When it
comes to Paul admonishing the Christians at Philippi to work out their
salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12), many Protestants (e.g, James
McCarthy; Ron Rhodes) have argued that this is not talking about personal
salvation, but the “salvation” of the congregation (what I sometimes call the “temporal
ecclesiastical salvation” interpretation). Rhodes, in his hit and miss (mainly
"miss") book against Roman Catholicism, wrote the following about
Phil 2:12:
As a backdrop, we must keep in mind the
particular situation of the church in Philippi. This church was plagued by 1)
rivalries and individuals with personal ambition (Phil. 2:3,4; 4:2), 2) the
teaching of Judaizers (who said that circumcision was necessary for salvation -
3:1-3), 3) perfectionism (the view that one could attain sinlessness perfection
in this life - 3:12-14), and 4) the influence of the “antinomian libertines”
(people who took excessive liberty in how they lived their lives, ignoring or
going against God’s law - 3:18, 19). Because of such problems, this church as a
unit was in need of “salvation” (that is, salvation in the temporal,
experiential sense, not in the eternal sense), (Ron Rhodes, Reasoning from the Scriptures with Catholics
[Eugene, Oreg.: Harvest House Publishers, 2000], 150 ).
For a refutation,
see for e.g., Another
Refutation of Mike Thomas on Soteriology.
John
MacArthur, a well-known and respected Reformed theologian and author, wrote the
following about working out one’s salvation with fear and trembling. While one
disagrees with his Reformed understanding of salvation and the relationship
works has to such
(see, for
e.g., An
Examination and Critique of the Theological Presuppositions Underlying Reformed
Theology), his comments show that MacArthur rejects the interpretation that
Paul is talking about the temporal “salvation” of the church at Philippi;
instead, he is discussing the salvation of the individual Christian:
Paul goes on to describe the attitude with
which we are to pursue godliness every day: “with fear and trembling” (Phil.
2:12). As we live for God, we should have a healthy fear of offending or
sinning against Him. There should be a “trembling” (we derive the word trauma from the Greek word used here)
whenever we consider the consequences of sin. Such fear is a proper reaction to
our weaknesses and inadequacies, and it provides us with a healthy anxiety to
do what is right.
The Lord wants His people to have a righteous
awe of Him. The prophet Isaiah wrote, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Heaven is My throne,
and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, thus
all these things came into being,’ declares the Lord. ‘But to this one I will
look, to him who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at My word’”
(Isa. 66:1-2; cf. Prov.1:7). God looks for and approves those who treble or
shake before His Word.
Working out our salvation on a daily basis
with consistency and integrity is difficult. And the possibility of failure
looms constantly. One of the safeguards that helps prevent failures is the sort
of healthy fear, awe, and respect for God inherent in Philippians 2:12. It’s
not a fear of eternal torment, a despair due to our circumstances, or a
neurotic feeling that paralyzes us into inaction. Instead, it’s a reverence
that motivates us and puts us on guard so we won’t stumble and lose our joy. It
guides us so we won’t offend the Lord, compromise the integrity of our
testimony before unbelievers, or negate our usefulness and ministry to other
believers in the body of Christ. (John F. MacArthur, The Power of Integrity: Building a Life Without Compromise [Wheaton,
Ill.: Crossway Books, 1997], 109-110)
