Introduction
Matthew Henry - "The example of our Lord Jesus Christ is set before us. We must resemble Him in His life, if we would have the benefit of his death."
How do we do this? - there has long been a debate about the relationship between the power of God and the responsibility of the believer in living the Christian life.
Is the Christian life a matter of passive trust in God or of active obedience?
As we look at these verses, I think we will see that it is both - it is God who does the ultimate work according to His purposes, but we are the instruments He uses and we have to get up off the couch and take action
However, we do not have in these verses an explanation of the perfect harmonization of the two - for we know there are some mysteries of our Father that are incomprehensible
Deut 29:29 - "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the revealed things belong to us and to our sons forever, so that we may do all the words of this law."
The Believer's Responsibility
How do we know that there is an action for us to take?
Paul begins v. 12 with a "therefore"
We know from last week that Christ became man, lived, suffered, and was resurrected for our sake. This "therefore" links what he said in last week's verses with the directive given this week.
Because He did these things for us, we must obey.
"And being perfected, He became the Author of eternal salvation to all those who obey Him." (Hebrews 5:9)
There is no doubt that we are called to obey
But, more than just sheer obedience from duty, we ought to obey out of love, for He first loved us.
"For He received honor and glory from God the Father, when was borne to Him a voice from the excellent glory, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (2 Peter 1:17)
1. What does it look like to "obey"?
We are told in v. 12 that we must "work out our salvation"
MacArthur points out that the Greek word "work out" used here means to "continually work to bring something to fulfillment or completion"
MacArthur is careful to point out that this does NOT refer to "salvation by works"
"But now a righteousness of God has been revealed apart from Law, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets; 22 even the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ, toward all and upon all those who believe. For there is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, 24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus;" (Romans 3:21-24)
"For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
So what is being referred to here by "work out our salvation"?
The believer's responsibility to actively pursue obedience to Christ in the process of sanctification.
Do we stay healthy by sitting on the couch eating junk food and watching TV? - no, of course not! Our muscles go into atrophy and we will lose our strength.
In the same way, if we are not studying Scripture, worshipping, and engaging others for Christ, our faith will also go into atrophy.
"You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its savor, with what shall it be salted? It is no longer good for anything, but to be thrown out and to be trodden underfoot by men." (Matthew 5:13)
2. How do we "work" through this process of sanctification?
"with fear and trembling"; we are to have a "humble" (last week's directive) attitude in our pursuit - a healthy fear and reverence for God
Proverbs 9:10 "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; and the knowledge of the holy is understanding."
"cultivate" your salvation (MKJV); Webster - "to prepare the land in order to raise crops"; "to develop or improve by education or training"; "to devote oneself to" (love the imagery in these definitions)
Matthew Henry - "We must be diligent in the use of all the means which lead to our salvation, persevering therein to the end."
We have to intentional in our faith; this is easier said than done, especially when life gets hectic and/or we are going through tribulations.
God at Work
Though we are responsible for working on our faith, we know that God is omnipotent; it is He who saves
John 17:9 "I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours."
While we work, it is the Lord who actually produces good works in us
John 15:5 "I am the Vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."
He works through us by the in dwelling of His Spirit
Acts 1:8 "But you shall receive power, the Holy Spirit coming upon you. And you shall be witnesses to Me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
Galatians 3:5 "Then He supplying the Spirit to you and working powerful works in you, is it by works of the law, or by hearing of faith?"
So, where do we get off track?
On the one hand, we can stress God's role in sanctification to the point of the exclusion of any human effort (like we said before, we are called to act - i.e., the Great Commission)
On the other hand, we can emphasize self-effort at the expense of reliance on God's power of saving grace
How do we reconcile the two? - through love.
Mark 12:30 "and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength."
When we approach life with Love in our heart for Christ and our fellow man, we can follow and obey Him while also realizing that He will accomplish His good works through us in His good timing
Conclusion
I love the story of Alvin York, a farmer from Fentress Co., TN
York was a heavy drinker and was a perpetual fighter, involved in multiple run ins with the law
On New Years Day, at age of 28, York became a Christian and dedicated his life to sobriety
In 1917, York was drafted into WWI and in 1918, the Battle for Argonne Forest began
York was part of a patrol sent to take out a German machine gun nest; York personally killed more than 20 Germans & took another 132 prisoner; York was heralded by General Pershing as the "greatest civilian soldier of the war."
The night after York's heroics at the Battle of Argonne, he wrote in his journal:
"So you can see here in this case of mine where God helped me out. I had bin living for God and working in the church some time before I came to the army. So I am witness to the fact that God did help me out of that hard battle; for the bushes were shot up all around me, and I never got a scratch."
