Well, we continue to enjoy this conference, speaking for my wife and myself. It just seems to get better as it goes. We've enjoyed the fellowship with different ones that we've had the chance to talk with and spend a while with. We've enjoyed the delicious food and we've enjoyed the ministry of our brethren. I thought that Brother Glott was talking about me when he started out in his message this morning, because I'm nothing but a coward when it comes to witnessing. And I'm glad that I came to this conference because he's really helped me in some of my hang-ups that I've had, well, ever since I've been born, sixty-seven years. certain hang-ups that I've had, at least since I've been a Christian, and it's been a real enlightening time for me, and Brother Dan Linstead has given me a little glimpse of myself in his messages, especially on self-examination, and then in letting me hear how I talk the English language. I didn't know I sounded quite that awful. You know, the little girl that lived in Georgia when Carter was president of the U.S., she said, Mother, isn't it nice to have a president at last that doesn't talk with an accent? Well, it has been a good time. I do hope that each one of us will really go home and live it out. Happy are ye if you do them, as we heard this morning. And all that we might do these things now, surely we've had enough to charge our batteries and go on and do something for the Lord. We're looking at Philippians chapter two. Philippians two. Verse one, if there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, If any turn to mercies and compassions, fulfill ye my joy, that you be like mine, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vain glory, but in gloryness of mine, let each esteem others better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. And then let's read two more verses, verses twelve and thirteen. Philippians two, verses twelve and thirteen. Wherefore, 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 worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. You notice this book has to do with the present tense of salvation. I like to call it that. The past tense being that we have already been saved. Titus two verse five says, according to his mercy, he saved us. That's past tense, isn't it? It's already done. Ephesians two says, For by grace you are having been saved. To translate it, boom, literally. That's past. We have already been saved. And we are saved forever. That is, from the guilt, from the judgment, from the awful penalties of our sins. We have already been saved. The moment we trusted in the Lord Jesus alone as our Savior, that moment we were saved and saved eternally. So that's the past tense of our salvation. and there's also the future tense which he looks at in chapter three of Philippians saying that he's coming again and he'll change this body of our humiliation that it may be fashioned like unto his own glorious body the future tense of our salvation and all the glory that's involved in our future. But the present tense of salvation is what Philippians is mainly concerned with. The Apostle is telling us here work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Now that doesn't mean that I fear that I might lose my salvation. Why do I fear and tremble? He explains in that verse that follows, verse thirteen. He says, For it is God who is working in you, both the willing and the doing of his good pleasure. That's why I should fear. That's why I should tremble. In chapter one, verse six, he says, God is faithful who having begun a good work in you, that's salvation. He began his good work at salvation. He is faithful who having begun a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ. And so God, think of it, dear Christian. God is now working in you, in this. The believer, the child of God, both the willing and the doing of his good pleasure. God is seeking to lead us on, to work out in result. And that's really what the word work means here in Philippians two thirteen. Work out into result your own salvation. You have the salvation. Now work it out practically in your daily life and in your personal character as a Christian. And that's why I should tremble. That's why I should fear, because Christians, I believe I can thwart the purposes of God for my life. I believe, as he said, the Lord Jesus said, as he looked over Jerusalem and wept over Jerusalem, he said, Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem. How often would I have gathered your children as a hymn that gather her chickens under her wings? And you would not. The Lord used the word will in that verse twice. Fellow, the first time he said, I will, where you read in our King James, would, if I will, to gather you. as a hen gathered her chickens under her wings. And you willed not. And who won? They won. They stood upon him. They tortured him. They crucified him. They willed not. And they watched the will of God. for their lives. And we read that God is not willing that any should perish, but alas God's will is altered by our will as I understand the word of God. And that makes me tremble to think that God has a purpose for my life now. day by day as a Christian, and I can thwart his will for me by not getting on with it and accomplishing his will in my own