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They turn in your Bibles to Philippians 
chapter 2. Philippians chapter 2. We are actually in a study of 
the book of Colossians. We looked at Colossians 3, 1 
to 4, where the apostle tells us to seek those things which 
are above where Christ is. to set our mind on things above. Then Paul will get into telling 
us to avoid certain sins or vices, and to put on certain virtues 
or good things. We took last week to look at 
justification and just the overarching doctrine of how we are saved 
by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. This morning I want to look at 
the doctrine of sanctification, more of a doctrinal study So, 
that when we get back to Colossians 3 and we see Paul's emphasis 
in putting off sin and putting on righteousness, those are just 
the application of the various elements of this larger concern 
for sanctification or living the Christian life. So, I'll 
just begin reading in Philippians chapter 2. Our focus this morning 
will be on verses 12 and 13, but I'll begin reading in verse 
1. Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, if any 
comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection 
and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the 
same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done 
through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind, let 
each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look 
out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of 
others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, 
who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to 
be equal with God. but made himself of no reputation, 
taking the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of 
men. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself 
and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the 
cross. Therefore, God also has highly 
exalted him and given him the name which is above every name, 
that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow of those in heaven 
and of those on earth and of those under the earth, and that 
every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory 
of God the Father. Therefore, my beloved, as you 
have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now 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 do for his good pleasure. Do all things 
without complaining and disputing. that you may become blameless 
and harmless children of God without fault in the midst of 
a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights 
in the world, holding forth the word of life so that I may rejoice 
in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in 
vain. Yes, and if I am being poured 
out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your 
faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. For the same reason, 
you also be glad and rejoice with me. Last week, as I said, 
we looked at justification this week. We're going to look at 
sanctification. I want to just provide an exposition 
of verses 12 and 13 and then look at the historic doctrine 
of sanctification. It is a very important doctrine. 
The book of Hebrews and Hebrews twelve fourteen tells us we are 
to pursue peace and the holiness without which no one will see 
the Lord and the grammar of the text indicates that it's the 
holiness that we must pursue without which we will not see 
the Lord holiness is absolutely crucial being conformed more 
and more to the image of our Lord Jesus Christ. There are 
similarities between justification and sanctification, but there 
are some dissimilarities as well. And toward the end of the sermon 
this morning, I want to quote at length the Bishop of Liverpool, 
J.C. Ryle, a man who labored in Liverpool, 
England. in the 19th century, because 
it's very important for us to keep these things in their proper 
perspective so that we don't mix the two, so that we don't 
mingle the two and somehow think that we ultimately get to heaven 
because of our contribution or because of our work. We get to 
heaven solely based on the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. But it is based on that finished 
work of our Lord Jesus. When God justifies us freely 
by His grace, that's the foundation upon which we now live the Christian 
life. We now grow in the grace and 
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. We now put off sin and put on 
the Lord Jesus. Those are the dynamics involved 
in sanctification. Well, notice in verses 12 and 
13, first of all, Paul's pastoral heart Paul is a pastor, he's 
a lover of men. He says, therefore, my beloved. 
He commits her, he tells the people of God there in Philippi 
that he loves them. It's not just a theology machine. He's just not in prison here 
writing treatises that beat with no love for the people of God. 
No, this is the mark of everything that this brother does. It's 
love for God. Love for the Lord Jesus and love 
for the people of God. He commends that verse 12, as 
you have always obeyed, not as in my presence, always in my 
presence only, but now much more in my absence. He commends that. That doesn't mean they were perfect. 
It doesn't mean they were sinless. It doesn't mean they were spotless 
in their obedience to the word of God. But the overarching theme 
of the churches of the church in Philippi was an obedience. They took seriously this doctrine 
of sanctification. They took seriously the reality 
that they were to be like Christ. They weren't just to live as 
if nothing had happened to them. In the same manner, that's how 
it's supposed to be for us. We're not to live as those who 
have been justified and then don't look anything like Christ. 
