God's Good Work
This is a transcript. It may contain small inaccuracies.
Philippians, as you know, is the epistle of joy. Paul rejoiced to see what God was doing and had done in the lives of this Philippian church. Paul held the Philippian church in high regard. He loved them dearly. He remembered them with fondness, and when he reflected upon the work of God in that place, his heart was greatly encouraged. He had sweet and happy memories of his time there. This church gave him very little trouble. They were a blessing to him, and he thinks back to the first beginnings, and he says in verse 3, "I thank my God." "I thank my God in all my remembrance of you." He was thinking of them. They were on his heart. He was not only thinking of them, but he was so thankful for them.
Every time they came to mind, he thanked God for them and for the work that had been done in that place. From the early beginnings in Acts 16, those first encounters and how God led him in a very special way to Macedonia, to hear and to respond to that cry, "Come over and help us." Thinking of how God led him to that place in the time he preached by the riverside and how God opened the heart of Lydia, that religious woman who was there to worship, who was listening to the words. She heard the word, and God opened her heart. Then on to the conversion of the cruel, hard Philippian jailer and his household. He says, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you from the first day until now." Until now.
Here he is in a Roman prison, and yet He's not distressed. He's joyful. He's thankful. He has these sweet and happy memories of this church, and now they're a well-established, thriving church, and they brought him joy. He was happy to see the progress of the gospel in that place. They were in his thoughts, and they were on his heart. He tells us through his epistle here how grateful he was for them. He was grateful for their support. If you look over in chapter 4 and verse 15, we read of how they provided for his needs, and they thought of him. They were kind, they were tender-hearted, they were a giving church.
And he says, "And you yourselves also know, Philippians, that at the first preaching of the gospel, after I left Macedonia, no church fellowshipped with me in the matter of giving and receiving but you alone." And he was so thankful for their support in the gospel. They had furnished him with gifts time and time again, and their benevolence was a reason to thank God. He was not only thankful for the gifts and for their support, but those gifts in themselves gave him evidence and proof that God was at work in their hearts. They were liberal in their giving, and it was proof of their love for Christ.
He called them those who were of tender affection to him. In chapter 1 verse 8 he says, "For God is my witness how I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ." That's how dear these people were to the Apostle Paul. They called for his tender affection, "I long for you." He longed to be with them, he longed to fellowship with them again, but he was so grateful for their support, for the evidence of God's grace in their life. He was so grateful for the advancement in holy and spiritual graces that were found in them. It was noted by their generous acts of love and kindness to the Apostle.
And not only that, they were a united people. They were a people who were one in the gospel; they were of one mind and of one heart, and they gave him little trouble. They were determined to see the advancement of the kingdom of God in that place, and they labored to that end. And he so rejoiced in them.
You look at chapter 2 in the opening four verses, he's so encouraged in Christ, and there is this consolation of love, this fellowship of the Spirit, this affection, this compassion. They fulfilled his joy; they were of one mind, maintaining the same love. They were united in spirit; they were thinking on one purpose, doing nothing from selfish ambition or vainglory, but with humility of mind, not regarding one another as more important than themselves, not looking on their own personal interests, but on the interests of others. They had the mind of Christ, and he rejoiced to see that spiritual fruit develop in their lives.
He prayed and he longed that they would continue to grow in grace, that they would be growing, as he prays there in chapter 1 in verse 9, "This I pray, that your love would abound still more and more." Love was there, love was evident, it was seen in their lives and by their works, but he prays that it would grow, that it would flourish, that it would abound yet more and more. They would be those who had a knowledge and a discernment in the things of God, that it would approve things that are excellent until the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness.
What a joy this church was to the Apostle Paul. And I think you see something of his pastoral heart. He had such affection, such love for them; it's evident by his prayers for them on their behalf. He wanted to see them growing and flourishing in the gospel. A good work had begun there, a good work was continuing there, and he wanted to see that work going on from strength to strength.
So thankful was he for their fellowship, their enthusiasm, their cooperation, and active labor in the gospel. It was a source of great joy, so he said, this really is the Lord's doing, and it's marvelous to behold. I thank my God for you. It's the work of God. "He who began a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." You know, this was the kind of church
every pastor would love to pastor. It's a church for us to emulate. It's a church that sets a great example of love and unity and fellowship and oneness in the gospel for us, and we can learn a lot from the Philippian church.
In fact, Spurgeon said, "A church which feels that holy service is not for a few but for all members is a credit to divine grace." It's a credit to divine grace. This was the work of God in them, and every memory of that church was a blessing to the Apostle Paul. He longed to see them again, and here in these first 11 verses after the salutation he presents reasons for pastoral joy and joy in ministry and his prayer for the believers in Philippi.
He could see that God was at work in them and through them, and that's our text tonight as we come to verse 6. I want to focus on that word, as he said, "I'm confident of this very thing, that He, my God, He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ." He was confident that the work in their hearts was a divine work. It was a work of God; there was no question about it in the Apostle's mind. The Lord Himself had begun a work in them. This was no empty profession, this was no passing impulse, but this was a genuine work of grace in them.
How did He know that? How did He know that it was really the work of God, that God had begun a good work in them? Well, you could say it was by their fruits, their very lives, as we've testified already; their lives confirmed it. He was confident this was a work that only God could bring about. Their lives had been dramatically altered for the better; they had been changed by the grace of God, and a thriving church had been established in that place. Paul could see a clear work of grace, signs of life in them from the first day, even until now, he says.
In these ten years, God has been at work, and He changed them in a marvelous way for the better. Salvation is a work of divine grace in the soul of man. He says, I thank my God that He who began that work in you is continuing that work, and He will perform that work. And you go back and you read the account in Acts chapter 16 and the salvation story of Lydia and the demon-possessed damsel there and the Philippian jailer, and you see how God began to work in that place and dramatically changed those lives. So that when God opened Lydia's heart, she immediately opened her home to the gospel.
When that young damsel came to know Christ, she put away her idolatry. When that cruel, hard jailer who was responsible for throwing Paul into the deepest dungeon, putting him in stocks, beating him, when he cried out, "What must I do to be saved?" Paul said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved." And what do you see? What a change. There he is, bathing the wounds of the Apostle with tenderness, with love, from a cruel, hard jailer to one showing compassion, refreshing the servant of God. You could see the dramatic change from the very beginning. It was a good work. It was a work of divine grace in them.
