THEREFORE, MY BELOVED,AS YOU HAVE ALWAYSOBEYED, SO NOW, NOT

ONLY AS IN MY PRESENCEBUT MUCH MORE IN MY

ABSENCE, WORK OUTYOUR SALVATION WITHFEAR AND TREMBLING.

PHILIPPIANS 2:12

THEREFORE, MY DEARFRIENDS, JUST AS YOU HAVEALWAYS OBEYED, SO NOW,NOT ONLY IN MY PRESENCEBUT EVEN MORE IN MYABSENCE, WORK OUT YOUROWN SALVATION WITH FEARAND TREMBLING. FOR IT ISGOD WHO IS WORKING IN YOUBOTH TO WILL AND TO WORKACCORDING TO HIS GOODPURPOSE. DO EVERYTHINGWITHOUT GRUMBLING ANDARGUING, SO TAHT YOU MAYBE BLAMELESS AND PURE,CHILDREN OF GOD WHO AREFAULTLESS IN A CROOKED ANDPERVERTED GENERATION,AMONG WHOM YOU WHINELIKE STARS IN THE WORLD, BYHOLDING FIRM TO THE WORDOF LIFE. THEN I CAN BOAST INTHE DAY OF CHRIST THAT IDIDN'T RUN OR LABOR FORNOTHING. BUT EVEN IF I AMPOURED OUT AS A DRINKOFFERING ON THESACRIFICIAL SERVICE OF YOURFAITH, I AM GLAD ANDREJOICE WITH ALL OF YOU. INTHE SAME WAY YOU SHOULDALSO BE GLAD AND REJOICEWITH ME.

Philippians 2:12-18A D D I T I O N A L T E X T 1 P E T E R 1 : 2 , H E B R E W S 5 : 9

When you look at your daily life-what you post on socialmedia, how you react to your siblings, what you say toothers, how you treat your enemies- would you say that youare a light in the darkness? Or is there no difference in theway you act?How do you feel you have grown or become more obedientto the things God is asking of you since becoming aChristian?

Often, Christians experience a really powerful conversionexperience. For a lot of Christians, it is almost like one day,your eyes are opened, and you for the first time, almostsuddenly, understand your need for a savior. For others of us,there are a number of marked moments in our lives where weunderstand new tidbits, or God reveals something to us thathelps the good news of the gospel make even more sense. Nomatter what your conversion experience, we all have the samecall after our conversion. None of us become perfect on theday of our salvation. In fact, none of us will ever be perfect inthis life. That's something we can look forward to when wemeet Jesus face to face.But here in this passage, Paul tells us that after we becomesaved, we are to "work out [y]our salvation with fear andtrembling." This does not mean that we work for our salvation,rather we work because of our salvation. When the Holy Spirit lives in us (and He does if you are aChristian), He begins to change our hearts, and we begin tochange the way we treat others, respond to adversity, and theway we think. As we work out our salvation, and beginproducing fruit of the spirit, we become lights in the world. Sometimes it is really hard to be different than "everyone" else. It's hard to make decisions that are opposite of the decisionsyour friends are making. It's hard to say no when you reallywant to say yes. It's hard to selflessly say yes when you reallywant to say no. But this is what Philippians 2 is asking of us.

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work out your salvation