Untitled Sermon (20)

Introduction

If you’ve ever had a conversation with me, it’s very likely that I’ve mentioned two things about myself: I play guitar, and I’m a huge fan of John Mayer. If you don’t know, John Mayer is in my very biased opinion one of the greatest guitarists alive today. As a kid growing up with youtube, I spent countless hours watching hundreds of different guitarists, but what has always struck me about John Mayer is that during the time I’ve followed him, he’s continually gotten better. He’s a naturally gifted musician, but he’s taken his gift and he’s worked at it. He’s worked it out. He’s always growing as a musician. Always putting his musicianship into action. So, like a musician who puts into action their natural gift, as followers of Jesus we are to work out our salvation as God works in us for his glory. Let’s look at ESV

If you’ve ever had a conversation with me, it’s very likely that I’ve mentioned two things about myself: I play guitar, and I’m a huge fan of John Mayer. If you don’t know, John Mayer is in my very biased opinion one of the greatest guitarists alive today. As a kid growing up with youtube, I spent countless hours watching hundreds of different guitarists, but what has always struck me about John Mayer is that during the time I’ve followed him, he’s continually gotten better. He’s a naturally gifted musician, but he’s taken his gift and he’s worked at it. He’s worked it out. He’s always growing as a musician. Always putting his musicianship into action. So, like a musician who puts into action their natural gift, as followers of Jesus we are to work out our salvation as God works in us for his glory. Let’s look at

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

1. We are commanded to work out our salvation

ESV

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

a. The context of the passage is important

1. We are commanded to work out our salvation

i. It’s important to note that Paul is writing this letter to the church from prison. And he’s checking in with the church to encourage them to continue living out the teachings of Jesus. Paul has said a lot up to this point. He’s told the church that “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion,” he’s encouraged them to live lives that are worthy of their heavenly citizenship. And then these two verses come right off of this powerful passage where he has encouraged the church to humbly consider others as more important than themselves and to look out for each other’s interests, and then he commands them to be of one mind, to be unified, which is possible only through Jesus. Then he writes this beautiful hymn that describes how Jesus modeled humility and now God has highly exalted him above all things. So, when Paul writes “therefore” he means that in light of everything he’s written, work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

a. The context of the passage is important

ii. This command can and does function on an individual level, but Paul was writing to a church, a community of people who followed Jesus. And when he gives this command, it’s within this context of a community that he wants to remain unified. He’s commanding the church to work out their salvation corporately.

i. It’s important to note that Paul is writing this letter to the church from prison. And he’s checking in with the church to encourage them to continue living out the teachings of Jesus. Paul has said a lot up to this point. He’s told the church that “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion,” he’s encouraged them to live lives that are worthy of their heavenly citizenship. And then these two verses come right off of this powerful passage where he has encouraged the church to humbly consider others as more important than themselves and to look out for each other’s interests, and then he commands them to be of one mind, to be unified, which is possible only through Jesus. Then he writes this beautiful hymn that describes how Jesus modeled humility and now God has highly exalted him above all things. So, when Paul writes “therefore” he means that in light of everything he’s written, work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

iii. And what Paul means by working out our salvation is to put the effects of our salvation into action in our daily lives.

b. But isn’t salvation a Gift?

ii. This command can and does function on an individual level, but Paul was writing to a church, a community of people who followed Jesus. And when he gives this command, it’s within this context of a community that he wants to remain unified. He’s commanding the church to work out their salvation corporately.

i. But wait, why do we have to work it out? Isn’t it a gift? Yes. It’s a gift. We aren’t working for our salvation, but we’re working it out. There is still an element of responsibility that we have.

iii. And what Paul means by working out our salvation is to put the effects of our salvation into action in our daily lives.

c. Illustration

b. But isn’t salvation a Gift?

i. Each of us has muscles. No one in here had to work for them. But for them to grow and become stronger we have to work them out. We have to use them. We’ve been given salvation, a gift that has brought us from darkness to light, from death to life, and a gift that will be brought to completion in the future. But it’s this gift that’s in us that needs to be worked out. We aren’t naturally sinless, we aren’t naturally obedient, we don’t naturally love each other. Even if we’ve been saved, we have to be disciplined, and we have to be working towards these things as a church. To work this out means that our conduct changes. Our way of living as a church changes. The way we view each other changes. And it’s a process that all of us are to be obedient to.

