“You have nothing to do in order to be saved. You have only to believe.”
“I cannot agree with you,” was the reply. “Works are necessary; and more, we read in the Bible that we are to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. Hence, first, we have to work it out; second, we have to maintain a humble spirit, to fear and tremble; for after all we may not be saved.”
This answer is often given to the messengers of free grace, as it was in this case by one who, we should suppose, is really a believer, but who has not yet understood the full meaning of the grace of God. The text referred to is taken from that epistle which, of all others, speaks most of the work of the gospel, namely, the Philippians—it is in ch. 2:12, 13: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”
It is evident to any reader of ch. 1 that the persons then addressed were believers. These believers probably numbered amongst them the jailor, whose question, “What must I do to be saved?” received the gracious answer “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Certainly they had heard from Paul and Silas, “the servants of the most high God,... the way of salvation.” (Read Acts 16:17-3117The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which show unto us the way of salvation. 18And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. 19And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers, 20And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, 21And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. 22And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them. 23And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: 24Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. 25And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. 27And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. 29Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, 30And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. (Acts 16:17‑31)). And being saved, they were responsible before God to work out in their lives what God by His grace was working in their hearts. Had their hearts been empty they would have had nothing to work out. But God had placed His Spirit in their hearts, and given them a desire to do His good pleasure, hence the exhortation, as to loving and obedient children, who fear to grieve their Father, to work out the holy things which He is working in them.
The unsaved sinner is not told to work out salvation for himself. We could not say “his own salvation,” for until a man be saved he has no salvation of his own, and he is only hoping to get salvation some day. The unsaved sinner needs salvation, and the Lord Jesus Christ is the Saviour of sinners; whosoever believes on Him is saved; and when saved, then salvation is his own.
“As ye have always obeyed,” says the apostle in Phil, 2:12. Alas! how much disobedience there is in men’s hearts even to the plain word, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved!” so many twist the end of the verse, as did the person whose words we have quoted, to mean that salvation comes not altogether from Christ, but from man’s working out of himself what he has not yet got. Dear believer in God, God is working in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure; let godly fear and trembling characterize all that you do.