Travel is ever the enemy of routine.
In the near future I intend to explore the kinds of commands that might strike us as odd: how can one command another to have joy or love someone? Bad ideas about what makes humans tick often explain why we’re surprised at the commands of the Word. I expect to look in the mirror of the Word and see, by God’s commands there, something of what we are.
May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be multiplied to you.
How much is enough?
“Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” ” (Hebrews 13:5, NAS)
Today’s command from the Word is a familiar statement to my ears, at least from the King James translation: “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. ” (Hebrews 13:5, KJV) Probably sometime between ages 6 and 9, someone teaching Sunday School helped me memorize the part underlined up there, and today I have the pleasure of examining how it got to its English translation. The short answer is: Not easily. Are you ready to roll up your sleeves and dig a little?
Look at the verse in the NAS above and compare it to the KJV just below it. Welcome to my life! Both translations are good, but they seem to sound very different. On this verse, I think the NAS is a much more accurate translation than the KJV, even if you allow for 400 years of difference in English. There are many in Christendom who are so emotionally invested with the version of the English Bible they read they will divide with other believers over it. I am obviously not that kind of believer. There’s a time to divide, and Biblical convictions are paramount in a walk that pleases the Lord, but we should hold them with a little perspective. Jesus and Paul never said, “Thou.”
My recommendation for a Bible for you to read is one of several word-for-word translations. This strategy of translation keeps you closer to the original Text than any other approach. It enables you to have the kinds of discussions we have in these devotions, in fact, where I am looking through the Text for something specific, like commands. I can point to a word in the KJV, NKJV, NAS, Geneva, Darby, ASV, HSCB or ESV and insofar as the English language will allow, there will be a Greek or Hebrew word behind that word. Generally, you cannot expect this to be so in the NIV, NLT, TNIV, NCV etc. These translations represent good scholarship, but they are more interpretive than the more literal, word-for-word renderings. You are relying more on unknown scholars in these than in the more literal translations.
So I recommend a Bible in your language that has the same general strategy of old William Tyndale, like the KJV or NASB. I begin with the NAS partly because I am an American, and I speak American English. 
In looking at the history of how the modern conservative translations arose, I would definitely recommend the New American Standard Bible over the English Standard Version, since I regard ESV as a rework of the NRSV, a decidedly British work as opposed to the American conservative tradition (ASV to NASV). I really do not want to see our civilization follow Great Britain’s any further.
My close-second choice to the NASB is the NKJV, and I like the underlying NT Text better than that of the NAS. For stylistic reasons in translation decisions, I prefer the NAS to NKJV, but both are faithful translations by some men I know and several I know of and respect. I also like the KJV very much. I find myself agreeing with it over the other two more often than I might have expected, when translating into English.
So I will never be welcome at Bob Jones University or Pensacola Bible College because I am convinced that pastors should be working with the original Text at least to see how the English versions arrived in the form we are reading. You might be interested to know that the Pilgrims came over with the Geneva Bible in English, not the King James Version, which they regarded as a corrupted, Romish work by the Anglican scholars who in their minds represented a failure to fully embrace the Reformation. I think they would not really mind being separated from the KJOs (King James Only crowd), though, since after all they called themselves Separatists. A little New England Christian lore.
Why the protracted discussion on Bible versions? Because this favorite verse of mine has a whole new nuance for me after reading it in Greek. And I think it will be useful for you to know something about this process of going from Greek to English. It takes a lot of work to suspend your prior understandings for the moment and read the familiar passage with fresh eyes in its “native tongue.” The task of teaching the Word of God is hard work, in other words, if you want to be certain what you are saying is what the Text actually means.
“Be content” is part of a command here, within the structure of several general commands the writer of Hebrews specifies in this, his concluding chapter. Look at v1: it starts a laundry list of commands, with some explanations peppered in here and there (v2b, v4b). In Greco-Roman literature this has been called a parenesis, where an author gives a whole list of commands that generally encourage appropriate behavior. This context, then, is ripe for future entries of “Attention to Orders”!
By the time the list gets to v4, the verbs have pretty much stopped and we have to supply them, at least mentally. Greek writers had no trouble doing this, expecting the reader to get the idea that the commanding verbs continue without stating them. So v4 is really “Marriage ____ honored among all, and the marriage bed ____undefiled….” We know there should be “should be” in there, so we find something like it in italics in the NASB. Ellipsis (the added words in italics in the NAS) does not mean we are adding to the Bible; it means we have to bring a clear Greek thought into English so that it is equally clear in our language .
At v7, the writer refreshes his command structure with an imperative to “remember.” Before that, vv5-6 are discussing the single topic of money and the security we often falsely think it can buy us. Verse 5 is like v4 above: “The character/manner of life _________ not loving silver.” “Not loving silver” is the literal rendering of the single adjective αφιλαργυρος (APHILARGUROS). The constituent parts of this neat adjective are: A–negates the word it begins; PHIL–from PHILOS, “love”; ARGUROS: (from a word that meant shiny)–“silver” or “coin made of silver.” In Greek in the First Century AD they had a word that meant “not loving money.” My English vocabulary is tapped–I cannot think of a word that means this! “Thrifty” does not really get it because you can be tight with money and still love it. What a wonderful language God chose for communicating the NT.