i. But wait, why do we have to work it out? Isn’t it a gift? Yes. It’s a gift. We aren’t working for our salvation, but we’re working it out. There is still an element of responsibility that we have.

d. And it takes place with fear and trembling because we do this in the presence of and in awe of a Holy God, aware of our own inability to do this on our own.

c. Illustration

i. Each of us has muscles. No one in here had to work for them. But for them to grow and become stronger we have to work them out. We have to use them. We’ve been given salvation, a gift that has brought us from darkness to light, from death to life, and a gift that will be brought to completion in the future. But it’s this gift that’s in us that needs to be worked out. We aren’t naturally sinless, we aren’t naturally obedient, we don’t naturally love each other. Even if we’ve been saved, we have to be disciplined, and we have to be working towards these things as a church. To work this out means that our conduct changes. Our way of living as a church changes. The way we view each other changes. And it’s a process that all of us are to be obedient to.

(Transition: But, the key to all of this comes in verse 13. Paul writes for it is God who works in you, both to will and work for his good pleasure. The Holy God who we work out our salvation in the presence of is at the same time working this salvation within us.)

2. As we work out our salvation with fear and trembling, it is God who works in us for his glory.

d. And it takes place with fear and trembling because we do this in the presence of and in awe of a Holy God, aware of our own inability to do this on our own.

a. We have this command to work out our salvation, but we’re not left to ourselves to do it. The working out doesn’t come from anything we’ve done or are able to do, it comes from God who is already at work within us. God is aligning our wills to his. He’s working in us both to will and to act. To want to, to have the desire to, and then to do it. To put it into action.

(Transition: But, the key to all of this comes in verse 13. Paul writes for it is God who works in you, both to will and work for his good pleasure. The Holy God who we work out our salvation in the presence of is at the same time working this salvation within us.)

2. As we work out our salvation with fear and trembling, it is God who works in us for his glory.

b. Illustration

i. What I imagine is a sponge. What a sponge does is it soaks in water and soap with the purpose of being used to clean. Now, if you go into the Phippen kitchen, you’ll see a sponge, full of soap and water, yet it hasn’t been used. An what happens is over time, the sponge starts to stink. It’s soaked up so much, and it’s never been squeezed out, it’s never put into action what was done inside of it. And now it stinks.

a. We have this command to work out our salvation, but we’re not left to ourselves to do it. The working out doesn’t come from anything we’ve done or are able to do, it comes from God who is already at work within us. God is aligning our wills to his. He’s working in us both to will and to act. To want to, to have the desire to, and then to do it. To put it into action.

b. Illustration

c. As a church, we know what Jesus has taught, but are we practicing it? If God is truly working in us, then we’ll be living out what we’ve taken in. If God is working in us, we’ll be loving towards each other. If God is working in us, we’ll be forgiving towards one another. If God is working in us, we’ll be making space for everyone and worshipping with everyone who’s in the kingdom of God, not just who we’re comfortable with.

i. What I imagine is a sponge. What a sponge does is it soaks in water and soap with the purpose of being used to clean. Now, if you go into the Phippen kitchen, you’ll see a sponge, full of soap and water, yet it hasn’t been used. An what happens is over time, the sponge starts to stink. It’s soaked up so much, and it’s never been squeezed out, it’s never put into action what was done inside of it. And now it stinks.

d. Application:

i. First, some of us have to be reconciled to God. We don’t even have salvation yet. There are some of us in here who are still dead in our sins. We’ve heard this message over and over, but it hasn’t sunk in yet. At this point in time, you’re separated from God. You’re outside of his family, but it doesn’t have to be that way. If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us and to purify us from all unrighteousness. If you surrender to him, allow him to come into your life, he’ll change everything. He adopts you, and he brings you into his family, he takes on all of your baggage, all of your hurt, all of your pain and loneliness, and he gives you a place to belong. You might feel hopeless and alienated, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

c. As a church, we know what Jesus has taught, but are we practicing it? If God is truly working in us, then we’ll be living out what we’ve taken in. If God is working in us, we’ll be loving towards each other. If God is working in us, we’ll be forgiving towards one another. If God is working in us, we’ll be making space for everyone and worshipping with everyone who’s in the kingdom of God, not just who we’re comfortable with.

