[0:00] So Philippians, Philippians chapter 2, Philippians chapter 2, and I think we'll read the whole chapter, not that long.
[0:12] Philippians chapter 2, and I've verse 1, and this is the word of God. So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
[0:38] Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
[0:52] Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself.
[1:05] By taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
[1:19] Therefore God has highly exalted him, and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
[1:38] 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.
[1:52] For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. 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, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labour in vain.
[2:23] 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.
[2:33] Likewise, you also should be glad and rejoice with me. I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you.
[2:44] For I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy's proven worth.
[2:57] How, as a son with a father, he has served me in the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me. And I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
[3:11] I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need.
[3:23] For he has been longing for you all, and has been distressed because he heard that he was ill. Indeed, he was ill near to death, but God had mercy on him, and not only on him, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.
[3:37] I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honour such men, for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete that what was lacking in your service to me.
[3:59] Amen. And may the Lord bless that reading of his own holy and inerrant word. And we'll bow our heads again in a short time of prayer. Let us hum for God. Okay.
[4:14] If you would please turn back, we'll see to that portion of scripture that we read in Philippians chapter 2. Philippians chapter 2. And I think we'll take us out verses 12 and 13.
[4:28] Philippians 2 and 12 and 13. Philippians 3.
[5:00] trophy sizes..hape... Doug and I look at whom... God hurts him! What is this? I donaky Takahar dentist. Chris. глаза.... David and Yu multim.
[5:10] Aujourd' IPS was cutie, look at the yarn, I used to see all the colors and how they blended the colors together just in that little bit of yarn and it amazed me how they did it and I would look at the yarn from a distance and I would say, oh well that's kind of a light green or a dark green or whatever and when you looked at it you saw all the other different colors that were in it to make it what it looked like and I found it fascinating and I started to think about Christian life and I started to realize as I read God's word and as I prayed and as we walk with Christ, our lives are a blend, they are a mixture and what I want to look at this morning is three things that make up the
[6:23] Christian life the first thing I want to talk about is rest or resting in Christ the second thing I want to look at is work working for Christ and the third thing I want to look at is the joy that that ought to bring to God's people a blend of rest, work and joy now you may say, well that's rather simplistic the Christian life there's a lot more to that as well and yes, absolutely, but we've only got half an hour so we'll look at these three things and I think that throughout Paul's letter to the Philippians if you read it from beginning to end if you went home this afternoon and had your lunches it's rather a short letter and you say, okay I think I'll read the book of Philippians a wonderful book, you will see that Paul talks about resting in Christ he talks about working for Christ and he talks about the joy that we ought to have as Christians and we see this in our text here and the first thing Paul wants to talk about here is he says in verse 12 work out your own salvation with fear and trembling now there are a number of verses in the whole of scripture that are quite often misunderstood and that is one of them and we'll come to that in a minute work out your own salvation with fear and trembling you see if you were to go and study every other faith in this world alongside Christianity and it's an interesting thing to do and we're encouraged to do that you would notice that the faith that we profess and the Lord that we serve the way the land lies is that every other faith if you were to join another faith and don't go and do that don't say I told you to do that but if you were to join another faith you would have to work for your salvation be it Islam be it the Jehovah Witnesses be it Mormonism whatever faith it is you as an individual would have to work at your own salvation correct me if I'm wrong
[8:52] Christianity Christianity is the only religion where we're saved by grace and by grace alone what do we do as Christians?
