Fear and Trembling

Philippians 2

¹²Therefore, my beloved,^(AA) as you have always^(AB) obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³for^(AC) it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for^(AD) his good pleasure.

"work out your own salvation with fear and trembling". I'm still struggling to figure out what exactly that means. Kierkegaard wrote a book called "Fear and Trembling", the title of which was taken from this passage (I have this book on my bookshelf and have never read it...heh heh). In the book, Kierkegaard says, "Infinite resignation is the last stage before faith, so anyone who has not made this movement does not have faith, for only in infinite resignation does an individual become conscious of their eternal validity, and only then can one speak of grasping existence by virtue of faith." He uses the example of Abraham who resigned himself to give up his only son to God. Kierkegaard argues that only in being willing to give up all that we claim - all that we are - do we ever really approach "faith". Only when we trust everything to God do we come close to real, deep faith. After all, the meaning of the word faith is "complete confidence in a person, plan, etc.".
Maybe I should read this book (since I do alread own it). Or maybe I should spend some time talking with the Author of Faith...
I'm still wrestling with this phrase...Lord, help me to understand.

Obey

^{Philippians 2
5(J)} Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,^{[a] 6(K)} who, though he was in^(L) the form of God, did not count equality with God^(M) a thing to be grasped, ⁷but^(N) made himself nothing, taking the form of a^(O) servant,^[b](P) being born in the likeness of men. ⁸And being found in human form, he humbled himself by^(Q) becoming obedient to the point of death,^(R) even death on a cross. ^9(S) Therefore^(T) God has^(U) highly exalted him and bestowed on him^(V) the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus^(W) every knee should bow,^(X) in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and^(Y) every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is^(Z) Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

It's been almost a week since my last pathetic post and I'm still thinking on this topic of obedience. "...obedient to the point of death..." I'm not even obedient to the point of staying on my knees long enough to ask for forgiveness. I have zeal enough for five men, but not discipline enough for myself. The terrible thing is I'm pretty sure I spend more time in prayer than the average Christian. We only pray when we feel like we have the time, then we never feel like we have the time. We're obedient as long as it's convenient. It's when obedience begins to cost us something - time, money, status - that you find out who the committed believers are. Conveniently Obedient - yet another form of compromise invented by the American Church.
What's crazy is I feel (as I think most of us do) that we would be obedient to the point of death, but we're not obiedent to the point of the crucified life. Many of us would give our lives for the gospel (probably not as many as I'd like to hope) but we won't give Him five minutes in prayer. What a paradox. We will die for Him, but we are reluctant to live for Him! What a defeated existence. How can we proclaim the power of prayer and the healing power of God in the pulpit and not exercise it in our lives? We speak truth with our lips and deny it with our actions. Is there hope for us? Good thing I serve a gracious, merciful, loving God - a God who loves me enough to accept me as I am but who loves me so much that He would not allow me to stay as I am.
Change me, God, into a man who proclaims your power and glory with words and deeds. May I not compromise the words You speak with the life I live. Reveal my weaknesses and give me the strength and the wisdom to confront them. Continue to hammer on this hunk of metal until all I do is reflect You. In Jesus Name.

The Example of Christ

I can't get over how awesome Jesus is. He truly is my hero. No one else I've ever read about or heard about has ever come close to being as cool. No one else has ever so embodied the perfect example for mankind. Not that it's a very fair comparison, since He was "in very nature God." I could go on...
And yet, as much as I admire, in fact worship, Christ, I still struggle to give Him myself fully. The number of people I can ever remember sharing the gospel with are few; the time I spend in the Word - scant; the time I spend with Him in prayer - meager. If He truly is the Answer to all of our worries, our problems, our little concerns, then why is it so hard to tell someone about Him or spend 15 minutes with Him in the morning?

^{Philippians 2
5(J)} Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,^{[a] 6(K)} who, though he was in^(L) the form of God, did not count equality with God^(M) a thing to be grasped, ⁷but^(N) made himself nothing, taking the form of a^(O) servant,^[b](P) being born in the likeness of men. ⁸And being found in human form, he humbled himself by^(Q) becoming obedient to the point of death,^(R) even death on a cross. ^9(S) Therefore^(T) God has^(U) highly exalted him and bestowed on him^(V) the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus^(W) every knee should bow,^(X) in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and^(Y) every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is^(Z) Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Day...?