We must seek, by God's grace, having been justified by faith, 
we must seek conformity to our Lord Jesus. We must look like 
him. We must obey him. We must conduct 
ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel itself. And Paul 
is able to commend this church in Philippi for that very reason. Now, notice the specific command, 
he says, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. He doesn't 
say work for your own salvation. It's not what he says. He doesn't 
say work on your own salvation. This command could not be given 
to a non-Christian. They can't work out their own 
salvation because they don't possess a salvation. The only 
way that a Christian can work out his or her salvation is by 
having first had God work it in for having had God saving 
them by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. He is 
dealing with sanctification. Now that you have been justified, 
now that you have been saved, now that you have come believing 
on the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is the reality of your life. You must work out this salvation. You must apply it. You must be 
like Jesus. In the book of Titus, as we are 
learning, on Wednesday nights, because they had been justified 
by God's grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the 
older men were to conduct themselves in a particular way. Because 
they have been justified by God's grace through faith in Jesus 
Christ, the younger men were supposed to conduct themselves 
in a particular way. The older women, the younger 
women, bond servants, masters. You see, when we are saved by 
God's grace, we are then called to live accordingly. We are to 
work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. One man says 
to speak of believers being responsible for the outworking of their personal 
salvation in their day-to-day living in no way denies that 
this salvation is an act of God. In precisely the same way, make 
your calling an election. Sure, a second Peter 110 does 
not suggest that election is not God's act. When he says work 
out, the assumption is in the entirety of the Bible teaches 
that God has saved you, not based on your words, not based on your 
conduct, but based on the conduct and works and the doing and the 
dying of our Lord Jesus. And having come into that relationship 
now, you need to live like it makes sense, doesn't it? It's 
just like what we read there in Mark chapter eight. Don't 
say you're a follower of Jesus if you're not willing to take 
up the cross. How much does that indict us? 
How often do we not take up the cross? How little do we sacrifice 
for our Lord? How little do we give of our 
time or our talents or our resources or our energies? You know, one 
of the things that is most disconcerting to me as a pastor is to try and 
get people excited about theology. That's a tough thing. I actually 
think you should just be excited about theology. I actually think 
that when you're born again, you just want God, you want Christ, 
you want his word and you want to study him. But as I've lived 
and moved and had my being as a pastor and as a man in the 
church, I have found that's not always the case. And so I see 
a very difficult task facing Pastor Cam and myself in just 
trying to get people to actually want to think about the things 
they most assuredly should think about. Work out your own salvation, 
learn more of God, learn more of his word, learn more about 
Jesus, learn more about the things you profess to believe. And as you learn and as you study 
and as you take these things in, hopefully your practice, 
your conduct will follow suit. Hopefully you'll take up your 
cross daily and follow the Lord. You know, I got to tell you, 
if ever the Muslims invaded Canada and we had to go out to battle, 
I don't know that we would. Any fool can say, oh, I'll take 
up a sword or a gun or a knife and I'll go out and fight. But 
one of us or two of us are actually taking up our cross daily and 
following Jesus. You hear people say, oh, I'll 
die for Jesus, but will you live for Jesus right now? What if somebody were to take 
a gun and point it at your head on the street and say, do you 
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ? Probably every one of us in here 
that profess faith would say, yes, I would. But do you live 
that way right now? Do you wake up and read your 
Bible? Do you pray? When you're on summer holidays, 
what are you reading? What are you taking in? What 
is it that makes you thrive? Work out your own salvation. The apostle Paul says, having 
come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior means you're 
willing to take up that cross daily and follow him. And if 
you're willing to take up that cross daily and follow him, hopefully 
you're willing to come to church. Hopefully you're willing to read 
your Bible. Hopefully you're willing to give of your time 
and your money. Hopefully you're willing in some small way to 
evidence that what you say concerning Christ It's true. I quoted Gordon 
Clark on Wednesday night. He said, what passes so apparently 
as good works are not good unless preceded by justification. A 
good work is not biblically defined if it is not done by a justified 
center. But then he goes on and says, 
and if a claimed justification That's when we say we believe 
the gospel. We have been justified freely 
by his grace. We believe in the doing and the 
dying of our Lord Jesus. We believe in the imputation 
of righteousness. All those truths that we looked 
at last Sunday, he says, if a claimed justification does not inevitably 
produce good words, it simply is not justification. So if you 
say you're justified and there's no good works, you say you're 
justified and there's no holiness, you say you're justified and 
there's no sanctification. It simply was not justification. You see, that's how these two 
are so entwined together when we promote or when we profess 
faith in Christ. We're saying that there should 
be something different about our lives. Notice how Paul describes 
this working out, he says, with fear and trembling. With fear 
and trembling, that's not consistent with our age where everything 
has to be happy, peppy, uppity, jocular, jovial and frivolous. Our God is a consuming fire. Pursue peace and the holiness 
without which no one will see the Lord. You keep that in your 
mind and hopefully it will promote a bit of fear and trembling in 
your heart. Doesn't mean we can't have fun. 
