“Work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” (Philippians 2:12)
How long has it been since you were awed by something? There is an easy way to tap into these feelings. Just take a drive into the country on a clear night and look up at the stars. Not only will you be struck by their sheer number; you’ll also realize that simply to be able to behold such beauty is a gift from God.
This is the sense of awe that Paul has in mind when he tells the Philippians to work out their salvation “with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). He’s not telling them to live in terror of God or in constant fear over the fate of their immortal souls. It’s more like what he felt on the Damascus road, when he experienced a revelation of God’s love powerful enough to change his entire life. Paul wants the Philippians to know that love just as deeply—a love that leaves them in awe, a love that inspires them to stay faithful to the Lord day in and day out.
When was the last time you were in awe of the Lord? In a world that urges us to rush from obligation to obligation all day and then zone out in front of the television at night, it can be hard to feel any “fear and trembling.” But it is this kind of experience that God wants to give us. He knows that unless we experience a taste of heaven in our everyday lives, our faith will weaken, and we will lose our motivation to “work out our salvation.” As Paul said, it is the experience of God’s love that will compel us and keep us moving forward in our faith (2 Corinthians 5:14).
If you need some inspiration today, consider contemplating something even more awesome than the stars. Spend some time before Jesus in the tabernacle. Fix your eyes on the One through whom the entire universe was made. Gaze at the Lamb of God, who died so that you could live. Just sit there in humble silence, and let him love you.
“Lord, I am in awe of your love, your mercy, and your grace! I know that your power to care for me is beyond measure, and so I put all my trust in you!”
Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14; Luke 14:25-33