This command in v5 is this: your way of life is to be free from love of money. The further description of this way of life is given by the phrase, “being content with what you have.” Again, this was a hard thing to bring into English: literally it says “being content/satisfied with the things present.” There is no “you” and no “have.” “Things” is not really there either, but it is necessary for an English rendering because if I said, “the presents” you would think it was Christmas.
“Your character/way of life is to be not-loving-money, being content with the already present things” would be my wooden-literal English translation of v5a. “Being content” is a further description of your character. Notice that the command addresses your character–you are supposed to be something.
The real wealth enters the picture when the writer strengthens his command of your satisfied, non-money-loving character with “for.” We are to be motivated by the conversation between God (v5b) and us in response (v6). Instead of being hung-up on temporal wealth, the believer should embrace the thrill of dynamic, real-time interaction with God in His Word. So the writer invents a dialog by juxtaposing two OT quotes:
Quote #1: (v5b) God Promises multiple times to Israel (Deut 31:6, 8, Josh 1:5) in the very strongest terms the Greek language allows that He will be with them. This promise is applied to “you,” the Christian audience of Hebrews 13:5, who happen to be ethnically Jewish. Never doubt, though, that this promise applies to all believers.
Quote #2: (v6) The Psalmist in Ps 118:6, having reflected on the Character of God and His “lovingkindness” that is “everlasting,” affirms his faith in the LORD, his “Helper.” That God is his helper means he will not fear, and that man’s efforts to destroy him are irrelevant to his peace of mind.
We are being commanded to love God instead of money here, as we know elsewhere (ex: Mt 6:24). The two loves are mutually exclusive. The alternative God proposes, though, is valuable beyond human reckoning. If you are wealthy it is sometimes hard to see God’s deliverance, which happens so often just in “the nick of time.” Wealthy people are certainly not de facto lovers of money, but the point in this passage is that money is no goal for your life; lacking money is actually an opportunity to trust in the Living God Who is in control and working for your benefit to His glory. HIS PRESENCE is better than money. Our temporal poverty may help us see it better (James 2:5).
1. Theology Proper: God, Who is Omnipresent, is with you, the believer, in a personal way that guarantees your security and provision. “I will never leave you; nor will I ever forsake you.” Don’t love–or trust–in money. It cannot buy you security, happiness, peace of mind, or a single extra day on this earth. Take God up on James 4:8a.
2. Character: As a believer, you are responsible to be CONTENT with your circumstances. God’s provision is sufficient for your needs, and the believer who complains or hemorrhages worry into the world for any and all to hear is saying otherwise. Your words are about God, for good or ill. Don’t betray your God and His wonderful grace to you by communicating ingratitude!
3. Sanctification (The Believer’s Walk): The key to Christian character when it comes to satisfaction with life, the rejecting of both greed and worry, is mixing the promises of God with faith. The rationale is this: “because God has said this: Heb 13:5b, I can say this: Heb 13:6.” May you find peace of mind and true contentment by trusting God at His Word–and nowhere else! Soli Deo Gloria
“Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?” ” (Hebrews 13:5–6, NAS)
If there is a single two-word mantra that captures the leadership spirit of the U.S. Army it is this, the motto of the Infantry: “Follow Me!” This phrase, in its context, is full of vigor and energy. It hearkens back to that foundational American grit, to the initiative and courage necessary to accomplish anything worth doing. This motto says, “I may not be in charge, but I’m willing to take charge if needs be.”
The lowliest private is ingrained with this motto at the Infantry School in Fort Benning, Georgia, where we turn young men into soldiers in the Georgia heat and mud. Leadership is nowhere more important in human affairs than in matters of life and death. Soldiers are trained this way because their job is ultimately to kill the enemy or die trying. Either way, the successful soldier is sacrificing something important for our freedom. If they are going to survive, it will be in part because someone leads them to their objective and back home with skill and aggressiveness.
Doctors and nurses understand the value of leadership, as they deal with life and death all the time. So do police officers, firefighters, and EMT personnel. The more dangerous the enterprise–and consequently the more vital to others’ survival–the greater the need for quality leadership.
Hand-in-hand with the initiative and courage we see in “Follow Me!” goes the personal integrity that makes the leader someone worth following. Leadership is just as important in the mundane, day-to-day preparations of life as in the execution of the rarer, more glorious operation because the quality of the former so often determines the success of the latter. It is the simple, consistent presence of a leader and his character that defines the character and priorities of his outfit, whether it is a platoon of Marines or the staff of a supermarket.