ii. But I think a lot of us claim to follow Jesus. We call ourselves “Christian,” we come to church, we worship, we give our time on Sunday morning. But, we’re not working it out. And we all struggle with this. This church Paul was writing to was a good church, but they struggled with it. I’ve struggle with it most of my life. There’s this tension of God working in us and us working it out. Us putting our salvation into action. And so what does it look like for us to put our salvation into action?

d. Application:

i. First, some of us have to be reconciled to God. We don’t even have salvation yet. There are some of us in here who are still dead in our sins. We’ve heard this message over and over, but it hasn’t sunk in yet. At this point in time, you’re separated from God. You’re outside of his family, but it doesn’t have to be that way. If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us and to purify us from all unrighteousness. If you surrender to him, allow him to come into your life, he’ll change everything. He adopts you, and he brings you into his family, he takes on all of your baggage, all of your hurt, all of your pain and loneliness, and he gives you a place to belong. You might feel hopeless and alienated, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

1. The New Testament consistently teaches that salvation looks like saved people loving each other with a selfless love. The bottom line is, if we are not living that out, then we are not saved people. Consider : “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” This whole idea of loving one another is everywhere in the bible. I feel like we talk about it a lot, maybe even too much, but there isn’t really a way around it. God is very clear. When Jesus was living on earth, and he was teaching, people loved to hear him talk. Listening to people give speeches or teachings was entertainment back then. But, he always challenged them to live differently, and all of his teachings dealt with loving each other. And so most of the New Testament letters are written to churches and they’re either saying, yo, y’all need to work on your love for each other, or they’re saying continue loving each other. And so there’s this command throughout the entire bible to love. And if we claim to follow Jesus, but we don’t love, then we’re lying. A few weeks ago we started going through first John. First John’s a hard book to preach through, at least for me, because it repeats the same things over and over again. I was working on chapter two of it this week, and I was like, this is saying the same things chapter 1 said, and then i looked at chapter 3, and it says the same things again. But John writes that way because this love concept is so important for followers of Jesus. I think the church has this misunderstanding, or incomplete understanding of what Jesus did. When Jesus came and taught, he taught how us how to live in love towards each other. When he gave up his life for us he was doing at least two things: He was paying the price for our sins, but he was showing us the kind of love we’re supposed to have towards each other. When we follow him, when we enter into that relationship with him, we’re made whole, we’re free, we’re saved, but our way of living and seeing the world and each other also changes. Jesus saves us for his glory and for himself, but he also saves us and expects us to love. And because he expect this, he gives us the ability to do it. We work out our salvation by loving each other. And the kind of love we are supposed to have for each other is the kind of love Jesus had for us. It’s self-sacrificial love. It’s love that puts other before ourselves. It’s a love that looks out for each other. It’s the kind of love that empowers us to stand up for each other and for others. One of the greatest commandments in scripture say to love god with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength. And then it says “love your neighbor as yourself.” In the past, this command to love your neighbor as yourself was really hard because people loved themselves so much that they were selfish. They were the most important. Now, I think it’s hard because we don’t love ourselves at all. We live in a culture that has so many expectations for us, we’re constantly hit with so many things that make us insecure about ourselves, that make us doubt ourselves, and so we have no love for ourselves. We feel like we aren’t good enough, or that we haven’t worked hard enough, or whatever, and so we beat ourselves up and end up hating ourselves. And so we can’t love each other. We don’t even love ourselves. And we don’t love ourselves because we forget what Jesus has done.

ii. But I think a lot of us claim to follow Jesus. We call ourselves “Christian,” we come to church, we worship, we give our time on Sunday morning. But, we’re not working it out. And we all struggle with this. This church Paul was writing to was a good church, but they struggled with it. I’ve struggle with it most of my life. There’s this tension of God working in us and us working it out. Us putting our salvation into action. And so what does it look like for us to put our salvation into action?

iii.

