CONCERT OF PRAYER

Pray Week 795

“Working Out”

Philippians 2:12-13 (ESV) Therefore … 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.

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There is no denying the benefits of a regular physical work out exercise program.  Americans are constantly exhorted to not only eat a healthier diet but to also get off their back sides and work out.  The intricate, precision design of our bodies is the result of our Creator God, not the chance happenstance of evolution.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14

God separated mankind from the rest of His creation by breathing into us our eternal spirit.  Furthermore, our bodies are to be as temples for His Holy Spirit which we received when we accepted the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ – all the more reason to care for our bodies and not to destroy them.

In our reference Scripture, Paul refers to a different aspect of ‘working out’. He is not saying that we can gain salvation through works for this is the same Paul who wrote that salvation is by grace and not by works.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. – Ephesians 2:8

What God’s Word teaches us here is that we are to work out and manifest externally what God has put in when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Our salvation requires more than words.  We must act in obedience to God’s will. Working out our salvation requires that we get off our spiritual backsides and take action by keeping commandments and following Christ even if it means going against the grain of societal norms.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. – Matt 7:21

If you love me, you will keep my commandments. – John 14:15

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. – John 10:27

Working out our salvation means to let the light of the Lord deposited into our hearts to be visible in the darkness of this world.

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. – Matt 5:14

A physical work out relieves stress, lifts depression, improves brain function, increases self-esteem and euphoria.  In much the same way, our spiritual work out manifests the peace and joy of the Lord which relieves stress, lifts depression and so on.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. …do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. – John 14:27; Nehemiah 8:10b

May you work out what God has put into you, with all the respect and awe due to Almighty God.