Philippians 2:12-13

Journey Through Philippians

Shine Brightly for Jesus 

Paul begins the section with the word “therefore” to convey to his readers that those who call themselves Christians must practice the same discipline that Jesus exercised when he obeyed his Father. The call to discipleship is costly. In Luke 9:23, Jesus said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

There is a call in verse 12 to work hard to show the results of our salvation, considering the preceding exhortation to unity, may mean that the entire church should work together to rid themselves of division and discord. The Philippian Christians needed to be especially careful to obey Christ now that Paul wasn’t there to continually remind them about what was right. We, too, must be careful about what we believe and how we live, especially when we are on our own. In the absence of mentors who hold you accountable, we must focus our attention and devotion even more on Jesus so that we won’t become sidetracked.  

What do we do when we don’t feel like obeying God? He has not left us alone in our struggles to do his will. He wants to come alongside us and be within us to provide help. God gives us the desire and the power to do what pleases him. We find the secret to a changed life when we submit to his control and let him work in and through us. To change our desires to be more like Jesus, we need the power of the Holy Spirit, the influence of faithful Christians, and obedience to the Word of God. We must do what the Lord is asking of us and trust him to change our desires.