life. That's the reason he says we should fear and tremble. It is God who is working, working in us. both the willing and the doing of his good pleasure. Now in this chapter he tells us a lot about how to work out our own salvation. He starts off with an argument to be sort of a fulcrum to our hearts as Christians. to impel us to get on with this. He says in verse one, if there be, and this obviously is not the if of doubt, but the if of argument which Paul so often uses. He's not saying this may not be true, he's saying really since this is true, If there be therefore any, the word really here is encouragement in Christ. Is there any encouragement in Christ? My dear saints, how often you have sensed that encouragement. Every time you and I have gone through deep waters in our lives, it's like we have an anchor that held us past. Through the storm, it was himself, and we knew it, and he encouraged us through our every test. Yes, there's encouragement in Christ. If there is any comfort of love, this word comfort is a more tender word than encouragement. Encouragement of love It seemed that was what the Spirit of God was leading our minds to dwell upon so much at the Remembrance Feast this morning. His love for us. I'd like to have known Brother Stingen. I've read some of his biography and I've taught with Christians who knew him personally. and he must have been truly a godly man. I'm told that on his deathbed that a Christian visiting him asked, Brother Sengean, how are you? And he answered, I'm too weak to even love him, but I'm just lying here letting him love me. Is there any comforts of love. George Matheson was engaged to a lovely lady, and suddenly George Matheson went blind, and he received a letter from her breaking their engagement. And with a broken heart, he went to his room, and he penned these words, All love that will not let me go. I hide my weary soul envies that in thine ocean depths its flow may richer for peace. Yes, there's comfort of love. John says unto him that loves us, and he uses the continual presence unto him who keeps on loving us. No matter where we fail, no matter what the case may be, he keeps on loving us. And it will read the same way tomorrow that it reached today. It will read the same way ten billion years from now unto him that loves us. Yes, there's comfort of love. If there be any fellowship of the Spirit, that's what we're enjoying right here, isn't it? Imagine people from all areas of life and male and female, young and old alike, We all have this sense of oneness. We have that common bond, the fellowship of the Spirit. And one of the evidences that we are born of God is that we love the brethren. Not love everybody, though that should be true too, but a special kindred love. for every child of God. All the happy fellowship of Christians. Yes, we Christians have our trials and our troubles, don't we? We have our problems among us. But I tell you, there's nobody like the Christians. Nobody like a Christian. Wherever you go north, south, east, or west, you find them the same. And you're at home with the people of God. In a fellowship of the Spirit. I think this expression would include all that we enjoy of the Spirit as our common heritage. Born of the Spirit. Involved by the Spirit. Taught of the Spirit. And we enter into these blessed things of God. It's part of the fellowship of the Spirit. Any hearts or mercies is the last phrase in that verse. One, any hearts or mercies. In Colossians he says hearts of mercies. and then says, links it with expression of it, kindness. He puts things in pairs. They're in Colossians. And in chapter three, verse twelve, I believe it is, he puts these together, hearts and mercies. And the product is kindnesses. Are there any hearts and mercies? in the Christian life, all just let there be a time of trial, of real trouble in a Christian's life. And the Christians rally. The Christians come in and help and bear a burden. How often we have seen it and all how blessed it is to see the hearts and mercies on the part of God's people. I remember when we were in Canada, we were at Oakwood Bible Chapel there in Windsor, and we finished the week's meetings, and one of the brethren asked us when we were leaving, and we told them, well, we won't be seeing you because we'll leave at five thirty in the morning. And so we told them all goodbye. and so I got dressed early and at five thirty I walked out of the trailer getting ready to hitch up the car to it and drive off and there sitting in the darkness was one of the brethren waiting for us to come out to help us hitch up the trailer five thirty in the morning if there be any heart and mercies. Oh, yes, there are. Oh, yes, there are. How often we have tasted of this blessed display of Christ in his people. Paul says, if this is so, then add this to it. Complete my joy. Verse two says, Complete my joy over you as saints that are producing the fruit of the Spirit. Complete my joy by what? In that you are like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. The apostle is taking up here the three types of mind or attitude that he's beseeching Christians to work out in their own lives, to perfect their salvation, working out the salvation which they have. as God moves them to. He mentions three types of