The Command: Matthew 4:19
“And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” ” (Matthew 4:19, NAS)
This is Matthew’s portrayal of the beginning of Jesus’ three-year ministry between the Baptism of John and the Cross. He meets two brothers by the “Sea” of Galilee who are fishing, and he commands them to follow Him for a change of vocation.
I find it encouraging to observe the wit of our Savior. He employs a pun on their existing job, fishing for fish, and suggests (in the imperative) that they embark on a whole new kind of fishing career. He means that instead of seeking fish in the net, they will be seeking men for the Kingdom, whose Gospel He is preaching (v17).
The command itself is the word DEUTE (δευτε, <dyootuh>), and it is not a normal verb in the imperative mood. Greek scholars consider this word as technically an adverb that is used idiomatically for an interjection that invites motion, as in “come on!” or “come here!” Really the basic notion is “here!” with an understood verb to get you there like “go” or “come.” In Texas we would say “commere!” Or if feeling more verbose, “Git over here.”
In the thirteen uses of this word in the Bible, it is always introducing an invitation, for good or for ill. How do we get “Follow me” out of “come here!”? The next word is OPISO (οπισω), another adverb that is used in combination with DEUTE to mean “Come behind.” That is the terse way in Greek to invite others to follow you.
Καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς, Δεῦτε ὀπίσω μου, καὶ ποιήσω ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων.
And He said to them, Come here after Me, and I will make you fishers of men.
The command is to “fall-in” behind Jesus. By the way, “follower” is not the meaning of the word disciple. Disciples must follow their teacher to be taught by him, but the word disciple, (MATHETES, μαθητης) means “learner” or “student.” Yet, as the presentation shows here and in the other Synoptic Gospels, if they will follow where He wants to take them, a transformation will occur. The learning process for the disciple is portrayed as a journey, and the journey ultimately takes Jesus, and us, to the fullness of blessing and glory in the presence of God the Father[1]. They have to stop what they are doing and enter his training regimen, though, if they want that transformation into the new vocation.
What are these Galilean fishermen going to do in the new vocation? They are going to catch people for their living. Notice that the verb is “I will make.” This is a future verb that indicates something special about our relationship to the Creator. He does the making of His student into an angler. First He tells them their responsibility, “follow,” and then He explains what will happen as a consequence by His action, not theirs. You will pray in accordance with God’s will for you if you ask Him to make you this kind of fisherman. The Infantry School makes Infantrymen, and I thank God for it. However, the Savior’s School makes fishermen. I happen to know several Infantrymen who fish quite well.
1. Christology: There has never been nor will there ever be a leader of men more worthy of following anywhere for anything at any time than Jesus Christ. The leadership He offers here is the most crucial in the world, dealing more with life and death than any other vocation. His battle is not for the preservation of temporal life but for the impartation of Eternal Life.
2. Witnessing: The objective of the mission on which Jesus lead His disciples is people. As you read the Bible, you find that there is nothing more important in your life than your relationship with God. But once you understand that, you will have no trouble seeing that His plan for you involves your impact on other people, specifically with the Good News of Jesus, our Savior.
3. Sanctification: (The Believer’s Walk): Jesus promised the disciples that He would do the making. There is a task at hand, but He has to equip them for it. We are given the mission statement so we will orient ourselves on God’s objectives. But never forget Jesus’ strong conclusion about our being branches from the True Vine: “…without Me you can do nothing.”
“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. ” (Philippians 2:5–13, NAS)
We want to know that everything is under control. More importantly, that everything is going to be OK. What if God, Who knows that everything is going to be OK, told you so (Romans 8:28)? At that point you have two options: you can believe the message or reject it. Either way, you are going to find out eventually, and your response will decide on which side of history you fall. Eventually you will see if God does what He promised He would do or if He is really a fraud. My faith commitment is such that that last clause makes me shudder. What about yours?
I want to examine a scenario in which God told someone that He had everything under control and that everything was going to be OK, and they watched history unfold before them just as He said. Let’s go back 3460 years (+/- a few years) and observe God’s command to stand firm.
The occasion of this command was the most spectacular example of Divine intervention in the Old Testament since the Creation and Noahic Flood. It had been 80 years in the making, from Moses’ perspective, and near 400 years for Israel. This event would be proof-positive for the entire land (Josh 2:9-11) that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the Living God, Whose power was greater than any human government or even the gods the nations worshiped.
There languished the children of Israel, totally incapable of relieving their state of oppressive bondage, having nothing but need. God promised to deliver them from Egypt and take them to the Land promised to Abraham in Genesis 12 (and many other places throughout Genesis). The story is very dramatic, demonstrating the loving, sovereign, omnipotent Creator working His ends in His timing exactly as He said He would.