Doesn't mean we can't have joy. It simply means that we must 
relate to God as a holy God. We must relate to God as we are 
sinful. We must esteem him as the Bible 
sets him forth. He is a consuming fire. That's not out of the book of 
Leviticus. That's out of the book of Hebrews. Our God is a 
consuming fire. This is what Paul teaches in 
2nd Corinthians chapter 7 verse 1. Therefore, having these promises 
beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh 
and spirit, perfecting holiness in what? In the fear of God, 
Hebrews chapter twelve verse twenty eight. Therefore, since 
we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have 
grace by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and 
godly fear for our God is a consuming fire. John Gill comments on working 
out this salvation with fear and trembling. He says, do all 
that with fear and trembling, not with a slavish fear of hell 
and damnation. You're not working it out with 
fear and trembling because you're afraid God's going to cut you 
off and throw you into hell. No, you're not saved based on 
sanctification. You're saved based on justification. 
What God has done in Jesus Christ. He said, or less they should 
fall away or finally miscarry of heaven and happiness, since 
this would be a distrust of the power and faithfulness of God 
and so criminal in them. Nor is it reasonable to suppose 
that the apostle would exhort to such a fear when he himself 
was so confidently assured that the good work begun in them would 
be performed. He goes on to say, and besides, 
the exhortation would be very oddly formed if this was the 
sense. Work out your salvation with 
fear of damnation, he says. But this fear and trembling spoken 
of is such as is consistent with the highest acts of faith, trust, 
confidence and joy. I love that we just have this 
idea that fear and joy are not consistent together. Psalm 211 
says, Rejoice with trembling. When the disciples came to the 
tomb, they saw that it was empty. Well, what happened to that? 
They were trembling and running with joy. Those things kiss in 
the gospel. Those things are consistent in 
the gospel. He goes on to say, and this is 
opposed to pride and vainglory. Work out your own salvation with 
fear and trembling, not with pride. Not with arrogance, not 
with a holier-than-thou attitude, not with a look at me and what 
I've accomplished. This whole idea of sanctification 
means that everybody's at different places. You've been a Christian 
for 25 years. Don't be arrogant. Don't be proud. Don't be wicked towards somebody 
that's been a Christian for 25 days if they do things differently 
than you. Work it out with fear and trembling, 
not with pride and presumption and arrogance and sort of the 
pat on the back that we have achieved and we have found the 
proven way. We need to be careful as reformed 
Christians that we don't fall prey to this trap. While there 
is much lamentable outside of our circles, there is much lamentable 
inside our circles, and we need to be on guard. We need to work 
out our own salvation with fear and trembling, not pride, not 
vainglory, not as those who have arrived, not as those who have 
found the golden mean of sanctification. And as long as you do it the 
way we do it, you'll be fine. And I love what the Apostle Paul 
says here as well, and you need to take heed to this as well 
as I. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. You 
can help your wife. You can help your husband. You 
can help your son. You can help your father. You 
help your pastor. You help your friends. But ultimately, 
you are working out your own salvation. You have a full time 
job watching your own heart. This is the emphasis of Solomon 
as well in Proverbs chapter four. Keep your own heart with all 
diligence for out of it spring the issues of life. We're good 
at keeping other people's hearts. We're good at working out other 
people's salvation. We're good at recognizing where 
someone else has fallen short, and they need our wonderful counsel. No, you need to work out your 
own salvation. You need to realize that God, 
the Holy Spirit, is a real person, and that with that new believer 
who has just come to faith in Jesus Christ, who has just thrown 
off a bunch of garbage and sin, maybe they haven't learned just 
yet what it is to be where you're at. He goes on to say that this 
tends or intends modesty and humility, which is what the apostle 
is pressing for throughout the whole context. And here urges 
to a cheerful and constant obedience to Christ with all humility of 
soul, without dependence on it or vainglory in it, but ascribing 
it wholly to the grace of God. And then he goes on for the following 
reason. Work out your own salvation with 
fear and trembling. Why? For, he says, it is God 
who works in you both to will and to do for his good pleasure. 
