At Peace With God # 1
"Romans 5:1-11
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ - by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulation also: knowing that tribulation works patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope. And hope makes not ashamed - because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who is given unto us. For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commends His love toward us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son - much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.
Even to lie on a sick bed, at peace with God, is happy. For to be at peace with God we must be happy, under any circumstances. The apostle begins with the happiness - and then goes on to speak of the tribulations; as if he would have the afflicted Christian first be filled with thoughts of his happy state, as being justified by faith and at peace with God - and then look at his trials in the light of that happiness.
What comforting words! "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ." The believer is justified from his sins - reckoned innocent by God. This is by his faith, his faith in Christ. He is guilty, but for Christ's sake, he is reckoned guiltless. For Christ died for him, and he believes. When he is thus justified - then he is at peace with God. It was sin that made him at enmity with God. Now that the sin is forgiven and taken away by the blood of Christ - is is at peace with God. But all through our Lord Jesus Christ. It is all of grace, through faith.
When we are thus at peace with God through Christ, then we can draw near to Him without fear. "We have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand" - into this state of favor and acceptance to which God has brought us, and in which we live, and by His help stand fast. And living thus, we are able to rejoice. We can rejoice even in present things, in the peace of God which we feel, in the happy thoughts of God that we have, in the many inward comforts which He gives us. But much more we can rejoice in hope of the glory of God. In the midst of suffering - we can think of what God has prepared for them that love Him, of that glorious place where we hope to dwell forever with Him. And when we can do this, how light do our sufferings seem!
But the apostle goes further: "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also." Glory in them, or rejoice in them, for it is exactly the same word as before. Now this seems strange. We could understand being patient in tribulations, but this goes beyond that. This is rejoicing in them. And we could perhaps understand rejoicing in them; that is, rejoicing in the midst of them, rejoicing when suffering them, on account of our forgiveness and acceptance in Christ and the happy home which lies before us. But the apostle, from what follows, seems to go even beyond this. He seems to mean rejoicing in the very tribulations themselves - on account of the good which they do to us; actually rejoicing in them, not in spite of them.
What good do they do to us? "Tribulation," he says, "works patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope." This is all good. Patience is good; experience is good; hope is good. But they all come from tribulation, in a kind of chain, one following on another. Therefore tribulation is good too, when rightly improved, as here. And therefore he rejoices in it.
But let us look at this a little more closely. "Tribulation works patience." How so? In this way. We cannot bear trouble aright - if we have none to bear. We cannot be patient - if we have nothing to be patient under. Graces grow by exercise. Besides, tribulation, when taken aright - brings down our pride and humbles us under the hand of God. And so we often see that a person who was anything but patient when first affliction fell on him - becomes patient as the trial goes on, and more and more patient. He is in God's school. God Himself is teaching him patience by tribulation. Thus tribulation works patience."
"And patience works experience." This means probably experience of God's grace and love. We never feel them more than when we are patiently bearing His will - never so much perhaps. God gives special comfort for special sorrow - and special help in special need. Sometimes an unspeakable sense of His love is given to one in affliction - such as even turns a time of deep affliction into a time of joy. And often such help and support are given to the patient sufferer as carry him through what he would have thought he never could bear. This "experience" of God's grace and love is precious indeed.
~Francis Bourdillon~
(continued with # 2)
Saturday, March 23, 2019
Saturday, March 16, 2019
True Religion Both Spiritual and Practical
True Religion Both Spiritual and Practical
"I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh, when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house" (Psalm 101:2).
This is one of the psalms of David, expressing his feelings, wishes, and purposes, when advanced to the throne of Israel. In this second verse of the psalm, we see two things about David's religion: first, that it is spiritual and secondly, that is was practical.
It was spiritual. "Oh, when will You come to me?" he cries. These words express a longing desire for God's presence, and they are all the more striking from being introduced in the midst of another subject. He is declaring his determination to behave himself wisely, when this earnest wish breaks forth. "Oh! when will You come to me?"
It is the sure mark of a spiritual mind - to desire and delight in the presence of God. To hold communion with Him in secret, to lift up the heart to Him, and to feel Him near; to place a happy confidence in Him as no stranger, but a friend and Father - this is the delight and the desire of the child of God. Nor is this a happiness which is beyond his reach. It is the privilege of the Christian to enjoy the presence of God. Christ has brought him near. He is the living Way. By Him, the humble believer can approach the throne of grace and seek God's presence in faith, and enjoy the fulfillment of the promise. "My Father will love him - and We will come to him and make Our home with him."
Yet there are changes in our frames and feelings. We do not always enjoy this blessing alike at all times. Though God's presence itself may not be removed from us - yet the conscious sense of God's presence often is absent. We are not always bright - we have our dark days too. The words of David, "Oh, when will You come to me?" seem to show that he was not at that time in the enjoyment of the conscious presence of God. Rather, they seem to express a temporary lack of comfort. But they are words, not of despondency, but of ardent desire. It is the voice of one who has had the sense of God's conscious presence in times past, and most certainly seeks it again. The withholding of the blessing, does but increase his desire for it: "Oh! When will You come to me?"
Perhaps spiritual comfort is sometimes withheld by God on purpose, to quicken our desires and prayers - for we often value a blessing the more from its being withdrawn. Perhaps it is part of God's gracious dealing with us for our good, to hide from us at times the light of His countenance, that we may cry to Him more earnestly.
Let none give way to despondency when the sense of God's nearness seems gone and the brightness of His presence is dimmed; let none think that God has changed - that He has forgotten to be gracious - that He will visit and bless no more. Rather, let more ardent desires be called forth, and let the cry go up more earnestly, "Oh! when will You come to me!" Pray without ceasing. Pray by faith. Wait on the Lord. He gave the desire - and He will not leave it unsatisfied.
But though it may sometimes please God in His sovereign wisdom thus to deprive us of spiritual comfort - yet there may be a reason in ourselves - some lack of watchfulness, some carelessness of walk or neglect of means. David seems to have had this in his mind when he said, "I will ponder the way that is blameless (behave myself in a wise and perfect way). I will walk with integrity of heart within my house." It is not without reason that we find this resolution joined to his desire for God's presence. Knowing that any indulgence in what was wrong would come between him and God, he joined to his prayer this earnest resolve: "I will ponder the way that is blameless. I will walk with integrity of heart within my house."
The word "perfect" here, as elsewhere, means "sincere" and "upright." The meaning is that he would be guilty of no double dealing with God. He would not beg God to come to him - and yet in life and practice depart from God. He would at least be honest and true - he would allow himself in no known sin.