In the Exodus Moses was following God, and the people were following Moses. This, obviously was God’s design. If you watch how the “Red Sea Crossing” develops in Exodus 14, it is very clear that God was accomplishing several things at once. First He positioned the caravan in a spot that would attract Pharaoh’s attack (Ex 14:1-4). The purpose of this positioning was ultimately that the LORD be “honored through Pharaoh.” God was in control, He knew what would happen, and He moved the chess pieces on the board
exactly as He wanted to. Pharaoh responded just as God intended, according to verses 5-9. And then we see the personal interaction between Israel and the God of their fathers.
v10: First, they saw, then they feared, and finally they cried out to the Lord. Pharaoh’s chariots were advancing. The dust cloud was on the horizon, and the situation from a human perspective was hopeless. After all, their position had them pinned between the advancing army and the sea.
vv11-12: Their fear produced a vitriolic bitterness known only to the desperate and hopeless. What a wretched shame that they not only thought what we find in these verses but said the words out loud. Moses was obeying God, step-by-step. Yet the children of Israel accused him of leading them out to die in the wilderness. Comparing v11 with v10, I think we can see their impatience ultimately with God. They cried out to Him in v10, but the chariots kept coming. That’s an important observation: God wanted the chariots to come because He was orchestrating a great deliverance. The Israelites had no idea about this greater scheme. They were key players in the grand drama, but their objective in the battle was just to trust in the God Who had taken them this far. They failed miserably, but God was faithful, and His fight was with Pharaoh.
“But Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. “The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent.” ” (Exodus 14:13–14, NAS)
The word translated “Stand by” in the New American Standard Bible has been usually translated “Stand still” in the older conservative versions, like the KJV, NKJV, and Darby. That is the correct translation if you understand KJV English. Back then “stand still” might well mean “stand firm,” including the notion of courage. This is why some modern translations have gone with this beefier idea (NET, ESV, NRSV, RSV, NIV). For once I agree with the ESB/NRSV (British revision tradition) over the NASB (American revision tradition). The word in Hebrew is YATSAB (יָצַב), which means in this conjugation (hitpael stem) to station oneself firmly.
In verse 14, the command to “Stand Firm” is part of a two-command antithesis followed by a third command. Moses actually starts with a prohibition “Fear not” and compares it with this command of entrenched courage. These two orders amount to one state of mind. If you reject inordinate fear, you need to replace it with something else. Enter the third command: “Watch.” This event was designed as quite a show for the Children of Israel, who were in desperate need of perspective.
Prohibition: “Do Not Fear”
Alternative to fear: “Stand firm”
From that Position of Strength: “Watch the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today.”
T
his command is then followed by two promises: 1) they will never see these Egyptians again and 2) the Lord will fight for them. In v14, there is an interesting conclusion to the second promise: “while you keep silent” is better rendered, “and you will keep silent.” A fitting rebuke for their faithless bellyaching!
1. Sanctification: Do not fear (John 14:27, Rom 8:15, Is 41:10), stand firm (Gal 5:1, Eph 6:11, 13), and watch God work. You never outgrow the need for moment-by-moment faith in God. Enjoy the show!
2. Theology Proper: It is very often God’s preference to keep us unaware of many of the things He’s working in and around us. This concealment is part of His broader objective that you focus on Him, rather than your circumstances. The Exodus story in Chapter 14 shows us that in our limited perspective we have no clue how God is using especially our most hopeless circumstances to bring many to Himself. Embrace your role in the great drama!
3. Anthropology: It is hard to see man at his ugliest, as in Exodus 14:11-12, because we see ourselves. The mirror is hard to look at when it shows our weaknesses and flaws. These people had seen the power of God in the Ten Plagues of Egypt. They had seen God take Pharaoh down a few pegs and win the battle of wills. They knew enough to know they should trust their Creator. When God works in your life for your deliverance and blessing, keep a mental record. Times will come when you will need to keep God’s past works, like the Exodus, in the forefront of your mind.
We get up. We go to work. We work. We go home. We recover. We do it all over again. Such should be our ambition (1 Thes 4:11)! The work you do is for a wage, a reward commensurate with your production. There is a very agreeable arrangement in which you can trade your time, talent, and hard work for your family’s needs. When you are in debt, you work hard towards the goal of paying off your debt. When we were “dead in [our] transgressions and sins” (Eph 2:1, 5), we owed a debt we could never repay. No amount of hard work on our part would make even the slightest dent, for the debt we owed was the Righteousness of God, and in sin we could only produce what God’s Righteousness condemns (Isa 64:6, Titus 3:5). Imagine the Atlantic Ocean as the debt and your works as a teaspoon trying to bail water.
That is the absurdity of every system of religion, whereby man is supposed to secure the favor of the Living God by earning it. Hold fast to your confession of Christ and only Christ as your claim to Righteousness. The Bible’s commands for your righteous works are not a replacement of the Work of Christ.