Spurgeon said, to bring a man from darkness into light is good. To deliver him from the bondage of his natural corruption and make him the Lord's free man must be good. It's good for himself. It's good for society. It's good for the church of God. It's good for the glory of God Himself. God began a good work in that place, and it began in the hearts of these believers. And that's what Paul tells us here. Paul ascribes salvation, the salvation of believers, to the sovereign grace of God. It's a divine work of God in the soul of man.
God begins the work. God initiates the work. He started this work. He commenced the work. He was continuing this work in them by His grace and by His power, and He would complete that work. Salvation is a work of grace. It's all of grace. And that was the Apostle's theme. Didn't he relish the grace of God? He was so thankful for God's grace in his life, a blasphemer, a persecutor, dragging Christians to prison and to court, watching as one of the Lord's precious saints was martyred. I was a blasphemer. I was a persecutor. But by the grace of God, I am what I am. He was saved by grace, the work of grace.
God's work in us is a good work. It's a blessed work. It makes us good, as Matthew Henry said. It's a pledge of good to us. It makes us like God. It fits us for the enjoyment of God. And he said, that may well be called a good work which does us the greatest good. It's a good work which does us the greatest good. And what's the reason for this good work? What was the source or the spring of this good work? Paul says, it's God Himself. He has begun a good work in you. It's a divine work of God in the soul.
Didn't we see that in Ephesians when we were there in chapter 1? That salvation is of the Lord, that every believer is blessed with every good thing, every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus. It's a work that God planned. It's a work that He takes pleasure in.
Let me know if you would like a version with additional formatting, such as quotation marks around direct quotes from Spurgeon and Matthew Henry!
If you turn over to Ephesians chapter 1, you see that this work was a work not of man but of God. Ephesians 1 verse 4, you see that this work is a work that God planned from eternity, even before the foundation of the world, before your birth, before creation. God had you in mind. You were upon His heart. He was planning this work of redemption, and just as He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless
before Him in love.
But it's not only a work that He planned, but it's a work that He takes pleasure in, because He says in verse 5, "by predestinating us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself according to the good pleasure of His will." This is a work that God takes delight in. He takes pleasure in it. It's according to His good pleasure, it's according to His sovereign purpose, a work in which He takes great delight. It's a good work of God. How can it not be? God is good. There is none good but one. That is God, and all He does is good. He is good, and He does good.
It's not only a work that He planned and that He takes pleasure in, but it's a work that stands to the praise of God's glory and to the praise of His rich grace, because Paul tells us there in Ephesians 1 verse 6, "to the praise of the glory of His grace." It's a work of grace which He has graciously bestowed on us in the Beloved. It stands to the praise of God's glorious grace. Salvation is a divine, gracious work of God in the soul of man. But more than that, it's a powerful work. It's a powerful work of God. It's a work that only God could do.
We could not bring about this transformation ourselves. We cannot save ourselves. We cannot work to accomplish this work. But God, God in Christ had to do it. We could not begin it ourselves, because the reality is we were spiritually dead, dead in our trespasses and our sins. We were blind to our very need for the grace of God. We were walking according to the course of this world. We were walking as children of wrath, children of disobedience, under
condemnation, fulfilling our own lusts, living out our own desires. But God, Ephesians 2:4, "But God," God broke in in His power. He came to rescue us, to break those chains of sin that held us fast.
But God, it's a powerful work of God. God being rich in mercy because of His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, He made us alive. It's resurrection life. That's a work of power. Only God can raise the dead to life. What can dead men do for themselves? Nothing. There's no life in them, no breath in them. We were spiritually dead in our sins until God came in power in Christ, made us alive. It's a powerful work of God, saving and transforming dead sinners and making them live, calling them to life.
Colossians 2:13 says, "And you, you being dead, dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He, He made you alive with Him, with Christ, having graciously," there's that work of grace, "graciously forgiven us all our transgressions." He made you alive with Him, given a new life with a new heart, with new desires, with a new will, with new longings, with new goals. It's the power of God at work in man. That's what a Christian is. A Christian is a work of God. A Christian is a new creation.
Remember 2 Corinthians 5:17? "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things passed away, behold the whole things become new." We're new creatures in Christ. And as we read in Ephesians 2:10, we're His workmanship. By grace you've been saved through faith. It's not of yourselves, it's not your own power, not your own works, not your own ability, not your own resources, not your own gifts. It's not of works, so that no one may boast. We are His workmanship. We're His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.
A Christian is a work of God, His workmanship, His craftsmanship, His handiwork, and we've been raised up by the resurrection power of God to walk in newness of life, we're told in Romans 6:4. It's the power of God, that's the gospel. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes, "Romans 1:16." The word of the cross is foolishness to
those who are perishing, but to those who are saved it is the power of God, "1 Corinthians 1:18." It's the power of God at work in us, awakening us to our need, breathing new life into us, calling the dead just as Christ called Lazarus, come forth to life.
We're called and raised to walk in newness of life by the power of the gospel, by the power of Christ Himself. And you see that in Ephesians 1:19, that we've come to know what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of the might of His strength, which He worked in Christ by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at the right hand in heavenly places. That power of God that raises dead sinners to life, and again in chapter 3 of Ephesians in verse 20 He says, "Now, to Him who is able to do far more abundantly above all that we ask or understand according to the power that works within us." It's God's power that works within us. To Him be glory in the church.
A Christian is God's workmanship. He's the result of the work and the activity of God on the soul. Created unto good works. Paul uses that word “created” to show that when God was dealing with the problem of human sin, when He's dealing with the problem of our sin, He did not do a repair job. He made or He created something anew. If any man is in Christ, he is a new creation. It's not just a patch job, it's not just a repair job, we are a new creation in Christ Jesus, and a Christian is not a repaired sinner, he's a new creation in Christ, and this is only possible if God by His power creates anew.
We could never do this on our own. Who can forgive sin but God? Who can proclaim freedom to the sinner as we heard this morning? Who can say there is no condemnation now to you but God? Having blotted out our transgressions, removed our curse, bore our shame and our guilt on the cross, only God could accomplish such a work in dead, blind sinners. You know that's a word of consolation to those who are yet in their sin, because He is able. He's a God of power.
