So then, my beloved, obedient as you have always been, not only when I am present but all the more now when I am absent, work out your salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For God is the one who, for his good purpose, works in you both to desire and to work. 14 Do everything without grumbling or questioning, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine like lights in the world, 16 as you hold on to the word of life, so that my boast for the day of Christ may be that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 But, even if I am poured out as a libation upon the sacrificial service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with all of you. 18 In the same way you also should rejoice and share your joy with me.
Paul encourages the Philippians to continue to be obedient to him especially now that he is away from them. They must work out their salvation with reverence and awe. Reverence because of God’s transcendence and because God is at work in them (1 Cor. 2:3). They should maintain humble and lowly attitudes in dealing with fellow Christians as they obey God’s word in pursuit of their salvation. They cannot do good works on their own that lead to their salvation. It is God who moves them to do good works and God who does the good works through them.
So that Paul would not have worked in vain, they should not grumble and complain as their unbelieving ‘crooked and perverse’ ancestors did when Moses was leading them from captivity in Egypt (Ex. 15-17; Num 14:2-3). Paul tells the Philippians to be different from the Israelites in the OT (Deut. 32:5) and be “children of God.” God has kindled the light of His Gospel in them, and Christians are to spread the light in the unbelieving world around them (Mt. 5:14,16).
The Philippians must hold fast to the Gospel so that Paul may boast about them when they stand blameless on the day of the Lord if they work out their salvation. The libation cup was poured out around the sacrifice on the altar so Paul says that even if he is killed, he will be poured out around their sacrifice of faith being offered to God. Even if he dies before seeing them, he and they can rejoice because of their acceptable sacrifice.
Almighty God, the incarnation of your Son brought light into the world, his death reconciled mankind to You, and your Word guides all who believe in your Son to salvation. May the Holy Spirit grace us with humble and lowly hearts as we journey toward eternal life with you. This we pray through the same Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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