“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. ” (Philippians 2:12–13, NAS)
I find it very interesting that the translators of all the conservative English versions of the NT (and the NIV) suggest a clarifying, interpretive translation for Philippians 2:12. Let me show you what I mean: Keep your eyes on the verb:
Text Comparison – Philippians 2:12
New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update | Php 2:12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
The New King James Version | Php 2:12 So thenTherefore, my beloved, justas you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 6.8% difference
Authorized Version (KJV) | Php 2:12 So thenWherefore, my beloved, justas youye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;. 12.3% difference
1890 Darby Bible | Php 2:12 So thenthat, my beloved, justeven as youye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much morerather in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;, 14.7% difference
The NET Bible | Php 2:12 So then, my beloveddear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not asonly in my presence only,but now mucheven more in my absence, workcontinue working out your salvation with fearawe and trembling;reverence, 26% difference
English Standard Version | Php 2:12 So thenTherefore, my beloved, justas you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence only,but nowmuch more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;, 18.9% difference
The New International Version | Php 2:12 So thenTherefore, my beloveddear friends, justas you have always obeyed,—not asonly in my presenceonly, but now much more in my absence,—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling;, 24.3% difference
The verb is KATERGAZOMAI (κατεργάζομαι), which means primarily “to bring about a result by doing something, achieve, accomplish, do (BDAG, p.531).” This word means to work, to produce or cause a desired change through the application of effort. Verse 12 literally says “bring about through your effort your own salvation with fear and trembling.”
Notice in the pie-chart that Paul likes this word, KATERGAZOMAI, 
and he uses it eleven times in Romans, the Systematic Theology of grace-through-faith salvation in the New Testament. Nowhere in Romans does it refer to salvation! In Romans 15:18, Paul refers to “what Christ has accomplished through me” as his only boast. Compare that with Philippians 2:13–all the works of his apostleship.
Some writers suggest that we resolve the seeming contradiction between grace and works in Philippians 2:12 by redefining the verb. I do not believe the verb is the key to unlocking the difficult construction. It’s object, salvation, is the key.
with fear and trembling the of yourselves salvation be bringing about
I contend that the context (2:5-11) construes the sense in which Paul means “salvation” in v12. Jesus worked for our salvation on the Cross and gave it to us as a free gift (Rom 5:15-16, 6:23). We are working-out our salvation in the pattern of His humility–“with fear and trembling.” I have just used the English word “salvation” in two different senses that are related. We are conditioned to read “salvation” and think “final deliverance from the Lake of Fire” or “forgiveness of our sins through the Blood of Christ.” Doubtless most of the uses of the SOTERIA in the NT are a reference to this ultimate deliverance. However, sometimes, as with Philippians 2:12 the focus is not the Work of Christ in our place as much as the words and works of Christ as our example. If we look at one aspect of salvation–as deliverance from sin–we will readily see how we can be at the same time “saved” once and forever and yet needing to “work out our salvation.” That is, we are free in Christ from the penalty and power of sin over us, but we still battle the presence of the sin nature, according to Romans 6-7.
There was an errant theology centuries ago that claimed Jesus did not die as a substitute for sinners but to show them how to be good people. I reject this heretically weakened, Socinian view of the atonement with all my heart. However, look closely: Philippians 2:5-13 is not a discourse on the atonement. This is a passage that tells us to live and die like Jesus Christ–“have this thinking in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” His path of humble submission to the Father’s will took Him all the way to the Cross, and “for this reason He was also highly exalted….”
“Work out your salvation with fear and trembling” is about your post-conversion experience, which is to be patterned after Jesus Christ. Note the audience (Phil 1:1). Having once taken Christ as our Savior by faith, we are, like Paul, to say, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (Gal 2:20)” Being “in-Christ” is called “positional sanctification” because we need a categorical term to express this thing Paul keeps saying about us: we are “in Christ.” Likewise Christ is living in us; He is working through us. His attitude is to be our attitude (Phil 2:5). His exaltation (2:9) He will share with us, His Bride the Church.
So act like it, “for God is the One working in you both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” That which is true by our position is to be lived out in our experience through the power of Jesus Christ within us. This is nowhere stated in the Text to be inevitable for the believer, and thus our observation that so many seem truly to have believed but have little development of that Christ-like character. The commands we have in the Text make us responsible to hear and obey, as it has always been. God working in us makes us capable of responding in works that please Him.
1. Soteriology: Salvation “by grace through faith” is not by works; it is for works.
2. Christology (Doctrine of Christ): Within the eternal counsels of God, the Second Person, the Eternally Pre-Existing Son, though co-equal with the Father in essence, has always submitted to the will of His Father. When He entered the human race, the Son of God lived-out this submission to the Father’s authority all the way to the death of the Cross. He is both our Substitute and our Exemplar.
3. Sanctification (The Christian Walk): The highest character quality you can possess is the kind of selfless humility that Jesus demonstrated as He obeyed the Father and relied on the Spirit. Humility and submission to the Father’s plan is the only real path to the believer’s maximum glory for all eternity, as with our Savior.
“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. ” (Philippians 2:5–13, NAS)
My prayer remains that you understand and embrace the Gospel, which we observed in yesterday’s devotion. We focused on the grace of God in saving sinners because of Paul’s first command in his earliest epistle. Such a strong command so early in our examination of the imperatives of the Word!
