Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.
Philippians 2:12
Let me start with a confession. On more than one occasion, I have ignored my check engine light. Yes, that is the warning system that the experienced car manufacturer deemed necessary, to warn a clueless driver like me, that there might be a possible malfunction in the vehicle. What I have noticed through my years of driving, is that when the light first goes on, my concern is heightened, and I feel a sense of urgency to find out what the problem is and fix it. However, the longer I ignore the light, and the further I drive without a serious consequence, the less urgent it seems to me. Yet clearly, that warning system was installed for a purpose and if that light could speak audibly, it would say, “Hey you! Something is wrong, fix it!”
How many of us exhibit this same tendency when our spiritual check engine light comes on? How many of us ignore the gentle prompting of the Holy Spirit when something is not right in our lives? Right now, the warning lights seem to be everywhere around us and within us. The Spirit of God appears to be saying, “Pay attention! Pay attention! You are not going to make it to your destination without my help,” but many of us are too busy to heed the warning. We are busy watching Netflix and YouTube, we are busy blaming the other side, and we are busy trying to get back to “normal”, among other things.” We are busy driving hither and thither through life as though everything will magically fall back into place and all this upheaval is no big deal. If we keep this up, with time the warnings will become familiar and fade into the background, just like that check engine light on our dashboard, and who knows what might happen then.
But… all is not lost. Here is the good news; Before Jesus ascended into heaven, he paid the full price for our salvation (John 19:28-30). All we have to do now, is stay the course through regular inspection of our hearts by God’s Spirit (Psalm 139:23) and through steadfast maintenance of our Christian walk and testimony (Psalm 51:10). Writing to the Philippian church, Paul puts it this way, “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose (Philippians 2:12).” The Philippians already had their salvation, but the work of sanctification was continuous. Likewise, you and I have our salvation through our confession of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, but regular inspection of our hearts is necessary to keep our spiritual engines humming smoothly. So, do not let that persistent bad habit or besetting sin get you down. That is your check engine light saying, “Pay Attention! Something is wrong.” Invite the Holy Spirit to partner with you today in fixing those things that God brings to mind (1 John 1:8-9) and then repeat this daily. And may the Lord bless you and enlarge the impact of your ministry as you faithfully abide in him.
Loving Father, thank you for your Holy word, which does not bring condemnation, but rather conviction. I confess, that I have often responded to your revelation of my spiritual weaknesses with shame and discouragement, rather than with gratitude. Forgive me Lord. Create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me, so that I might partner closely with your Holy Spirit in your sanctifying work within me. Give me the focus and commitment I need, to attend to all my check engine lights in timely fashion so I can serve you fully and completely to the very end. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.