He would behave himself wisely. He would not lead a thoughtless, careless life, spending his time in idle folly - he would be serious and in earnest. Such should be his walk and behavior - that is, his habitual line of conduct. He would strive to be a true, humble, consistent servant of God.
He makes mention of his "house." He was placed by God in a higher position than most men; for he was a king, the head of a great household, and with almost absolute authority over his kingdom. He would try to use this vast influence aright. In his own personal conduct he would set an example to all around him. In the ordering of his household, he would seek to follow God's holy will. Such was his determination.
Thus his religion was practical as well as spiritual. All true religion is so. We cannot have God's presence - unless we walk uprightly. Any sin against conscience, any giving way to worldly customs which we know to be contrary to the word of God, any allowed indulgence of pride or vanity or evil desires - cannot fail to deprive us of the comfort of God's presence. He will not dwell with sin.
In our outward feelings and in our outward conduct, in private and in public, in our personal behavior and in our fellowship with others, in thought and word and deed - we must be upright and sincere, if we would enjoy the presence of God.
God will help all who earnestly desire to have Him as their portion through Christ Jesus, and set themselves to do His will. He will give them His presence, and keep them by His grace. Let none be content to live without the happiness of God's presence - when they are encouraged by God Himself to seek it.
Yet let not even the sincere and earnest disciple of Christ expects all to be smooth. Here we must labor and conflict - for this present world is not our rest. But this we may confidently believe: that through light and darkness, God is with him, while he cleaves to Christ and walks closely with God; that a strength not his own is given to him in all his weakness, and will be given even to the end; that God's mercy, favor, and love will never be withdrawn; that infinite love and wisdom will allow him just so much of the sense of God's presence as is best for his soul; and that the time is not far off, when he and every true believer will enjoy the presence of God perfectly and forever!
~Francis Bourdillon~
(The End)
"I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh, when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house" (Psalm 101:2).
This is one of the psalms of David, expressing his feelings, wishes, and purposes, when advanced to the throne of Israel. In this second verse of the psalm, we see two things about David's religion: first, that it is spiritual and secondly, that is was practical.
It was spiritual. "Oh, when will You come to me?" he cries. These words express a longing desire for God's presence, and they are all the more striking from being introduced in the midst of another subject. He is declaring his determination to behave himself wisely, when this earnest wish breaks forth. "Oh! when will You come to me?"
It is the sure mark of a spiritual mind - to desire and delight in the presence of God. To hold communion with Him in secret, to lift up the heart to Him, and to feel Him near; to place a happy confidence in Him as no stranger, but a friend and Father - this is the delight and the desire of the child of God. Nor is this a happiness which is beyond his reach. It is the privilege of the Christian to enjoy the presence of God. Christ has brought him near. He is the living Way. By Him, the humble believer can approach the throne of grace and seek God's presence in faith, and enjoy the fulfillment of the promise. "My Father will love him - and We will come to him and make Our home with him."
Yet there are changes in our frames and feelings. We do not always enjoy this blessing alike at all times. Though God's presence itself may not be removed from us - yet the conscious sense of God's presence often is absent. We are not always bright - we have our dark days too. The words of David, "Oh, when will You come to me?" seem to show that he was not at that time in the enjoyment of the conscious presence of God. Rather, they seem to express a temporary lack of comfort. But they are words, not of despondency, but of ardent desire. It is the voice of one who has had the sense of God's conscious presence in times past, and most certainly seeks it again. The withholding of the blessing, does but increase his desire for it: "Oh! When will You come to me?"
Perhaps spiritual comfort is sometimes withheld by God on purpose, to quicken our desires and prayers - for we often value a blessing the more from its being withdrawn. Perhaps it is part of God's gracious dealing with us for our good, to hide from us at times the light of His countenance, that we may cry to Him more earnestly.
Let none give way to despondency when the sense of God's nearness seems gone and the brightness of His presence is dimmed; let none think that God has changed - that He has forgotten to be gracious - that He will visit and bless no more. Rather, let more ardent desires be called forth, and let the cry go up more earnestly, "Oh! when will You come to me!" Pray without ceasing. Pray by faith. Wait on the Lord. He gave the desire - and He will not leave it unsatisfied.
But though it may sometimes please God in His sovereign wisdom thus to deprive us of spiritual comfort - yet there may be a reason in ourselves - some lack of watchfulness, some carelessness of walk or neglect of means. David seems to have had this in his mind when he said, "I will ponder the way that is blameless (behave myself in a wise and perfect way). I will walk with integrity of heart within my house." It is not without reason that we find this resolution joined to his desire for God's presence. Knowing that any indulgence in what was wrong would come between him and God, he joined to his prayer this earnest resolve: "I will ponder the way that is blameless. I will walk with integrity of heart within my house."
The word "perfect" here, as elsewhere, means "sincere" and "upright." The meaning is that he would be guilty of no double dealing with God. He would not beg God to come to him - and yet in life and practice depart from God. He would at least be honest and true - he would allow himself in no known sin.
He would behave himself wisely. He would not lead a thoughtless, careless life, spending his time in idle folly - he would be serious and in earnest. Such should be his walk and behavior - that is, his habitual line of conduct. He would strive to be a true, humble, consistent servant of God.
He makes mention of his "house." He was placed by God in a higher position than most men; for he was a king, the head of a great household, and with almost absolute authority over his kingdom. He would try to use this vast influence aright. In his own personal conduct he would set an example to all around him. In the ordering of his household, he would seek to follow God's holy will. Such was his determination.
Thus his religion was practical as well as spiritual. All true religion is so. We cannot have God's presence - unless we walk uprightly. Any sin against conscience, any giving way to worldly customs which we know to be contrary to the word of God, any allowed indulgence of pride or vanity or evil desires - cannot fail to deprive us of the comfort of God's presence. He will not dwell with sin.
In our outward feelings and in our outward conduct, in private and in public, in our personal behavior and in our fellowship with others, in thought and word and deed - we must be upright and sincere, if we would enjoy the presence of God.
God will help all who earnestly desire to have Him as their portion through Christ Jesus, and set themselves to do His will. He will give them His presence, and keep them by His grace. Let none be content to live without the happiness of God's presence - when they are encouraged by God Himself to seek it.
