Work Out Your Salvation… But Let God Do the Hard Part

Philippians 2:12-13  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,  for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Two verses rarely excite such a range of emotion in me, as the two quoted above.  Paul begins soberly by exhorting us to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.  This is a hard thing.  In fact, at first glance it sounds a little like what legalists are faulted with doing; isn’t it wrong for us to attempt to work out our own salvation?  Isn’t our salvation resolved already, since we’re in the palm of God’s hand, where no one can pluck us out?

But this call for working out our salvation comes after a plea for a deep humility in the church.  Paul is telling us that the process by which we “work out,” or express, our salvation is a sober thing, and should be done from the mindset of deep humility.

Then Paul swings back from sober exhortation to joyful encouragement.  He tells us it is God who does the work in us, giving us both the desire to work, and through His Holy Spirit does the very work itself.  It’s like He’s saying “Hey, I didn’t mean to scare you there – I know you can’t work out your own salvation without help, so that’s where I come in!“

It is for this reason we need to give all credit to God for all that we do.  Our very will is not our own, but it is God who places it in us.  If we can’t take credit for our desires, let alone our works, we have reason to be humble indeed.

Where have you been let pride in the door lately?  Spend a moment to abound in thanksgiving, and recognize that God is the one who gives us the very desires to do those things, let alone does them through us, thanks to His great Holy Spirit.