by the reality that man is thoroughly depraved and incapable of reaching God, no matter how much “help” or nudging God might give him.

With such a heavy emphasis on grace and de-emphasis on works, however, another problem arose. People relaxed, faith became synonymous with a simple prayer, and lives seemed little, if any, different from those without faith.

The Church in Scotland grew concerned about this lack of change and in the early part of the 18th Century worried that it was a result of preaching about free grace and so came up with a creed for their ministers to sign in an effort to restore some measure of godly living among their people. The creed is known as the “Auchterarder creed” named after the town in which the Presbytery meeting was held. When a candidate for ministry came forward, a man by the name of William Craig, he was asked if he agreed with this creed.

Do you subscribe to the following: I believe that it is not sound and orthodox to teach that we forsake sin in order to come to Christ.

One of the most familiar forms this controversy appeared, at least in Reformed seminaries, was in the Marrow controversy that took place in Scotland in the early part of the 18th Century.

Do you subscribe to the following (the Auchterader creed). I believe that it is not sound and orthodox to teach that we forsake sin in order to come to Christ. William Craig.

It’s a bit confusing with the combination of negatives, so you can imagine poor Mr. Craig’s stuttering over his answer. Let’s negate the negative, simplify and listen again:

We must forsake sin in order to come to Christ.

Do you agree with that? The problem with the question is that it seems to create two sides: those who believe you must forsake sin in order to come to Christ and those who believe you don’t need to forsake sin. Do you see the problem?

Free grace isn’t free if there are conditions tied to it, which is what this creed is attempting to do. Forsaking sin, as condition of coming to Christ is how the world often thinks about religion. They define religion as that which we must do in order to reach God, to come to Christ. We would counter that by preaching free grace. “No, no, no! Grace is for the sinner. It comes with no conditions. That’s why we call it grace.” As Paul wrote,

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For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

The problem is that works often fall out of view. We think of salvation as a work of God’s free grace and then we stop thinking. Therein lies another problem. It leads to a person thinking he’s a Christian when he doesn’t follow Christ anywhere.

Where do good works fit? Do they fit anywhere? Paul writes,

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work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,

There it is. Work it out. Work it out with “fear and trembling.” That sounds a bit ominous. It doesn’t sound very optional. This was the concern of Presbyters in Auchterarder. What they got wrong was the prepositions. He doesn’t write, “work for your salvation with fear and trembling.” That’s an important difference. He says “work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”

It is the next verse that puts this work in perspective.

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

What are you “working out”? You are working out the work which God is doing in you. You see, salvation isn’t simply from the fires of hell. It isn’t simply from the guilt of your sin or the shame of your life. Perhaps more important than what salvation is from is what salvation is to. It’s to a transformed life. It’s to becoming a light in a dark world. Salvation is for the purpose of God being glorified and that happens when the world sees the changes the grace of God brings in a person’s life. This is why Jesus says what he says in ,

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let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

God saves people for a purpose, and that purpose is to bring him glory, and you bring him glory by living a changed life, by working out your salvation with fear and trembling.

Let me say a word about “fear and trembling.” This is not the only place we find this phrase in the New Testament. We find it in describing a woman who tried to secretly touch Jesus for healing. Jesus sensed that power had gone out from him, said “who touched me” and the woman came forward in fear and trembling. She fell down before him and told him the whole truth. There is a real sense of awe as she stands before the One able to heal; as her life is laid bare before this One with the power of life and death; with the power of salvation; of working in her for his own purposes. Can you imagine any other way to approach such a one?

Working out your salvation, thus, is not contrary to the free grace of the gospel. It is the result of that free grace at work in you. It is a test of that free grace at work in you.

Can you imagine any other way to approach such a one?

This is how we are to approach Christ when we understand that his power is at work in you to heal you from the powers of sin that otherwise have their way in you. Work out this power with fear and trembling. Don’t take it for granted. Don’t hide your light under a bowl.

The Dilemma of Orthopraxy

Don’t you see? Working out your salvation is not optional. It is the inevitable result when the power of God has fallen upon you. This is why there are so many passages that seem to evaluate your salvation based on your works. For example, in Jesus’ parable about forgiveness he tells of a man forgiven of an incredible debt to a king who afterward refused to forgive someone who owed a far less significant debt to him. When the king finds out, he reprimands the man and sends him to debtor’s prison until he should pay what he originally owed. The point is that you know the forgiveness you have is real when it impacts the way you live. If good works are not part of your new DNA, then you have to ask, am I a follower of Christ or a follower of the world?

