Posts Tagged: Philippians 2:12-13

“Willing to Surrender Our Will”

On August 17, 2022 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

“Phil. 2:12 ¶ Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,

Phil. 2:13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13, English Standard Version)

I don’t have a lot of willpower. I also don’t have a lot of “won’t power”. In other words, I frequently don’t do what is best for me and for others. And I do do what is not good for me and others. Probably, dear reader, you never struggle with such a perverse dynamic. Nevertheless, I will let you into my own struggles.

The thought occurred to me yesterday that there is a paradox in all 12-step programs. Actually, there are probably many paradoxes, but here is the greatest one, I think. Here it is.

Step 1 says that we are powerless over our addictions.

Step 3 says that we must make a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God.

Furthermore, one of the five major resources we use in recovery is sobriety, which is defined as being “. . . willing to stop acting out on our bottom line addictive behavior.”

Wait a minute! How can we exercise our will when we are powerless?

Paradoxes (like Zen koans) cannot be so much solved as lived with. I can’t pretend to be able to solve this apparent contradiction. The paradox is summed up in two companion sayings that are well-known by 12-steppers.

“I can’t without God;

God won’t without me.”

Paul says something similar in his letter to the Philippians. Apparently, some of them were having a difficult time getting along with other believers. I was a pastor for many years. I think that I can say, without much fear of contradiction, that this is still a problem in every church. Indeed, it is a problem in every group that has more than one person in it. (See what I did there?!)

The verses before and after the two verses (2:12-13) that lead off this post are not about individual salvation, but about getting along with others. No one can do that without divine help. On the other hand, it is something that the individual him (or her) self has to do. Trying to love, or even get along, with others without God is a herculean task. And we are not Hercules.

Of course, even if Paul is talking specifically about our responsibility to get along with others and God’s power working in us to accomplish that, we can legitimately apply this truth to other things. And we can also individualize it. After all, if we are to do this collectively, we are each going to need to live paradoxically.

Perhaps you and I have just enough will power to turn our will over to God. And that is enough.

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“Working with The Gift”

On July 27, 2022 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

Most real things in life are simple. However, these simple things are almost always inherently complex. Take life, for example. There are lots of verses in the Bible that indicate that life is a gift. There are many others that point out that life is a task. Sometimes, this gift-life combination is spoken in the same breath. Here are two samples.

“See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’” (Deuteronomy 1:8, English Standard Version) The land was given to Israel, but they still had to go in and possess it.

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work forhis good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13, English Standard Version) We are to work out the gift that God has worked into us.

One of my twelve-step readings today was particularly helpful for setting this gift-and-work tone for the day. It is from a book titled Touchstones, published by Hazelden.

“Wednesday, July 27

You cannot get it by taking thought;
You cannot seek it by not taking thought.
  —Zenrin poem

We are transported into unfamiliar worlds in this program by ideas that sometimes confound our mind. In the spiritual realms we learn things we didn’t learn anywhere else, and gradually they bring us peace. We can decide with our will to follow a spiritual direction, to turn our life and will over to the care of our God. We cannot control what God will do with them. When we learn that part of our problem was trying too hard, being too self-sufficient, or being too controlling, our old ways tell us to try hard to control that. But then we are only doing more of the same old thing. We learn that after making our decision, our Higher Power takes over. Now it is possible to be released from our own trying, to move beyond our own efforts by falling into the caring hand of God.

I must give this program first priority in my life, remembering my spiritual progress comes as a gift, not as an achievement.” (From Touchstones: A Book of Daily Meditations for Men.)

I was especially struck by the following sentences: “When we learn that part of our problem was trying too hard, being too self-sufficient, or being too controlling, our old ways tell us to try hard to control that. But then we are only doing more of the same old thing.”

Yes! I have often been guilty of trying to control the realization that I am not in control. I am like a dog chasing his own tail. I may be getting exercise, but I’m not really getting anywhere.

Life is hard work. Life is also a gift. When I am lazy and discontented (and discontentment is laziness for me frequently), I need to get busy and do the hard work. But when I get too focused on working hard (and do that occasionally), I need to call to mind the truth that life is a gift.