Philippians 2

Christ’s Example of Humility

 ¹So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, ² complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ⁴Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

C.S. Lewis in his book "Mere Christianity" talks about the four Cardinal Virtues: Prudence, Temperence, Justice, and Fortitude. Toward the end of the chapter he mentions that God is as concerned with motives as he is actions. He uses the illustration of a tennis player. He says that a tennis player may hit a ball hard out of anger and it may happen to be beneficial, but that doesn't make him a better tennis player. On the other hand, the tennis player may hit the ball hard because he knows it's what he needs to do to win, which does make him a better tennis player if he does it repeatedly. The result in both instances was the same, but we know that the second tennis player was the better player. Likewise, we as Christians may do the right thing, but if it's done for wrong reasons, it does not make us more like Christ, which is God's ultimate goal. And "wrong" doesn't necessarily have to mean "sinful": just "because it's what I'm supposed to do" is not what God desires, either. God wants us not only to do the right thing but for the right reasons. He wants us not to just be rule-followers, but to become people who seek to please Him inwardly as well as outwardly. In this way, through lots of practice, our hearts become more like His.
I wonder how well we follow this in the American Church? How many of us truly seek to please Him with our intentions? Most of us do good things either because 1) its become one of the "rules" of Christianity that we follow blindly or 2) because it makes us feel good about ourselves. I don't t think either of these is wrong in and of itself, but lets examine what's really underneath each. In the first, rules replace relationship with the Creator to the point that we have no need for Christ at all - we become drones on auto-pilot obeying a fixed set of commands. A man who follows rules does not truly follow God. In the second, pride is the underlying issue. Feeling good because you did something right is not wrong, but doing it only because it makes you feel good about yourself isn't the right motive - that's the beginning of pride: "I'm a very good person." Or we do it because we know others will see us do it and praise us (also pride). This path ultimately takes us to the place Lucifer arrived; where we believe we're good apart from God and that we don't need Him. I think this is why Paul mentions humility. Our motives as well as our actions must be for Christ alone.

Day 9

<sup>Philippians 1

27</sup>Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. ²⁹For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, ³⁰engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

v. 29 and 30 are pretty straight-forward. It's not enough just to believe. In fact, he says "it has been granted to you" - in other words it is a privilege. The New Living Translation says "²⁹ For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him." Privileged. We know we are His chosen people, that He loves us and cares for us, that we are set apart. But I think we too often think of this as only good things. We don't see suffering as a privilege. And why should we? Suffering hurts. No one wants to suffer. Suffering, pain, death - aren't they all the result of sin? God doesn't wish bad for his children, does He?
Never. Suffering may be a result of sin. When you sin there are consequences that you may suffer. But there's another type of suffering as a result of sin. Because we live in a sinful, fallen world, those who are righteous, upright, blameless, followers of truth will suffer at the hands of the sinful. The gospel offends people. Jesus says in Luke 12:50-52 "⁵¹ Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division." Just by living lives that are pleasing to Christ we offend people and thus should expect to "suffer" social consequences from those people. For some of us, suffering will be physical; others emotional. There are so many different ways to "suffer", but to suffer is to be identified with Christ and His suffering at the hands of the unrighteous for our sins.

Day 8

<sup>Philippians 1

27</sup>Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. ²⁹For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, ³⁰engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have

