Paul's Love Letter from Prison
A Study of Philippians - 6
This time we will be considering Paul's teaching in Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 to 18. Last time we thought about the Lord Jesus Christ as the perfect example for all of His followers of humility and obedience to God. Now in these verses Paul's purpose is to press home to his readers the importance of following the Saviour's example in practice.
So, we read in verse 12: "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed - not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence - continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling."
In the opening phrase of this verse we are reminded again of Paul's great love for the believers at Philippi as he addresses them as "my dear friends". Christians should be dear to each other because we all love the same Lord and share the same blessings in Him.
Paul comments next on the obedience to Christ of these saints at Philippi. He says, "You always obeyed" when I was present with you and I want you to go on obeying now that I am absent from you. This reminds us of the words of our Saviour, "If you love me, keep my commandments." You see, the Christian life is one of submission to the will of God. There is an old hymn that says, "Trust and obey, for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey".
Now what does Paul means when he says, "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling"? He is not saying that they are to work for their salvation. The Scriptures teach very clearly that no-one can ever merit salvation by the things they do. Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians chapter 2 verses 8 and 9: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no-one can boast."
What he is saying here is that we should, in practical ways, show the salvation we have by the way we live. We should work at our obedience to Christ and live lives that are holy, knowing that we are accountable to God. This is why he says we are to do it "with fear and trembling". In this way we will experience the true assurance and joy of our salvation.
In verse 13 there is a word of encouragement as Paul reminds his readers that they cannot do this in their own strength, but "it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose." God is constantly working in the lives of His people through His Holy Spirit, to enable them to carry out His will. I find that a real encouragement, personally - do you?
It seems that a problem facing the church at Philippi was an undercurrent of disunity. We see this earlier in the chapter and Paul returns to the subject again as he reminds them that their salvation must have a practical result in the behaviour towards one another. He says in verse 14: "Do everything without complaining or arguing..."
The Children of Israel, who had also experienced the great deliverance of the Lord when they were brought out of slavery in Egypt, were constantly grumbling and murmuring against Moses their leader. In reality they were complaining against God. Because of this, they spent longer on their journey than was intended. Ingratitude and failure to submit to the Lord, and to the leader He had appointed, resulted in their often facing the Lord's discipline and a loss of blessing.
So Paul says to these Christians at Philippi, in verse 15:
"Don't complain and argue, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe, as you hold out the word of life".
By this sort of living you will be like lights shining for God in the darkness of this world, and so demonstrating the reality of the gospel, the word of life. To "hold out the word of life" implies not merely quiet, consistent beauty of character, but positive action for the extension of Christ's Kingdom. The Lord Jesus said, in His Sermon on the Mount, "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." In John chapter 8 verse 12, Jesus also said, "I am the light of the world", and we should remember that after He returned to heaven He left His followers with the responsibility of reflecting his light in this dark world of sin.
You will remember that earlier in these studies we said that in this second chapter Paul sets before the Philippian believers four people as examples for them to follow. The first was the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the greatest example of the lowly mind, or humility. The second person is Paul himself, "The Worker for Christ." And so we come to verses 17 and 18 where he says of himself:
"But even if I am poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me."
Paul truly sought in his life to exhibit the mind of his Lord and that mind was totally committed to the service of others. This total dedication of the apostle to the preaching of the Good News of Christ resulted in him suffering and being at the point of martyrdom more than once. We are reminded that he is writing this letter from prison in Rome.
Note that in verse 17 he says that he would be happy if he were called upon at any time to pour out his life in the service of his Master. Paul uses an illustration from the tabernacle offerings of the Old Testament to describe how he views his own service for the Lord and that of the Philippian believers. When a sacrifice was offered upon the altar, the priests would pour over it a drink offering. So Paul speaks of the Philippians as the offerers, their faith being in effect the sacrifice, and he, Paul, the drink offering poured out.
He was prepared to lay down his life for the sake of the gospel, but in humility Paul regards their dedication to Christ and their faithfulness towards him as God's servant as a greater sacrifice than his own. This causes Paul great joy as he thinks of his beloved Philippian believers and he encourages them to share in his joy, even though he is in prison and anticipates martyrdom for his Lord:
"I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me."
What an example Paul is of a truly humble and dedicated worker for Christ, whose whole purpose in life was to preach the good news and to bring glory and honour to his Master. We shall see further examples of this in this "Love letter from prison", as we continue these studies.