York relied on God to work out His purposes, all while taking action. We are not all called to war, but we are in a spiritual battle that requires action on our part and reliance of God to accomplish His holy will.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
John MacArthur's commentary on Philippians - Lesson 5
Introduction
In this portion of the letter to the Philippians church, Paul discusses the incarnation of Christ as a man and our sharing in His ultimate glory in His life, His suffering, and His resurrection
Pre-incarnation & Ministry
Paul affirms that Jesus is and has been eternally God
MacArthur points out that Paul uses the word "form" which conotates the unchanging character of something
This ties into what we discussed a couple of weeks ago, being of one mind - that is - a faith in the Truth.
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1)
Jesus is Messiah and Creator
Those present understood Jesus to be proclaiming blasphemy; do identify Himself as "I Am" is to declare Himself as Yaweh! Which He is.
1. "thought it not robbery"
A thing seized by robbery; embraced, prized, held onto
Though Christ had every reason to embrace and hold onto the honors of His deity, He was willing to leave it for a season
Would we give up a promotion, an award, a bonus for our fellow man? No - but our Lord gave up that much and infinitely more!
2. What does Jesus look like in His incarnation?
"made Himself of no reputation"; 2 Corinthians 8:9 "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, for your sakes He became poor, in order that you might be made rich through His poverty."
"took upon Himself the form of a servant"; Matthew 20:27 "And whoever desires to be chief among you, let him be your servant"
"made in the likeness of men"; Hebrews 2:16-17 "For truly He did not take the nature of angels, but He took hold of the seed of Abraham. 17 Therefore in all things it behoved him to be made like His brothers, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of His people."
"humbled Himself"; 1 Peter 2:23-24 "who when He was reviled did not revile in return. When He suffered, He did not threaten, but gave Himself up to Him who judges righteously. 24 He Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that dying to sins, we might live to righteousness; by whose stripes you were healed."
"obedient even unto death"; Matthew 26:39 "And He went a little further and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will."
Two things that these attributes have in common
All of these things we are unwilling to do!
All of these things fall into the broad category of "humility"
What is the definition of humility? - "Modest opinion of one's own rank or importance" (Webster) - not bad for society, but doesn't go far enough to be a Christian standard; "putting or thinking of others above one's self"
Let's take a look at the word "humility" in Scripture; "humble appears 31 times, "humbled" appears 47 times, & "humbles" 7 times; next to the Cross, humility, in my opinion, is one of the central themes of Scripture - in fact, we see here in Philippians that humility is exactly what drove Christ to the cross; He thought of us first and Himself last!
Proverbs 15:33 "The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility."
1 Peter 5:5-7 "Likewise, younger ones, be subject to older ones, and all being subject to one another. Put on humility. For God resists proud ones, but He gives grace to the humble. 6 Therefore be humbled under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your anxiety onto Him, for He cares for you."
We see here in v. 8 that Christ humbled Himself into death, by giving Himself over to the Jews and Romans for Crucifixion in spite of His innocence and His ability to have legions of angels at His disposal.
Do we act humbly when persecuted?
Christ's Exultation and Our Promise of Glory
V. 9 has a "therefore"
According to MacArthur, this "therefore" links Christ's suffering and His exultation
Because He chose to humble Himself and suffer for us, He is ultimately exalted
2. We are told in the last verses (v. 10-11) that every knee will bow and every tongue will confess Christ's holy name.
First, this is the purpose of the cross from the beginning of time - to display God's grace, His mercy, and ultimately His glory. And, we are participants in His glory because we are His children.
Second, we can take comfort when we are humble and being persecuted - Christ's name will ultimately be confessed by all. We have nothing to fear and no reason to become angry or defensive when we are wrongly persecuted, because we know that ultimately, those who persecute us will know the Truth.
Conclusion
Has anyone heard of a man named Wallace Hartley?
Wallace was the band leader on the Titanic who courageously led his band mates in playing continuously on the deck of the boat as it sank that fateful night (according to multiple eye witnesses)
Hartley was from the small town of Colne in Lancashire, England, and was raised in the Methodist church. His father was the choirmaster there and responsible for introducing the hymn ‘Nearer, My God, to Thee’ to the congregation, the song which was widely reported to have been played by Hartley and his band mates that night on the Titanic
By all accounts Hartley was a highly principled person and a devout Christian, who regularly attended church.
What's the point of the story?
Hartley approached his job and life from a position of humility. When it came down to a life-and-death decision, instead of running for the nearest lifeboat and finagling his way onto it in panic, he sacrificed himself to provide calm and ultimate hope to others in a desperate situation. He did this because he had hope in his ultimate exultation shared in Christ. May we live in this way everyday.