minds or dispositions or attitudes that we are to work out in our own character, in our own experience. The first one here is like-mindedness. He states that in this verse and I'll read it to you as it more accurately reads in the original first think the same thing secondly having the same law souls together are one souls the one thing thinking literally He is saying here, it's a oneness, isn't it? A oneness of mind, of heart, of purpose, that He's asking us to work out in our own personal life. You know, I used to think working out your own salvation was polishing up your spiritual character, working on it studying and trying to be more spiritual and more like Christ until you just became like a flame of fire for the Lord. And I was occupied, therefore, with myself. And this is a very dangerous thing. If you'll notice, he is saying you work out your own salvation in relation to fellow believers before this scripture in which he beseeches us to work out our salvation and after it he is talking about how we get on with one another and dear Christian it's not just a matter of polishing our own spiritual character but it is having a character that life is so that we can get along with fellow believers. As we heard this morning, seek peace and pursue it. Notice the positiveness, the active activity in that exhortation. Seek peace. Pursue it. Be energetic. in seeking to make peace with our brethren, with one another. The very opposite of what the flesh does. The flesh would think of itself and would pride itself above others and criticize others. But the child of God is taught to make it a positive purpose of his heart and life to pursue peace with his brethren. One mind, like-mindedness. How are you like-minded? We all have differences of opinion. Paul even acknowledges that. You remember in Romans he takes up such matters as different days some people regard one day above another another man another christian regards every day alike and he doesn't say what don't you know that the lord's day the first day of the week is the holy day and ponder at these christians to get straight on it no he doesn't do that he allows for a difference of conscience on that matter and he says let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind and he says he that regards the day don't let him judge his brother who does not regard a special day and he says he that doesn't regard the day don't let him despise his brother who does hold one day especially holy That's what he answers. He allows for difference of opinions, of conscience. There are many matters in God's word, which are individual conscience, and we don't have a specific scripture to tell us what to do about it. And I'm so glad that the companies of God's people, where I find I fellowship, Don't lay down laws to God's people and tell them what they can dress like, what they can put on and what they can't put on. And we might differ on that. And to one, it may be a sin to dress a certain way. And to another, it's not a sin. And we're to bring into play these very scriptures that we're to seek peace and we're not to lay our conscience as a law upon another Christian. Well then how are we going to be like-minded if we have differences of opinion? Well the simple answer to that is that we give way to our brother's opinion. We keep our conscience between us and the Lord. And for our brothers' sake, we do what pleases him. Let's say the assembly wants, they want to change the time of the worship meeting. It's always been at ten o'clock Sunday morning. But some want to change it to the evening. And there are many reasons for it. And you have been there all your life. enjoying the Lord's Supper at ten o'clock, and it just seems perfect to you. And you think of some good reasons why it should stay that way. So what do you do? Well, I remember this came up in our home assembly. And so we frankly expressed our opinion to the elders, told them just how we felt. And then they prayed about it, they counseled with all the saints, and they decided to change it. So what did we do? My wife and I walked out and said, okay, let's see them make it work. No, thank God we did not say that. We said, let's help them make it work. It wasn't our kingdom. It wasn't our choice, but the men who are elders in that assembly had prayed about it. They had sought the mind of the Lord, and it was our business to follow, to seek peace, to pursue it, and to not be among those that murmur and dispute, which is something he forbids us to do in this very chapter. Like-mindedness, that's one of the characteristics of a child of God that's working out his salvation. He is making it a point to be of one mind with his brethren and sisters in Christ. Another mind here is lowly mindedness. That's in verse five. Let this mind, well it begins before that verse three. Let nothing be done through strife or empty glory. But in lowliness of mind, let each esteem others better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things. but every man also on the things of others. I'm glad he put the little word also in verse four, because he would have made it impossible for me, because I certainly am going to look after my own things. He said, Look not every man on his own things, but also on the things of others. which says