Filled with the Fruit of Righteousness

[Christsfreeservant]

“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all, in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now. For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. For it is only right for me to feel this way about you all, because I have you in my heart, since both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers of grace with me. For God is my witness, how I long for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” (Philippians 1:3-11 NASB’95)​

Paul’s words here were addressed to the saints in Christ Jesus who were in Philippi. So, what he stated here, generally speaking, was for these specific people at this time in history. So the words he expressed here do not necessarily apply to all Christians of all time. And not everyone who professes faith in Jesus Christ today is truly a biblical saint in Christ who is living a holy life, different from the world, because they are being conformed by God to the likeness of character of Christ. Many are still walking in sin.

And not everyone who professes faith in Jesus Christ is truly participating in the gospel of Christ Jesus. For Jesus taught that if anyone would come after him that he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if for Jesus’ sake we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and walk in obedience to his commands, in practice, in the power of God, then we have genuine salvation and eternal life with God.

So, when Paul said to them that he was confident that He who began a good work in them will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus, it was because they were those who had died to sin, who were putting sin to death daily, by the Spirit, and who were following Jesus in obedience to his commands, as empowered by God. They were not people who were giving only lip service to God while they ignored the Lord and his commands, and while they continued living in deliberate and habitual sin, claiming Jesus as Savior.

And when Paul spoke of the grace of God, he was not speaking about free license to continue living in deliberate sin against God. He was speaking of the grace of God which sent Jesus to the cross to put our sins to death with him so that we will now, by God-persuaded faith in the Lord, die with Christ to sin and walk with him in obedience to his commands. He was speaking of the grace of God which is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present.

And when he spoke of their love, that it may abound more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, he was speaking of agape love which prefers what God prefers, which is all that is holy, righteous, godly, morally pure, upright, honest, faithful, and obedient to the Lord and to his commands. For to love God is to obey him, and if we don’t obey him, in practice, we do not love him, and we do not know him, and we will not have eternal life with him. It is not love if we deliberately and habitually sin against God.

And then pay close attention to his next words. He prayed that they would approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ. And to approve is to accept, to support, and to consent to, in this case the things that are excellent in the eyes of God, which has to do with full participation with Christ in these things. So, this is a lot like agape love which has to do with preferring the things of God, choosing his choices for our lives, and obeying them in his power.

And this is so that they would be sincere and blameless (uncontaminated by the world, and unmixed with the world, morally pure, righteous, godly, and free from deceit, hypocrisy, and wickedness) until the day of Christ. And all this would be for the glory and praise of God, and not for their own glory. For we cannot even come to faith in Jesus Christ unless God persuades us as to his holiness and righteousness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to turn from our sin and to follow him in obedience, empowered by God.

And so it is God who begins the good work in us, and he is the one who will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus, but only as we cooperate with his work of grace in our lives, and we yield our lives to his control, and we follow him in obedience to his commands, and by the Spirit we daily put to death the deeds of the flesh and we obey our Lord, in practice, in his power. For fellowship with God is participation and partnership with him in his work of grace in our lives, and that does not give us freedom to keep on sinning.

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

Lead Me Gently Home, Father

By Will L. Thompson, 1879

Lead me gently home, Father,
Lead me gently home;
When life’s toils are ended,
And parting days have come,
Sin no more shall tempt me,
Ne’er from Thee I’ll roam,
If Thou’ll only lead me, Father,
Lead me gently home.

Lead me gently home, Father,
Lead me gently home, Father,
Lest I fall upon the wayside,
Lead me gently home.

Lead me gently home, Father,
Lead me gently home;
In life’s darkest hours, Father,
When life’s troubles come,
Keep my feet from wand’ring,
Lest from Thee I roam,
Lest I fall upon the wayside,
Lead me gently home.

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Filled with the Fruit of Righteousness
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