What Is the “Good Work” That Christ Began in Us?
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I have shared in the past about how my life changed when God called my family out of the only place we had ever known. Our children were young and a bit more resilient, while I was a blubbering mess. Fast forward six years and my family finds themselves back in the town they called home for so many years.
Coming back home was due to the end of a beautiful ministry in West Virginia. We did not understand why God was calling us back home. My husband had not been placed in another church. Our family was not being called to another ministry. We know why we were called out now and patiently wait for the next assignment, but there are moments when we ask ourselves if God is done with us.
Philippians 1:6 says, “I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” The words are a powerful reminder that God will never be done with us or you. As we move through this article, let’s break down the words Paul spoke to the Church at Philippi and discover how those ancient words apply to our lives today.
What Is the Context of Philippians 1:6?
To fully digest what Philippians 1:6 means we must fully understand the context of the Scripture. We know that Paul is writing to the church in Philippi, which grew out of the obedience of Paul and a small group of women. When God sent Paul to Philippi, he saw a group of women outside the city gates at the river (Acts 16:13). He was looking for a place of prayer because it was the Sabbath. It was at this encounter that a women named Lydia heard the gospel and responded, along with her entire family (Acts 16:14-15).
The small group of women at the river, Lydia, and her family were the humble beginnings to a church that would do remarkable things for Christ. When Paul writes his letter the Philippians, he is jail and knows that he may not get the opportunity to visit them again. In his greeting, he extends grace and peace to each of the servants of God.
Paul begins his letter with a greeting to the servants of God who remain in Philippi. He extends the grace and peace that only comes from God to all (Philippians 1:1-2).
After Paul’s greeting, he assures the Philippians of his thankfulness for them and that he remembers them (Philippians 1:3-5). He informs the Philippians that he prays with joy for them because of the partnership they have developed.
Breaking Apart Philippians 1:6
Philippians 1:6 says, “I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” As a whole, this verse simply reminds God’s people that we are not forgotten. When we break the verse apart, the words Paul writes are even more powerful.
“I am sure of this…”
Paul has firsthand knowledge of how the church in Philippi began and the work that was happening there. He knew those servants were authentic. Some other versions of this Scripture use the word “confident” in place of “sure.” The word confident speaks of the way Paul felt about what the church at Philippi was going to achieve in the name of Jesus. He was aware that trials were around every corner, but God had started this church, and God was going to use it for great things.
“that he who started a good work in you…”
When Paul speaks of a good work, what good work is he speaking of? The good work is the work that Jesus Christ started in each of us. It is the transformation of our hearts and our minds. This is a work that man cannot do by himself. It is only by God’s hand that we are able to change and be molded into what God wants us to be.
God was the one who had called the people of Philippi and created the church there. He was the one that started the good work. “And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). God had chosen them for this good work, and He was not going to leave them to their own devices. Ephesians 1:4 states also that “For He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before Him.”
“will carry it on to completion…”
God is simply saying that if we stick with Him, He will not leave us alone. He created us in His image, and He designed our paths before we were knitted in our mother’s womb. God will not save us only to leave us. His birth, life, and death would have been in vain if so.
There is nothing that God begins that He will not complete. We can look around and see there are no half-done worlds or incomplete works of His doing. In Genesis there is no evidence that God changed His plans for creation. If He would not change His plan for the world, then why would He change His plan for the salvation of His people (John 10:27-29)?
“until the day of Christ Jesus.”
The day of Christ Jesus will be either be our deaths when our spirits are made perfect, or the day Christ returns. Paul is saying to the church of Philippi that whatever is happening or will happen, Christ is with them and will continue to be with them until He returns, when we will be with Him forever.
What Does Philippians 1:6 Mean Today?
When Paul wrote this letter, he was specifically writing to the church at Philippi. Today we can read the same words and know that God inspired Paul to pen words that are still as relevant today as they were then.
Today we can glean from this verse that God has begun a good work in all of us. He wants us to live out a life that shows us progressively becoming more like Him. Paul reminded the church at Philippi that God would do the work, but they needed to be an active part in that work. Today, we must remember the same. As we strive each day to become more like Christ, we cannot sit back and expect God to do it all. He has a call for our lives, and we have to accept and act on that call.
Jesus came to this Earth to show us how we can live a life blessed beyond anything we ever imagined. When we accept Him, a work of grace begins. God will not stop working until He returns. He will not leave us to our inhibitions, because He knows we cannot live this life without Him. Psalm 138:8 says “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me. Lord your faithful love endures forever; do not abandon the work of your hands.” God will not abandon us.
Each morning when we rise up from our slumber, we are reassured by the words of Philippians 1:6 that God loves us, wants to be with us, and wants to bless us. May we all trust in God’s word and plan for our lives. If He has not returned, He is not done with you. He is still working.
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