As God is active in the justifying of sinners, God is active in 
the sanctifying of sinners. And we can praise God for that, 
because we're not always active in sanctification. We're not 
always what we ought to be. We can praise God that he is 
at work in us, both to will and to do for his good pleasure. For is the connective word there 
in verse 13. Do this for this. Do this because 
of this. Do this because God is at work 
in you. And it's universal, as we have 
sinned universally in our thoughts and in our minds and in our words 
and in our deeds. So we are sanctified universally, 
both to will has to do with the inner man, has to do with knowledge, 
has to do with thought, has to do with taking in the word of 
God. And to do according to his good pleasure. You see, the Bible 
isn't just a list of rules, go out and do this. The Bible is 
about think this. And once you think this, then 
those other things will follow. If we try to go live like Christians 
and we don't know the Bible, we don't know doctrine, we could 
then just be like a Mormon or a moralist or any other person 
in society that does so-called good things, because that's the 
way it ought to be. A Christian good work is biblically 
fueled, biblically driven. And this is Paul's emphasis. 
Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling for it is 
God who works in you both to will and to do for his good pleasure. Ultimately, the pleasure of God 
is what is in view here. This is God's goal in our salvation, 
his glory, his honor, his praise. One of the grand purposes by 
which or for which we have been predestined by God is to be conformed 
to the image of his son, according to Romans chapter eight. You 
see, we had a high calling. Don't profess faith in Jesus 
Christ if you've not thought through these things. Some of 
you kids or young people may be saying, well, I want to be 
a Christian. I like the thought of not going to hell. I can go 
ahead and that's great. We'll think about it. This is 
Jesus whole emphasis in Luke fourteen. You need to count the 
cost, don't you? Nobody starts to build a tower 
unless they first counted the cost. Because they're going to 
end up with half a structure and people are going to drive 
by and laugh at you. So look at that fool. He wanted to build 
up a big, big dwelling place and he didn't have the money, 
he didn't have the resources, he didn't have the ability to do so. Look at 
that half a building. Seriously, what would you think 
of that? You're driving by and you see half a structure and 
you know it's because the guy didn't plan accordingly. Hey, 
honey, you know that guy? Yeah, he didn't have enough money 
in the bank. He went to Rome and they cut him off and now 
he's got half a building. Ha, ha, ha. What general among you 
goes into a battle and he doesn't first assess troops? You take 10,000 against 20,000 
and then you're going to get slaughtered on the field of battle 
and say, wait a minute, what happened here? How many of you, 
how many of us profess to be Christians and then live like 
the devil? Because we didn't count the cost, 
the cost in terms of I have to earn it. But having been justified 
by God's grace through faith in Jesus, our lives must reflect 
it. Work out your own salvation, 
Paul says, with fear and with trembling, for it is God who 
works in you both to will and to do for his good pleasure. 
Now, just quickly, I want to look at this doctrine of sanctification 
more generally. And again, I'll give you the 
quote. I'll give you the definition from the Westminster Shorter 
Catechism. Sanctification is the work of God's free grace, 
which we've just seen. God works in you both to will 
and to do for his good pleasure. So it's a work of God's free 
grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image 
of God and are enabled more and more to die under sin and live 
under righteousness. Great, great statement. It's 
a great compendium, a great summary, a good sentence, if you will, 
to sort of summarize the biblical teaching on this subject of sanctification. It is the work of God's free 
grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image 
of God and are enabled more and more to die unto sin and live 
unto righteousness. We are being renewed in his image. Ephesians 4 and Colossians 3 
highlights this. God made us upright, Solomon 
says in Ecclesiastes, but we sought out many devices. What 
are those devices? Murder, idolatry, theft, lying, 
covetousness, cheating, arrogance, pride. All those are the devices 
that we have sought out. God made us upright in his image 
and knowledge, righteousness and holiness. He gave men dominion 
over the creatures. But, of course, man forfeited 
that. Man gave that up. Man wanted 
his personal satisfaction met by that piece of fruit such that 
he would give up all that he had and take sin. But in salvation, in God saving 
us, he's renewing us. He's making us anew. Isn't that 
what 2 Corinthians says? Behold, all things are new. If 
any man is a new creature in Christ, all the old is passed 
away and behold, everything is new. That's what God is doing. He's conforming us to Jesus in 
knowledge and in righteousness and in holiness. That's what 
we hope he's doing. He's at work in us both to will 
and to do according to his good pleasure. We should be seeking 
these things. We should be wanting conformity 
to Christ. Yes, we've been saved by grace. 
