Philippians 1:27-30 ESV
“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.”
Worthy of the Gospel
Jesus said that if we love our family members more than we
love him that we are not worthy of him, and if we do not take up our cross (die
with Jesus to sin) and follow (obey) him, we are not worthy of him. And Jesus
said, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in
the kingdom of God.”
And so we are urged to walk in a manner worthy of the
calling to which we have been called, and we are to let our manner of life be
worthy (fitting, suitable, appropriate, proper) of the gospel of Christ, and we
are to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing
fruit in every good work.
[Matt 10:37-38; Lu 9:62; Eph 4:1; Php 1:27; Col 1:10; 1
Thess 2:12]
So, what is suitable to the calling to which we have been
called? To what have we been called? We have been called to be saints, which
means to be holy, which means to be set apart (unlike, different) from the
world because we are being conformed to the likeness of Christ, and it means to
be set apart to God and to his will for our lives.
And we are called to live in freedom from slavery to sin
according to the righteousness of God. And we are called out of darkness, out
of our sinful lifestyles into God’s marvelous light – his truth, his
righteousness, his holiness. And we are called to God’s own glory and
excellence, and he is holy, righteous, morally pure, upright, truthful, and faithful
in all he does.
And what is the gospel? It is that Jesus gave his life up
for us on that cross that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to
his righteousness. It is that we might be delivered from our slavery to sin so
that we are no longer enslaved to sin so that we can now live as slaves of God
and of his righteousness. And it is that because of what Jesus did for us on
that cross that we are to deny self and take up our cross daily and follow
(obey) him.
And our manner of life is our attitudes, our actions, our
thinking, our speaking, and our behaviors. It is who we are and what we do. And
these are to be suitable to the gospel which teaches that Jesus shed his blood
for us on that cross that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to
his righteousness. So our manner of life should be that of living holy lives,
pleasing to God, morally pure, honest, upright, and godly.
For the Faith of the Gospel
The faith of the gospel is not that we can “believe”
(undefined) in Jesus, have our sins forgiven (past, present, and future), be
guaranteed heaven when we die, and yet continue living in deliberate and
habitual sin for our own glory and praise, according to our own will and
desire, for our own pleasure and purposes.
The faith of the gospel is that, because of what Jesus did
for us on that cross, we are to no longer live like those who have no faith in
Jesus Christ. We are not to give ourselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice
every kind of impurity. That is not how we should have learned Christ. The
truth in Christ Jesus instructs us to put off our old self and to be renewed in
the spirit of our minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness
of God in true righteousness and holiness.
The faith of the gospel is that, by faith in Jesus Christ,
we are crucified with Christ in death to sin and we are raised with Christ to
walk in newness of life in him, no longer enslaved to sin, but now as slaves to
God and to his righteousness. For sin is to no longer have mastery over our
lives. Therefore, we are to no longer let sin reign and rule in our bodies, to
make us obey its passions, but we are to present ourselves to God as
instruments for righteousness, which is all that is deemed right in the eyes of
God.
[Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn
15:1-11; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Pet 2:24; 1
Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10, 15; Tit 2:11-14; Jas 1:21-25; Rom 12:1-2; Eph 2:8-10; Php 2:12-13; Col 1:21-23; Gal
5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; Gal
6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; Heb
10:26-27; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Matt 7:21-23; Rev. 2-3; Rev
18:1-6; Rev 21:8, 27; Rev 22:14-15]
Suffering for His Sake
And if you believe the truth of the gospel, and if you hold
on to that faith, and if you walk in that truth that you must die with Christ
to sin and live to him and to his righteousness, and if this is what you share
with others, you will be opposed, even by other “Christians,” and by pastors
and elders of “churches,” too. For the majority appear now to be following a different
gospel and another Jesus other than what are taught in the Scriptures.
Yes, we don’t earn or deserve our own salvation. Yes, we are
not saved by our own fleshly works. But our salvation is not absent of works
(Eph 2:10; Tit 2:11-14; Php 2:12-13, etc.). It is just that it is the works of
God which he does in and through us and which he demands that we do (walk in,
in practice) in his power and strength and wisdom. But when this is how we
live, we will be falsely accused of teaching “works-based salvation.”
So, study the Scriptures in context. Know what they teach
regarding what God requires of his followers, and then walk in obedience to the
Lord in a manner worthy of the gospel, and in a manner worthy of our Lord in
holiness, righteousness, moral purity, honesty, and faithfulness. Forsake your
sinful practices and follow your Lord in obedience to his commands (New
Covenant), and you will be blessed.
[Rom 5:3-5; Phil 3:7-11; 1
Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; Matt 5:10-12; Lu 21:12-19; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb
12:3-12; Jn 15:1-11]
Songs
in the Night
An Original Work / December 18, 2013
“About
midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other
prisoners were listening to them.” Acts 16:25 NIV ‘84
Lord, I praise You forevermore.
You, my Savior, I now adore.
Hope in heaven awaiting me,
Because You died at Calvary.
I have been forgiven,
And I’m bound for heaven.
Jesus set me free from
All my sin, I say.
I will praise Him always!
Lord, I love You for all You’ve done:
Overcame death, my vict’ry won!
Jesus saved me, and now I’m free!
I rejoice in His love for me.
I will walk in vict’ry!
My sin is but hist’ry!
I am free to please Him
With my life today.
I will love Him always!
Lord, I thank You for giving me
A new life bought at Calvary.
Loving Jesus, I meet with Him.
Tender mercies now flow within.
Lord, I am so thankful;
Through my Lord, I’m able
To sit at His table;
Fellowship with Him.
I will thank Him always!
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