1. The New Testament consistently teaches that salvation looks like saved people loving each other with a selfless love. The bottom line is, if we are not living that out, then we are not saved people. Consider

Conclusion

If God is working in us, we’ll be unified as a church and as a community, modeling our lives after Jesus’ example. And in this, God is glorified. All of these things take work, but we’re able to do them because God himself is at work in us and among us. As followers of Jesus, as a church, we work out our salvation as God works in us for his glory.

: “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” This whole idea of loving one another is everywhere in the bible. I feel like we talk about it a lot, maybe even too much, but there isn’t really a way around it. God is very clear. When Jesus was living on earth, and he was teaching, people loved to hear him talk. Listening to people give speeches or teachings was entertainment back then. But, he always challenged them to live differently, and all of his teachings dealt with loving each other. And so most of the New Testament letters are written to churches and they’re either saying, yo, y’all need to work on your love for each other, or they’re saying continue loving each other. And so there’s this command throughout the entire bible to love. And if we claim to follow Jesus, but we don’t love, then we’re lying. A few weeks ago we started going through first John. First John’s a hard book to preach through, at least for me, because it repeats the same things over and over again. I was working on chapter two of it this week, and I was like, this is saying the same things chapter 1 said, and then i looked at chapter 3, and it says the same things again. But John writes that way because this love concept is so important for followers of Jesus. I think the church has this misunderstanding, or incomplete understanding of what Jesus did. When Jesus came and taught, he taught how us how to live in love towards each other. When he gave up his life for us he was doing at least two things: He was paying the price for our sins, but he was showing us the kind of love we’re supposed to have towards each other. When we follow him, when we enter into that relationship with him, we’re made whole, we’re free, we’re saved, but our way of living and seeing the world and each other also changes. Jesus saves us for his glory and for himself, but he also saves us and expects us to love. And because he expect this, he gives us the ability to do it. We work out our salvation by loving each other. And the kind of love we are supposed to have for each other is the kind of love Jesus had for us. It’s self-sacrificial love. It’s love that puts other before ourselves. It’s a love that looks out for each other. It’s the kind of love that empowers us to stand up for each other and for others. One of the greatest commandments in scripture say to love god with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength. And then it says “love your neighbor as yourself.” In the past, this command to love your neighbor as yourself was really hard because people loved themselves so much that they were selfish. They were the most important. Now, I think it’s hard because we don’t love ourselves at all. We live in a culture that has so many expectations for us, we’re constantly hit with so many things that make us insecure about ourselves, that make us doubt ourselves, and so we have no love for ourselves. We feel like we aren’t good enough, or that we haven’t worked hard enough, or whatever, and so we beat ourselves up and end up hating ourselves. And so we can’t love each other. We don’t even love ourselves. But Jesus does love us. In our brokenness, in our mess, in our anxieties, in our self-doubt and self-hate, Jesus says “it doesn’t matter how imperfect, sinful, and broken you are. I love you, and I’ll work in you and heal all of this if you follow me.” And so we are now supposed to see ourselves the way that Jesus sees us. He’s created us all uniquely and differently, and that’s good. Once he’s redeemed us, he begins restoring us, and part of that restoration, I think, is he helps us to become more comfortable with who we are and how we were made, and we begin to love ourselves in a healthy way. And then, as we follow him, as we are in this relationship with him, this relationship of love, we’re told, “okay, now love each other as you love yourself and as Jesus has loved you.” And so, it’s in this whole grand scheme of things that we are to work out our salvation as God works in us. There’s this whole process going on in our individual lives but in our youth group life. We walk through it together, and we love one another as Jesus has loved us, and by doing so, we’re working out our collective salvation.

Conclusion

If God is working in us, we’ll be unified as a church and as a community, modeling our lives after Jesus’ example. And in this, God is glorified. All of these things take work, but we’re able to do them because God himself is at work in us and among us. As followers of Jesus, as a church, we work out our salvation as God works in us for his glory.