Yes, we have entitlement to heaven based on the doing and dying 
of our Savior. But right now here on Earth, 
we ought to want to live in such a manner that it brings glory 
to our God. It's not what Paul says here 
in Philippians 2, among whom you shine as lights in a crooked 
and perverse generation, holding forth the word of truth. God 
has saved us so that we'll witness, so that we'll testify, so that 
we'll demonstrate that there is a triune God in heaven, that 
he is about the salvation of sinners, that he is gracious 
and merciful. Remember Jesus' statement in 
Matthew 5. When you do your good works, do them in such a way 
that men may see and give glory not to you, but to God. When you do a good work, it ought 
to be with the desire that God is glorified. Not that people 
say, man, you're admirable. Boy, you're great. We're going 
to give you a plaque. We're going to give you a page 
in this magazine. We're going to give you rewards. 
We're going to give you all these things. That's not why the Christian 
does it. He does it for the glory of God 
most high. Why? Because he's renewing us 
in his image. He is making us like Jesus. The confession of the catechism 
says that we are being enabled more and more to die unto sin. Remember Paul's whole argument 
in Romans 6? He knows what licentious and 
ungodly men will do with the doctrine of justification by 
faith. Well, Paul, if you're saying we're justified freely 
by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, shouldn't we just continue 
in sin that grace may abound? No. That's the whole point of 
Romans 6. May it never be certainly not 
those who have been justified by God's grace through faith 
in Jesus. Those who have died to sin. How shall they continue 
in it any longer? It's just the opposite. The grace 
of God ought to promote righteousness in his people. We saw that on 
Wednesday night in Titus chapter two. Grace not only saves, but 
grace instructs Titus two eleven for the grace of God that brings 
salvation has appeared to all men teaching us that denying 
ungodliness and worldly lusts putting off sin, denying ungodliness 
and worldly loss. We should put on or we should 
live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking 
for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and 
Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us, that he might 
redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for himself his 
own special people, zealous for good works. That's Paul's That's 
what God's intention is with us. When he saves us, he wants 
us to be like Jesus. Dying to sin and living under 
righteousness, putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, growing in 
the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, serving God 
in this lower world. Remember the story of the Good 
Samaritan. Jesus sets that forth, what's 
his intention? Go down and do likewise. That's God's word to us, go down 
and do likewise. You need to not only die to sin, 
but put on righteousness. It's not just a matter of stop, 
stop, stop, stop. It's a matter of do, do, do, 
do again, not for salvation. We're working out what God has 
already put in there. That's a wrong view of Christianity. 
Oh, I just gotta stop drinking or smoking or chewing or dancing 
or running with girls who do. Once I stop those things, then 
I'm set. No, it's moralism. Lots of people 
in hell would be able to say, look, I didn't do this. I didn't 
do this. I didn't do this. I didn't do this. That's not Christianity. Put 
on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh 
to fulfill its lust. Those two elements are always 
present in the life of sanctification, dying on descent, putting on 
righteousness. Wonderful, you've stopped doing 
that, so you've stopped being such a jerk in this area. That's 
great. But in its place, are you being 
compassionate? Are you being kind? One of the 
sins that always nails me is the whole pride humility thing. It's not enough to just not be 
proud. You must be humble. Great, you're 
not the loudest, most arrogant wretch at the center of the party. 
Fine. But are you genuinely humble? 
You see, that's how Christianity cuts. It cuts deep. Don't just 
clean up in a certain area. Let's be universal. For it is 
God who is at work in you, both to will and to do for his good 
pleasure. You may have the doing down, 
but the will may not be there. Sometimes we see this with children. 
