this morning, God will complete His work in you. And we're going to be looking primarily at one verse, Philippians chapter 1 verse 6. As we begin this new year, I wanted to bring to you a message of hope and of great joy. Two things that we are in desperate need of right now, hope and joy. We are living through a very dark time, a time of pandemic, of political and racial turmoil, of declining morals, and the effects of sin that are literally put on display before our very eyes. We see many so-called Christians and so-called Christian churches compromising God's truth and accommodating the very sins that we are told by God should not be named among us. On top of these, we add our own personal sins and our personal struggles against our flesh, the fallen world, and the spiritual forces of darkness that are in the world. The cumulative effect upon us can be despair and doubt. We may ask, where is God in all of this? Why are these things happening? Will the church survive? Will we persevere to the end? At times like these it is so very easy for us to forget that God's Word tells us there is nothing new under the sun. This is not the first time that there has been darkness in this world. Not the first time that there have been pandemics, moral decline, political and racial turmoil, persecution of God's people, and personal struggles in the lives of believers in God. None of these things are new. How easily we forget the struggles and the challenges of those who have gone before us. Think for a minute about some of these. who literally lost everything except his wonderfully encouraging wife. Abraham. Moses. Naomi, who our brother preached about last week, who lost her husband and her two sons. Stephen. who was stoned to death by his own people. What about the Apostle Paul? Did he know something about suffering? These followers of God, called by God himself, lived in a world of darkness and at times faced terrible circumstances. terrible trials and tribulations. What sustained these men and women? How can we, how can you and I, have joy in the midst of such difficult and trying times as these? Well, Paul gives us the answer to this question in his letter to the church at Philippi. A letter he wrote, let me remind you, while in chains. arrested awaiting a trial that could result in his execution. And the focus of this letter is how we can and should have joy even in the midst of our suffering. Even though this letter was not written to us, it was written for us. These verses communicate timeless truths that come from God Himself. And the central truth of this letter, the central truth that results in joy is found in verse 6, Philippians 1 verse 6. Let me read that to us. Paul writes, And I am sure or confident of this. that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. D. Martin Lloyd-Jones in his commentary writes this, quote, we have here what may very well be described as the key verse of this entire epistle. It is in this single verse that the Apostle introduces us to the whole foundation of his confidence concerning himself and his own future and the future of the church in Philippi. This is one of those grand pronouncements that are so characteristic of the writings of Paul. It is one of those magnificent, fundamental, profound statements that lead us to the depths of Christian doctrine and theology." We see here that Paul's basis for joy is that he and his partners in grace are loved by an almighty, all-wise, and all-faithful God. Paul's joy is utterly realistic because it is founded upon the character of God. and his track record of always keeping his promises. He knows that God will let nothing stand in the way of achieving His goal for us. God finishes what He starts. Amen? Note this. Paul's confidence is not in the members of the church in Philippi. His confidence is in the work of God that is going on in them and among them. It is his profound knowledge and understanding of God's plan of salvation that results in this confidence and joy. We likewise need to be absolutely clear about these great truths for they are the foundation for our living for Christ with joy in this fallen world. In this verse the Apostle Paul describes to us the very essence of the process of salvation which results in eternal life and someday absolute conformity to Christ when He returns. Let's examine three things in our text. The author of the work, the nature of the work, and the purpose of the work. Let's start with the author of the work. Let me read verse 6 again. And I am sure of this. that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Who is the He? Who is the One who has begun this good work in the members of the Church? Of course, it is God Himself. He is the One who chose us in eternity past. He is the One who sent His Son to provide a way of salvation. And He is the one who causes us to be born again. Salvation from beginning to end is all of God. It is His work. It was His work in eternity past according to Ephesians 1 verses 3-6. We read there that Paul writes, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Even as He, that is God the Father, chose us in Him, in Christ, before the foundation of the world. So before God had created anything that we know of, anything that exists, Seen and unseen, before anything was created, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit agreed together in the plan of redemption, entered into the covenant of redemption, and