Working Out

My text today is a well-known passage from Philippians 2 and every time I come to preaching on it, I feel intimidated. When I was in seminary a long time ago I had the privilege of working as a teaching assistant for a brilliant New Testament scholar who not only wrote a commentary on Paul’s Letter to the Philippians; he wrote a whole book — 370 pages — on just six verses of today’s text. In light of his book, I’m always nervous about whether I can say anything intelligent and useful about this text in the twenty-some minutes I have for a sermon. But with apologies in advance to Dr. Martin, I need to give it a go.

In today’s text from Philippians, Paul presents to us what is called the “Christ hymn.” Scholars still debate whether or not Paul wrote the hymn or quotes another writer’s work. (Dr. Martin thinks Paul quoted someone else.[1]) But in any case the hymn is one of the earliest pieces of Christian writing and it describes how Jesus Christ, who was God, emptied himself so completely that he died on the cross. Because of this, God exalted him again to eternal and universal Lordship. As we read the text, notice that the hymn is shaped like a “V”: one side is the self-emptying descent of Christ from glory to the cross; the other side is his ascent in glory through the power of God. Let’s read it in Philippians 2.

If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Paul told the Philippians to work out their salvation and he based his appeal to them on the Christ hymn. This is what scholars call a christological argument: Christ is this, therefore Christians ought to be like this. Paul was fond of this christological way of thinking because for him the nature of Jesus Christ determines the way Christians ought to live.

So what does the Christ hymn tell us about Jesus Christ? Five major ideas are presented.[2] First, it says that Jesus Christ “was in the form of God.” That is a metaphor of Christ’s preexistence — which is quite amazing when you think about it. Here, in one of the earliest preserved documents of Christianity, is the confession of Christ’s preexistence. Historians often assume belief in preexistence came late in the development of Christian doctrine, but Philippians is testimony to the contrary. Equally remarkable is that Paul approved such a belief. It would not have been easy for Paul because the Jews believed passionately in only one God. Paul believed that God was one, yet in the mystery of Trinity, Christ always existed with God.

Second, the hymn describes Christ’s earthly existence in the metaphor of slavery. What does it mean to say that Christ took the form of a slave? It points to his obedience to the will of God and to his faithful service of humankind as he did God’s will.

Third, the hymn speaks of death and mentions the cross to indicate the degree of humiliation Christ suffered in order to be faithful to God and humankind. His obedience was costly. He did not live to a ripe old age, enjoying the happy fruits of a life of service. Indirectly Paul is telling the Philippians (and us) that our Lord died in order to be obedient and faithful — should disciples expect something less?

Fourth, Christ’s resurrection and exaltation are declared, both of which are God’s work. What God did was based on Christ’s self-emptying sacrifice.

And fifth, we learn of Christ’s cosmic rule. His self-giving unto death which resulted in God’s exalting him, makes him the ruler of the cosmos. To say that “every knee should bend” indicates that all the denizens of heaven, earth, and hell will acknowledge Christ’s rule. And the point of all this is “the glory of God the Father.”

This is Paul’s christology. On the basis of who Jesus Christ is, the Philippians, and you and I, ought to live in a certain way. We ought to have the same mind as Christ as we are working out our salvation.

Let’s suppose someone comes up to us and asks, “Brothers and sisters, are you saved?’”

Being well-grounded in our faith, we would reply, “Well, we are saved by grace through faith just as Paul said in Ephesians 2.8.”

But what if our interrogator then asks, “So why does Paul tell us in Philippians 2.12 to work out our own salvation?”

Then we might be stuck for an answer. If we are to live a certain way because of who Jesus Christ is and if living that way comes by grace, why do we have to work out our own salvation?

This is an especially good question to ask of Paul because in the New Testament he was the great champion of grace. He was quite explicit when he wrote the Ephesians: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God — not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2.8-9) Yet he turns around and tells the Philippians to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” That sounds like a blatant contradiction.

In fact, the apparent contradiction is right in today’s text though we may have missed it. We tend to hear the part about working out our own salvation. But Paul continues in the same sentence to say “for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

These seem to be saying opposite things but Paul holds them together. Let’s see if we can make some sense of this. Here are two thoughts to help us.

First, grace is not cheap grace. We are saved by grace. It is God’s doing. Grace is at work in us even when we don’t know it, even when we deny it, and even when we try to avoid it. We are saved by grace. But this is not cheap grace.