Paul says we literally “are having been saved by grace through faith…not of ourselves” in Ephesians 2:8-9. In verse 10 though, the Spirit through Paul says that we as believers are God’s “workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works….” I believe that this is the clearest passage in the Bible that helps us understand the relationship between salvation by grace apart from works and the works that God saved us to perform.
Human conduct is the target of the commands of the Bible. However, if we read the Word carefully, we will find that the grace-through-faith way of receiving Eternal Life in no way contradicts any the commands we have from Jesus and His apostles to obey God and walk in His Righteousness. So now I suggest a look at a command from Paul that we have as a consequence of encountering the grace of God received through faith in Jesus Christ.
“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. ” (Philippians 2:12–13, NAS)
This is one of my favorite passages in Scripture. Here’s why: Philippians 2:5-11. This is the “Kenosis” Passage, where we find that Jesus is and always has been God the Son Who entered human history as a human being (at Christmas) in order to be the Lamb of God, the sacrifice for our sins on the Cross. The Son of God, eternally with the Father and Spirit, became the Son of Man who would die for our sins outside the gates of Jerusalem. He would fulfill once for all (Romans 6:10, Hebrews 10:10, 12) the prophecy of One Who would die for us (ex. Isaiah 53). In this passage of Philippians we read of His attitude, His humility, whereby He submitted to the will of the Father and was consequently glorified–as Jesus the God-Man. This glory will extend into all eternity. It is a glory that God grants as inheritance through Jesus Christ to those in Christ.
Verse 5 begins with the command, “have this thinking in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” The thinking involves the full submission of ourselves and our prerogatives to God’s will and purpose for us, with the expectation of total fulfillment and blessing in God’s timing. This is very important: the expectation of blessing from God after a life of willing subjection–and even death “on a Cross”–is not a mercenary motivation. We are not submitting in order to receive blessing, contra “health-and-wealth” preaching. If you approach the living God with a selfish, self-advancing motivation or priority, you are missing the point. Rather, as Jesus perfectly exemplified, it is the believer’s personal willingness to submit to the real, personal relationship with God and all that he expects that draws the exaltation of our loving Creator. It is always personal with God. Loving, personal interaction is never mercenary.
Yet God’s desire is always for your best and highest. Submission to His plan for you is Biblical Wisdom (Prov 1:7), which takes you all the way to the fullness of His desire. We cannot even begin to imagine His ambition for us, yet we all too often substitute our own myopic ambitions and priorities in place of His (1 Cor 2:9, Is 64:4).
So much for the context. Now for the command: what does it mean to “work out your salvation”? This is a puzzling verse, given what we read in Ephesians 2:8-9. My answer is that Philippians 2:12-13 is talking about the same thing as Ephesians 2:10. The audience is clearly “saved” people in the way we usually mean “saved” in English. Philippians 1:1 identifies the audience as “saints”–those set-apart to God in Christ. There is no question that Paul is addressing born-again believers and only born-again believers. They are being told to obey and to work. The key, as I’ll explain next time, is that the identity of the “salvation” which we are to “work out” is determined by its immediate context, the exaltation of Jesus Christ through His humility.
On Monday we’ll develop this command in some more detail. I want to thank you for taking the time to go this far with me in these devotions. The insights they afford me are their own reward from God, and any benefit He may make of them to you is cause for my overflowing gratitude to Him.
1. Theology Proper: God, the Sovereign of His created universe very often issues commands to believers, and He holds us responsible to obey them. This is Scripture, and the word “obey” does not in any way contradict the notion of God’s grace.
2. Sanctification: Obedience to any command involves at least three steps:
1) receiving the instruction
2) choosing to obey it
3) following through on the choice with action
It is likely that most people in your civilization have no idea where to begin with #1, and so they have no access to #2-3!
3. Bibliology: Not only do we hold that God is Good, we hold that He is Self-consistent and the basis for all true logic. This is another way of saying that God is organized and the Organizer of reality. Therefore His Word does not communicate chaos by being self-contradictory. When we think we’ve found a contradiction of the Bible either from itself or from the world around us, we need to check again and ask our Father, “How can it be so?” The contradiction is only apparent because our perception or reason are not lining up with the facts.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. 10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
What you think matters to God. There’s a Book of books I’ll cite as my evidence that this is so. After all, the statements and propositions we find in the Word of God are thoughts. Can you think of a place where God commands your thinking, your attitude? This is a pretty neat idea to me. In the civilization into which I am writing, the notion that there is right and wrong thought is unacceptable to many if not most. “How dare anyone suggest that my inner thoughts, ideas, and beliefs are subject to prescription and evaluation by an outside source like the Bible!” I dare you to look unafraid at the Word of God.
Paul doesn’t just suggest. Today I want to look at his first command in the earliest epistle we have of his. Many, if not most conservative Bible teachers and students today believe that the earliest epistle we have from Paul in the Canon is Galatians. I agree with them, based largely on a comparison between the presentation of Paul’s career in Acts and Galatians 1-2. In any case, if you were to ask, “What is the earliest command (imperative) from Paul in the Bible?” you get your answer in a strong statement in Gal 1:8.