the Father chose who would be saved by His Son. Isn't that incredible? He knew us. He foreknew us. before the world began. He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love, He predestined us to adoption through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of His will to the praise of His glorious grace. God's will for you and for me is that we would be in Christ and we would be holy and blameless. So God began this work in eternity past and He continued this work in sending His Son at just the right time. We read this in Galatians 4 verses 4 and 5 where we read these words, When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who are under the law so that we might receive adoption as sons and as daughters, as children of God. Jesus was sent by the Father at just the right time according to God's divine plan. All things work together according to that plan. And Jesus came willingly, the Son of God, to live among us a perfect, sinless life, and then to be the sacrifice for our sins, to redeem us who were not only under the law but had broken the law, sinners with no hope outside of Christ's blood shed for us. And then God adopted us through Christ to be His beloved children. God began this work in eternity past. He continued the work in sending His Son. And He continued this work in causing our salvation. And make no mistake, God had to cause our salvation. We read this in Ephesians chapter 2 verses 1 to 9. Why don't you turn about two pages over to your left in your Bibles. I'm going to be reading nine verses here so it's a little too much to put on the screen. Ephesians chapter 2 starting in verse 1. A very familiar passage to us. And you That's you, that's me. You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, according to the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind. The Apostle Paul here, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is telling us an incredible truth, and that is this. When we were born, we were born dead, spiritually. We were alive physically, but we were spiritually dead, dead in our sin, dead in our trespasses. And a dead person doesn't seek God, and neither did we. We had no desire whatsoever to follow God. But God, verse four, but God, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. Praise be to God. He made us alive. He made us spiritually alive. He caused us to be born again. By grace, you've been saved. Grace. Nothing you've done. God's riches at Christ's expense. We couldn't pay the penalty for our sins. We couldn't redeem ourselves. We couldn't cause ourselves to be born again. We didn't even desire that because we were spiritually dead. By grace you have been saved and raised up with Him, that is with Christ, and seated with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God. Note that even the saving faith to believe it's not our own. It's a gift from God. It's not a result of works so that no one can boast for we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Paul is not only telling us that this is God's work, but that it is God's work from beginning to end. He will continue the work in us until He brings it to completion or perfection, whichever way you want to refer to that. Both are true. So God Himself is the author of the work. So what is the nature of the work? Well, the nature of the work is found in the key word in. Let me read our passage one more time. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. I have to keep going back to my text because I memorized this in a different version of scripture and so I don't want to confuse anyone. If I just quote it off the top of my head, it will sound different to you. So that's why I keep going back to the text. The key word here is in. The work that God began, He began in us. by causing us to be born again, and it is continued in us by the Spirit of God who indwells us. By in, I'm talking about our very souls. This is not an exterior work. This is not some kind of self-improvement. It's going to improve your image or your abilities. This is an internal work of God, a work in our soul. that changes us and changes us both to will and to do for His good pleasure according to Philippians 2.13. That is God's work within us so that now we desire to do God's will and we desire to work for Him. for His good pleasure. He has saved us by His grace through the gift of saving faith in Christ alone. But that is just the beginning of God's work in us. Now His Spirit within us begins the process that we commonly called sanctification. which changes us from the inside, such that we become more and more like Christ, and therefore more and more obedient to the Father. Remember, the Son was perfectly obedient to the Father. And so that's what the Spirit wants for us. The Spirit wants for us to be like Christ, becoming more and more obedient to the Father. This is both God's will for us and the work that He's doing within us. Paul writes about this in 1 Thessalonians 4 verses 1-3. Let me read this to you. Finally then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus that as you receive from us how you ought to live and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. I want you to see the significance of what Paul's writing here. He's writing to brothers and sisters in Christ, he's writing to the church, and he's urging them that they need to live to please God. And then he says, just as you are doing, that you would do so more