The gospel is good news. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to those who are held fast by the chains of sin that bind them and are destroying them. This is a word of confidence and of comfort. There is hope for the sinner. He breaks the power of canceled sin. He sets the prisoner free. This is a work of God, and He is able. Whatever you're dealing with, whatever your sin, there's no sin too great for Christ, but He can forgive it. He can blot it out. He can make you anew. He can make you a new creature and set you on a new path and set you on the course to heaven.
It's a gracious work, it's a good work, a work of God, a work that He can only do, it's a work of power, work that He planned, a work that He takes pleasure in. And the Apostle emphasizes that in several places here, that God in His power works in the lives of believers. You look at Philippians chapter 2 in verse 13, he says, "It is God, it's God who is at work in you, believer. God who is at work in you both to will and to work for His good pleasure." We work because of His work. It's God who is at work in you to will and to work for His good pleasure. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, he says. It's God who is at work in you.
We love that verse in chapter 4, verse 13, where the Apostle said, "I can do all things." "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Not my own power, I can't do it in my own strength, but I'm made strong. I'm made strong for all things in the One who is constantly infusing me with strength. I can do all things, I am made strong for all things by the activity of God on me and in me, by the power of God and His all-sufficient grace.
In other words, the enabling power and ability to do certain things is not in me, but it's in
Christ. And it's by Christ Jesus I persevere. It's only by His grace we persevere. Without Him we can do nothing. And Paul emphasizes the power of God and the life of the believer here, infusing strength into us so that we can be about the Master's business and do what He has called us to do, and persevere in our calling to the very end. Not in our own strength, but in the strength that Christ gives to us.
I love what Martin Lloyd-Jones said with regard to the Christian life. He said, the Christian life, after all, is a life. It's a power. It is an activity. It's not just a philosophy. It's not just a point of view. It's not just teaching we take up and try to put into practice. It is all that, but it's something infinitely more, he said. The very essence of the Christian life, according to the New Testament teaching, is that it is a mighty power that enters into us. It is a life that is pulsating in us. It is an activity, and an activity on the part of God.
That's what a Christian is. A Christian is not only one who has been saved by the grace of God, but a Christian is one who has been transformed by the power of God. And there's an evident change in the life so that he no longer does the things that he once did. He no longer pursues the things he once pursued. There's such an evident change. It was evident in the lives of these Philippian believers. It's an activity of God in the soul of man.
We're His workmanship, His handiwork, and He's not done with us. God is at work in the life of His church, in the life of His people. Christian, always remember you are God's workmanship. You are His new creation. You are created, made anew, made unto good works. Do you think of yourself in this way, as one in whom God has powerfully worked to create anew, to save and transform by His divine grace and power and love, so that you've been raised up to walk in newness of life, in the service of your Savior? That's what a Christian is.
It's a work of God, it's a gracious work, it's a powerful work, but a Christian is one who God continues to sanctify by His grace and by His Spirit. Faith in Christ transforms daily life. Paul saw so much of Christ in these believers at Philippi that he couldn't help admiring them and loving them. It was so evident. He was so thankful for them, he was thankful for their ministry, he was thankful for their support, he was thankful for their zeal, but there was so much of Christ in them that he couldn't help admire and love them.
God was working in their life, and it was evident. Whether it was their spontaneous giving to missions, whether it was their sacrificial giving to the Lord's work and to the Apostle himself, their liberal, generous giving to the work of Christ, that spirit of unity that existed among them, that active prayer life that was evident there, their fellowship and their joint participation in the gospel, their cooperation with him in seeking the advancement of the kingdom of God, that fellowship from the first day until now, he said.
He was so thankful for their participation and that zeal that was in them to see the advance of God's kingdom. They were unashamed. Here is Paul, a prisoner chained to a Roman guard, and they were not ashamed of his chains; they were willing to stand with him, stand for the truth no matter what the cost. There was this willingness to suffer and to be counted worthy of Christ, and it was evident by their sympathy and their love for others who were in need, contributing time and time again to the needs of the church. And they endured, they endured.
This wasn't a flash in the pan, this wasn't a passing impulse. God had worked in them and they were continuing grace. God was sanctifying them, and their lives were transformed; it was evident by their daily life from the first day until this present day, Paul said. They were
patient, they were enduring, they were not leaving their first love. It was a lasting work of God in them. Faith in Christ transforms your daily life.
They worked. You see the link between verse 5 and verse 6 here. He says, I'm thankful for you, I remember you with joy, I offer prayer on your behalf, and he says because of your fellowship, your active cooperation in gospel activity, your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now. They worked. Verse 5, they persevered in the service of the Lord. Why did they do that? Because of verse 6. That's the link. Because God by grace worked in their hearts, because He had begun a good work in them. Verse 6 is the ultimate reason for verse 5. They continued from the first to the present because of God's saving work in them.
God's grace doesn't leave a person in their sin. God in grace doesn't leave them where He finds them; He transforms. Didn't we see that this morning? The life of that woman? "Nor do I condemn you, go and sin no more." There is a radical change. Grace doesn't leave a person where they are in their sin; it transforms, it saves, it sanctifies. As F. B. Meyer said, "The work which His grace has begun, the arm of His strength will complete." The work which His grace has begun, the arm of His strength will complete.
I was struck last week when Pastor Habib was preaching from "John 7:43," he made this statement. He said, "If your faith hasn't transformed you, your faith hasn't saved you." It's a counterfeit faith. So true. It's the exact opposite here in Philippi. God, by grace, saved them. They believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, and they were radically changed, their lives were dramatically different. A profession of faith with no evidence of the power of God at work in your life is empty, is no work of God at all.
If your faith that you profess saves you doesn't transform you, it's counterfeit faith. A profession, an empty, mere profession with no evidence of the power of God at work in your life is empty. But Paul was confident. He said, I'm confident. I'm fully persuaded. I'm completely convinced that God has done a work of grace in you, and it's evident by your works, by your testimony, by your faithfulness in laboring for the cause of Christ in this place. I'm confident of this very thing, that "He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Here is this confidence that every believer can enjoy and know, the assurance of your salvation, that what God has begun, has started, and is continuing to do in you, He will complete. There's the certain accomplishment of the work of grace wherever it is begun. God is not only the author of faith, He's the perfecter, He's the finisher, He's the Alpha, the Omega. He will perform, He will perfect that which concerns you until the day of Jesus Christ. The word perfect there means to complete, to bring to its full conclusion, to bring to its end. The work which His grace has begun, the arm of His strength will complete.