yes look after your own things but look after the interest of others also lowly mindedness someone has pointed out this doesn't mean to the thought is not to have a mean or low view of yourself lowly mindedness but it means to just have no view of yourself at all. Not considering yourself. Considering one another. And he gives us the example of this in the Lord Jesus. Verse five, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. And then he gives us this view of our Lord that is all so amazing, breathtaking, immeasurable, it's infinity, and it melts the hearts of His dear people every time they meditate upon. Who being in the form of God, that's how He existed throughout eternity. in the form of God. Thought it not a thing to be grasped after, to be held on to, to be equal with God, but emptied himself, taking upon him the form of a servant, and being found in fashion as a man, and becoming in the likeness of men, I'm sorry, verse seven, and becoming in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death. even the death of the cross. My what humbly, what condescension our Lord has displayed. The form of God, the word he uses for form there, more faith not only means that which was apparent but it speaks of his very essence, his very nature, his inner character, Morphe, who being in the form of God, the nature of God, the very being of God, and manifested as so, he didn't think a thing to be held on to to be equal with God. It's interesting that the Spirit of God uses two different forms of this word equal in speaking of our Lord being equal with God the Father. In John he says he was making himself equal with God when he spoke of God being his father in John five eighteen and they were ready to stone him because they said he makes himself equal with God and they used the word Esau which means personal equality it's masculine singular it's his person equal with God but here in Philippians two and verse six where it says he thought it not a thing to be held on to to be equal with God if he saw which is new to plural and it's saying equal things He's not talking about his personal equality. That never changed. But it's equal things. How did he change that? He explains. The main verb here is, he emptied himself. And now he tells us how he emptied himself, not giving up his personal equality with God, not one bit. But the participants following, dramatically, that's telling us how he emptied himself. Here's how. He emptied himself, taking upon him the form of a servant. That's how God Almighty is taking upon him the form, and it's not just the outward visible form, but again it's morphine. It's the inner nature. Think of it. Our Lord, our Creator, took upon him the actual nature as well as the outward appearance. of a servant, a slave for you and me. That's how he emptied himself. Not of his personal equality, but of his rights. Some of his prerogatives as though he laid aside by becoming a servant and also an becoming in the likeness of man. And the Spirit of God is very careful here. He chooses the word for likeness, homoio mati. To pronounce it right. And it does not mean taking the inner nature of man. Romans eight. about verse three uses the same word. God sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh. Certainly not sending his son in sinful flesh, God forbid. But the likeness, and so he is becoming in the likeness of men. Yes, he was a real man, but he had no fallen nature. such as you and I had as we came into the world. And so our Lord never gave up his deity. He is always equal with God, the Father, and God the Holy Spirit. But he laid aside certain privileges of his as God. And that was by becoming, taking the form of a servant and becoming in the likeness of man. and even when he became like us a human being and walked here one of his creatures in their likeness it says he humbled himself he even became an unumble man Romans chapter fifteen verse the twelve says be not character long or impressive, those that are of high estate, but be a condescend to them that are low estate. That word condescend doesn't mean that we come down to somebody else's low level compared to ours, and we graciously descend down to their level. No, if the bird there means be carried along with them that are lowly. So we should find our company. We should be swept along with those that are lowly. That should be our choice and our crowd and never think that we are condescending to come down to someone's lowly level. Our Lord came to where we were. And this saint, it behooves us to have that mind. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. The lowly mind. And the third mind is others-minded. Others-minded. He tasted death for every man. Thank God he so loved the words. He didn't throw us aside on the rubbish heap and give up on us that he well might have, but he considered us. He was like-minded with his father. He did the father's will He was lowly minded in that he who is mighty God became our servant and our servant forever. And he was others minded. He loved me and he gave himself for me. Let this mind be in you. Oh, may God help you and me. In our world, As our brother expressed it today, can our little world work out our own salvation, our conformity to him with fear and trembling? God blesses you.