and more. You see, that's because we've not yet been perfected. There's room to grow. Amen? And God is working within us through sanctification to do just that. I trust that all of you who know Christ are living to please and glorify Him. But like myself, we still struggle with sin. We still struggle with not always doing what we ought. And it is the Spirit of God working within us that is going to bring that to completion. For you know what instruction we gave you through the Lord Jesus, for this is the will of God, your sanctification. What is God's will for you and me? Sanctification. That we would become like Jesus. holy in all regards. This is God's work in us. It is God's will for all of us who have been born again by His Spirit to become like His Son. This work is motivated by and accomplished by His Spirit within us, causing us to be more and more obedient to Christ. Listen to what Peter writes about this. 1 Peter 1 verse 2. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ to those who are elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father in the sanctification of the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ. Boy, that sounds awfully familiar. Isn't it interesting that the Word of God says the same thing to us over and over again? That's because it's the Spirit of God that is working through these men and this truth that God foreknew us and predestined us to become like His Son. And He does that through the Spirit working within us. That sanctification process. And the goal is obedience to Jesus Christ. That's the goal. That we would obey just as Jesus obeyed. Perfect obedience to the Father. This is the Spirit's work. This is the way. Romans chapter 6 verses 17 through 19 we read how Paul writes about this where he writes, but thanks be to God that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart. So we've been changed from the inside so that now from our heart or our soul We desire to obey. And having been set free from sin, we have become slaves of righteousness, leading to sanctification. So God is at work within us to set us free from slavery to sin so that we might become slaves to Him and to the righteousness that leads us to pursue sanctification and to submit to the work of the Holy Spirit in that regard. This is the nature of the work. And God uses His Word, His Church, other people, and circumstances to continue this work in us. And listen to me. Everything, without exception, that happens in the life of a child of God is a part of this process. The process of further conforming us to Christ for God's glory. Everything that happens, that's because God is sovereign. God is in control. R.C. Sproul told us, there is not one random molecule in the universe. So the things that are happening in the world around us, no coincidence, doesn't catch God by surprise. God is in control. The things that happen to our church, God is in control. The things that happen in your life, in your family, God is in control. And we need to keep this in mind as we encounter various trials and tribulations in this life. God is working within us through all of these circumstances. to continue the good work that He has begun in us, to make us more like His Son. And that is the goal. That is the purpose of this work. Look at verse 6 with me again. I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion or perfection at the day of Jesus Christ. The purpose of all that God is doing within us is to be fully, perfectly conformed to the image of His Son, to the praise of His glory. How do we know this? because he tells us so. In Romans chapter 8, verses 28 through 30. Very familiar passage to us. We love to quote Romans 8, 28, because it brings us comfort and joy at times. We read, and we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good. How many things? All. And all means? All. Means all in Greek. Means all in Hebrew. Means all in English. All things work together for good for those who are called according to His purpose. Let's stop there for just a second. This only applies to those whom God has called and who therefore love Him. Because you can't love God, as we've already said, unless you're called by God. Because God has to initiate this relationship. Amen? It's His work. But for those who are called by God, and therefore love Him, all things work together for good. All things. Think back again. Think of Job. Lost everything. Did God work it together for good? Absolutely. Abraham. God promised him a son. Abraham's reaction was, have you seen my wife? Right? She's old and she's barren. Problem for God? Not in the least. Right? Joseph, sold by his brothers into slavery. Right? A catastrophe? Not at all. God's divine plan. Moses ends up murdering an Egyptian and getting kicked out of Egypt and spends 40 years in the wilderness. All part of God's divine plan. And we see it again and again and again in Scripture, don't we? God is in control. