Working Because God is Working

2:12-13 work out your salvation...for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure

Paul’s command to work out our salvation is followed by the assurance that God is at work in us.

This is one of the great assurances of the Christian faith: there is power for those who believe, power to help them overcome sin, power to help them through times of trial and temptation, power to live according to the ways of Christ, power to work out their salvation.

Paul prays that the Ephesians will come to know "what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe." (Eph.1:19). The problem is not that the power is not there for us, the problem is we don’t trust that it’s there.

Knowing the nature of sinfulness, the only way we can have a reasoned basis for working is if we understand that God is at work in us. Unless the Lord is at work, all our work is in vain (Ps.127:1).

The Israelite priests were commanded to step into the Jordan river, with the promise that it would dry up before their feet touched the water (Joshua 3:13). They had to step out (literally) before they saw the power of God. And our instructions are the same. We are commanded to work out our salvation believing God’s promise that His power is there for us to do so, even before we feel or see His power. We are to obey in light of His promise that He is giving us the power of obedience through the Holy Spirit.

Our salvation comes from God, and so does the working out of our salvation. But it is not God’s will for us to sit around waiting for God to work out His salvation in us. We are commanded to work out our salvation in the confidence that He IS at work in us.

Thank you, O Father, that You have not only secured my forgiveness through the sacrifice of Christ, but You also have sent Your Holy Spirit into my heart to empower me to follow Christ and walk in His ways. Help me to believe this. Help me not to feel overwhelmed by the power of my own sinfulness. Help me always to be more impressed by Your mighty power than I am by the depths of my sin, though it is great. Help me to work out my salvation in the confidence that You are at work in me, giving me the desire and the strength to carry out Your will.