Perhaps we can clarify this by reflecting for a moment on what makes for true happiness which is very similar to grace. In this regard, I read somewhere a quotation of a minister talking about Southern California. He said, “I live in the land of Disney, Hollywood, and year-round sunshine. You may think people in such a glamorous, fun-filled place are happier than others. If so, you have some mistaken ideas about the nature of happiness.” He went on to say that while many otherwise intelligent people equate happiness with fun, the truth is that fun and happiness have little or nothing in common. Of the two, happiness is far deeper and more satisfying.

The minister continued, “I have often thought that if Hollywood stars have a purpose, it is to teach us that happiness has nothing to do with fun. These rich, beautiful individuals have constant access to glamorous parties, fancy cars, expensive homes, everything that spells ‘happiness’ for most people. But in memoir after memoir, celebrities reveal the unhappiness hidden beneath all their fun: depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, broken marriages, troubled families, profound loneliness.”[3]

You see, if we cling to a belief that a fun-filled, pain-free life equals happiness, we actually diminish our chances of ever attaining real happiness. In fact, more times than not, things that lead to real happiness involve some pain and sacrifice. This is true in marriage, raising children, professional achievement, self-improvement, charitable work, or religious commitment. Every important area of life requires effort if we are to be truly happy.

Think of the things which have been most truly satisfying to you in your life. In every case, I believe, you will find hard work, challenge, and even pain and suffering. I know that is true in my life. Everything that has truly satisfied has required hard work and sometimes even sacrifice. The difficult endeavors — raising children, creating deep marital relationships, trying to do good in the world, working for a great cause —bring far more happiness than can ever be found in fun, that least permanent of things.

The same is true of grace. We are saved by grace; it is God’s way with us. But it isn’t cheap. It took Christ descending and dying on a cross to make grace real. And grace doesn’t just make life fun or easy or simple. The goal of grace is not to live the lifestyle of the rich and famous. That would be cheap grace and that is not God’s grace.

That leads to a second thought which is this: God’s grace is active in the midst of our work. We have to work out our salvation because God is at work in us. Grace is active in the midst of our work.

I remember a few years ago sitting in a coffee shop in Spokane late one morning. I had had a breakfast meeting downtown and was also scheduled for a lunch meeting a little later. Rather than waste time driving back and forth to church, I just settled into a booth at this coffee shop to work on that week’s sermon.

I remember the radio was blaring some indistinct channel. A number of men were drinking coffee, some of them obviously wasting time before having to start work. Profanities abounded. (It is amazing to me that some people can’t say two sentences without cursing in some way. And with the number of times Christ, God, or Jesus were invoked, you might think, until you heard the damns, that you were in church.) Behind the counter, a young person was chopping lettuce, not looking particularly happy about being there. But what really struck me was that on the wall of this restaurant was that familiar picture of an old man at prayer. You’ve seen this picture, I’m sure. Some of you probably have it in your home. On the table in front of him is a bowl of soup and some bread. His reading glasses are folded by his Bible and his head is bowed in prayer.

That’s a picture of grace active in the midst of our work. Amidst the noise of this world and its many profanities, amidst all the ways we work and the ways we waste time, amidst chopped lettuce and coffee mugs, God is present. We don’t need to bow in prayer to make God present but when we do, as did the old man in the picture, then we know God is with us. Grace doesn’t take us out of the ordinary. It puts us back into the ordinary knowing that God is with us whether we’re chopping lettuce or writing sermons between meetings, whether we are making dinner, taking care of our children, or laboring over a big project at work. In fact, God is with us even when we’re wasting time or saying things that are less than edifying. When we know God is with us, when we know grace is in us, then the way we spend our time and even the words we speak become more important and in them we can work out the grace — the salvation — that is in us. Christ has come down to us, so that we may live lives more exalted and holy.

If we are saved by grace, why do we have to work out our own salvation? Because only then will grace be real to us. That is why Phillips Brooks (1835-1893), the great New England preacher of more than a century ago, said, “Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger men and women. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be a miracle. Every day you shall wonder at yourself, at the richness of life which has come to you by the grace of God.”[4]

[1] Ralph P. Martin, Carmen Christi: Philippians 2:5-11 In Recent Interpretation and in the Setting of Early Christian Worship, rev. ed. (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1983) 301.

[2] Marion Soards, Thomas Dozeman, Kendall McCabe, Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary, Year A After Pentecost 2 (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1992) 60-61.

[3] I put this illustration in my sermon notebook some years ago but can no longer trace its source.

[4] Michael Hodgin, ed., The Pastor’s Story File 5.6 (1989): 1.