Philippians 2:12-18 (Summer Series 5)-Rev. Mark C. Wagner
Intro: Is being a Christian a dreary grind in which everything we like is illegal, immoral or fattening? Is it perhaps a religion of rules which are in conflict with the free spirit of man? Obedience, as it is so clearly modeled in our Lord Jesus, means an intelligent application of principle to life. Obedience in this sense is not a slavish observance of rules but the key to liberty.
1. Paul exhorts us with the necessity of intelligent obedience. (v. 12)
- Work it out: we do the living but he lives, acts and chooses through us.
- Shine it out: we are mindful that every moment depends on his power.
- Hold it out: we share why our confidence is adequate for any situation.
App: This discovery turns adversity into adventure, transforming the routine sameness of life into a continual challenge to see God at work. Keep going! He has the solution already.
2. Paul explains for us the recipe of true obedience. (V. 13-16)
- The entrance of God obliterates murmuring.
- The enjoyment of God replaces rules with relationship.
App: Paul himself had to learn that it wasn't his behavior that God examined but his heart. He learned that his faith wasn't a book of rules but a person filled with compassion.
3. Christ exemplifies the effects of godly obedience on others.
- Paul looks forward to the day when all the fruit of the Spirit becomes visible.
- He says, "To know Christ is to be filled with joy, energized by God."
Conclusion: God gets to you when you spend enough time with him. His joyful interaction with each of us renovates our thinking, renews our will with his good purpose, and causes us to act more like Jesus.