Yet let not even the sincere and earnest disciple of Christ expects all to be smooth. Here we must labor and conflict - for this present world is not our rest. But this we may confidently believe: that through light and darkness, God is with him, while he cleaves to Christ and walks closely with God; that a strength not his own is given to him in all his weakness, and will be given even to the end; that God's mercy, favor, and love will never be withdrawn; that infinite love and wisdom will allow him just so much of the sense of God's presence as is best for his soul; and that the time is not far off, when he and every true believer will enjoy the presence of God perfectly and forever!
~Francis Bourdillon~
(The End)
Man Is Born To Trouble
Man Is Born To Trouble
Job 5:6-11
Affliction does not come of itself; it does not spring up from the dust of the earth, nor grow naturally from the ground, as plants do; nor has chance anything whatever to do with it. As common as it is - affliction does not come without a cause, or without being sent on purpose by God.
Yet affliction does fall in to the lot of all. No one, however prosperous, is without sorrow and trial. Sooner or later: "Man is born unto trouble - as surely as sparks fly upward." So surely does trouble in some shape befall every man that is born into the world.
Whence does it come? God sends it - or at least allows it to come. But it is not saying too much to say that He sends it.
When Adam fell and sin and death entered into the world - then trouble came too. This was God's appointment. He said to Adam, "Because you have listened unto the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you - cursed is the ground for your sake; in sorrow you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns also thistles shall bring forth to you; in the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, until you return unto the ground; for out of it were you taken - for dust you are, and unto dust shall you return."
This was what God said to Adam. And though Christ has come and brought us life and salvation and given us a blessed hope - yet still we are but dust; and still, as long as we are here, sorrow is our appointed portion; sorrow, mixed with many blessings - yet sorrow nevertheless.
And not only is trouble in general appointed to man by God - but each man's particular trouble is of God's appointment too. Your troubles and mine do not come forth of the dust or spring out of the ground. They do not arise by chance or accident. God sends them! Sickness and sorrow are ordained for us by Him - each sickness and sorrow as it comes.
Eliphaz, therefore, says here to Job: "I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause." Job's troubles were many and great - yet let him not despair. Everything was in God's hand. All that happened was ordered by Him; all was subject to His control. Let Job in his affliction seek God and commit his cause unto Him. This was good advice for Job, and for all.
God's wonderful power is one reason why we should seek Him in trouble. He "does great and unsearchable things - marvelous things without number." Surely then He is able to help us in our trouble. There is nothing that He cannot do. He is Almighty!
We see further that God takes notice of man's needs. He gives rain upon the earth. Thus He graciously provides for us. And will He not care for us and help us in any special trouble? He who has all nature at His command, He who is providing for man's support every day - can He not, and will He not, hear those who cry to Him and send them comfort and relief?
We find in this passage that He certainly will: "To set up on high, those that are low; that those who mourn may be exalted to safety." This is said of God. He will do this. He not only orders all the great things of nature and of the world, but He also pays attention to each person's needs. He lifts up those that are low and raises the mourner to safety. None are beneath God's notice; none are beyond His power to help. Whatever they may be, low in station, low in circumstances, low in spirit, low in comforts and in friends - God cares for them and is able to raise them. Whatever they may be mourning for, He pities them and can send them comfort. Well might Eliphaz say, "I would seek unto God; and unto God would I commit my cause." He is the best of friends in distress - and the most mighty and most loving helper in all trouble. If trouble comes from Him - yet surely the God of love will send help and comfort too.
To all who truly know God - it is a most comforting thought that their affliction comes from Him. It seems to take away the strangeness and the bitterness of it. When once they can realize His hand, then in all their sorrowful thoughts about their afflictions - they think about God too, and this comforts them.
When the suffer thus sees the hand of God in trouble - he reasons that God will never let the trouble be too great.
But perhaps the afflicted person may be one who does not know God. As! Then, in this time of trouble, let God be sought: "I would seek unto God - and unto God would I commit my cause." Let those who have sought God before - seek Him again. There must be with all a beginning - a seeking.
When the pain is sore,
when the body is weak,
when the heart is heavy,
when the sorrow is great and deep
-then let God be sought.
Is not this the gracious reason for which sickness and sorrow come? Let none be afraid to seek God. True, we are unworthy. But we have a friend, a Saviour, a Mediator. Jesus Christ died for us and lives for us. By Him we may go boldly to the throne of grace. Boldly, that is, not proudly or with self-confidence, but in the humble belief that we may go, that we may speak freely all that is on our mind, and that we shall be heard and accepted for Christ's sake. God will never reject a humble, seeking heart. "He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer."
~Francis Bourdillon~
(The End)
Job 5:6-11
Affliction does not come of itself; it does not spring up from the dust of the earth, nor grow naturally from the ground, as plants do; nor has chance anything whatever to do with it. As common as it is - affliction does not come without a cause, or without being sent on purpose by God.
Yet affliction does fall in to the lot of all. No one, however prosperous, is without sorrow and trial. Sooner or later: "Man is born unto trouble - as surely as sparks fly upward." So surely does trouble in some shape befall every man that is born into the world.
Whence does it come? God sends it - or at least allows it to come. But it is not saying too much to say that He sends it.
When Adam fell and sin and death entered into the world - then trouble came too. This was God's appointment. He said to Adam, "Because you have listened unto the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you - cursed is the ground for your sake; in sorrow you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns also thistles shall bring forth to you; in the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, until you return unto the ground; for out of it were you taken - for dust you are, and unto dust shall you return."
This was what God said to Adam. And though Christ has come and brought us life and salvation and given us a blessed hope - yet still we are but dust; and still, as long as we are here, sorrow is our appointed portion; sorrow, mixed with many blessings - yet sorrow nevertheless.
And not only is trouble in general appointed to man by God - but each man's particular trouble is of God's appointment too. Your troubles and mine do not come forth of the dust or spring out of the ground. They do not arise by chance or accident. God sends them! Sickness and sorrow are ordained for us by Him - each sickness and sorrow as it comes.
Eliphaz, therefore, says here to Job: "I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause." Job's troubles were many and great - yet let him not despair. Everything was in God's hand. All that happened was ordered by Him; all was subject to His control. Let Job in his affliction seek God and commit his cause unto Him. This was good advice for Job, and for all.
God's wonderful power is one reason why we should seek Him in trouble. He "does great and unsearchable things - marvelous things without number." Surely then He is able to help us in our trouble. There is nothing that He cannot do. He is Almighty!
We see further that God takes notice of man's needs. He gives rain upon the earth. Thus He graciously provides for us. And will He not care for us and help us in any special trouble? He who has all nature at His command, He who is providing for man's support every day - can He not, and will He not, hear those who cry to Him and send them comfort and relief?