Very often we see it with adults. We do something externally because 
we're told, but internally our hearts are far. The boss comes 
and says, hey, I want you to do this today and you do it. 
But all the while, you're cursing your boss in your mind or in 
your heart because, you know, a better way to do it. You're 
not really willing, offering up willing service under the 
Lord in that disposition. Now, you may have a better way 
of doing it. Ask the boss politely if you can instruct him or encourage 
him or give him some advice or counsel. But in the doing and 
the willing, those two things must converge on Jesus Christ. The pattern of sanctification 
is ultimately God himself, the holiness of God. Why should we 
study the Bible? So we know who God is. The moral 
law of God, God's law. Contrary to popular opinion, 
the law of God demands or has a place in the lives of believers. The Bible speaks of three uses 
of the law. The Bible tells us that there 
is that civil or political use of the law by which it restrains 
the wickedness of man. The second use is that it's a 
child tutor. It's a pedagogue. It shows us 
our sin and our need for Jesus Christ. And after it shows us 
our sin and our need for Jesus Christ, and we come by grace 
through faith to Jesus Christ, Christ then points us to his 
law as a definition of sanctification. This is why Jesus in his high 
priestly prayer could pray, sanctify them by thy truth. Thy word is 
true. We need God's law. We need the 
holiness of God. We need the pattern of Jesus 
Christ. That's the whole context of Philippians 2, 5 to 11. One of the most glorious statements 
of Christology in all of the Bible. I don't think anybody 
will dispute that. As far as biblical studies go, 
everybody notices and observes and highlights the fact that 
Philippians 2, 5 to 11 is one of those Mount Everest texts 
in the Bible. Hopefully, the reading of it 
makes you just thrill with the glory of Jesus Christ. But notice 
its context. Notice why Paul introduces this 
in verses five to eleven. It comes on the heels of verses 
one to four. Therefore, if there is any consolation 
in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the 
spirit, if any affection and mercy fulfill my joy by being 
like minded. That doesn't mean you have every 
thought the same. It doesn't mean that every one 
of our houses will be like a Hutterite colony. It won't be like everybody's 
communistic in their way, but it will mean that the church 
of the living God patterning itself after Jesus Christ, who 
submitted to his father, will seek by God's grace to endeavor 
to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. She will 
not allow dissension, she will not allow disunity, she will 
not allow disharmony to get in between believers within the 
local church so that there is disaffection, or there is disharmony, 
or there are those things which rub people wrong. He goes on 
in verse 3, he says, let nothing be done through selfish ambition 
or conceit. Should we all just close our 
Bibles and get on our faces and pray to God to forgive us? There's 
so much of what we do is because of selfish ambition or conceit. 
We are driven by praise, we are driven by everything other than 
the glory of God. He says, but in lowliness of 
mind, let each esteem others better than himself. You've all lived in a family. 
It's easy to see everybody else's selfishness, isn't it? Selfishness 
is a universal problem. It's horrific when we see others 
do it. It's horrific when we do it. This is Paul's point to 
the Church of Philippi. Let nothing be done through selfish 
ambition or conceit, but in loneliness of mind, let each esteem others 
better than himself. Does that describe you? Do you 
really esteem others as better than yourself? See, the Trinity, the glory of 
God as being a triune God sets the example here for us. All 
three persons of the Trinity are equal in power and glory. All three persons, the father, 
the son and the Holy Spirit, they are all equal in power and 
in glory in their being and who they are. But in the work of 
salvation, when it comes time for Jesus to come and save the 
elect, Jesus willingly submits to his father. Jesus says in 
John 14, my father is greater than I. What's the Holy Spirit's 
role? He comes to bring glory to Jesus, 
who comes to bring glory to the Father. You talk about a blessed 
example for the way Christians ought to treat one another. Look 
at the three persons of the triune God. That's what Paul is doing 
here, brethren. He wants the church to be like 
minded. He wants them to be Southwest. 
He wants them to esteem others as more important than themselves. 
