Grace and Working Out Your Salvation [Part 1]

Pastor author and Bible teacher Alan Wright when you have been laboring under the worry and angst of not measuring and you find out you were in longer measured by God, according to your righteousness, but according to the righteousness of Jesus changes everything.

And this is the gospel that's faster out right talking to another message of abuse that will help you see your life in a whole new life. I'm Dino Britt excited for you to hear the teaching today. In the series. Unspeakable joy is presented at renewal the church in North Carolina. If you're not able to stay with us throughout the entire program I want to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now. It can be yours for your donation this month to Alan Wright Ministry as you listen to today's message go deeper as we send you today's special offer.

Contact us at pastor@an.org or call 877-544-4860 that's 877-544-4860. More on that later in the program but now let's get started with today's teaching here is Alan writing.

Are you ready for some good news there is more to your salvation than you know right now is more to being a child of God redeems destined for heaven filled with the Holy Spirit, led by God and empowered by a timeless word.

There is more to this than we have yet to work out and so we come today to a text that for lovers of grace, like myself, is one that is often brought up in front of us. Well, you know you talk about grace and God did everything and so all the works finished by Jesus. But what about this. Well, I've got some good news for you today in Philippians chapter 2 verse 12 just got a deal with two verses today and one of which, a famous verse which again is a preacher of grace, you could be prone to discount cough and move onto the next verse because it can be so easily misunderstood, but today I hope to shine some light on this. The good news in Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 and 13. Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure to talk about working out your own salvation with fear and trembling, and what is such good news about what otherwise could sound like a heavy invitation to a life of work. I read this week. Something I had in a file. Years and years ago a man said I'm tired.

Yes I'm tired for a couple of years I've been blaming it on iron for blood. Lack of vitamins dieting a dozen other maladies that make you wonder if life is worth living. But now I found out it ain't that I'm tired because I'm overworked. This guy goes on to say.

You see, this is years ago, the numbers will often said population of this country. 237 million hundred and 4 million are retired.

That leaves 133 million to do work there. 85 million school weekly 48 million to do the work of this or 29 million employed by the federal government that leaves 19 million to do work I didn't write it. I just read 4 million in Armed Forces leaves 15 million to do the work takes and that a total of 13,800,000 work for the state and city government in at least 200,000 to do the work. There hundred 88,000 hospital that leaves 12,000 to do the work, and 11,998 people in prison. That leaves therefore just two people to do the work you and me and you're sitting there reading this right for how many people you me if I will have everything going what they say is a busy and I'm tired and so the message of the grace of the gospel that I love to preach is an announcement that Jesus is done the work of salvation. And when your soul hears such delicious news when you have been laboring under the worry and angst of not measuring up and you find out that you are no longer measured by God, according to your righteousness, but according to the righteousness of Jesus, it changes everything.

And this is the gospel. So what in the world does Paul mean here when he says, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, because in the first place. Paul is the preacher of grace and he has said over and over like in the Galatian epistle he said, who has bewitched you your adding some works into the gospel of grace. The grace of God must be pure. It can't be Jesus plus anything Jesus plus any of your own righteousness. And this is Paul saying about Paul is. It is the one is taught as that God did not give us a spirit of fear, God gave to us a spirit of power and love and self-control. He didn't make us into slaves again living under fear, but made his children adopted by God, by which we cry out to him about father.

So how can he be advocating fear and trembling. I was hunting today. Therefore, about what possibly Paul is meaning by working out your own salvation with fear and trembling and show you really the good news in this. I'm not going to take as much time to talk about the idea fear and troubling because I think you can pretty much summarize this and most scholars would say if those words seem disturbing to use substitute words reverence and all that there is a way in which, when you get to participate with God in something so holy is the living out of the saving grace of Jesus Christ. It is so marvelous. It is so awesome that it makes you like one who is standing on the precipice of the Grand Canyon.

If you're not a little bit over all it at the wonder of it all, you're not really seeing it. If you're a little bit over all, and therefore something inside of you trembling with delight, excitement, and utmost reverence at the gospel of Jesus Christ. You had really seen it should work out your own salvation with fear and trembling and the good news of it.

That's what I want talk to you about the nanotube important issues about this text and to summarize a whole lot of scholarly discussion over the centuries about this text. Let me just start out by saying there are two really important issues that have to be grappled with and I'll summarize it this way, the word that Paul uses here for you is actually the plural, so this should be translated work out all y'all salvation with fear and trembling, so this is y'all and it's in the plural, and when he says, my beloved is not talking to an individual he's talking to the community. So this is not just speaking about individual relationship with Jesus.

He's also talking here about the totality of the community of the body of Christ we are so individualistic in the West.

Other cultures throughout history and Eastern cultures.

