Remaining Faithful

 Meditations on Philippians

May 17, 2021

Remaining Faithful

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

Philippians 1:6

Read: Philippians 1: 1-11

As we begin reading Philippians, keep in mind that Paul had been under arrest in Caesarea for at least two years before his journey to Rome that took at least six months, and included his ship sinking. In Rome, he was guarded by a soldier and under house arrest for another two years. It was during this period he wrote this letter to the church at Philippi.

In the letter, he will use the word joy in its various forms sixteen times, beginning here: “In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy . . .” (v.4)

One of my favorite verses of scripture is Philippians 2:13 where Paul affirms that God is at work in me. (And you!) That verse is made even more powerful for me by verse six in today’s reading:

“God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”

Finishing what he started was very important for the apostle Paul as he affirmed in 2 Timothy 4:7, where he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.” We live in an era where going the distance is not the norm. There was a time when professional athletes were expected to finish the race, but no more. We have relief pitchers in baseball, and all manner of specialists in football and other team sports, making it unnecessary for many athletes to go the distance, to finish the race.

Of course, life doesn’t actually work that way. Our goal for life is not about how we start; it’s about finishing well. I know we all have experienced things in our lives that we did not finish. However, that wasn’t our goal when we began. Our goal was to finish what we started.

In the Gospel of Mark, the young man at the tomb instructed the women to go and tell Peter that Jesus would be waiting for him in Galilee. (Mark 16:7) Why? Because God wasn’t through with Peter, and God isn’t through with me either, or you! As we begin reading the Book of Philippians, we can celebrate our God who owns the record for finishing what He starts. Our text is straight to the point: “God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”

My Takeaway: I sense God calling me to consider what in my life have I left unfinished. I don’t mean yardwork that still need doing, or the deck that still needs painting. Are there relationships I have given up on? Are there habitual sins in my life that I have just accepted as a normal part of my life? I need to spend time in prayer. Psalm 139:23-24 is a good place to start my prayer:

Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
 See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2021 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.