“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!” (Galatians 1:8, NAS)
The command deals in the strongest possible way with the authority of the apostolic teaching. What the Holy Spirit has communicated through the apostles carries higher authority than the apostles themselves or even “an angel from heaven.” That may be surprising, but that’s what Paul states in Galatians 1:8. Paul is dealing with a situation where those he taught well have been led into error by some who came after him. They have taken the truth of the pure Gospel of God’s grace and added to it the works of the Mosaic Law. In the previous two verses, Paul says that this is not the Gospel, and that their embrace of this “different gospel” amounts to abandoning “Him who called [them].”
These hard words for a deceived body of believers are designed to wake them up to the sad condition in which anyone stands who rejects or corrupts the living Word of God. We need to embrace the corrective, even punitive spirit of this wonderful letter from Paul. Have you added works to the “by grace through faith” requirement of the Gospel? Have you told someone that to be saved they must do something other than believe?
What does it mean, “he is to be accursed”? This is instruction for what we are to think when we hear a contradiction of the Gospel. Paul is not giving the Galatians authority to curse someone, especially angels. Even Michael the Archangel did not revile Satan in Jude 9. And Paul is not himself capable of being accursed. Their appraisal does not amount to a final determination of judgment on the false teacher. This command means that the hearer of a different message from what Paul taught them concerning the Gospel is to think of them as accursed. This is about the attitude of the hearer. Here is the strongest possible way of saying something or someone is to be rejected. “Reject false teachers, as though they were from the pit of Hell” is the idea. This is like Jesus in rejecting Peter for speaking against the Gospel, and not just his message:
“Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” ” (Matthew 16:22–23, NAS)
Was Peter Satan in the flesh? No, but his message was certainly Satanic and needed to be rejected. There is in the Bible a strong connection between what you think or say and who you are.
1. Witnessing: The most important message that we bear is the Person and Work of Christ, the Gospel. It is so critical that we get it right when we have an opportunity to share with others the message of Eternal Life that Paul denounces the speaker of any contrary message.
2. Anthropology: You are designed by God to think His thoughts on His terms. He holds us accountable throughout the Bible for thinking His Truth. We shouldn’t be surprised to find that Paul commands our judgment on any matter, especially something like the Gospel, for which we remain in this life. Embrace Col 3:16!
3. Soteriology (Doctrine of Salvation): The Gospel in view here is the “good news” of God’s great works on our behalf in Christ at Calvary. Therefore this Gospel is absolutely not about our works on God’s behalf. That is the whole point of Galatians. Believing is our only responsibility in the attaining of eternal life, and all the work of salvation is God’s responsibility. This is a very offensive statement to the world because it totally rejects all the “goodness” and “work” of fallen humans and relies only on the Goodness and Work of God. Gal 2:16, Titus 3:5, Rom 3:23, 6:23, Acts 16:31, John 3:16, 3:36, 14:6.
“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. ” (Psalm 19:7–10, NAS)
This is a week of firsts, and so we began yesterday by looking at the first “imperative” in the New Testament, the word “behold.” Today let’s behold the first negative command from God to mankind. If you know your Bible, then you know a little devotion like this won’t scratch the surface of what happened when God first said “Don’t.” Still, as we march through our day, let’s refresh ourselves with God’s good Word.
“The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” ” (Genesis 2:16–17, NAS)
Death was just a bite away, according to God. Perhaps you know the story. Adam, following his deceived wife, ate the forbidden fruit, and they died in their relationship to God as a consequence. It was a tragedy for 
our first two ancestors, but this fall and the “curse of the ground” went much farther than their fall; it brought death throughout the entirety of God’s good creation (Rom 8:19-21). This story is not just a sad for Adam and Eve, those far-off people in the opening days of human history, it is personal for us. We fell too, according to Romans 5:12. Every hurt, every fear, every oppression, every wickedness that man has encountered since that day is a consequence of it.
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned— ” (Romans 5:12, NAS)
“For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. ” (Romans 8:19–21, NAS)
One might pause to think through this first case of unintended consequences of one’s actions on others. How inconsiderate of them! Yet they had no idea your sufferings in this fallen world would be precipitated by their snacking.
The first choice to disobey was complicated by the woman’s confusion after interacting with the serpent and the man’s willingness to follow her into error. But the simplicity of the choice is what I want to focus on today: God set up this arrangement. The Text of Genesis 2 does not say why, and we are left to conjecture about it. Theologians often do well with their deductions, but here and now let’s just deal with the Text.[1]
Let’s observe the revealed mechanics: God set up perfect environment and perfect humans as His image to “cultivate and keep” the garden He had planted. Next He issued a negative command, the first known prohibition in human history. Notice how this test worked: There was a negative command, “Don’t eat,” with the added explanation as to why, “for…you will surely die.” All they had to do was trust God’s word and obey His prohibition.