They don't think so individualistically like we do, but the body of Christ and the people of God is something that God sees that there is a saving work that takes place not just within the individual, but with in the church something so redemptive the God using in the world. So all of that is being referenced here as well as individual and the other question is what is meant by salvation. This Greek word South Korea is a word that doesn't just mean you get a ticket to heaven one day. Although it does most assuredly include the glorious assurance of your heavenly destination, but instead, so Terry means in a comprehensive sense of well-being, salvation, deliverance, healing, peace, prosperity and unity in the community so all of this is at work were speaking about what you're salvation me. So to say to work out your own salvation. I invite you to think not just individually but were thinking also of the comprehensive sense of the body of Christ but also when you think of working out your salvation, whatever Paul means by this. He's talking not just about okay your saved you get to go to heaven he's talking about the total package of what it means to be a child of God, including every spiritual blessing in Christ. That's what he's talking about is important to understand this text, only to save it as I begin grappling with this Texan.

I really grappled with it this week. The long time since I've really really looked at this text and looked at it from okay father, what is the good news here to share with what I believe the Lord will show me this week and that begins with this and this is in the natural set.

Let's say some things about work is absolutely a false dichotomy to say if you love grace and you believe in the gospel of grace, therefore, that means you don't believe in works that's absolutely wrong. What were saying.

Instead, is that the works that we are about and the righteous things in our lives and the assignments that God gives us in all of our vocation bitten.

None of that has any bearing upon the finished work of Jesus, which has granted us our salvation.

It is also to say, as Paul says in verse 13 it is God who is both at will and to work this in you.

So God has done something where he has drawn you under him and therefore he is will at work in you. This is the mystery of the gospel. He is will it work in you, so that your desires get changed and you become a new creation. You become a new creature you become.

Some one that's like a new species. You're like a new thing that has been desires.

That's what he said he does so God's will is at work within you.

His energy is it work within you, and so to say works is not to say a bad word. It's just that we have had so much wrong teaching is so much shame-based thinking that we thought our works with the way in which God was going to be in some measure more pleased with us. Beloved, let me say it again is not one work that you can do to add to or take away from the love of God, because the love of God is perfectly set upon you, and was set upon you before you ever called upon his neighbor ever did one single holy a righteous thing. In fact of the matter. Christ came and died for the ungodly. While they were still in their sin. So never, ever, ever, ever think that any work of yours is going to add to the love of God for you, but it doesn't it. Anyway mean that God is somehow disparaging the idea of work… Start with this work itself. Beloved is a blessing. It is a blessing to get to participate with God talent right will have more teaching moment from today's important series is not actually right reserved for those who have no problems or have you ever assume that some people are just born with a joyful personality. If so, get ready for some good news.

Joy is afraid of the spirit available to all in Christ, no matter the circumstances of life there. Paul was in jail when he read his epistle to the Philippians he spoke of joy 16 times no matter what you're going through.

You too can discover the secret to unspeakable joy as pastor at NYPD through a life building explanation of Philippians.

When you make a gift to sharing and light ministries today Singin the new CD album the secret and unspeakable joy as our way of saying thank you for your partnership. Your gifts are the only way we are able to continue broadcasting the message of grace all over the nation. Happiness may rise and fall with happenstance, but joy is ever present in the spirit to become a partner today and discover joint like never before. We are happy to send this to you as I thanks from Alan light ministries, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor. Our.work. Today's teaching now continues once again is imaginary kindergarten. There's a school play and the teachers go to my room and she's assigning different parts and this person is going to play this role. This present like this book and Johnny's going to be behind-the-scenes and easily work in the curtain and summing up Spencer goes on all the hope will clasp everybody gets apart except for you. If you like me when I was in 10th grade.

As I told you before I played on the soccer team and we won the state championship. I just didn't play in the state chairmanship game but I was a state champion but I just I did my senior year I got the player started and is just a joy when you hadn't been able to play in your own the team and the coach says right want to go in you. Okay you don't get on the team so you can sit on the bench you get to go out in the field and do some work. It is a blessing. I'm saying it's a blessing to get to participate with God is look at the little children. They know it's a blessing you ever notice how little children crave to do the tasks that we dread to anything they play activated firemen and policemen in the black house and clean and in one a little kitchenette and I want a little want to get toolsets and I want to do something happened on the way to adulthood where we got the wrong attitude about work and and we still were funny people I met one time I went to a nice resort and I looked around I let go and look to see what all I got. I was amazed at the exercise room because they had two or three different type of stairstep machines.

I was looking forward to those wonderful exercise room, but I got a little irritated when waited one day the elevator was out of service and I had to take the stairs up to the we drive around looking for a better parking place so we'll have to walk very far to get into the wild to go get on the treadmill was work in paradise before sin came in the world right Genesis chapter 2 the Lord God took the man put them in the garden of Eden to work it. Keep it.

It was good work Word for Word to bear. Genesis 215 means to tell is not light work like underlying here and the fruit is going to fall in the my mouth is out there working the ground, killing it. Keep in the garden or send came in the world listen to the curse that came with it because you listen to the voice your wife and even of the tree of which I commanded you shall not eat, cursed is the ground because of you in pain you shall eat of it all the days your life.

Thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you as eat the plants the field by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread to you return to the ground so the blessing of work became a curse of work because of sin, when it came in what happened with the word that is used here for pain in Genesis chapter 3 is in most Hebrew references in the Old Testament used to speak of emotional pain stop talking about the physical labor is talking about their something now, emotionally, that is changing side of the man that makes the work feel like work when once it didn't feel like work goes to say what's working, what's play member when kids were little guy on the beach and thing it was like my assignment was this a little toddlers love this dig a big hole the beach so big that it starts filling him with water and they got a big puddle to plan all day and we go, we build that thing and sometimes we spent hours building a wall around the front of it shoveling for hours and hours just to try to keep the tide from overtaking it. I remember one year is out there digging my bags get sore and I thought if I were at home and some I were making the biggest whole basil grumble and complain and every step of the way, why is it that digging a hole at the beach is kind of fun and digging a hole at home to go, you gotta fix something is such a pain.

I'm telling you something about the attitude that we have towards work. The emotional pain of it, it becomes a curse when you work in order to prove yourself in order to get blessing, but if you work because you are blessed then that work is part of the blessing Sue Bender years ago when lived amongst the community of simple Amish people is your little book called plain and simple, and she talked about what she learned about work from the simple Amish people, and here's here's something she wrote caring for the land every day is my way to be close to God's land must be honored, she heard Eli say in watching the Amish farm on farm their land. Bender learned quote. Their intention is to make things grow into work this useful.

I couldn't say exactly what the difference is, but I felt the difference. They work to work. Their work time isn't spent in order to do something else to have free time on weekends go to restaurant or safer vacation, retirement.

They do not expect to find satisfaction in that vague something out there but in the daily mastery of whatever they're doing. So I think the first place. For the reason we miss read this text, is it we may work into a bad word and is not wonderful to be how to work with God. It really is and and then people confuse.

I think this passage because they hear in their mind work for your salvation with fear and trembling, but this distinctly does not cite to work for or to work at or to work up your salvation is not work for it does not work at it and is not work it up. So what then does it me. I think it means this in first place you 3-piece the good news about the way to see this text. First was this work out of your salvation. The blessing available work with God is done from the foundation out of the foundation of knowing that your safe beloved every single bit of energy in the Christian life by God's design is meant to come not from your worry but from your assurance is amazing that Christians can see this completely differently, preaching completely differently and I can't think of anything more important to say about the power of the gospel, except to say this, that when you have an assurance of a foundational sense of I am certain that I am accepted in the beloved. That's the place from which you do your work.

Salvation is this big concept and that includes your healing clues. Deliverance includes the hope of the gospel to the fruit of the spirit include your life together in the community the corner and it includes all of this and salvation is something that that you have an assurance of as it regards your past or present in your future. Any of you there and are any of our community groups. It is sermon based guide, you will see the question this week built on on a little teaching in there about how our salvation has this since it covers are passed because Christ paid the penalty for all our sin, but salvation is also for the the president because it is power for us to overcome our sin, but it is also for the future because in the future you'll see be saved from the presence of sin. So it's comprehensive the penalty of sin, paid for in the gospel.

The power of sin broken by the power of the gospel and in heaven. One day the presence of sin call. All this is that all this is this foundation of your salvation out of which you work, and when you were out of an assurance is completely different. This is a good teaching today is grace and working out salvation, one that may trip up a lot of folks when they start thinking these words and how does it work together. It's part of our series unspeakable joy. Allen is back in a moment to help unpack some of this with additional insight on this for your life in today's spinal word you sold it seriously and constantly desires to waive the rights. Julie is an elusive dream reserve for select who have no problems or for those who were born with a joyful disposition actually joins the fruit of the spirit available to all in Christ, no matter what you're facing.

You can have the joy of the Lord in the midst the apostle Paul.even his epistle to the Philippians.

While in prison he spoke of Julie 16 Ehrenreich's newest album, the secretive unspeakable joy takes you chapter by chapter 3 Paul's explanation of the secret of joy when you make a gift to data sharing in light beacon light new CD out on our way of thinking. Thanks for your partners come apart and discover the secret unspeakable joy. We are happy to send this to you as I thanks from Allen Wright ministries, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website past Rowan.work, there's one thing that especially when when somebody really gets and understands grace and freedom. One thing that could rob their joy, is when they try to reconcile that with the Scripture that talks about working out your salvation, and so it's like is that counter to what I just learned that gave me this choice yeah exactly and and there are listeners who have come to identify with the message of grace. All know this. Just as a stumbling block.

You know all of the Scripture is true in all of it is good and points to the gospel so overlearning that the day is how really in the in. This is not a contradiction to grace but it is a demonstration of the grace and we must learn.

Learning how work really itself is a blessing and end it. It is not. It is, it's not something that's robbing us of when you be rid of it. It's it's something that's a blessing. It's not working for your salvation is working out your salvation working out of it and working from it and that's what were learning about today is a very important point in the Scriptures so publishers can today's good news message is a listener supported production Allen Wright ministries