And I think you have here a word concerning the believer's eternal security, or the perseverance of the saints. The perseverance of the saints and the security of the believer rests in the finished work of Christ, in the work of God on our behalf. It doesn't rest in us, in our work, it rests in Christ. We are preserved, we are kept by the power of God, by the grace of God, to the end, to our inheritance.
As Paul tells us in Romans 5 verse 9, that we are saved from wrath through Him. "Romans 5 verse 9, much more than having now been justified by His blood, we shall be, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him." And Romans 8:29, we know those words well, because "those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the
image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called. And those whom He called, He also justified. And those whom He justified, He also glorified." It's complete. The work is done.
And what a wonderful word Peter gives us there in 1 Peter 1 verse 4. He says that we are kept for our inheritance. We have a blessed hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to obtain an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, unfading, having been kept in heaven for you, who are protected again by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Paul's confidence in their continuance to the end was not so much in the Philippians, in their willpower, in their ability to keep themselves, in their determination to hold on to the end. Paul's confidence in their continuance was not in the Philippians' zeal or perseverance, it was not in their strong faith or their good works. His assurance, his confidence that they would continue to the end came because they were partakers of the grace of God. By the grace of God they would endure. By the grace of God they would finish well.
His confidence was in the finished work of Christ in them. He who has begun a good work in you will perfect it. It's His work. It's not our holding on to Christ, it's His holding on to us. He keeps us, He protects us, He empowers us, and He brings us safely through to the end. That's what the resurrection of Christ says to us as believers. It's done. The work is finished. God is satisfied. All that needs to be done is done, paid in full, and the empty tomb says God is satisfied with the work of Christ on the cross, and those He has justified in Christ, those He has called and justified and is sanctifying, He will glorify. He will see it through. He will finish the work that He started.
What a wonderful comfort. That was Paul's confidence. His confidence was in his God. Our confidence is in the Lord. Our faith is in Christ. He's the object of our faith. He's the one who saves us. He's the one who forgives us. He's the one who sanctifies us. He is the one who gives us wisdom. He is the one who will carry us through to the end. All power belongs to Him. You know, men often start jobs they may never finish. How many projects have we started that we never finish? We have good expectations and good intentions, like the man in Luke chapter 14. Remember the man who set out to build the tower, but he failed to count the cost, and he laid the foundation of it, but he wasn't able to finish it. And all who passed by would ridicule him and say, look at this man. This man began to build and he was not able to finish, and they mocked him.
Men often start jobs they may never finish. Whether it be a lack of resources, a lack of skill, a lack of planning, a lack of approval, a lack of knowledge, a lack of power to execute a plan, lack of necessary resources, whatever the case may be, lack of funds. But it is not so with God. What He starts, He finishes. He will perform it. He will finish it. He will bring it to its ultimate conclusion. What He begins, He will accomplish. He will bring it to its absolute consummation. His plan will be worked out to the very end.
He's able. He's able. He's a God of skill, of power, of resources, of wisdom, of planning. Everything is needed to see us through. He's the God of grace and power, and all that we need is found in Christ. And so Paul could say, I'm confident, I'm confident, I'm fully assured of this very thing that God will see you through. What a word of comfort and consolation to us as a people of God. God is faithful. He's faithful to His own. He will never fail. He will never leave undone what He has set out to do. He will complete the work in us.
He will never abandon us or forsake us. He will not forsake the work of His hands. We're His work, His craftsmanship, and He will bring it to perfection. He will complete the work. The God who saved you by His grace will keep you till that day when you stand in glory with your Savior. And what a day that will be when this corruptible will put on incorruption. As we read in 1st Corinthians 15 of that which is sown in weakness being raised in glory, that which is sown in corruption raised in incorruption. It's only by the grace of God.
What a day that will be when we will be changed, we will see Him as He is, and we will be like Him. Grace, the grace that has redeemed us we were singing, the grace that restores us, that same grace leads us home. It will lead us home. And I love what Paul Tripp said as we close tonight. Only divine grace can accomplish this. Only divine grace can soften a person's heart as the Lord did with Lydia, opened her heart. Only grace can help your eyes to see what you need to see. Only grace can decimate your defenses and lead you to confess.
Only grace can cause you to quit pointing the finger and to run to your Redeemer for His forgiveness and delivering power. Only grace. Only grace can enable you to forsake your own righteousness and find your hope and rest in the righteousness of another. Only grace can make you more grieved over your sin than about the sins of others. Only grace can make you accept your need for grace. Only grace can cause you to abandon your confidence in your own performance and place your confidence in the perfectly acceptable righteousness of Jesus Christ. Only grace. By the grace of God I am what I am.
Only grace can cause us to put our hope in the only place where hope can be found, in God, in God alone. He who began a good work in you will perform it. What a comfort, child of God. What confidence we can know. By the grace and the power of God I am what I am, and by the grace and the power of God I shall stand complete in Christ. As in the words of the hymn by Aaron Wolfe, Complete in Thee:
Complete in Thee, no work of mine
May take, dear Lord, the place of Thine.
Thy blood has pardoned, bought for me,
And I am now complete in Thee.
Yea, justified, O blessed thought,
Sanctified, salvation wrought.
Thy blood has pardoned, bought for me,
Glorified I too shall be.
Take comfort, child of God, today. God in His grace is working in your life. The God who saves you will keep you. He will complete the work that He began. "I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, offering prayer with joy in every prayer for you all, because of your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Let's pray:
O God, our God, how can we not thank You? We say, thank You, Lord our God, You are my God. We thank You for Your grace that saves, Your grace that transforms. We thank You, Lord, for making Yourself known in the Word. We thank You for the work of Your Spirit in the hearts of Your people.
We pray now, Lord, that we'd use Your Word to continue that work, that we would walk in the Word day by day, that we would seek to be conformed more and more to the image of Christ, that we would love You who first loved us. Keep us, Lord, in Your hand. Keep us faithful and help us to be ever about the Master's business, steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, for we know that our labor will never be in vain.