Don’t chase your own spiritual tail today, dear friends. Instead, fall into the hands of our (and your) loving God. Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to work diligently through the day.

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“God’s Gift of Water in the Wilderness: Of Digging Wells and Singing Songs”

On October 29, 2021 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

There is a very strange story in a very strange part of a very strange book, the Bible. I love the Bible, but sometimes it just seems weird. The story is found in Numbers 21:16-18.

But first, some context! I had a professor at Hebrew Union College, Dr. Isaac Jerusalmi, who used to say to his Hebrew classes, “C.I.E.” This stood for “Context is Everything!” Well, maybe context isn’t everything, but it is quite helpful.

So, this poem occurs in the midst of a list of place names where the Israelites had camped on their journey from slavery in Egypt on their way to the Promised Land. It is a Bible passage almost as dry as the Sinai through which Israel had passed. By way of comparison, Trip Tiks from A.A.A. are racy documents.

And in the midst of this list is set a gem: a little poem about digging a well. What?! A poem about digging a well?!

Yep. And it is quite a provocative poem at that. Here it is:

16        “And from there they continued to Beer; that is the well of which the LORD said to Moses, ‘Gather the people together, so that I may give them water.’ 17 Then Israel sang this song:

             ‘Spring up, O well!—Sing to it!—

18        the well that the princes made,

             that the nobles of the people dug,

           with the scepter and with their staffs.’”

First, a clarification is necessary. The word “Beer” does not represent an alcoholic beverage. Rather, it is a transliteration of a Hebrew word that means “a well”. (You know—one of those holes in the ground that people used to dig or drill in order to tap into underground water. Many people in the world still depend upon wells, and they are vitally important.)

Verse 16 is not poetry in Hebrew, but the second half of verse 17 and all of verse18 is poetry. And like most poetry, the language is dense and evocative.

The LORD, the God of Israel, promises to give the people water. But notice that this is not a gift without some work on the part of the people. Apparently, the people still have to work in order to receive God’s gift of water.

And that is probably true of most of God’s gifts. Gifts they are! Yet they also require some work on our part to really experience these divine gifts. The Apostle Paul writes a letter to some Christ-followers in Philippi in ancient Macedonia, in which he tells them “. . . work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to do what pleases God.” (Philippians 2:12-13, my translation) God is working in them (gift), but they must continually work out what God is working in them.

Indeed, it is that way with all the really profound gifts. I have a friend in England who is a fine pianist. She is “gifted”. However, I have frequently been a houseguest with her and her husband, the vicar, and I can tell you that her giftedness doesn’t mean that she doesn’t need to practice. In fact, she practices for many hours a day. (Of course, even her practice is beautiful.)

And then there is marriage. My wife is a profoundly wonderful gift to me. I certainly didn’t and don’t deserve her. Still, I need to work at the marriage, even with a wonderful woman. And she has to work really hard. I am not an easy person with whom to live. I know; I’ve been trying to learn how to live with me for a very long time.

The poem says that the nobles dug the well with their own scepters and staff. Perhaps this is to be taken literally, but I doubt it. Certainly, it could mean that Israel’s leaders used their symbols of leadership to actually do the work. However, that is not the usual way with leaders. Most likely, this is a poetic way of saying that the leaders used their symbols of leadership to delegate (or command?) others to do the work. That is the way that leaders usually work. Probably very few of our presidents have ever actually done much of the work for which they receive credit or blame. Generally speaking, leaders do not get their hands dirty.

Finally, the workers composed a song that likely helped them as they were digging the well. Music usually helps work to go better. My mom used to sing or hum as she worked in the garden or kitchen. “Whistle While You Work” is more than a song from Disney’s “Snow White”. People have been singing while they work from time immemorial.

So, while I don’t know everything about this poem, I take from it the following rather mundane truths:

  • Gifts—even God’s gifts—demand our work.
  • Some do the work, but the leaders get the credit.
  • Everybody benefits from the water, though.
  • Work can be, and probably should be, accompanied by singing.

However, the poem says it much better than that.

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“God at Work in Me”

On July 13, 2017 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

My personal determination is never enough to transform me.  Thankfully, my life is not primarily about my personal determination.

