It was one of the most terrifying moments of my life. My friends were standing behind me in swimsuits shouting, "Come on chicken, you can do it. Go for it! It's not so bad. We all did it." Below me, just beyond arm's reach, several lifeguards were treading water and uttering words of encouragement. "It's okay. We're here. We'll catch you right when you hit the water. Just hold your breath and you'll float right back up to the surface. The water feels great! Come on, everyone's done it! Dive!"
Despite their best attempts to console me, I was petrified. "How deep is the water?" I kept asking. "Will I sink straight to the bottom?" "Come on, quit stalling!" they shouted back at me. "Just jump!" But the water was so dark and the pool was so enormous. If I disappeared beneath the water, how would the lifeguards ever find me?
The moment was almost too much! I couldn't muster up enough willpower! I'd rather suffer the harassment of my friends and be a chicken than risk my life in the deep dark murky waters of the Buckingham Sportsman's Club. For a few long minutes I danced at the end of the long flimsy diving board. I pretended to be ready to dive but I never really having any intention of doing so! As fear and uncertainty welled up within me all hope seemed lost. Finally, right when I absolutely could stand it no longer, I plugged my nose, closed my eyes, and leaped left and backwards off the diving board, landing as close toward the shore as I could.
When I hit the water no one grabbed me. I immediately sank beneath the surface! Instinctively, I looked up and could see the sun filtering through the water. I began kicking my feet frantically just like the lifeguards had taught me earlier. In mere moments I bobbed to the surface of the water. A lifeguard enthusiastically told me to keep my head up and paddle toward the shoreline. In no time at all I could feel the thick rubber pool liner beneath my feet. I had done it! I could finally swim! I had successfully completed the course!
It felt so good and I was so relieved! As I sat down to catch my breath a lifeguard asked me, "Jon, are you ready to do it again?"
What I have just described to you is a scenario that we are all too familiar with. Every day it seems as if God is stretching us to be obedient in a new area of life. He has exciting things in store for us. He wants us to get our feet wet. He wants us to make a big splash. He wants us to get water up our noses. With complete trust and faith he wants us to leap into the seemingly uncertain waters of obedience, waters that are deep and dark enough to test our faith. It is an exciting experience when God calls us to move into deeper waters, but it can also be terrifically frightening. Yet God has repeatedly assured us, "I am with you always to the very end of the age."
He has promised us deliverance. He has promised us salvation. He will not let us fail. He has left it up to us to obediently take the first step of faith.
Steps of faith.
As we begin this new year, you can be sure God is challenging you to grow. A while back I got a call from a young, struggling mother with several children. She immediately began telling me about her family's financial struggles. She told me everything. "We don't have cable television. We don't eat out. We don't wear name brand clothing. We buy our food at Aldi's. Our home is small. We live from check to check. We only buy used vehicles. We have a simple lifestyle!"
I naturally thought she was going to ask for financial assistance, but she had something much deeper and more pressing on her mind. She asked, "Does God expect my husband and I to tithe?
Evidently, God was asking her to jump into the seemingly uncertain waters of tithing. From her perspective it was impossible. It wasn't in the budget. They had debt. Their checks barely cleared each week. Where would they find the money? Could God be trusted? Would giving to God put their lives in jeopardy? Who could fault this concerned mother? She was dancing on the diving board. She was looking for a way out. She was anxious. Her voice quivered on the phone. Yet God was challenging her to dive into deeper waters. He was challenging her to trust him in the very difficult area of family finances.
God had something in store for her that she could not yet see. I simply assured her that God is faithful. He can be trusted. He will not disappoint you. You will never go wrong by following his voice!
God may be challenging you to take a major step of faith.
What are some areas where God is challenging you to take a major step of faith? What waters has he been preparing you to leap into? What New Year's resolutions have you made? What goals have you set for yourself? Will you have the strength of will to follow through and live obediently for God? This week we are continuing our study of Philippians.
In Philippians 2:12-13 (NIV) Paul tells the Philippians, "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."
