Many people only cry out to God when they are desperate. They live their day to day lives relatively care free without the worry of whether they can afford their next meal or where they will sleep tonight. However, this kind of lukewarm Christianity is a precarious foundation for salvation. While we are saved by grace through faith, the Bible warns us not to take salvation lightly because our faith will be tested at times and those who stand firm to the end will be saved (Mathew 24:13).
The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 2:12-13, “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, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Paul is not speaking of salvation by works (which is impossible) but conversely getting serious with God and not taking his eternal promise lightly. This is demonstrated through obedience to the Holy Spirit.
Paul is saying that our lives should reflect the manifestation of our salvation. We ought to take our salvation seriously just as Christ took his sacrifice for us seriously. He held nothing back and neither should we. Jesus altered the trajectory of our lives to a common destiny for all who place their faith in him so the way we live ought to be a testimony to the gift of grace. Working out your salvation with fear and trembling simply means complete reverence for God and glorifying him through our actions and speech.
When believers become born again, the Holy Spirit takes up residency inside of them and by surrendering to the Spirit, they are guided to produce good fruit for the Father in heaven. Jesus said to the woman at the well, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14. Much like an artesian well that produces water under pressure from an aquifer, the spring Jesus speaks of flows outward from the tension produced by God’s overwhelming love and it cannot be contained.
This is what Jesus meant when he said, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Mathew 5:14-16. So if God’s kingdom is inside of you, let it exude from within you and be visible for all to see.
We are all vessels that God can fill if we let him. And when we do, we will overflow with his Spirit and pour it out onto those we interact with. The kingdom of God is to be shared and when it is shared it grows and blesses others. We were once dead in our sins but after we believe our spirit is awakened and becomes alive and responsive to God’s Spirit that dwells within us. By being submissive to the Holy Spirit, our will aligns with God’s will and we in turn live lives pleasing to him.
God has freely given believers the gift of salvation and we ought to cherish it. God is truth and he does not lie (Titus 1:2, Numbers 23:19, Hebrews 6:18,1 Samuel 15:29) therefore, we place our faith where there is no falsehood or deceit. Our God has immense integrity. He will not say one thing and mean another. We ought to reciprocate in the same way and not claim to be Christian while continuing to indulge in sinful lifestyles. Not wholeheartedly surrendering to the Holy Spirit but doubting the power of God.
Jesus said it is impossible to serve two masters (Mathew 6:24) and James warned those who doubt God’s provisions, “That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.” James 1:7-8. And in the twelfth chapter of Mathew’s gospel, Jesus is recorded saying in verse 30, “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.” Standing for Christ in a secular society isn’t easy and in fact it can be very difficult at times. Peer pressure, temptation through advertising plus seductive and materialistic entertainment can erode our efforts to walk in obedience to Christ. Even those who identify as Christian can accuse sincere believers of taking the Bible too seriously, however, that perspective is presumptuous and can lead to spiritual weakness.
If we do not take our relationship with God seriously, we run the risk of falling away and becoming apostate. While grace is free, it has immense value and we must value it immensely. It is the most precious of all possessions and we ought to guard it above all else. Grace is a gift, however many choose to discard it and subsequently forfeit their retention of salvation. The writer of Hebrews draws our attention to the fact that apostasy is a dangerous road to travel. “It is impossible for those who have been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.” Hebrews 6:4-6.
When we decide to follow Christ, we choose to leave our old lives behind and live a new life in Christ Jesus. This is what being born again means. If we choose to follow this path, then we simply cannot remain on the old path that leads to death. Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Mathew 7:13-14.
Paul wrote in Romans 6:1-2, “What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” And John warns, “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.” 1 John 3:6. Additionally, Paul warns against indulging in fleshly desires in Galatians 5:16-17, “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so you are not to do what you want.”
God does not play games with us and we should not play games with God. Christians are called to repentance and to live holy lives. Peter informs us in 1 Peter 1:13-16, “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”
When we surrender to the Holy Spirit, the Bible tells us we will produce the fruit of the Spirit. Paul tells us, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23a. When our lives produce these outcomes we bear witness to the beauty and holiness of God and are an inspiration for others to seek the Lord and also be blessed. These are the attributes that show the Spirit is living within us. We become empowered by God.
Our lives are meant to be a testimony to the goodness and immeasurable love of God. This is what we were designed for. This is why we were created in God’s image. Therefore, we are called to re-align ourselves with the purpose God has for us. This is what Paul meant when he wrote, “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” We must live with passion and reverence for the Almighty who manifested himself as Jesus and paid the debt we could not pay. Philippians 2:13 instructs, “for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”
Since the Holy Spirit dwells within us when we believe, our bodies subsequently become temples for the living God. Paul reminds us of this in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”
Allow the Spirit to work in you and through you. Allow your spirit to align with the Holy Spirit. Allow God’s light to shine through you. Offer yourself to be the conduit that shines that light into the darkness around you. Align yourself with the Almighty. Align yourself with the name above all names. Identify with Jesus. Make Christ’s home your home. With God in your corner, the devil doesn’t stand a chance. In the words of Paul, “What then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31.