Verse four, let each of you look out not only for his own interests, 
but also for the interests of others. This world does not revolve 
around you. You are not the center and the 
measure of all things. When they ultimately find the 
center of the universe, there's going to be a lot of people surprised 
that they're not there. What's his example? Let this 
mind be in you, which was also in Jesus Christ. He's our pattern 
for sanctification. He is our pattern for growth 
and grace and in holiness. He is our example, brethren. 
He is our goal. He is our standard to whom we 
ought to be conformed in the putting off of sin and the putting 
on of righteousness. We ought to be able to say with 
Jesus, my meat is to do the will of him who sent me. We ought 
to be able to say with Jesus Christ, thy law is within my 
heart. I delight to do it. He is our 
pattern, along with the law of God, along with the holiness 
of God, and of course, some means by which we are sanctified the 
Holy Spirit. If by the spirit, Romans 8, 13 
says you do mortify the deeds of the flesh, you will live. 
If by the spirit you do this. Some of you make no progress 
in killing sin because you do it in your own strength, if by 
the spirit that doesn't mean let go and let God, it means 
study of the scriptures, fill your mind with the truth of God, 
abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul spirit works 
in conjunction with the other means, namely the scriptures. 
He works in conjunction with the public means go to church, 
praise and worship. Do not forsake the assembling 
of yourselves together, as is the manner of some, but rather 
gather together and do what? Talk about your job. You can 
do that. Talk about your wife. You can 
do that as long as it's positive and it's good. Talk about your 
children. Talk about your baby's first 
step. You know, all those things are 
legitimate. But the main purpose for this gathering together is 
to stir one another up to love and good deeds. That's what the 
book of Hebrews says. As I mentioned, I wanted to quote 
something at length from J.C. Ryle. This is long. And I realize 
that long doesn't always translate well into our heads. If you want 
this, let me know. I will email it to you. Or you 
may pick up J.C. Ryle's book called Holiness, 
and you will find this on pages 29 and 30. As I said, he was the Bishop 
of Liverpool. He lived from 1816 to 1900, and 
this book called Holiness, he dealt with this whole issue of 
sanctification. At the end of his discussion, 
he gave two main considerations. The first, in what then are justification 
and sanctification alike? And then secondly, wherein do 
justification and sanctification differ? How are they alike? How 
are they different? How are they alike? How are they 
different? Why is this important? Because our souls depend on our 
proper understanding of these things. First of all, in what 
then are justification and sanctification alike? First, both proceed originally 
from the grace of God. We saw that in the Westminster 
Shorter Catechism. Both justification and sanctification 
are acts of God's free grace. He says it is of his gift alone 
that believers are justified or sanctified at all. Secondly, 
both are part of that great work of salvation, which Christ in 
the eternal covenant has undertaken on behalf of his people. Christ 
is the fountain of life from which pardon and holiness both 
flow. The root of each is Christ. Third, 
both are to be found in the same persons. Both are to be found 
in the same persons. That means you don't have a justified, 
unsanctified man. You don't have a sanctified, 
unjustified man. He goes on to say both are to 
be found in the same persons. Those who are justified are always 
sanctified, and those who are sanctified are always justified. 
God has joined them together and they cannot be put asunder. 
Fourth, both begin at the same time. The moment a person begins 
to be a justified person, he also begins to be a sanctified 
person. He may not feel it, but it is 
a fact. Fifth, both are alike necessary to salvation. No one 
ever reached heaven without a renewed heart, as well as forgiveness, 
without the Spirit's grace, as well as the blood of Christ, 
without a meekness for eternal life, as well as a title. The 
one is just as necessary as the other. Those are the ways justification 
and sanctification are alike. Now, how do they differ? First, 
justification is the reckoning and counting a man to be righteous 
for the sake of another, even Jesus Christ, the Lord. Sanctification 
is the actual making a man inwardly righteous, though it may be in 
a very feeble degree. Now, if I haven't said that enough, 
sanctification does differ from person to person. And in some 
of us, it may be a very feeble degree. It may be imperceptible 
at times. That's why you don't look at 
the most godly guy in the church to say, I mustn't be a Christian 
because I'm not like him. When you look at Jesus and if 
you say, I'm not trusting in him, then you're not a Christian. 
