It is easy to see that these strong expressions of the Apostle clearly imply two things: First, that everything be done with the utmost earnestness of spirit, and with all care and caution: (Perhaps more directly referring to the former word, meta phobou, with fear) Secondly, that it be done with the utmost diligence, speed, punctuality, and exactness; not improbably referring to the latter word, meta tromou, with trembling.
John Wesley, On Working Out Our Own Salvation, 1872
(For more about the two Greek words, you can look here!)
I used the Amplified Bible for our link today for two reasons. First, so that you can experience that version and know it's there on Bible Gateway if you ever want to look at a verse in depth and secondly, because I believe it gives an additional richness to today's reading.
If you drive past my house right now, you'll quickly notice that I'm not much of a gardener. I try. I always have the best of intentions in the spring. But by the end of the summer, my flowerbeds are full of weeds and I just can't seem to get a handle on them. I forget to water things and they die. Basically, I'm a lousy cultivator.
So how does my weedy flowerbed relate to today's passage? One thing that struck me in this passage was that we are to cultivate our salvation. That's one way to translate the words we usually hear as "work out." We need to dig up the soil, root out the weeds, water the plants and get rid of the bugs.
The quote from Wesley is also important to understand today's passage. The reason my garden gets out of control is I don't fear the weeds enough! I don't phobou the weeds. I'm not cautious about them. I don't care about every little thing that crops up. In addition, I don't tromou either. I'm not diligent and I'm not speedy. And by the time I get around to it, the job has become absolutely overwhelming.
But luckily, when it comes to working out my salvation, unlike weeding my garden, it's not in MY strength but God's strength. I'd never be able to pull all the weeds in my heart on my own. It's impossible. Even if I worked at it night and day, I'd still fail. But I thank God that He gives me motivation and energy to carry on in my walk with Him. He gives me the strength I need to serve him and live for him.
DAILY CHALLENGE: Each and every day, we are required to get the fertile ground of our heart ready to grow something wonderful for God's kingdom. What weed can you pull today with God's help?
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