[9:06] we rest in Christ you must rest in Christ before you can work for Christ that's the order we must be saved by the grace of Christ by faith alone grace alone and then we work for Christ and then our hearts will be filled with joy and we shall rejoice exactly as Paul instructs the Philippian church all those years ago to rejoice because I believe and if you go home and read Philippians today and if you read it from beginning to end I think that this little Philippian church was Paul's favourite church I can't prove that but reading between the lines I can see he loved this little church in Philippi now this little church in Philippi was filled with people who were very anxious and who were very worried about all sorts of things but like us really we are filled with all sorts of anxiety and worry and that's what life brings to us so Paul throughout this letter tells them listen do not be anxious for anything but in all things by prayer give everything to God in prayer you see that in chapter 4 but here he is talking about resting in Christ because see that little therefore in verse 12 see contained in verse 12 therefore that little word we are going to talk about that little word for a wee while because that therefore contained within it is the gospel because
[11:07] Paul is saying therefore look back and when you look back to what Paul has been talking about he is talking about this Jesus Christ the son of God who has emptied himself who has humbled himself who has gone to a cross to die for your sin and for my sin that's what that little therefore means therefore do you get the picture do you see who Jesus is now I've explained it to you chapter 2 verses 1 all the way down to 11 he says what does he say have the same mind as Christ look to Jesus look at the way Jesus lived in fact look at the way Jesus died therefore rest rest because he died for you if you believe in him therefore therefore this Jesus
[12:16] I am telling you about Paul says he was obedient to the point of death he was sent on a rescue mission by his father and he came willingly and with gladness and with joy in his heart to come and to serve not to be served to serve and he came to die on a cross for his people therefore that's what's contained within this little word therefore we're looking back and then we're going to look forward you see the Philippians were anxious about their salvation they were worried well perhaps I don't actually believe in Jesus I'm going through a tough time in my life and let's be honest our church is going through a tough time and maybe this is God disciplining us and maybe the Lord doesn't really love us and Paul is saying no no because in chapter 1 and at verse 6
[13:24] Paul tells them listen Philippian church listen I am sure of this he says that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ do you understand what that means if the Lord has started working in your life and in my life he's not going to let us go he's going to see it through sometimes we are bad at starting out and planning something I'm going to do this little bit of DIY and I'm going to finish it and I'm going to make a wonderful job of it and then when things get tough we let it go but the Lord is not like that the Lord is not like that when the Lord starts a work in your life and in my life he will see it through because he has promised that he will see it through so Paul is saying therefore he loves you with an everlasting love he has died for you he has come to serve he has done all this for you this is the son of God who has done this for you so rest rest in that enjoy it enjoy knowing that the
[14:44] Lord of glory has died for you rest I am sure of this he says he has begun a work in you you see many people look at verse 12 here work out your own salvation with fear and trembling and they say aha I've got to go and do this and then I'll be saved I've got to go and do the next thing and then I might be saved no no do not take this out of context we cannot save ourselves if we could save ourselves then why would our glorious saviour Jesus have to be obedient and even obedient to death on a cross you see many take that out of context and say now we've got to work for our salvation it's not all about Jesus we've got to do our little bit as far as our salvation is concerned but they leave out verse 13 what does verse 13 say it is
[15:50] God who works in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure the Lord is working in the Philippian church as he is working in this church and in your life and my life and we must recognise that 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 trepid what Paul is saying here is listen you're Christ you belong to Christ stop worrying get on with the work that I want you to do there shall work to be done and to go out into this world that you shine as a life for Christ there's no point in being anxious about this and being about anxious about that rest on Christ and then move forward and work you see the cost of our salvation has been paid for by Jesus you see each time the gospel is preached even today
[17:02] God is at work God is at work as we read his scripture and as we preach upon his scripture and as we focus on this wonderful salvation that Christ has won and has done for us God is at work listen to the gospel of Isaiah what does Isaiah say to sinful Israel he said come everyone who thirsts come to the waters you know these verses he who has no money come buy and eat come buy wine and milk without money and without price we cannot pay for our salvation we cannot buy our salvation we just must rest in the salvation that Christ has done for us that is what Paul is trying to get through to these Philippians we see we as sinners have nothing nothing to offer
[18:07] Christ nothing he does the saving by grace by unconditional grace I speak to people very often about Jesus and about God and about faith and about everything and the people I speak to who are yet not Christians they are suspicious of God that's the way I was before I became a Christian with this deep rooted suspicion of God we can't take him at his word we can't take him at his word that he sent his son to die in her place that's simple we have this suspicion of God and that's what sin does it makes us suspicious of God Paul is saying to
