Completing the Work

I've been thinking over the past few days what exactly is Paul praying in Philippians 1:6 as he writes, "I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ."

As I think about this, there is a thought running around my mind questioning this prayer.

Here's the thought:

"Didn't Christ already make believers complete? On the cross, He said, 'It is finished' and then there is all this stuff written about how we are righteous, perfect, and complete in Christ. So, why would Paul pray for these Philippians that God would complete this work among them?"

The more I've thought about this the more I think, one of the things Paul is praying has to with the way our lives are played out. I think Paul is praying that our physical lives will begin to match the reality of our spiritual life. In our spirit, we are united with Christ, made blameless and righteous in Him. No longer are dead, separated from God...but we are now alive, forever united with Him in our spirit. However, we aren't physically dead yet and we all continue to choose things that aren't in accordance with the life, desires, and character of God. We all still choose our flesh from time to time.

To me, Paul is praying something similar to Romans 12:2. This work that God is continuing to do that He will complete among us is the renewing of our minds, which directly results in the transformation of our lives. He is actively replacing the lies we have believed about ourselves, about God, and about others with the truth of who He is, who we are in Him, and who He is in us. This work that He's doing, He is faithful to complete. We are partakers of this work, but not as the worker, rather as the receiver. He works, we receive the fruit of His work in us.

It may look a bit like this: We struggle, in our flesh, to find our identity in Christ, instead we look for it in the things we do. As we try harder and harder to prove our worth and value, connecting ourselves so intimately with the activities we are involved in, God continues to remind us that we weren't created to find identity, worth, and value in the things we do.

Through His working, we come to the end of ourselves; realizing that we can not manufacture, produce, or even imitate a satisfied life in a way that truly satisfies. God begins removing the lies we've believed about where our identity and worth and value lie, replacing it with the truth that our identity is in our spirit alone, united with Christ, forever in Christ and Christ in us, and we are valuable/worthy because He has determined that about His creation, not because of anything we have ever done or ever could do.

This work that He is faithful to complete isn't something that He's having to fix in our spirit, but rather in our souls. He actively renewing our minds and, therefore, transforming our lives.

How good and kind God is to actively move in our world today, living in those who believe in Him, never ceasing to work in us to bring us to complete dependence on Him, living from Him as our Source for life.

So may you, today, find comfort and rest in Him, knowing that He is faithful to complete the work of renewing your mind to believe the truth of who He is, who you are in Him, and who He is in you.

Grace and Peace.