Bless Your church, we pray. Make us like the Philippian church. May there be good reason found in us for God to give thanks, to rejoice. May we seek to glorify Your name in a united front, striving together for the cause of the gospel. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.
Every time they came to mind, he thanked God for them and for the work that had been done in that place. From the early beginnings in Acts 16, those first encounters and how God led him in a very special way to Macedonia, to hear and to respond to that cry, "Come over and help us." Thinking of how God led him to that place in the time he preached by the riverside and how God opened the heart of Lydia, that religious woman who was there to worship, who was listening to the words. She heard the word, and God opened her heart. Then on to the conversion of the cruel, hard Philippian jailer and his household. He says, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you from the first day until now." Until now.
Here he is in a Roman prison, and yet He's not distressed. He's joyful. He's thankful. He has these sweet and happy memories of this church, and now they're a well-established, thriving church, and they brought him joy. He was happy to see the progress of the gospel in that place. They were in his thoughts, and they were on his heart. He tells us through his epistle here how grateful he was for them. He was grateful for their support. If you look over in chapter 4 and verse 15, we read of how they provided for his needs, and they thought of him. They were kind, they were tender-hearted, they were a giving church.
And he says, "And you yourselves also know, Philippians, that at the first preaching of the gospel, after I left Macedonia, no church fellowshipped with me in the matter of giving and receiving but you alone." And he was so thankful for their support in the gospel. They had furnished him with gifts time and time again, and their benevolence was a reason to thank God. He was not only thankful for the gifts and for their support, but those gifts in themselves gave him evidence and proof that God was at work in their hearts. They were liberal in their giving, and it was proof of their love for Christ.
He called them those who were of tender affection to him. In chapter 1 verse 8 he says, "For God is my witness how I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ." That's how dear these people were to the Apostle Paul. They called for his tender affection, "I long for you." He longed to be with them, he longed to fellowship with them again, but he was so grateful for their support, for the evidence of God's grace in their life. He was so grateful for the advancement in holy and spiritual graces that were found in them. It was noted by their generous acts of love and kindness to the Apostle.
And not only that, they were a united people. They were a people who were one in the gospel; they were of one mind and of one heart, and they gave him little trouble. They were determined to see the advancement of the kingdom of God in that place, and they labored to that end. And he so rejoiced in them.
You look at chapter 2 in the opening four verses, he's so encouraged in Christ, and there is this consolation of love, this fellowship of the Spirit, this affection, this compassion. They fulfilled his joy; they were of one mind, maintaining the same love. They were united in spirit; they were thinking on one purpose, doing nothing from selfish ambition or vainglory, but with humility of mind, not regarding one another as more important than themselves, not looking on their own personal interests, but on the interests of others. They had the mind of Christ, and he rejoiced to see that spiritual fruit develop in their lives.
He prayed and he longed that they would continue to grow in grace, that they would be growing, as he prays there in chapter 1 in verse 9, "This I pray, that your love would abound still more and more." Love was there, love was evident, it was seen in their lives and by their works, but he prays that it would grow, that it would flourish, that it would abound yet more and more. They would be those who had a knowledge and a discernment in the things of God, that it would approve things that are excellent until the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness.
What a joy this church was to the Apostle Paul. And I think you see something of his pastoral heart. He had such affection, such love for them; it's evident by his prayers for them on their behalf. He wanted to see them growing and flourishing in the gospel. A good work had begun there, a good work was continuing there, and he wanted to see that work going on from strength to strength.
So thankful was he for their fellowship, their enthusiasm, their cooperation, and active labor in the gospel. It was a source of great joy, so he said, this really is the Lord's doing, and it's marvelous to behold. I thank my God for you. It's the work of God. "He who began a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." You know, this was the kind of church
every pastor would love to pastor. It's a church for us to emulate. It's a church that sets a great example of love and unity and fellowship and oneness in the gospel for us, and we can learn a lot from the Philippian church.
In fact, Spurgeon said, "A church which feels that holy service is not for a few but for all members is a credit to divine grace." It's a credit to divine grace. This was the work of God in them, and every memory of that church was a blessing to the Apostle Paul. He longed to see them again, and here in these first 11 verses after the salutation he presents reasons for pastoral joy and joy in ministry and his prayer for the believers in Philippi.
He could see that God was at work in them and through them, and that's our text tonight as we come to verse 6. I want to focus on that word, as he said, "I'm confident of this very thing, that He, my God, He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ." He was confident that the work in their hearts was a divine work. It was a work of God; there was no question about it in the Apostle's mind. The Lord Himself had begun a work in them. This was no empty profession, this was no passing impulse, but this was a genuine work of grace in them.
How did He know that? How did He know that it was really the work of God, that God had begun a good work in them? Well, you could say it was by their fruits, their very lives, as we've testified already; their lives confirmed it. He was confident this was a work that only God could bring about. Their lives had been dramatically altered for the better; they had been changed by the grace of God, and a thriving church had been established in that place. Paul could see a clear work of grace, signs of life in them from the first day, even until now, he says.
In these ten years, God has been at work, and He changed them in a marvelous way for the better. Salvation is a work of divine grace in the soul of man. He says, I thank my God that He who began that work in you is continuing that work, and He will perform that work. And you go back and you read the account in Acts chapter 16 and the salvation story of Lydia and the demon-possessed damsel there and the Philippian jailer, and you see how God began to work in that place and dramatically changed those lives. So that when God opened Lydia's heart, she immediately opened her home to the gospel.
When that young damsel came to know Christ, she put away her idolatry. When that cruel, hard jailer who was responsible for throwing Paul into the deepest dungeon, putting him in stocks, beating him, when he cried out, "What must I do to be saved?" Paul said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved." And what do you see? What a change. There he is, bathing the wounds of the Apostle with tenderness, with love, from a cruel, hard jailer to one showing compassion, refreshing the servant of God. You could see the dramatic change from the very beginning. It was a good work. It was a work of divine grace in them.