We find in this passage that He certainly will: "To set up on high, those that are low; that those who mourn may be exalted to safety." This is said of God. He will do this. He not only orders all the great things of nature and of the world, but He also pays attention to each person's needs. He lifts up those that are low and raises the mourner to safety. None are beneath God's notice; none are beyond His power to help. Whatever they may be, low in station, low in circumstances, low in spirit, low in comforts and in friends - God cares for them and is able to raise them. Whatever they may be mourning for, He pities them and can send them comfort. Well might Eliphaz say, "I would seek unto God; and unto God would I commit my cause." He is the best of friends in distress - and the most mighty and most loving helper in all trouble. If trouble comes from Him - yet surely the God of love will send help and comfort too.
To all who truly know God - it is a most comforting thought that their affliction comes from Him. It seems to take away the strangeness and the bitterness of it. When once they can realize His hand, then in all their sorrowful thoughts about their afflictions - they think about God too, and this comforts them.
When the suffer thus sees the hand of God in trouble - he reasons that God will never let the trouble be too great.
But perhaps the afflicted person may be one who does not know God. As! Then, in this time of trouble, let God be sought: "I would seek unto God - and unto God would I commit my cause." Let those who have sought God before - seek Him again. There must be with all a beginning - a seeking.
When the pain is sore,
when the body is weak,
when the heart is heavy,
when the sorrow is great and deep
-then let God be sought.
Is not this the gracious reason for which sickness and sorrow come? Let none be afraid to seek God. True, we are unworthy. But we have a friend, a Saviour, a Mediator. Jesus Christ died for us and lives for us. By Him we may go boldly to the throne of grace. Boldly, that is, not proudly or with self-confidence, but in the humble belief that we may go, that we may speak freely all that is on our mind, and that we shall be heard and accepted for Christ's sake. God will never reject a humble, seeking heart. "He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer."
~Francis Bourdillon~
(The End)
Saturday, March 9, 2019
Realizing God's Plan In Life # 3
Realizing God's Plan In Life # 3
Paul changes his figure, but goes on with the same idea, "among whom ye are seen as lights in the world." These are the very people, the twisted and blinded by the darkness of sin, who need the light. Jesus is the real light of the world, but the followers of Christ also pass on the torch and so bear light to others. Here the Philippians are pictured as "luminaries" rather than lights in the world of darkness. As the moon and the stars "appear" in the night, so the Christians come out to give light in the darkness. In the dark night of sin the church of Philippi is a lighthouse in the breakers "holding forth the word of life." The gospel has the principle of life in it. John's Gospel unites light and life as descriptive of the Logos and Christ offers to men "the light of life." Paul naturally blends the two figures here. Vincent rightly calls it "hypercritical" to change the figure to "holding forth. It is common to personify a luminary as a lightbearer." In this latter sense one naturally thinks of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, holding forth the torch of freedom. Every church is a lighthouse in a dark place. The darker the place the more the light is needed. It is sad to see so many churches deserting the downtown districts where they are so much needed. Rescue work must be carried on where sin has done its worst. It is like fighting the plague. Thank God for the men and women who do take the light into the dark corners of our cities. What would our modern cities be like without out churches? The answer is the cities of Japan, of China, of India today. The word of life quickens to life and brings light to the darkened soul.
Paul's Pride (verse 16)
"For a ground of glorying in the day of Christ." This clause is related to all of verse 15 and the preceding part of 16. The day of accounts comes to figure more largely in Paul's mind as he grows older. The writer of Hebrews speaks of the sleepless watch of the shepherd's of souls" as they that shall give account; that they may do this with joy, and not with grief; for this were unprofitable for you." (Hebrews 13:17). Paul longs to have "whereof the glory" in the day of Christ. The success of the Philippians will give Paul something tangible to present to Christ. They will be stars in his crown. He means by "day of Christ" the judgment day, commonly termed the day of the Lord outside of this Epistle. Paul does not wish to be saved "so as by fire" with all his works gone (1 Cor. 3:15). When that day comes and Paul looks back upon his work in Philippi, he does wish to feel "that I did not run in vain neither labor in vain." He has the metaphor of the stadium before him as in Galatians 2:2 when he expresses the same dread about the Galatians. He does not wish it all to come to nothingness. The word for labor here means the weariness of labor. Toil and sweat and weariness were all for naught. It is a pitiful case when the preacher has to see the people go back to the flesh-pots of Egypt and leave his work null and void. The Philippians will be Paul's jewels in the presence of Christ as the mother of the Gracchi boasted of her boys.
Paul's Sacrifice (verse 17)
"Yea, though I am offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith," Paul adds. He will not shrink from death in order to be of service to them and to help them in their efforts to press on in the Christian life. He hopes to live, but he stands in the constant presence of death, and he is not afraid. He had faced death at Philippi and often since. It will come some day. He is ready now. It is not his apostolic office, but his very life that he offers. The picture here is of their faith in the sense of their Christian life as a sacrifice and priestly service. The Philippians as priests lay down upon the altar their Christian lives (faith and fidelity). Upon this Paul is ready to pour out his own life as an additional sacrifice in their service. It is not necessary to press that point whether Paul has in mind the Jewish custom of pouring the drink offering around the altar or the heathen of pouring the libation upon the altar. The latter would be more familiar to the Philippians but the point holds good in either case. Paul is willing to spend and be spent in the service of the Philippians (2 Cor. 12:15). One thinks of the student volunteers who offer their lives for mission service and challenge the churches to furnish the money for their support. One thinks of David Livingstone who gave his life for the healing of the open sore of the world in Africa.
Mutual Joy (verses 17-18)
"I joy and rejoice" with you all," says Paul. He is glad by himself to make the offering of his life, if this supreme sacrifice is demanded. He will not shrink back, but will meet it gladly, and all the more readily since he can share his joy with them. Fellowship is a blessed reality. Paul is glad on his own account that he has been the instrument in their salvation. He is still more joyful at the experience of grace which they have in Christ. Joy is not selfish, but without company. The woman in Luke 15:9 who found her lost piece of money called in her woman friends and said: "Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I had lost." So the shepherd who found the one lost sheep said to his friends: "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost." So the father says: "Make merry, for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." (Luke 15:24). And in the same manner do ye also joy, and rejoice with me". Play up to your part of the joy. Plutarch tells of the messenger from Marathon who expired on the first threshold in Athens with these words on his lips: "Rejoice and we rejoice." Nowhere in the Epistle is Paul so insistent about joy as here. The Christian is rich in his joy in Christ. What joy it will be in heaven to tell the story of the triumph of Christ over sin in your life and in mine.
