Php 2:12  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 NEED TO WORK “OUT” OUR SALVATION, NOT WORK “FOR” IT.
First of all what is “salvation?” It means freedom. It is freedom:-
* From the Penalty of sin. {Because Christ died for us.}
* From the Power of sin. [Because of the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit given to us by God when we believed.]
* From the Presence of sin. [When we go to be with the Lord when we die, or when He comes again to take us to be with Him in glory.]
No one can earn or deserve their salvation. It could only be received as a gift from God, stemming from His grace and love, and is available to all those who place their trust in Him. This is how  St Paul expressed this truth in Ephesians, Eph 2:8  “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. 10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”   
 
These verses remind us that we cannot be saved by the works [ergon] we do, yet God has created us in Christ Jesus to do good works. These are described as being prepared beforehand by God for us to walk in. Here we have a mixture of divine sovereignty and human responsibility. God in His sovereignty prepares the works He wants us to do, but we as humans have the responsibility of performing them.
 
In other words, even though we cannot earn our salvation by good works, God wants us to please Him by doing the works He has planned for us to do. So we must work out in practice the implications of our free salvation. We are freed from the inability to please God by any works we do, to being given the ability by Him to do the works that please Him.
 
2]. GOD GIVES US THE WILLINGNESS AND THE ABILITY TO DO THE GOOD WORKS HE HAS PLANNED FOR US TO DO. Philippians 2:12-13.
“ … 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. 2:12-13.
In verses 12 and 13 two derivatives of the word “erg” are used in the verbs. ”Erg” is the English word for the unit of energy in Physics. The three words for “work” are in the present tense.

1.        Kat/erg/azomai = to work out. 2:12. [work out your own salvation.] The “kat” prefix makes a more intensive form of the verb and can mean here fully or to accomplish. It is a present tense imperative which could be translated, “Keep on fully working out your salvation.” We need to work out fully the implications of our faith in practice. ]

2.        En/erg/eō = to be operative, be at work, put forth power. Both in 2:13. It is the basis of our English word “energy.” [It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.] God is at work in us to give us both the willingness and the ability to work for His good pleasure.] The first “works” is a participle form of the verb being literally, “The One working in you.”
A possible translation for these verses could be, ”Keep on fully working out your salvation with fear and trembling for it is God who continually is at work in you, giving you the willingness and the ability to keep on working for His good pleasure.”
 
God’s grace in our salvation is seen in His gift to us of the freedom of forgiveness for our sins and in equipping us by His grace by giving us the desire to do His will. Not only that but He gives us His grace in equipping us to do the works that please Him. [Which in His grace He has prepared beforehand for us to walk in.]
 
No room for boasting here! St Paul wrote, “If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” 2 Corinthians 11:30. He could do nothing to earn his salvation or to do the works God wanted him to do. But this passage from Philippians 2:12-13 shows the immensity of the grace of God in giving His people the desire and the ability to do the works that please Him.
Praise God for His amazing grace! The grace given to us in the free gift of salvation, and His ongoing grace equipping us to live for Him to His glory!
Blog No.559 posted on Sunday 27 October 2024.