Spurgeon said, to bring a man from darkness into light is good. To deliver him from the bondage of his natural corruption and make him the Lord's free man must be good. It's good for himself. It's good for society. It's good for the church of God. It's good for the glory of God Himself. God began a good work in that place, and it began in the hearts of these believers. And that's what Paul tells us here. Paul ascribes salvation, the salvation of believers, to the sovereign grace of God. It's a divine work of God in the soul of man.
God begins the work. God initiates the work. He started this work. He commenced the work. He was continuing this work in them by His grace and by His power, and He would complete that work. Salvation is a work of grace. It's all of grace. And that was the Apostle's theme. Didn't he relish the grace of God? He was so thankful for God's grace in his life, a blasphemer, a persecutor, dragging Christians to prison and to court, watching as one of the Lord's precious saints was martyred. I was a blasphemer. I was a persecutor. But by the grace of God, I am what I am. He was saved by grace, the work of grace.
God's work in us is a good work. It's a blessed work. It makes us good, as Matthew Henry said. It's a pledge of good to us. It makes us like God. It fits us for the enjoyment of God. And he said, that may well be called a good work which does us the greatest good. It's a good work which does us the greatest good. And what's the reason for this good work? What was the source or the spring of this good work? Paul says, it's God Himself. He has begun a good work in you. It's a divine work of God in the soul.
Didn't we see that in Ephesians when we were there in chapter 1? That salvation is of the Lord, that every believer is blessed with every good thing, every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus. It's a work that God planned. It's a work that He takes pleasure in.
Let me know if you would like a version with additional formatting, such as quotation marks around direct quotes from Spurgeon and Matthew Henry!
If you turn over to Ephesians chapter 1, you see that this work was a work not of man but of God. Ephesians 1 verse 4, you see that this work is a work that God planned from eternity, even before the foundation of the world, before your birth, before creation. God had you in mind. You were upon His heart. He was planning this work of redemption, and just as He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless
before Him in love.
But it's not only a work that He planned, but it's a work that He takes pleasure in, because He says in verse 5, "by predestinating us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself according to the good pleasure of His will." This is a work that God takes delight in. He takes pleasure in it. It's according to His good pleasure, it's according to His sovereign purpose, a work in which He takes great delight. It's a good work of God. How can it not be? God is good. There is none good but one. That is God, and all He does is good. He is good, and He does good.
It's not only a work that He planned and that He takes pleasure in, but it's a work that stands to the praise of God's glory and to the praise of His rich grace, because Paul tells us there in Ephesians 1 verse 6, "to the praise of the glory of His grace." It's a work of grace which He has graciously bestowed on us in the Beloved. It stands to the praise of God's glorious grace. Salvation is a divine, gracious work of God in the soul of man. But more than that, it's a powerful work. It's a powerful work of God. It's a work that only God could do.
We could not bring about this transformation ourselves. We cannot save ourselves. We cannot work to accomplish this work. But God, God in Christ had to do it. We could not begin it ourselves, because the reality is we were spiritually dead, dead in our trespasses and our sins. We were blind to our very need for the grace of God. We were walking according to the course of this world. We were walking as children of wrath, children of disobedience, under
condemnation, fulfilling our own lusts, living out our own desires. But God, Ephesians 2:4, "But God," God broke in in His power. He came to rescue us, to break those chains of sin that held us fast.
But God, it's a powerful work of God. God being rich in mercy because of His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, He made us alive. It's resurrection life. That's a work of power. Only God can raise the dead to life. What can dead men do for themselves? Nothing. There's no life in them, no breath in them. We were spiritually dead in our sins until God came in power in Christ, made us alive. It's a powerful work of God, saving and transforming dead sinners and making them live, calling them to life.
Colossians 2:13 says, "And you, you being dead, dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He, He made you alive with Him, with Christ, having graciously," there's that work of grace, "graciously forgiven us all our transgressions." He made you alive with Him, given a new life with a new heart, with new desires, with a new will, with new longings, with new goals. It's the power of God at work in man. That's what a Christian is. A Christian is a work of God. A Christian is a new creation.
Remember 2 Corinthians 5:17? "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things passed away, behold the whole things become new." We're new creatures in Christ. And as we read in Ephesians 2:10, we're His workmanship. By grace you've been saved through faith. It's not of yourselves, it's not your own power, not your own works, not your own ability, not your own resources, not your own gifts. It's not of works, so that no one may boast. We are His workmanship. We're His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.
A Christian is a work of God, His workmanship, His craftsmanship, His handiwork, and we've been raised up by the resurrection power of God to walk in newness of life, we're told in Romans 6:4. It's the power of God, that's the gospel. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes, "Romans 1:16." The word of the cross is foolishness to
those who are perishing, but to those who are saved it is the power of God, "1 Corinthians 1:18." It's the power of God at work in us, awakening us to our need, breathing new life into us, calling the dead just as Christ called Lazarus, come forth to life.
We're called and raised to walk in newness of life by the power of the gospel, by the power of Christ Himself. And you see that in Ephesians 1:19, that we've come to know what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of the might of His strength, which He worked in Christ by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at the right hand in heavenly places. That power of God that raises dead sinners to life, and again in chapter 3 of Ephesians in verse 20 He says, "Now, to Him who is able to do far more abundantly above all that we ask or understand according to the power that works within us." It's God's power that works within us. To Him be glory in the church.
A Christian is God's workmanship. He's the result of the work and the activity of God on the soul. Created unto good works. Paul uses that word “created” to show that when God was dealing with the problem of human sin, when He's dealing with the problem of our sin, He did not do a repair job. He made or He created something anew. If any man is in Christ, he is a new creation. It's not just a patch job, it's not just a repair job, we are a new creation in Christ Jesus, and a Christian is not a repaired sinner, he's a new creation in Christ, and this is only possible if God by His power creates anew.
We could never do this on our own. Who can forgive sin but God? Who can proclaim freedom to the sinner as we heard this morning? Who can say there is no condemnation now to you but God? Having blotted out our transgressions, removed our curse, bore our shame and our guilt on the cross, only God could accomplish such a work in dead, blind sinners. You know that's a word of consolation to those who are yet in their sin, because He is able. He's a God of power.
The gospel is good news. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to those who are held fast by the chains of sin that bind them and are destroying them. This is a word of confidence and of comfort. There is hope for the sinner. He breaks the power of canceled sin. He sets the prisoner free. This is a work of God, and He is able. Whatever you're dealing with, whatever your sin, there's no sin too great for Christ, but He can forgive it. He can blot it out. He can make you anew. He can make you a new creature and set you on a new path and set you on the course to heaven.