~Archibald T. Robertson~
(The End)
Paul changes his figure, but goes on with the same idea, "among whom ye are seen as lights in the world." These are the very people, the twisted and blinded by the darkness of sin, who need the light. Jesus is the real light of the world, but the followers of Christ also pass on the torch and so bear light to others. Here the Philippians are pictured as "luminaries" rather than lights in the world of darkness. As the moon and the stars "appear" in the night, so the Christians come out to give light in the darkness. In the dark night of sin the church of Philippi is a lighthouse in the breakers "holding forth the word of life." The gospel has the principle of life in it. John's Gospel unites light and life as descriptive of the Logos and Christ offers to men "the light of life." Paul naturally blends the two figures here. Vincent rightly calls it "hypercritical" to change the figure to "holding forth. It is common to personify a luminary as a lightbearer." In this latter sense one naturally thinks of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, holding forth the torch of freedom. Every church is a lighthouse in a dark place. The darker the place the more the light is needed. It is sad to see so many churches deserting the downtown districts where they are so much needed. Rescue work must be carried on where sin has done its worst. It is like fighting the plague. Thank God for the men and women who do take the light into the dark corners of our cities. What would our modern cities be like without out churches? The answer is the cities of Japan, of China, of India today. The word of life quickens to life and brings light to the darkened soul.
Paul's Pride (verse 16)
"For a ground of glorying in the day of Christ." This clause is related to all of verse 15 and the preceding part of 16. The day of accounts comes to figure more largely in Paul's mind as he grows older. The writer of Hebrews speaks of the sleepless watch of the shepherd's of souls" as they that shall give account; that they may do this with joy, and not with grief; for this were unprofitable for you." (Hebrews 13:17). Paul longs to have "whereof the glory" in the day of Christ. The success of the Philippians will give Paul something tangible to present to Christ. They will be stars in his crown. He means by "day of Christ" the judgment day, commonly termed the day of the Lord outside of this Epistle. Paul does not wish to be saved "so as by fire" with all his works gone (1 Cor. 3:15). When that day comes and Paul looks back upon his work in Philippi, he does wish to feel "that I did not run in vain neither labor in vain." He has the metaphor of the stadium before him as in Galatians 2:2 when he expresses the same dread about the Galatians. He does not wish it all to come to nothingness. The word for labor here means the weariness of labor. Toil and sweat and weariness were all for naught. It is a pitiful case when the preacher has to see the people go back to the flesh-pots of Egypt and leave his work null and void. The Philippians will be Paul's jewels in the presence of Christ as the mother of the Gracchi boasted of her boys.
Paul's Sacrifice (verse 17)
"Yea, though I am offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith," Paul adds. He will not shrink from death in order to be of service to them and to help them in their efforts to press on in the Christian life. He hopes to live, but he stands in the constant presence of death, and he is not afraid. He had faced death at Philippi and often since. It will come some day. He is ready now. It is not his apostolic office, but his very life that he offers. The picture here is of their faith in the sense of their Christian life as a sacrifice and priestly service. The Philippians as priests lay down upon the altar their Christian lives (faith and fidelity). Upon this Paul is ready to pour out his own life as an additional sacrifice in their service. It is not necessary to press that point whether Paul has in mind the Jewish custom of pouring the drink offering around the altar or the heathen of pouring the libation upon the altar. The latter would be more familiar to the Philippians but the point holds good in either case. Paul is willing to spend and be spent in the service of the Philippians (2 Cor. 12:15). One thinks of the student volunteers who offer their lives for mission service and challenge the churches to furnish the money for their support. One thinks of David Livingstone who gave his life for the healing of the open sore of the world in Africa.
Mutual Joy (verses 17-18)
"I joy and rejoice" with you all," says Paul. He is glad by himself to make the offering of his life, if this supreme sacrifice is demanded. He will not shrink back, but will meet it gladly, and all the more readily since he can share his joy with them. Fellowship is a blessed reality. Paul is glad on his own account that he has been the instrument in their salvation. He is still more joyful at the experience of grace which they have in Christ. Joy is not selfish, but without company. The woman in Luke 15:9 who found her lost piece of money called in her woman friends and said: "Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I had lost." So the shepherd who found the one lost sheep said to his friends: "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost." So the father says: "Make merry, for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." (Luke 15:24). And in the same manner do ye also joy, and rejoice with me". Play up to your part of the joy. Plutarch tells of the messenger from Marathon who expired on the first threshold in Athens with these words on his lips: "Rejoice and we rejoice." Nowhere in the Epistle is Paul so insistent about joy as here. The Christian is rich in his joy in Christ. What joy it will be in heaven to tell the story of the triumph of Christ over sin in your life and in mine.
~Archibald T. Robertson~
(The End)
Realizing God's Plan In Life # 2
Realizing God's Plan In Life # 2
This is the ground of hope and joy that makes Romans 8 so different from Romans 7. We are in league with God. God's grace is not an excuse for doing nothing. It is rather the reason for doing all. In religion as in nature we are co-workers with God. We plant the seed and plan the plant and hoe it and harvest it. But God gave us the seed and the soil and sends the rain and the sunshine and supplies that wondrous thing that we call life and makes it grow to perfection. "God has more life than anybody," said a child. It is idle to split hairs over our part and God's part. We must respond to the touch of God's Spirit else we remain dead in sin. Jesus is the author and the finisher of faith (Heb. 12:2), of our faith, but we must believe all the same and keep on looking to Him, the goal of faith and endeavor. There is no higher standard of rectitude than God's good pleasure, by which He regulates our lives. Happy is the man who finds God's plan for his life and falls in with it.
Cheerfulness Under Orders (verse 14)
Having committed our lives to the control of God's will we are under orders. It is unmilitary and peevish to fret at God's commands. "Do all things without murmurings." The allusion may be to the conduct of Israel in the wilderness (Exodus 16:7; Numbers 16:5, 10). The Israelites murmured bitterly against Moses and against God repeatedly and with dire results. "Neither murmur ye, as some of them murmured and perished by the destroyer" (1 Cor. 10:10). These inward murmurings against God's will would easily turn to grumblings towards each other. People do not usually stop with resentment against God, but wish to blame somebody. Disunion had already manifested itself in the church at Philippi. If God is supreme and does all things why did He allow this thing to happen? It is easier to ask than to answer that question?
