Bible Study—October 10, 2013

Philippians 2:12-16
12 So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only but now much rather in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;
13 For it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure.
14 Do all things without murmurings and reasonings
15 That you may be blameless and guileless, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine as luminaries in the world,
16 Holding forth the word of life, so that I may have a boast in the day of Christ that I did not run in vain nor labor in vain.

In verses 12, 13, 15, and 16 [of Philippians 2] we have four wonderful matters: salvation (v. 12), God operating in us (v. 13), lights or luminaries (v. 15), and the word of life (v. 16). The salvation in verse 12 is actually the very God who operates in us in verse 13. The One who operates in us both the willing and the working for His good pleasure is Himself our salvation. As believers, we are children of God, children of the One who is operating in us. Because we are children of God, we most assuredly have the divine life and divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4).

Because we are children of God with the life and nature of God, we shine as lights in the world. The Greek word rendered lights in 2:15 means “luminaries which reflect the light of the sun.” Every child of God is a stone reflecting the light which comes from Christ, God’s unique Son. In this universe there is only one source of light, and this source is God. As those luminaries, we also hold forth the word of life.

These four important matters are very subjective and experiential. We have received a salvation which is God Himself. Now there is operating in us this very God, the One who is real in our experience as our subjective salvation. He is not dormant, passive, or idle. His operating in us is His energizing in us. How wonderful that we have been born of this energizing God! Hence, we have His energizing life and nature. We are the energetic children of the energizing God! Spontaneously we reflect the light which comes from God as the universal source. In the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, we shine as lights, as luminaries, in the world. Therefore, we can hold forth the word of life to those around us. This is to take Christ as our pattern and to work out our salvation.

Download the reading: Week 5 – Working our Salvation

Resources
Reading: Life-study of Philippians, Message 12
Download the LSM Radio podcast

Hymn (Tune)
Category: Fulness of the Spirit

1. I’ve got a river of life flowing within me;
It makes the lame to walk and the blind to see.
It opens prison doors, sets the captives free.
I’ve got a river of life flowing within me.

(Chorus)
Spring up, O well, within my spirit!
Rise up and tell, so all can hear it!
Spring up, O well, so I experience
That life abundantly.

2. I’ve got a river of life flowing within me;
It started gushing up when God set me free.
That I keep the flow is my only plea.
I’ve got a river of life springing within me.

3. Once I call His name there’s a flow within;
It turns me from my day, makes Him Lord again.
As my spirit burns, Satan cannot win.
Calling, “Oh Lord Jesus,” keeps the flow within.

Published by Campus Christians at Cypress College

Campus Christians is a student group composed of believers in Christ from various backgrounds, and we stand absolutely for the faith common to all Christians. We love the Lord Jesus Christ, endeavor to give Him “the first place in all things” (Col. 1:18), and have the utmost respect for His Word. We meet simply as Christians without any denominational affiliation because we treasure the testimony of the oneness of the Body of Christ, and our desire is to cooperate with Him for the accomplishment of God’s eternal purpose (Eph. 3:11) by ministering the unsearchable riches of Christ (Eph. 3:18) for the building up of the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:12).