It's a gracious work, it's a good work, a work of God, a work that He can only do, it's a work of power, work that He planned, a work that He takes pleasure in. And the Apostle emphasizes that in several places here, that God in His power works in the lives of believers. You look at Philippians chapter 2 in verse 13, he says, "It is God, it's God who is at work in you, believer. God who is at work in you both to will and to work for His good pleasure." We work because of His work. It's God who is at work in you to will and to work for His good pleasure. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, he says. It's God who is at work in you.
We love that verse in chapter 4, verse 13, where the Apostle said, "I can do all things." "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Not my own power, I can't do it in my own strength, but I'm made strong. I'm made strong for all things in the One who is constantly infusing me with strength. I can do all things, I am made strong for all things by the activity of God on me and in me, by the power of God and His all-sufficient grace.
In other words, the enabling power and ability to do certain things is not in me, but it's in
Christ. And it's by Christ Jesus I persevere. It's only by His grace we persevere. Without Him we can do nothing. And Paul emphasizes the power of God and the life of the believer here, infusing strength into us so that we can be about the Master's business and do what He has called us to do, and persevere in our calling to the very end. Not in our own strength, but in the strength that Christ gives to us.
I love what Martin Lloyd-Jones said with regard to the Christian life. He said, the Christian life, after all, is a life. It's a power. It is an activity. It's not just a philosophy. It's not just a point of view. It's not just teaching we take up and try to put into practice. It is all that, but it's something infinitely more, he said. The very essence of the Christian life, according to the New Testament teaching, is that it is a mighty power that enters into us. It is a life that is pulsating in us. It is an activity, and an activity on the part of God.
That's what a Christian is. A Christian is not only one who has been saved by the grace of God, but a Christian is one who has been transformed by the power of God. And there's an evident change in the life so that he no longer does the things that he once did. He no longer pursues the things he once pursued. There's such an evident change. It was evident in the lives of these Philippian believers. It's an activity of God in the soul of man.
We're His workmanship, His handiwork, and He's not done with us. God is at work in the life of His church, in the life of His people. Christian, always remember you are God's workmanship. You are His new creation. You are created, made anew, made unto good works. Do you think of yourself in this way, as one in whom God has powerfully worked to create anew, to save and transform by His divine grace and power and love, so that you've been raised up to walk in newness of life, in the service of your Savior? That's what a Christian is.
It's a work of God, it's a gracious work, it's a powerful work, but a Christian is one who God continues to sanctify by His grace and by His Spirit. Faith in Christ transforms daily life. Paul saw so much of Christ in these believers at Philippi that he couldn't help admiring them and loving them. It was so evident. He was so thankful for them, he was thankful for their ministry, he was thankful for their support, he was thankful for their zeal, but there was so much of Christ in them that he couldn't help admire and love them.
God was working in their life, and it was evident. Whether it was their spontaneous giving to missions, whether it was their sacrificial giving to the Lord's work and to the Apostle himself, their liberal, generous giving to the work of Christ, that spirit of unity that existed among them, that active prayer life that was evident there, their fellowship and their joint participation in the gospel, their cooperation with him in seeking the advancement of the kingdom of God, that fellowship from the first day until now, he said.
He was so thankful for their participation and that zeal that was in them to see the advance of God's kingdom. They were unashamed. Here is Paul, a prisoner chained to a Roman guard, and they were not ashamed of his chains; they were willing to stand with him, stand for the truth no matter what the cost. There was this willingness to suffer and to be counted worthy of Christ, and it was evident by their sympathy and their love for others who were in need, contributing time and time again to the needs of the church. And they endured, they endured.
This wasn't a flash in the pan, this wasn't a passing impulse. God had worked in them and they were continuing grace. God was sanctifying them, and their lives were transformed; it was evident by their daily life from the first day until this present day, Paul said. They were
patient, they were enduring, they were not leaving their first love. It was a lasting work of God in them. Faith in Christ transforms your daily life.
They worked. You see the link between verse 5 and verse 6 here. He says, I'm thankful for you, I remember you with joy, I offer prayer on your behalf, and he says because of your fellowship, your active cooperation in gospel activity, your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now. They worked. Verse 5, they persevered in the service of the Lord. Why did they do that? Because of verse 6. That's the link. Because God by grace worked in their hearts, because He had begun a good work in them. Verse 6 is the ultimate reason for verse 5. They continued from the first to the present because of God's saving work in them.
God's grace doesn't leave a person in their sin. God in grace doesn't leave them where He finds them; He transforms. Didn't we see that this morning? The life of that woman? "Nor do I condemn you, go and sin no more." There is a radical change. Grace doesn't leave a person where they are in their sin; it transforms, it saves, it sanctifies. As F. B. Meyer said, "The work which His grace has begun, the arm of His strength will complete." The work which His grace has begun, the arm of His strength will complete.
I was struck last week when Pastor Habib was preaching from "John 7:43," he made this statement. He said, "If your faith hasn't transformed you, your faith hasn't saved you." It's a counterfeit faith. So true. It's the exact opposite here in Philippi. God, by grace, saved them. They believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, and they were radically changed, their lives were dramatically different. A profession of faith with no evidence of the power of God at work in your life is empty, is no work of God at all.
If your faith that you profess saves you doesn't transform you, it's counterfeit faith. A profession, an empty, mere profession with no evidence of the power of God at work in your life is empty. But Paul was confident. He said, I'm confident. I'm fully persuaded. I'm completely convinced that God has done a work of grace in you, and it's evident by your works, by your testimony, by your faithfulness in laboring for the cause of Christ in this place. I'm confident of this very thing, that "He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Here is this confidence that every believer can enjoy and know, the assurance of your salvation, that what God has begun, has started, and is continuing to do in you, He will complete. There's the certain accomplishment of the work of grace wherever it is begun. God is not only the author of faith, He's the perfecter, He's the finisher, He's the Alpha, the Omega. He will perform, He will perfect that which concerns you until the day of Jesus Christ. The word perfect there means to complete, to bring to its full conclusion, to bring to its end. The work which His grace has begun, the arm of His strength will complete.