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son." There it is. Those He foreknew, He predestined for the ultimate, the ultimate completion of His work is that we will be like Jesus. Perfect, holy, righteous, glorified. In order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers, and those whom he predestined he also called, and those he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. Brothers and sisters, it's done. Even though we don't see it yet, it's done. Paul writes in the past tense. Those whom He justified, He also glorified. Done. Because we're in Christ. And Christ is glorified. So the goal, the purpose of this work is nothing less than total conformity to the Son. And God will finish the work that He has started in us. His will is never thwarted. He cannot and will not be stopped. He finishes what He begins. And He fulfills all of His promises. This is the purpose of His work. He is preparing us for the day of Jesus Christ, which is the glorious day when Christ shall return to this earth in all of His glory. That is the day that we are looking forward to. That is the consummation of God's glorious plan and work. When the Son of God will return to rule over the new heavens and the new earth and we shall receive our glorified bodies and we shall be like Him when we see Him face to face. Maranatha, come quickly Lord Jesus. What a day that will be. What a glorious day. when the work that God is doing in us shall reach its completion. But until then, God is at work in you and in me. And this is exactly what Paul is telling the members of the church in Philippi, that God will continue the work that He has begun in them until He has brought it to absolute completion when Christ returns. So whatever may be happening in our world, in our lives, It is alright. God is going on with the work that He has started in us. And when Christ returns, you will stand before Him and receive your eternal reward. You will enter into your inheritance and you will forever be with Him. So, my brothers and sisters, We must not become distracted by all that is going on in the world around us. Instead, we must set our minds upon Christ and yield to and participate in the work of the Spirit of God to make us more like Christ through the means of grace that have been given to us by God. In our home fellowship groups we just studied Colossians chapter 3 verses 1-4 but let me read that to you and remind you of what it says to us. A great lesson for us today. If then you have been raised with Christ So, speaking only here to those who have trusted in Christ for their salvation, those who have been born again by the Spirit of God, those who have been raised from spiritual death into spiritual life, if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Doesn't that make perfect sense? That if our spiritual eyes have been opened to see the glory of God in the face of Christ, then that is what we should be seeking. Not the things of this world, which are all fleeting. Everything we see will one day be gone, replaced with absolute perfection, new heavens, new earth. Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. Oh Lord, help us. Help us in this. So many of his followers have gotten sidetracked by the things of this world. Set your mind on things that are above, not on the things that are on earth, for you have died You've died to the flesh, died to the things of this world. And your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Not only will it be glorious because we'll be with Him, but it'll be glorious because we'll be in glorified bodies. free from this flesh, free from sin, free from doubt, free from despair. The fruit of the Spirit will be fully manifested in every single child of God. and we will be perfect because we shall be like Him when we see Him face to face. Praise be to God. What a glorious day that will be. All of us who know Christ as our Savior and Lord, who have believed in Him and trusted in Him for our salvation can be confident that His Spirit is working in us to complete the work that He has begun and that one day we shall be like Him when He returns in glory. Until that day, we are to seek Christ and His Kingdom. We are to continue to grow in grace and knowledge. availing ourselves of all of the means of grace to continue to grow in regards to our salvation, in regards to our perfection in Christ. And we are to yield to the Spirit as the Spirit works to conform us to Christ. And no matter what happens in this world, or no matter what happens to us personally, We can be absolutely confident that it is all a part of God's glorious plan to further conform us to the image of His glorious Son, Jesus. No matter what happens around us, we should be able to say, it is well with my soul. Amen? Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for this reminder. So important right now as we are surrounded by so much chaos and darkness. So much fear fills this world. And we know that that is all from the dark side. That is all from the spiritual forces of darkness. Father God, thank you for shining your light into our lives, opening our blind eyes that we would see your glory in the face of Jesus Christ, giving us the faith to believe and trust in Christ as our Savior, the one who paid the penalty for our sins. and to trust in your Spirit who now indwells us, to continue this work that you've begun in us. Help us, Father, to seek Christ and the things above, not the things of this world, to set our mind on those things. And yes, Father God, give us peace in the midst of these circumstances and joy unspeakable Thank you, Father God, that our trust is not in the things of this world, our trust is not in ourselves or in any other person other than Christ, the Son of God. Help us to trust Him more and more and as a result to love Him more and more and to live to please and glorify Him more and more. and we'll give you the praise and the glory for this in Jesus' name.