In this portion of the letter to the Philippians church, Paul discusses the incarnation of Christ as a man and our sharing in His ultimate glory in His life, His suffering, and His resurrection
Pre-incarnation & Ministry
Paul affirms that Jesus is and has been eternally God
MacArthur points out that Paul uses the word "form" which conotates the unchanging character of something
This ties into what we discussed a couple of weeks ago, being of one mind - that is - a faith in the Truth.
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1)
Jesus is Messiah and Creator
Those present understood Jesus to be proclaiming blasphemy; do identify Himself as "I Am" is to declare Himself as Yaweh! Which He is.
1. "thought it not robbery"
A thing seized by robbery; embraced, prized, held onto
Though Christ had every reason to embrace and hold onto the honors of His deity, He was willing to leave it for a season
Would we give up a promotion, an award, a bonus for our fellow man? No - but our Lord gave up that much and infinitely more!
2. What does Jesus look like in His incarnation?
"made Himself of no reputation"; 2 Corinthians 8:9 "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, for your sakes He became poor, in order that you might be made rich through His poverty."
"took upon Himself the form of a servant"; Matthew 20:27 "And whoever desires to be chief among you, let him be your servant"
"made in the likeness of men"; Hebrews 2:16-17 "For truly He did not take the nature of angels, but He took hold of the seed of Abraham. 17 Therefore in all things it behoved him to be made like His brothers, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of His people."
"humbled Himself"; 1 Peter 2:23-24 "who when He was reviled did not revile in return. When He suffered, He did not threaten, but gave Himself up to Him who judges righteously. 24 He Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that dying to sins, we might live to righteousness; by whose stripes you were healed."
"obedient even unto death"; Matthew 26:39 "And He went a little further and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will."
Two things that these attributes have in common
All of these things we are unwilling to do!
All of these things fall into the broad category of "humility"
What is the definition of humility? - "Modest opinion of one's own rank or importance" (Webster) - not bad for society, but doesn't go far enough to be a Christian standard; "putting or thinking of others above one's self"
Let's take a look at the word "humility" in Scripture; "humble appears 31 times, "humbled" appears 47 times, & "humbles" 7 times; next to the Cross, humility, in my opinion, is one of the central themes of Scripture - in fact, we see here in Philippians that humility is exactly what drove Christ to the cross; He thought of us first and Himself last!
Proverbs 15:33 "The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility."
1 Peter 5:5-7 "Likewise, younger ones, be subject to older ones, and all being subject to one another. Put on humility. For God resists proud ones, but He gives grace to the humble. 6 Therefore be humbled under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your anxiety onto Him, for He cares for you."
We see here in v. 8 that Christ humbled Himself into death, by giving Himself over to the Jews and Romans for Crucifixion in spite of His innocence and His ability to have legions of angels at His disposal.
Do we act humbly when persecuted?
Christ's Exultation and Our Promise of Glory
V. 9 has a "therefore"
According to MacArthur, this "therefore" links Christ's suffering and His exultation
Because He chose to humble Himself and suffer for us, He is ultimately exalted
2. We are told in the last verses (v. 10-11) that every knee will bow and every tongue will confess Christ's holy name.
First, this is the purpose of the cross from the beginning of time - to display God's grace, His mercy, and ultimately His glory. And, we are participants in His glory because we are His children.
Second, we can take comfort when we are humble and being persecuted - Christ's name will ultimately be confessed by all. We have nothing to fear and no reason to become angry or defensive when we are wrongly persecuted, because we know that ultimately, those who persecute us will know the Truth.
Conclusion
Has anyone heard of a man named Wallace Hartley?
Wallace was the band leader on the Titanic who courageously led his band mates in playing continuously on the deck of the boat as it sank that fateful night (according to multiple eye witnesses)
Hartley was from the small town of Colne in Lancashire, England, and was raised in the Methodist church. His father was the choirmaster there and responsible for introducing the hymn ‘Nearer, My God, to Thee’ to the congregation, the song which was widely reported to have been played by Hartley and his band mates that night on the Titanic
By all accounts Hartley was a highly principled person and a devout Christian, who regularly attended church.
What's the point of the story?
Hartley approached his job and life from a position of humility. When it came down to a life-and-death decision, instead of running for the nearest lifeboat and finagling his way onto it in panic, he sacrificed himself to provide calm and ultimate hope to others in a desperate situation. He did this because he had hope in his ultimate exultation shared in Christ. May we live in this way everyday.
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