The next step is to become sour towards one another. "Without disputings." This word is used for questionings, then doubtings, then disputings. This is the usual course of our intellectual revolt against God. Probably the moral revolt (murmurings) comes first. The skeptical spirit follows resentment against some crossing of our will by God's will. The final result is "intellectual rebellion." Thoughts of hesitation or doubt turn to distrust. Distrust ripens into open disputes when a public stand is taken with others against God. Doubt leads to dispute even over trifles. So then, as good soldiers, Christians are to carry out the orders of the Captain of their salvation. Explanations, if they come at all, come after obedience, not before.
Into the valley of death rode the six hundred. Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die." Soldiers go to the charge with a smile on their faces.
Perfection in the Midst of Imperfection (verses 15-16)
Paul here expresses his purpose about the Philippians. It is a double purpose, their own highest development and the greatest service to others. The first is a prerequisite to the other, though they can not be wholly separated. They are to become "blameless and harmless." They are not so in the state of nature and do not easily become so in a state of grace. Certainly none are absolutely free from blame in the eye of God and men can usually find some fault with most of us. But, at any rate, we can give men a little ground as possible to pick flaws in our character. Whimsical critics cannot be satisfied, but we do have to regard the sober judgment of God's people in ethical matters. Lightfoot takes "harmless" to refer to the intrinsic character as in Matthew 10:16 "harmless as doves." The word means literally "unmixed" or "unadulterated" like pure milk or pure wine or unalloyed metal.
In Romans 16:19 Paul says: "I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple unto that which is evil," a noble motto for young and old. It is a great mistake to feel that one must know evil by experience in order to appreciate good. An unsullied character a man wants in his wife and the wife equally so in her husband. It is this sheer simplicity of character that is so delightful in children and, par excellence in the "children of God" in the full spiritual import of this term. The children of Israel,k when they murmured, were not acting like children of God. Paul here quotes Deuteronomy 32:5 and applies it to the Philippians. The children of Israel were full of blemish, while the Philippians are to be "without blemish" like the freewill offering (Lev. 22:21). The Israelites had themselves become "a crooked and perverse generation." But the Philippians must not fall to that low level, as they will if they give way to inward discontent. They must exhibit marks of perfection "in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation." It is an indocile or froward and so "crooked" generation. The word was used of crooked paths and so of crooked steps and crooked ways. The word "perverse" means twisted or distorted and is a bolder word like the Scotch "thrawn" with a twist in the inner nature. Surely our own generation is not without its moral twist and means many straight men when so many are crooked, twisted out of shape.
~Archibald T. Robertson~
(continued with # 3)
This is the ground of hope and joy that makes Romans 8 so different from Romans 7. We are in league with God. God's grace is not an excuse for doing nothing. It is rather the reason for doing all. In religion as in nature we are co-workers with God. We plant the seed and plan the plant and hoe it and harvest it. But God gave us the seed and the soil and sends the rain and the sunshine and supplies that wondrous thing that we call life and makes it grow to perfection. "God has more life than anybody," said a child. It is idle to split hairs over our part and God's part. We must respond to the touch of God's Spirit else we remain dead in sin. Jesus is the author and the finisher of faith (Heb. 12:2), of our faith, but we must believe all the same and keep on looking to Him, the goal of faith and endeavor. There is no higher standard of rectitude than God's good pleasure, by which He regulates our lives. Happy is the man who finds God's plan for his life and falls in with it.
Cheerfulness Under Orders (verse 14)
Having committed our lives to the control of God's will we are under orders. It is unmilitary and peevish to fret at God's commands. "Do all things without murmurings." The allusion may be to the conduct of Israel in the wilderness (Exodus 16:7; Numbers 16:5, 10). The Israelites murmured bitterly against Moses and against God repeatedly and with dire results. "Neither murmur ye, as some of them murmured and perished by the destroyer" (1 Cor. 10:10). These inward murmurings against God's will would easily turn to grumblings towards each other. People do not usually stop with resentment against God, but wish to blame somebody. Disunion had already manifested itself in the church at Philippi. If God is supreme and does all things why did He allow this thing to happen? It is easier to ask than to answer that question?
The next step is to become sour towards one another. "Without disputings." This word is used for questionings, then doubtings, then disputings. This is the usual course of our intellectual revolt against God. Probably the moral revolt (murmurings) comes first. The skeptical spirit follows resentment against some crossing of our will by God's will. The final result is "intellectual rebellion." Thoughts of hesitation or doubt turn to distrust. Distrust ripens into open disputes when a public stand is taken with others against God. Doubt leads to dispute even over trifles. So then, as good soldiers, Christians are to carry out the orders of the Captain of their salvation. Explanations, if they come at all, come after obedience, not before.
Into the valley of death rode the six hundred. Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die." Soldiers go to the charge with a smile on their faces.
Perfection in the Midst of Imperfection (verses 15-16)
Paul here expresses his purpose about the Philippians. It is a double purpose, their own highest development and the greatest service to others. The first is a prerequisite to the other, though they can not be wholly separated. They are to become "blameless and harmless." They are not so in the state of nature and do not easily become so in a state of grace. Certainly none are absolutely free from blame in the eye of God and men can usually find some fault with most of us. But, at any rate, we can give men a little ground as possible to pick flaws in our character. Whimsical critics cannot be satisfied, but we do have to regard the sober judgment of God's people in ethical matters. Lightfoot takes "harmless" to refer to the intrinsic character as in Matthew 10:16 "harmless as doves." The word means literally "unmixed" or "unadulterated" like pure milk or pure wine or unalloyed metal.
In Romans 16:19 Paul says: "I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple unto that which is evil," a noble motto for young and old. It is a great mistake to feel that one must know evil by experience in order to appreciate good. An unsullied character a man wants in his wife and the wife equally so in her husband. It is this sheer simplicity of character that is so delightful in children and, par excellence in the "children of God" in the full spiritual import of this term. The children of Israel,k when they murmured, were not acting like children of God. Paul here quotes Deuteronomy 32:5 and applies it to the Philippians. The children of Israel were full of blemish, while the Philippians are to be "without blemish" like the freewill offering (Lev. 22:21). The Israelites had themselves become "a crooked and perverse generation." But the Philippians must not fall to that low level, as they will if they give way to inward discontent. They must exhibit marks of perfection "in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation." It is an indocile or froward and so "crooked" generation. The word was used of crooked paths and so of crooked steps and crooked ways. The word "perverse" means twisted or distorted and is a bolder word like the Scotch "thrawn" with a twist in the inner nature. Surely our own generation is not without its moral twist and means many straight men when so many are crooked, twisted out of shape.
