Our Companion in Sludge
Philippians 2:12–13
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
In mid-September, our basement flooded. Some of you may recall the torrential rains that particular Sunday, one of those storms where the rain falls in heavy curtains. But given the hectic nature of getting ready for church, no one paid much mind.
That is, until a piercing alarm sounded from the basement. And within a minute of heading downstairs, we watched as the basement filled with several inches of murky water. An hour or two later, the waters receded, leaving behind black sludge (we’re in polite company here) and a potent bouquet of scents.
The next 36 hours were a blur of shop vacs, broken mops, buckets of water, trips to Home Depot, dehumidifiers, fans, more mops, and sore backs. And permeating it all was that smell, one that is still firmly etched in my memory.
Had my wife and I not been working side-by-side through it all, reclaiming the basement section by section, I’m not sure either of us would have survived. Those times when one of us took a quick meal break, the individual work felt Sisyphean (if Sisyphus was pushing the rock with a mop, up a mountain, covered in sewage).
In our passage, Paul exhorts us to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” He isn’t suggesting that salvation is by works; he spends much of the next chapter making that clear. Rather, in this passage, he talks about sanctification, that which comes after our justification.
The Westminster Confession of Faith describes the conflict between our sinful flesh and our new Christ-purchased lives as a war, and that sanctification is our “grow[ing] in grace,” where the “regenerate part doth overcome [our corrupting flesh].” That is, we grow in the holiness of God.
But the overcoming doesn’t happen by default. The basement doesn’t magically clean itself. With all the seriousness and determination that “fear and trembling” convey, we need to fight against the sludge.
In Truths We Confess, R.C. Sproul writes of the spiritual disciplines, the means of grace to which we must commit ourselves: regular Bible study, regular prayer, regular church attendance, regular participation in the sacraments, and regular outreach.
It is hard work.
And yet, Paul’s exhortation doesn’t end there. He adds “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Yes, we need to work. But we’re not alone in this hard work. Whereas our regeneration and justification are solely Christ’s doing, sanctification is our work together with God.
He births in us the will to work and the means to work. He is our companion when we despair that the work should ever see progress.
And if your prayer life or time in God’s word is anemic as mine, pray now and each day for God to stir in us a greater desire to grow in holiness and to have the discipline to pursue Him. And then, put your hand to the mop and start working.