Here is my journal entry for this morning.

Thursday, July 13, 2017

I am determined today to live for God, because God died for me.  (He also rose from the dead, but I’m afraid that news has not yet been leaked to the press.)  Having a determined heart and mind and body is important early in the morning.  However, will I have a determined mind later in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, during the night while I’m asleep?

To live out determination faithfully has always been my struggle.  Perhaps it is everyone’s struggle since the fall of humankind, but that’s cold comfort.  Fickle determination is simply being fickle.

So, what can I do?  I can pray!

God, my determination doesn’t amount to much.  Please grant me your determination.

After the preceding confession and prayer, I was reminded of a verse that a student and I had looked at two nights ago, when I subbed for another instructor: Philippians 2:13.  I turned to my Bible software.  The verse was still up on the current tab of that software.

“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, New American Standard Bible, 1995.)

If I am to do God’s will, I must first know that God is working in me to will and to do God’s will.  I keep willfully (!!) forgetting that.  I need to remember.

In the Greek text of Philippians 2:13, the verb that speaks of God “working” is in the present tense.  The present tense in biblical Greek usually suggests some sort of continual, ongoing action.

God is continually working in me.  God is continually working in me to desire to do God’s will, and to actually do it.  What a wonderful truth!  If I act as if I believe that (and it is an act for me most of the time), I would become much more relaxed.  I would, at the same time, become much more energized.

My life is not primarily about me doing things for God.  Rather, my life is primarily about God doing things in and through me.

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“Paul’s Way of Thinking and Writing”

On May 22, 2017 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

Thanks to a good friend, I am now receiving the meditations of Richard Rohr.  He is very good!  Rohr’s works suggest to me that the daily struggles are also an opportunity for daily growth.  According to Rohr, Paul was a both/and thinker, rather than an either/or thinker.

I think that Rohr is right.  I call Paul’s means of communication as “BOOM! and back off.”  What I mean by this is that the Apostle Paul will communicate a truth to his reader.  It will be very strong.  Indeed, it is often a categorical statement—almost too strong.  In other words, “BOOM!”

But then, immediately, Paul will make a balancing statement.  That is the “back off.”

Perhaps a couple of examples will illustrate what I mean.

Philippians 2:12b: “Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.”  (“back off.”)

Philippians 2:13: “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”  (“back off.”)

Galatians 2:20a: “My old self has been crucified with Christ.”  (“BOOM!”)

Galatians 2:20b: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.”  (“back off.”)

Of course, I could also say that Paul tends to be more balanced than he is often thought to be.  However, “balance” is such a boring word.  And whatever you think about Paul, there aren’t many folks who would call him boring.

On the other hand, Paul’s vivid communication style can and does lead to misunderstandings.  Some of us tend to hear the first statement and ignore the second one.  Some reverse the order of what we hear.  Some hear only one side of what Paul says and radically disagree.  Others hear only one side of what Paul says, and agree.

As in every case of human communication, there is always a high probability of miscommunication.  Alan Greenspan is reported to have said, “I know you think you understand what you thought I said but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.”  The same might be said of those of us who think we understand Paul.

I’ll close with these wonderful words concerning Paul from Rohr:

“He now knows that he is both sinner and saint, as we too must trust. Once the conflict has been overcome in you, and you realize you are a living paradox and so is everyone else, you begin to see life in a truly spiritual and compassionate way, which demands that you let go of your too easy dualisms.

Paul often presents two seemingly opposing ideas, such as weakness and strength, flesh and spirit, law and grace, faith and works, Jew and Greek, male and female. Our normal, dualistic thinking usually wraps itself fully around one side and then fully dismisses the other—thinking this is truth—when it is much more just a need for control or righteousness. Like Jesus, Paul invites you to wrestle with the paradox. If you stay with him in the full text, you’ll see he usually comes to a reconciliation on a higher level, beyond the conflict that he himself first illustrates. Many readers just stay with the initial dualistic distinction he makes and then dislike Paul. It seems you must first seek an often dualistic clarity about the tension—but then grace takes you to a higher level of resolution instead of just choosing sides.  Some of us call this “third way” thinking—beyond the usual fight or flight responses.”

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