[19:10] Philippians don't be suspicious of God he started and he will see it through for those that may know a little bit about church history way back in Scottish church history there was a controversy called the Marrow Controversy and the Marrow Controversy took place in the church of Scotland and the church of Scotland since about 200 years ago became divided many of the ministers and elders and those who ruled the church believed that to be saved you had to show a certain sign of repentance you had to look as if you were repentant and we are all to repent yes but they sidelined grace they pushed grace too far away pushed grace too far away and a certain man called Thomas Boston some of you may have heard of him he came along with two brothers called the Ersham brothers and there was 12 of them all together and they said to the general assembly no it's all about
[20:16] Christ's grace the individual is not to look at his own or her own conviction of sin but to look to Christ nearly split the church and Boston wrote this and he said and he believed and he told the general assembly he says the way you're teaching and preaching the gospel is there are many people in the churches who are Christians but they're too afraid to come forward to profess their faith and he said there is such a thing as a child of light walking in the darkness he says perhaps you are one of them here today you haven't professed your faith in Christ you're a wee bit suspicious a wee bit weary perhaps you are a child of light but you are walking in the darkness well if you think I've got a wee bit to work here the Westminster Confession of Faith says this he says a true believer may wait long and have many difficulties don't we have many difficulties difficulties a true believer may wait a long time and have many difficulties before he be a partaker of it to know the things that are freely given him of
[21:34] God that's theologically sound I know I'm on safe ground we may look at our old confessions and think they're old fashioned and they're archaic and we don't want anything to do with them well there you go and very well-made children of God sitting in churches all over the place but they just lack assurance just lack that assurance God does not want his people to lack assurance are you a child of the lives walking in that place today well it's time to step forward and to claim what is right to be yours if you're a child of God Charles Spurgeon told the story of an old woman and she was on her death bed and she was one of these women who liked to see ministers and elders on their toes the kind every minister and the kind every elder needs to know she's on her death bed and the minister comes to see her and she says to the minister the Lord will keep me and the Lord will deliver me he has promised me and the minister says suppose he doesn't what do you mean she says what if he doesn't and if he doesn't then God will be a greater loser than I and the minister says how so what do you mean woman he says well it is true
[23:24] I would lose my soul but if the Lord does not save me he will lose all his honour and he will lose all his glory because he has promised me he has promised me rest resting resting resting in Christ it's foundational it is fundamental but sometimes it's the most difficult thing in the world to do resting and knowing we also must rest on God's promise of indwelling within us look at verse 13 it is God who works in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure we rest on the fact that the Lord Jesus says to his disciples he will be with you and he will live within you when you stop and when you think about it as Christians and when you think that God lives within your very soul the dog to take your breath away he will be with you
[24:49] Jesus says of the Holy Spirit and he will be in you Paul tells the Colossians he says he says for this I toil working with all his energy when he writes to the Colossians and the Colossians are talking about all the work he is doing he says no it's not me that's actually working it is God who is working within me all his energy that he powerfully works within me that's what Paul is saying God is within me and he is powerfully working within me every day of my life it is God who is in me what does he say here it is God who works in you God is within you to work he who began a good work God works in us what did Jesus say without me you can be nothing nothing we must also rest on
[25:58] God's adoption of us verse 15 what does he call us what does he call that you may be blameless and innocent children of God that is what the Lord does when he comes into our life and into our experience he adopts us and he takes us as his own treasure and possession you are a holy nation Peter tells his congregation you are a holy nation you are a royal priesthood you are a treasured possession you belong to Jesus but Peter tells him in 1st Peter you are adopted Paul tells the Romans you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear no but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry Abba Father Romans 8 15 as children of God we are not to fear Christ has overcome this world that we live in but
[27:04] God is for us who can be against us living as children of God striving we must rest on all of these things therefore therefore rest on what Jesus has done for you Paul is saying to them listen you know the gospel I have taught you the gospel I have preached to you the gospel you know the gospel and I know rest rest in it rest in it but then we move on the Christian life that we know is not just one of rest in we have to work but as I have said and as I keep on saying it is not for our own salvation we work it by grace we are saved we work because we belong to
[28:08] Christ and we work for Christ you know the language that Paul wrote in the Greek language here there are two ways of writing there are indicatives in the Greek language there are indicatives indicatives are a statement of fact what's a statement of fact in the Bible in the New Testament Christ died for the ungodly it's indicative it cannot change it's set in eternity it's set in stone Christ died for the ungodly it's an indicative the gospel is all in the indicative it's happened and nobody can change it and then we have what are called imperatives does anyone know what an imperative is an imperative is a command then we are commanded to move forward once we're resting in Christ we do not just sit still and go wow I'm saved I'm resting in Christ now I'm going to enjoy this for the rest of my life until the