But if you look at Jesus and you're trusting in him, then 
you are a Christian. Secondly, another way they differ. The 
righteousness we have by justification is not our own, but the everlasting 
perfect righteousness of our great mediator, Christ, imputed 
to us and made our own by faith. The righteousness we have by 
sanctification is our own righteousness imparted, inherent, and wrought 
in us by the Spirit, but mingled with much infirmity and imperfection. 
Third, in justification, our own works have no place at all, 
and simple faith in Christ is the one thing needful. In sanctification, 
our own works are important, and God bids us to fight and 
watch and pray and strive and take pains and labor. Fourth, 
justification is a finished and complete work, and a man is perfectly 
justified the moment he believes. Very important that you get this. 
Very important. Here's where in all kinds of 
heresy and apostasy comes when we lose sight of this fact. The 
moment we believe we are justified. Sanctification is an imperfect 
work comparatively and will never be perfected until we reach heaven. See, he was writing against what 
was called the Keswick Movement, which taught a higher life, an 
extra special tier of Christianity. And he was writing against the 
Holiness Movement, where you could be perfect. No, you can't 
be perfect. Jesus is perfect. Fifth, justification 
admits no growth or increase. A man is as much justified the 
hour he first comes to Christ by faith as he will be to all 
eternity. Sanctification is eminently a 
progressive work and admits of continual growth and enlargement 
so long as a man lives. Six, justification as special 
reference to our persons, our standing in God's sight and our 
deliverance from guilt. Sanctification as special reference 
to our natures and the moral renewal of our hearts. Seven, 
justification gives us our title to heaven and boldness to enter 
in. Sanctification gives us our meekness 
for heaven and prepares us to enjoy it when we dwell there. 
And then eighthly and finally, justification is the act of God 
about us and is not easily discerned by others. You can't look at 
somebody and say, wow, they're justified. Sanctification is 
the work of God within us. and cannot be had in its outward 
manifestation from the eyes of men. I know that was a lot to 
cram in, and I'm certain that if I stand back there and say 
what was number six in the second point, you'll probably go. I 
have no idea. But these are very important. If you want the notes, 
please let me know. I will email them to you. You 
can go over them because I think it helps you to put in their 
proper perspective the work of God in justification, having 
saved us through pardoning our iniquities and imputing the righteousness 
of Christ to us. And then that work of sanctification, 
which necessarily flows on the heels of it, but is God's work 
in us both to will and to do for his good pleasure. Well, 
brethren, that is a summary statement of brief look at the doctrine 
of sanctification. We should end with two final 
thoughts, and then we go. The first is for God's people. 
Are you being sanctified? Can it be said of you that you 
are working out your own salvation with fear and trembling? Not 
perfectly, not exhaustively, not comprehensively, but something 
Is there any reality in your life of dying under sin and living 
under righteousness? Is there any reality of you being 
conformed to the Lord Jesus Christ? Is there any apparent growth 
in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ in the 
way that you conduct yourselves? If the answer to this is no, 
then believe the gospel. Because you cannot be sanctified 
unless you are first justified. It does not do for you to leave 
here and say, wow, I've got to clean up my act. It may be the 
case that you need to believe on the Lord Jesus for the first 
time to be saved. That's the theological basis 
by which we live the Christian life. So there ought to be growth. There must be growth if there 
is no growth. Then repent and believe the gospel. 
And secondly, for those who have come here that do not know Jesus 
Christ, who probably couldn't recite what justification or 
sanctification is, that's understandable. The message to you this morning 
is to believe the Bible concerning Christ, to believe that Jesus 
came into this world and he lived in obedience to God's law and 
he died as a sacrifice and he rose again. Believe on him, the 
scripture says, and you will be saved. Believe these truths 
and you will leave from this place on your way to heaven. Believe these truths and you 
will not perish in everlasting hell. That is God's word to you. Let us pray. Father, we thank 
you for the Holy Scriptures, and we thank you that you have 
given us these doctrines, that you have given us these truths, 
and that most of all, you've given us the Lord Jesus Christ. 
We thank you that you made him who knew no sin to be sin for 
us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him. 
We pray for those who do not know you. We pray that you would 
save them for those who are saved. God, we pray that you would help 
us to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling to realize 
that you are at work in us, both to will and to do for your good 
pleasure. And we ask through Jesus Christ, 
our Lord. Amen.