And I think you have here a word concerning the believer's eternal security, or the perseverance of the saints. The perseverance of the saints and the security of the believer rests in the finished work of Christ, in the work of God on our behalf. It doesn't rest in us, in our work, it rests in Christ. We are preserved, we are kept by the power of God, by the grace of God, to the end, to our inheritance.
As Paul tells us in Romans 5 verse 9, that we are saved from wrath through Him. "Romans 5 verse 9, much more than having now been justified by His blood, we shall be, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him." And Romans 8:29, we know those words well, because "those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the
image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called. And those whom He called, He also justified. And those whom He justified, He also glorified." It's complete. The work is done.
And what a wonderful word Peter gives us there in 1 Peter 1 verse 4. He says that we are kept for our inheritance. We have a blessed hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to obtain an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, unfading, having been kept in heaven for you, who are protected again by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Paul's confidence in their continuance to the end was not so much in the Philippians, in their willpower, in their ability to keep themselves, in their determination to hold on to the end. Paul's confidence in their continuance was not in the Philippians' zeal or perseverance, it was not in their strong faith or their good works. His assurance, his confidence that they would continue to the end came because they were partakers of the grace of God. By the grace of God they would endure. By the grace of God they would finish well.
His confidence was in the finished work of Christ in them. He who has begun a good work in you will perfect it. It's His work. It's not our holding on to Christ, it's His holding on to us. He keeps us, He protects us, He empowers us, and He brings us safely through to the end. That's what the resurrection of Christ says to us as believers. It's done. The work is finished. God is satisfied. All that needs to be done is done, paid in full, and the empty tomb says God is satisfied with the work of Christ on the cross, and those He has justified in Christ, those He has called and justified and is sanctifying, He will glorify. He will see it through. He will finish the work that He started.
What a wonderful comfort. That was Paul's confidence. His confidence was in his God. Our confidence is in the Lord. Our faith is in Christ. He's the object of our faith. He's the one who saves us. He's the one who forgives us. He's the one who sanctifies us. He is the one who gives us wisdom. He is the one who will carry us through to the end. All power belongs to Him. You know, men often start jobs they may never finish. How many projects have we started that we never finish? We have good expectations and good intentions, like the man in Luke chapter 14. Remember the man who set out to build the tower, but he failed to count the cost, and he laid the foundation of it, but he wasn't able to finish it. And all who passed by would ridicule him and say, look at this man. This man began to build and he was not able to finish, and they mocked him.
Men often start jobs they may never finish. Whether it be a lack of resources, a lack of skill, a lack of planning, a lack of approval, a lack of knowledge, a lack of power to execute a plan, lack of necessary resources, whatever the case may be, lack of funds. But it is not so with God. What He starts, He finishes. He will perform it. He will finish it. He will bring it to its ultimate conclusion. What He begins, He will accomplish. He will bring it to its absolute consummation. His plan will be worked out to the very end.
He's able. He's able. He's a God of skill, of power, of resources, of wisdom, of planning. Everything is needed to see us through. He's the God of grace and power, and all that we need is found in Christ. And so Paul could say, I'm confident, I'm confident, I'm fully assured of this very thing that God will see you through. What a word of comfort and consolation to us as a people of God. God is faithful. He's faithful to His own. He will never fail. He will never leave undone what He has set out to do. He will complete the work in us.
He will never abandon us or forsake us. He will not forsake the work of His hands. We're His work, His craftsmanship, and He will bring it to perfection. He will complete the work. The God who saved you by His grace will keep you till that day when you stand in glory with your Savior. And what a day that will be when this corruptible will put on incorruption. As we read in 1st Corinthians 15 of that which is sown in weakness being raised in glory, that which is sown in corruption raised in incorruption. It's only by the grace of God.
What a day that will be when we will be changed, we will see Him as He is, and we will be like Him. Grace, the grace that has redeemed us we were singing, the grace that restores us, that same grace leads us home. It will lead us home. And I love what Paul Tripp said as we close tonight. Only divine grace can accomplish this. Only divine grace can soften a person's heart as the Lord did with Lydia, opened her heart. Only grace can help your eyes to see what you need to see. Only grace can decimate your defenses and lead you to confess.
Only grace can cause you to quit pointing the finger and to run to your Redeemer for His forgiveness and delivering power. Only grace. Only grace can enable you to forsake your own righteousness and find your hope and rest in the righteousness of another. Only grace can make you more grieved over your sin than about the sins of others. Only grace can make you accept your need for grace. Only grace can cause you to abandon your confidence in your own performance and place your confidence in the perfectly acceptable righteousness of Jesus Christ. Only grace. By the grace of God I am what I am.
Only grace can cause us to put our hope in the only place where hope can be found, in God, in God alone. He who began a good work in you will perform it. What a comfort, child of God. What confidence we can know. By the grace and the power of God I am what I am, and by the grace and the power of God I shall stand complete in Christ. As in the words of the hymn by Aaron Wolfe, Complete in Thee:
Complete in Thee, no work of mine
May take, dear Lord, the place of Thine.
Thy blood has pardoned, bought for me,
And I am now complete in Thee.
Yea, justified, O blessed thought,
Sanctified, salvation wrought.
Thy blood has pardoned, bought for me,
Glorified I too shall be.
Take comfort, child of God, today. God in His grace is working in your life. The God who saves you will keep you. He will complete the work that He began. "I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, offering prayer with joy in every prayer for you all, because of your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Let's pray:
O God, our God, how can we not thank You? We say, thank You, Lord our God, You are my God. We thank You for Your grace that saves, Your grace that transforms. We thank You, Lord, for making Yourself known in the Word. We thank You for the work of Your Spirit in the hearts of Your people.
We pray now, Lord, that we'd use Your Word to continue that work, that we would walk in the Word day by day, that we would seek to be conformed more and more to the image of Christ, that we would love You who first loved us. Keep us, Lord, in Your hand. Keep us faithful and help us to be ever about the Master's business, steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, for we know that our labor will never be in vain.
Bless Your church, we pray. Make us like the Philippian church. May there be good reason found in us for God to give thanks, to rejoice. May we seek to glorify Your name in a united front, striving together for the cause of the gospel. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.
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