[29:08] Lord of glory comes and takes me home no no and then this is what church is all about we're resting but we're also working we must work hard to show the results of our salvation if you go back to chapter 1 and verse 27 of Philippians Paul tells the Philippians he says to them listen you are dual citizens you are citizens of Philippi and you are citizens of glory you are dual citizens now live lives that are worthy of the gospel you see that in chapter 1 verse 27 live lives that are worthy of the gospel you are citizens of heaven and everyone around and about should know it that you belong to Christ that you've been saved by grace that the Lord has put a new song in your mouth live lives that are worthy of the gospel imperatives commands we're resting and then we move forward into dictative and then we move forward to the imperatives and we live lives that are worthy of the gospel what does that mean well that means that we take sin seriously in our lives that means that we tell others about
[30:40] Christ that means we do our bits in the church that means we serve others that means we love our enemies that means we pray for those who are yet outside of Christ and you could go on and on and on that is what living lives worthy of the gospel is all about Paul tells them in chapter 2 in verses 5 to 11 that he's talking about Christ look at chapter 2 and verse 2 he says complete my joy by being of the same mind in other words have the same mind as Christ that's the command have the same mind as Christ complete my joy by being of the same mind being in full accord and of one mind do nothing from selfish ambition not conceit but in humility count others more significant than yourselves verse 3 let each of you look not only to his own interest but also to the interests of others that is what living a life worthy of the gospel looks like but we fail every day don't we we fail we fail every day but does that mean we should give up no no we strive forward because each time we fail the Lord will come and he will pick us up by our right hand and he will pat us down and he'll say continue you've got a work to do you've got a work to do you've got a saviour to glorify there's a work to do no grumbling no disputing verses 14 and 15 you know it's beautiful weather now but last week and every other
[32:53] Saturday for the last few weeks it rained and it rained and it rained and I remember driving into work every day and thinking and complaining about the weather and the Lord rebuked me and the Lord reminded me about his children in the desert complaining and moaning but that he says here you're children of God without blemish in midst of a crooked and twisted generation do all things without grumbling or disputing a man what's your type of life I know what mine's like I need grace and I need grace and I need grace and I need grace upon grace upon grace upon grace every day of my life because naturally I'm a moaner and naturally I'm a complainer and naturally I'm a disputer and naturally I'm a troublemaker and naturally without Christ I'm 20 times worse than that and so are we all because of sin it's easy to become discouraged in the
[34:01] Christian life when we fail the Lord we can say oh Lord I've done it again I've fallen into sin and even when we repent and we say sorry I'm not going to do it again we can become discouraged and not to be like that not to be like that you have to have confidence in the God who saved us confidence in the Christ who died for us all come on you recognize our sin and you recognize our weakness because you're no one who said you must leave your sin on your God of all the Puritans John Owen spoke about sin a lot he spoke about sin the most you must leave your sin on your God working out obedience to shine as light to shine as light for Christ
[35:09] God we must first be resting secondly then working and living lives worthy of the gospel and when we do that we will have a joy in our hearts that is inexpressible there is nothing like sin in our marriage of table in our children in our hearts all of you be of the same mind, be of one accord, do nothing without disputing. And then we'll have that joy within our hearts. That joy that can only come from resting on Christ.
[36:05] And then more joy as we work for Christ. Never ever ever underestimate your seer of influence.
[36:16] Never never never underestimate what the Lord might do with your life. Never never never underestimate what the Lord might do with your prayer. Do not underestimate the Lord who works and who will within you. We are weak, we are fragile and we are frail. And we are utterly ruined by sin. But Paul tells us that God the Holy Spirit lives in you. For it is God who works in you both to will and to work but to seek pleasure. Do not underestimate the Lord to make the Lord work you in your life. Let us pray. The eternal God we thank you and bless you. That we hand you and need rest upon you. And Father I pray that we so say that at any within this congregation who are lacking an assurance of faith, Father we pray that your word this morning will have remedied that. We thank you for your word. We thank you for your glorious Holy Spirit who works in accord with your word. But we also thank you Lord that your Holy Spirit lives and rests and is in your people. Help us to have confidence in you Lord.
[37:34] For we know our fragility, we know our weakness. And Father would you use us mightily. wherever we may be. At work or in school or wherever it is Lord. And we ask it in Jesus name. Amen.
[37:52] Gracious Lord we thank you for today. We thank you for your word. And Lord we pray that you would go before each and every one of us this day. And that grace, mercy and peace from God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit rest on and abide with you now and forevermore. Amen.
[38:09] Amen.