~Archibald T. Robertson~
(continued with # 3)
Saturday, March 2, 2019
Quotes From Classic Christian Authors # 2
Quotes From Classic Christian Authors # 2
When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son. (Galatians 4:4 ESV)
When the fullness of time came! It is not difficult for us to see in the case of Abraham how his faith was brought into relation to God's time. The time factor with Abraham was a very real one and was perhaps one of the keenest and most acute factors for his faith....
Again and again we come upon a test of Abraham's faith along the line of the timing of God. Indeed, from one standpoint, we may summarize the whole of his life and say that it headed up at last to the triumph of faith upon that particular factor. In the full Divine sense he never received the promises in his lifetime. At the end of his life he was still looking for the fulfillment of the promise. If his faith had given way he would naturally have taken the attitude that, since the thing had not been fulfilled in so long a time and in his lifetime, it all represented perhaps a big mistake on his part, a false expectation, some misguidance, and so on. But right at the end, if the letter to the Hebrews is to be taken as revealing the actual position, he still believed. He believed, therefore, that God had His time for fulfilling His purpose... and that, although it might not come in his own lifetime, it nevertheless would come. But during his lifetime – within the compass of the whole range of Divine purpose – there were instances of testing on the time factor; and, having been tested on that factor, the promise was fulfilled.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
_______________________________
Today's Reading: 2 Kings 19; John 4:1-30
Today's Thoughts: True Worship
The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:19-24
The Samaritan woman was really asking Jesus, "Where is the appropriate place to worship God?” Her people, the Samaritans, worshiped on Mount Gerizim while the Jewish people worshiped at the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus was very clear that the Jews had the appropriate place of worship at that time because all of the laws of God and prophets of God came through the Jewish race. However, Jesus was quick to explain to her that the "where" would soon change. When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, His death restored us to be able to have a personal relationship with God. We do not need to go to a certain mountain or a specific church to worship Him. Because of Christ, God goes with us--everywhere. So wherever you are, you worship.
The next part Jesus explains is "how?" How are we to worship God? His answer is "in spirit and in truth." Because God is Spirit, no matter how good our efforts or good deeds are, sinful man falls short in being able to please a Holy God. We must have the Spirit of God to commune with a God who is Spirit. Therefore, accepting Christ to receive His Spirit is the first step to true worship. The next step is to be trained in the ways of the Spirit. This training process is called sanctification, or being set apart for the works and service of God. Jesus said in John 17:17, "Sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth." We learn the ways to remain in the Spirit by reading, studying, meditating and applying His truth of the Bible.
We need to be born of the Spirit of God, to receive the Spirit of God, in order to understand the ways of the Spirit of God, written by the Spirit of God in the Bible. The Bible is the truth that sanctifies us (or sets us apart and makes us holy) for His service. The only way to make it through the sanctifying process is by relying on the Spirit of God. Our service is one of worship as we become living sacrifices. A true worshiper is one who worships in spirit and truth, every day and every way. A true worshiper worships daily, from the depths of their heart in their prayer closet to the choices they make every minute of the day.
~Daily Disciples Devotional~
__________________________________
Isaiah 40:11
He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom.
Who is He of whom such gracious words are spoken? He is THE GOOD SHEPHERD. Why doth He carry the lambs in His bosom? Because He hath a tender heart, and any weakness at once melts His heart. The sighs, the ignorance, the feebleness of the little ones of His flock draw forth His compassion. It is His office, as a faithful High Priest, to consider the weak. Besides, He purchased them with blood, they are His property: He must and will care for that which cost Him so dear. Then He is responsible for each lamb, bound by covenant engagements not to lose one. Moreover, they are all a part of His glory and reward. But how may we understand the expression, "He will carry them"? Sometimes He carries them by not permitting them to endure much trial. Providence deals tenderly with them. Often they are "carried" by being filled with an unusual degree of love, so that they bear up and stand fast. Though their knowledge may not be deep, they have great sweetness in what they do know. Frequently He "carries" them by giving them a very simple faith, which takes the promise just as it stands, and believingly runs with every trouble straight to Jesus. The simplicity of their faith gives them an unusual degree of confidence, which carries them above the world. "He carries the lambs in His bosom." Here is boundless affection. Would He put them in His bosom if He did not love them much? Here is tender nearness: so near are they, that they could not possibly be nearer. Here is hallowed familiarity: there are precious love-passages between Christ and His weak ones. Here is perfect safety: in His bosom who can hurt them? They must hurt the Shepherd first. Here is perfect rest and sweetest comfort. Surely we are not sufficiently sensible of the infinite tenderness of Jesus!
~Charles Spurgeon~
Realizing God's Plan In Life # 1
Realizing God's Plan In Life # 1
Philippians 2:12-18
Paul is eminently practical as well as really profound. He is equally at home in the discussion of the great problems of theology and in the details of the Christian life. He is a practical mystic who does not leave his mysticism in the clouds, but applies it to the problem in hand. There is in Paul no divorce between learning and life. Speculative theology as philosophy he knows and uses as a servant to convey his highest ideas, but he never forgets the ethics of the man in the street or at the desk. He has just written a marvelous passage on the humiliation and exaltation of Christ Jesus, scaling the heights of Christ's equality with God and sounding the depths of the human experience of Jesus, from the throne of God to the death on the Cross and back again. But Paul has no idea of leaving this great doctrinal passage thus. "So then, my beloved," he goes on with an exhortation based on the experience of Christ. He returns to the whole lump. There are men and women in our churches who remain true when pastors come and go and when others fall away.
Working In and Working Out (verses 12-13)
In Paul's absence he desires that the Philippians shall press right on with the work of their own salvation in so far as the development is committed to their hands. The eye should rest upon the final goal and so Paul uses a verb that puts the emphasis on the final result. Salvation is used either of the entrance into the service of God, the whole process, or the consummation at the end. The Philippians are to carry into effect and carry on to the end the work of grace already begun. Peter (1:10) likewise exhorted his readers to make their calling and election sure. They must not look to Paul to do their personal responsibility. It is "your own salvation." It is the aim of all to win this goal at last. If so, each must look to his own task and do his own work. The social aspect of religion is true beyond a doubt. We are our brother's keeper and we do owe a debt of love and service to one another that we can never fully discharge (Romans 13:8). But it is also true that each of us is his own keeper and stands or falls to God. Kipling has it thus: "For the race is run by one and one and never by two and two."