To not be frightened by your opponents. Honestly I'm not to sure what he means here in v.28. Frightened of what? We sometimes fear death, which is something we shouldn't be frightened of as Christians but rather should embrace. That could be a pretty scarry deal to our opponents. One of the biggest threats someone could make is "I'm gonna kill you!" If we aren't afraid of death that threat doesn't hold much water. In fact, it would probably scare the one who made that threat. One who doesn't fear losing his life is much more likely to act unpredictably. Unpredictability is as scary to bad guys as it is good guys. The theif who breaks into your house is assured by his assumptions: that you fear death; that if he points a gun at you and tells you to do something, you'll do it because you don't want to die. But what if you didn't fear death? What if, because of this lack of fear, you didn't do whatever it was he asked you to do? Then the thief is the one who is afraid.
Fear is a powerful weapon. It has been a tool used by the wicked since the beginning of time to make good men do bad things. I wonder how many things we do or don't do out of fear? Don't share the gospel with that co-worker for fear of what he may think. Don't confess sin because you fear that God will punish you. Satan is a master of fear. But if we shed fear, Satan becomes powerless. All of a sudden the thief who came to steal, kill, and destroy is the fearful one. What could a world of unafraid Christains do? Without fear of losing jobs, losing favor, losing relationships, losing comfort, losing life? We know that the security these bring is a false security anyway. We also know that the One who gives them can also take them away, or give doublly what we had if it were lost (Job). Fear is turned on its head, and with it evil. Should we truly trust in God, we have nothing to fear. The loss of fear is truly a sweet thing!

 “Where, O death, is your victory?
   Where, O death, is your sting?”
-1 Cor. 15:55, Hosea 13:14

Day 8

 

<sup>Philippians 1

27</sup>Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. ²⁹For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, ³⁰engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have

With one mind. Striving side by side. I'm noticing a trend in Philippians. Maybe instead of calling it "The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Philippians" the early Church fathers should have called this "On the Unity of the Body".
I know this is theological impressionism here, but the alegory here of "striving side by side" conjurs images in my mind of war. Maybe it's because I'm a history teacher but it makes me think specifically of the picture of the soldiers raising the flag on Iwo Jima. Striving side by side. In the midst of war with the enemy. And in a very real but unseen way, we are at war with "principalities, powers, and spiritual darkness" (Ephesians 6). Our enemy is a crafty coward. Instead of fighting directly, he figures out ways to lull us to sleep, distract us, divide us. We get so caught up in living the lives we've made for ourselves that we forget to live for the One who made us. We forget there even is a war. We get so caught up in theological duels with other Christians that we let the "enemy of our souls" escape. We must remember, if we are indeed soldiers, that this isn't a peace-keeping mission, because we know peace will not last here until our Leader returns. This is not a war to be won except by the Rider on the White Horse (Revelation 19). This is a rescue mission. "To seek and to save the lost."
If only we could see our lives in light of eternity. Then we might lay down our guns, lay the peripheral things aside, and focus on lives.

Day 7

<sup>Philippians 1

27</sup>Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. ²⁹For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, ³⁰engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

I appreciate that there's a rough outline description of what a "life worthy of the gospel should include. 1) Standing firm in one spirit, 2) one mind, 3) striving side by side. I'm no Bible scholar, but "one spirit" says to me that we all have the same intent - same motives - that we are unified in what the ultimate goal is. I don't know if we can say that, at least in my church if not for all of America. I think different people have different ideas of what the ultimate ends are. Some really think the goal of "church" is to make a bunch of perfect people who can all attend this little exclusive club meeting each week...only if you're perfect that is. Others believe it's a place to gush "love" out of every pore, whether that be in the form of emotional outbursts or a general attitude of "we love everyone just the way they are." I think both of these are misguided. I once heard someone say that God loves you the way you are but He loves you too much to let you stay the way you are. God, the perfect Father, loves us as we are but also, like any good Father, disciplines and corrects his children. Love and Sanctification go hand-in-hand, and both are a lifelong process - a goal to which we strive but never achieve (in this life).
This isn't intended to be a manifesto on what we as Christians should believe, but rather a call for Christianity to become "of one spirit" - to really evaluate the huge list of doctrine we say we believe in - the same doctrine that usually divides us especially in Protestant Christianity - and unite under those things that really matter. Imagine if all of Christianity worked together toward the same goal "in one spirit". If we could agree on what the "goal" is - what the spirit of the gospel is - the body of Christ might truly change the whole world.
Lord, give us eyes to see past what "we believe" so we can see what You believe; so we can see what truly matters. Lead us toward one spirit, and shower us with Your grace as we make lots of mistakes along the way. In Jesus' name.