At the same time, there is an exhortation here to be actively engaged in working out your salvation. It is not a passive thing. It is choice that you must make.

Let me say a word about “fear and trembling.” This is not the only place we find this phrase in the New Testament. We find it in describing a woman who tried to secretly touch Jesus for healing. Jesus sensed that power had gone out from him, said “who touched me” and the woman came forward in fear and trembling. She fell down before him and told him the whole truth. There is a real sense of awe as she stands before the One able to heal; as her life is laid bare before this One with the power of life and death; with the power of salvation; of working in her for his own purposes. Can you imagine any other way to approach such a one?

This is how we are to approach Christ when we understand that his power is at work in you to heal you from the powers of sin that otherwise have their way in you. Work out this power with fear and trembling. Don’t take it for granted. Don’t hide your light under a bowl.

There should be no dilemma of orthopraxy.

What does that look like?

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14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing

When you live in a cultural climate that seems to be growing in hostility by the day between groups with different worldviews, there is no end to grumbling. It’s normal. It’s expected. It feels good to grumble. It’s empowering to effectively dispute with others. But it is also contrary to your calling. And it dims your light.

What is grumbling? Grumbling is complaining when someone does something you don’t like or you don’t agree with. Grumbling is directed against those you believe to be “in the wrong.” Grumbling is often disguised with sarcasm, or excused because you are “right.”

Grumbling is often a result of difficult circumstances. When my AC went out this summer, I grumbled. When my children leave their rooms a mess, I grumble. You get the picture. What happens when I grumble? I fit into the cultural climate quite nicely.

What happens when I grumble? I fit into the cultural climate quite nicely.

A better question is, what happens when I choose not to grumble?

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15 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,

Refraining from grumbling doesn’t make me blameless or innocent in the eyes of God. The grace of Christ’s death on the cross for me does that. But refraining from grumbling does show the effect of that grace to the world and to me. It makes you stand out as a beacon in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation.

Chick-fil-a is a great example of this. Choosing to close on Sundays and support Christian ministries with free stuff has caused them to stand out as a beacon. Many don’t like it, which is not surprising. John explains,

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the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

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people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.

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19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.

With their own morality they call what is evil in God’s sight good, and what is good in God’s sight evil.

When you choose NOT to grumble, you demonstrate a power at work in you greater than yourself.

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But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Look, the reality is this. If God is at work in you, then it is imperative that you choose not to grumble when you feel like it; when circumstances don’t go your way; when you feel people’s anger or accusations directed at you. You choose NOT to grumble because you don’t need for circumstances to be right for you to know Joy; you don’t need the approval of those around you to know Joy. You know Joy because you have chosen to hitch your wagon to the gospel train, which will not stop until it is has ushered in the Kingdom of God. How does that happen? Verse 16 continues,

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16 holding fast to the word of life,

We hold fast to the word of life, to Christ himself, the living word that stands as our advocate at the Father’s side guaranteeing our status in the family of God. We remember the beauty of the good news that tells us we are now children of God. Otherwise we forget and we become grumblers.

How far do you go in the face of deteriorating circumstances without grumbling? Paul shows us how far this power of God has taken him.

When my kids told me they wanted to stay all night on the dunes, I tried to talk them out of it. I told them about my experience when we did the same thing. We watched the stars too, and they were beautiful. But that’s not what I remember. I remember instead waking up at dawn (after a short few hours of sleep, at most), cold, soaking wet from the heavy dew, with sand in my nose, mouth and eyes. The rest of the day was lost because we came back so miserable.

My kids reminded me that the beauty of the night far outweighed the setbacks of the circumstances when they came back. They were ready to do it all over again.

You can choose to focus on your circumstances, and grumble, or hold fast to the word of life.

Hold fast to the gospel which tells you that you have worth in the eyes of God (he died for you) and you have a new relationship that empowers you to live a new life. Relationships do that, you know. Can anyone here say that getting married didn’t change you, or that your group of friends at school hasn’t changed you? Relationships do change you. It is our relationship to the word of life that we must hold onto with all that we have, so that this relationship, above all others, has the most power over us.

How far do you go in the face of deteriorating circumstances without grumbling? Paul shows us how far this power of God has taken him.

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17 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.

So,

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work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.