Work it out "with fear and trembling," Paul urges; "with a nervous and trembling anxiety to do right". People today do not tremble much in the presence of God and most have little sense of fear. Johnathan Edwards' great sermon on "Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God" finds little echo today. We live in a light-hearted and complacent age. The Puritans went too far to one extreme, but we are going too much to the other. We all need afresh a sense of solemn responsibility to Almighty God. Paul did not feel blindly complacent about himself. Religion is both life and creed. The creed without the life amounts to little. We touch a hard problem here, to be sure, but Paul feels no incompatibility between the most genuine trust and the most energetic work. The two supplement or rather complement each other, though we cannot divide them. Divine sovereignty is the fundamental fact in religion with Paul. He starts with that. But human free agency is the inevitable corollary, as Paul sees it. The two are not inconsistent in his theology. Hence Paul is not a fatalist like the Essenes and the modern Hyper-Calvinists nor is he a mere Soeinian like the Sadducees.
The Pharisees held to both divine sovereignty and human free agency as most modern Christians do in varying degrees, to be sure. Paul seems to see no contradiction between them as Jesus did not (Matt. 2:27). All our modern efforts to explain the harmony between these two necessary doctrines fail, but we must hold them both true nevertheless. God must be supreme to be God at all. Man must be free to be man at all. The difficulty probably lies in our imperfect processes of reasoning for two such far-reaching truths. But Paul gives the divine sovereignty as the reason or ground for the human free agency. He exhorts the Philippians to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling precisely because God works in them both the willing and the doing and for His good pleasure. We can at least feel that the working of God's will has provided the whole plan of salvation in which we are included and at which we are at work. We toil in the sphere of God's will. But far more is true than that, though we are conscious also that our own wills have free play in this sphere. God presses His will upon ours. We feel the impact of the divine energy upon our wills which are quickened into activity thereby.
A child can grasp this, and rest upon it. A boy of four said joyfully to his mother, "When we do anything, it's really God doing it." So then in one sense God does it all. God is the one who energizes in you both the impulse and the energy to carry out the impulse. No one knows what energy is. It is the scientific name for God. It is ceaseless as the sea, restless as the rapids of Niagara. We are dead in trespasses and sins till God's Spirit touched us and we leaped to life in Christ. This is the mystery of grace. They that are in the flesh cannot please God (Romans 8:7). God plants in our souls the germ of spiritual life and He does not let it die. His Spirit broods over us and energizes us to grow and work out what God has worked in us.
~Archibald T. Robertson~
(continued with # 2)
Philippians 2:12-18
Paul is eminently practical as well as really profound. He is equally at home in the discussion of the great problems of theology and in the details of the Christian life. He is a practical mystic who does not leave his mysticism in the clouds, but applies it to the problem in hand. There is in Paul no divorce between learning and life. Speculative theology as philosophy he knows and uses as a servant to convey his highest ideas, but he never forgets the ethics of the man in the street or at the desk. He has just written a marvelous passage on the humiliation and exaltation of Christ Jesus, scaling the heights of Christ's equality with God and sounding the depths of the human experience of Jesus, from the throne of God to the death on the Cross and back again. But Paul has no idea of leaving this great doctrinal passage thus. "So then, my beloved," he goes on with an exhortation based on the experience of Christ. He returns to the whole lump. There are men and women in our churches who remain true when pastors come and go and when others fall away.
Working In and Working Out (verses 12-13)
In Paul's absence he desires that the Philippians shall press right on with the work of their own salvation in so far as the development is committed to their hands. The eye should rest upon the final goal and so Paul uses a verb that puts the emphasis on the final result. Salvation is used either of the entrance into the service of God, the whole process, or the consummation at the end. The Philippians are to carry into effect and carry on to the end the work of grace already begun. Peter (1:10) likewise exhorted his readers to make their calling and election sure. They must not look to Paul to do their personal responsibility. It is "your own salvation." It is the aim of all to win this goal at last. If so, each must look to his own task and do his own work. The social aspect of religion is true beyond a doubt. We are our brother's keeper and we do owe a debt of love and service to one another that we can never fully discharge (Romans 13:8). But it is also true that each of us is his own keeper and stands or falls to God. Kipling has it thus: "For the race is run by one and one and never by two and two."
Work it out "with fear and trembling," Paul urges; "with a nervous and trembling anxiety to do right". People today do not tremble much in the presence of God and most have little sense of fear. Johnathan Edwards' great sermon on "Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God" finds little echo today. We live in a light-hearted and complacent age. The Puritans went too far to one extreme, but we are going too much to the other. We all need afresh a sense of solemn responsibility to Almighty God. Paul did not feel blindly complacent about himself. Religion is both life and creed. The creed without the life amounts to little. We touch a hard problem here, to be sure, but Paul feels no incompatibility between the most genuine trust and the most energetic work. The two supplement or rather complement each other, though we cannot divide them. Divine sovereignty is the fundamental fact in religion with Paul. He starts with that. But human free agency is the inevitable corollary, as Paul sees it. The two are not inconsistent in his theology. Hence Paul is not a fatalist like the Essenes and the modern Hyper-Calvinists nor is he a mere Soeinian like the Sadducees.
The Pharisees held to both divine sovereignty and human free agency as most modern Christians do in varying degrees, to be sure. Paul seems to see no contradiction between them as Jesus did not (Matt. 2:27). All our modern efforts to explain the harmony between these two necessary doctrines fail, but we must hold them both true nevertheless. God must be supreme to be God at all. Man must be free to be man at all. The difficulty probably lies in our imperfect processes of reasoning for two such far-reaching truths. But Paul gives the divine sovereignty as the reason or ground for the human free agency. He exhorts the Philippians to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling precisely because God works in them both the willing and the doing and for His good pleasure. We can at least feel that the working of God's will has provided the whole plan of salvation in which we are included and at which we are at work. We toil in the sphere of God's will. But far more is true than that, though we are conscious also that our own wills have free play in this sphere. God presses His will upon ours. We feel the impact of the divine energy upon our wills which are quickened into activity thereby.
A child can grasp this, and rest upon it. A boy of four said joyfully to his mother, "When we do anything, it's really God doing it." So then in one sense God does it all. God is the one who energizes in you both the impulse and the energy to carry out the impulse. No one knows what energy is. It is the scientific name for God. It is ceaseless as the sea, restless as the rapids of Niagara. We are dead in trespasses and sins till God's Spirit touched us and we leaped to life in Christ. This is the mystery of grace. They that are in the flesh cannot please God (Romans 8:7). God plants in our souls the germ of spiritual life and He does not let it die. His Spirit broods over us and energizes us to grow and work out what God has worked in us.
~Archibald T. Robertson~
(continued with # 2)
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