Work Out Your Own Salvation

by Terry Wane Benton

Paul encouraged the brethren at Philippi to continue obeying as they had in the past to work out their own salvation (Philippians 2:12). This did not mean that they were to work it out on their own, earning or meriting their way to heaven without provisions of grace from the Lord.

We are to work out our own salvation by believing, repenting, confessing, being baptized, putting off the old sinful self, and putting on the garments of Christ. But, the provisions of grace are not forced upon us, and we can, in fact, “neglect so great salvation” (Hebrews 2:1f). We can develop an evil heart of unbelief and depart from a relationship with God (Hebrews 3:12). We can allow ourselves to get discouraged and quit! So, there is work to do to avoid getting discouraged and quitting.

God is not done with us. We must work out our salvation by using our challenges to grow more like Jesus. We must choose to fill our hearts with Jesus so that our actions and responses look like His. We can quit fighting when we lay down this body in death, but until then, we have a lot of work to do.

Make sure we are moving in the right direction in faith, hope, and love, conforming to the image of Jesus. Let Jesus build you up, which is part of working out our own salvation. Don’t give up! Work out your salvation, not your condemnation! We’ve spent enough of our past lifetime working toward our final condemnation. It is time to work for our salvation and the salvation of others!

Are you working to ensure your own salvation? The Lord says you must!