Genesis 2 narrates the first human interaction with the Creator in history, and God the Spirit through Moses initialized the Bible, the Living Word, with this presentation. There are many more things we could observe about this event, but notice the nugget of the lesson: trust God’s Word and obey His commands.
Many suggest that the Bible presents God as villainous, even sadistic, issuing “Thou shalt nots” for the sheer pleasure of denying us what we would otherwise enjoy. That view of the Creator is actually a projection of man’s fallen state onto the God from Whose gracious favor man fell! Everything God does in the Text in view is absolute Good. While Genesis 2 does not say why God set up the Tree Test in the first place—go check on that one in Gen 2—Moses certainly quotes God directly when He explained the reason for telling them not to eat from the tree of (unauthorized) knowledge.
Take the Text as written: God commanded them not to eat because He wanted them to trust and obey. Yes, He knew from eternity past that they would disobey Him. He had the solution to the Fall in Mind from everlasting. But God presents Himself interacting personally with His created persons. He wanted them to keep on living in His presence. His preference for them is the more obvious by the explanation of His prohibition. He did not say, “Don’t eat because I said so,” which would be legitimate given that the Creator is speaking. Instead He said “Don’t eat because you’ll die.” What kindness. All they had to do was believe Him and so obey Him.
1. Theology proper (bearing directly on the character or essence of God): God our Father does not issue prohibitions to make you unhappy or deny you what you (think you) want. These commands, so often terse and even harsh, are given to His beloved creatures because He doesn’t want us to have to eat the death-dealing consequences of transgressing His character. Think of a mother harshly rebuking a toddler for running towards a busy street. Q: What is the mother’s motivation behind her harsh words? A: 2 tons of hurtling steel vs. 40 lbs of priceless child.
2. Sanctification: Regard God’s negative commands as loving protection against unwanted consequences. Thank Him for saying “No” and “Don’t” as often as you encounter these negative commands. He’s saying “no” to your cause because He’d rather you didn’t get the effect. Also, notice that how you respond to God’s Word has consequences that may reach FAR beyond your reckoning, whether His declarative statements, prohibitions, or positive commands. Always trust Him and obey.
3. Biblical Theology: Do not begin with your observation of the Word with other men’s conclusions about it. These are important, but if they are worthy conclusions, they came from somewhere—the Living Word. Start with the Text and the Spirit Who inspired it, and then you have access to the theology that many able theologians have rightly built from it.
I want to inculcate this one.
“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. ” (Psalm 19:7–10, NAS)
Grammatically speaking–now that’s a dry way to start a daily devotional study!–the first “imperative” or command we find in the New Testament in our traditional canonical order is in Matthew 1:20:
20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
The Greek word is ἰδου, IDOU, which is very a common, even idiomatic form of ὁραω, HORAO, “to see.” We find IDOU all the time in the Gospel narratives because this is a key story-telling device. “See here,” “observe,” “then look what happened,” says the story-teller in English. Now this particular instance of an imperative from HORAO, “to see or observe,” occurs 208 times in the Greek Bible! God only has to say it once for us to be responsible to obey, but this command is all over the place![2]
The graphic here shows the distribution of IDOU in the various NT (New Testament) 
books. Matthew, Luke, Revelation, and Acts are the top four in descending order. Old Testament narrative has a synonym for IDOU that is even more common: HINNE (הִנֵּי, “heen־NAY”). Building on its inspired OT literary heritage, the NT writers tell stories in much the same way as the OT writers. This is expected of Matthew and John, with their heavy focus on OT and Jewish concerns. But what about Doctor Luke’s writings, the Gospel and Acts? Why not in John’s Gospel? The short answer is “style” in developing the story.
That first time you read “behold” in your Bible, did you lock onto the authoritative nature of the Living Word? Most people today read “behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him” and dismiss it as an older way of communicating or maybe even “Bible language.” But behold, the love letter from God to you that is the Bible is full of these kind inducements to pay attention and hear what God thinks and says. We are called by these statements to look with fresh eyes at what God has revealed in His Word and to be refreshed in the looking. Always remember that the commands of Scripture are precious evidences of God’s love for you.
1. Bibliology: “Behold” is everywhere in the Bible, and it serves as a hint at what the Christian life is really about: Paying attention to God’s Word in both intake and application.
2. Sanctification: Every day is another chance to behold the grace of God in what He has said to us in the Bible. Don’t miss this chance!
3. Anthropology: One thing that distinguishes man as God’s image from all other earthly creation is our capacity to behold the things of God. How tragic that so few pursue this capacity for which we were Created!
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. 10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
[2] Grammarians may quickly point out that ιδου is really used as a particle that has perhaps lost its imperative force. I would argue that this particular imperative is so ingrained in language as a story-telling device that it has become a particle that constantly prods the reader to obey and “behold.” I presuppose Divine Authorship of the Scriptures.
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