As this new year begins and as we contemplate our next dive into obedience, I believe that these verses can be a tremendous encouragement to us. Together, they knit a delicate balance of human responsibility and divine empowerment. On the one hand the Philippians are to, "work out" their salvation. They are to courageously continue in their obedience. They are to obey with great seriousness and dedication with, "fear and trembling". They are to take an active role in their salvation. They are not passive objects that are acted upon by God. The Christian life consists of much more than just "letting go and letting God." They are to be responsible. God expects them to work the inner realities of their salvation into outward acts of obedience.
Now on the other hand Paul wants the Philippians to acknowledge that as they obey, God is doing a great work within their lives. God is energizing their wills. God is empowering their bodily obedience. God is enabling them to will and to act according to his good purpose. In Philippians 1:6 (NIV) Paul expresses confidence that the God, "who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." These verses offer us encouragement to face the new year in two ways. First, they remind us of the importance of human responsibility.
The importance of human responsibility.
When I saw the phrase, "work out your salvation", I began studying the New Testament to see where else that Greek word was used. The word is used in Ephesians 6:13 (NIV) where Paul instructs the Ephesian Church in how to stand firm in their faith, resisting the evil one. In Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV) he tells them to put on the full armor of God and to do everything they could to stand strong and keep their ground. He tells them to put on the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness. He tells them to fit their feet with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. He tells them to take up the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God). He tells them to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers. Far from remaining passive, Paul was rallying the Ephesians to take up arms lest they be overcome by the evil one.
As you think about all God is calling you to be in the new year, never forget that you have an active responsibility in becoming all that God wants you to become. In his grace, God provides virtually everything we need. He gives us his Son's righteousness. He gives us the truth. He gives us the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, and the word of God. But he leaves the all important step of obedience up to us. It is our choice. We are not puppets whose strings are pulled by the hand of God. We are to work out our salvation in visible, tangible, obedient behavior.
The reason this is so important to emphasize is that many Christians today have giving Christian "works" a black eye. Well-meaning Christians rightly boast, "I'm saved by grace, not by works." But what has actually developed is a doctrine of cheap grace. The doctrine of cheap grace divorces faith from works. The doctrine of cheap grace teaches that Christ can be one's savior without also being one's Lord. We must never deemphasize the importance of works. We don't work "for" our salvation but we do work "from" our salvation. We don't work "for" God's grace, but we work "because" of God's grace. We work outwardly what God has worked inwardly. And we do so with humility and profound gratitude.
This takes a lot of pressure off of us. As Christians we aren't setting out to earn our salvation through works. We are not living under a yoke of guilt and shame or out of a sense of failure. Rather, we have the grace and elbow room to become all that God intended us to become.
Now these verses encourage us in another way. They remind us of the necessity of divine empowerment.
The necessity of divine empowerment.
This is some of the best news you will hear in this new year. Paul tells us that it is God who works within us to will and to act according to his good purpose. Standing on the edge of diving board and looking out over the deep waters of obedience God is calling us to can be a very frightening experience. Mustering up the willpower all by ourselves to become all God wants us to become in Christ can be an exercise in futility and frustration.
These verses remind us to make room in our lives for God to do his greatest work. The Greek word behind "work" in Philippians 2:13 (NIV) is most closely related to our English word for "energy." Paul is telling the Philippians, "It is God who energizes you to will and act according to his good purpose." God energizes our stubborn wills. God energizes our complacent bodies. He works to change our intentions, our misguided desires, and the cravings of our hearts.
He produces good works in our lives. He enables us to bear the fruit of Spirit which is, "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) God infuses us with the resources and empowers us to become all he has intended. We don't go down the road of obedience alone. God goes with us. He promises in Matthew 28:20 (NIV), "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
In this new year as you try to muster up the willpower to live for God, first remember that God leaves the responsibility of that initial step of faith up to you. You have to leap into the deep water of obedience and learn to swim. But also remember that God energizes your soul to will and to act according to his good purpose. He puts that extra spring in your step of faith. He is with you always. He is with you on the diving board encouraging you to leap. He is with you in the water teaching you to swim. He is with you on the shore energizing you to never give up and to continue in obedience.
"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."