Keith Battle - Allow God to Keep Working In Your Life

My subject today is allowing God to continue working in your life. Allow God to keep the work going in your life. In this first chapter of the book of Philippians, specifically around verse 6, there are five key points that outline the kind of work God is doing and what it takes to let Him finish the work that He started. The first thing I want you to see is that God’s trying to do a work in us. In verse 3, he says, «I thank my God every time I remember you in all my prayers for all of you. I always pray with joy.» Here’s Paul speaking to the church in Philippi, and he states, «I’m always joyful when I pray for you all because of your partnership.» Everybody say «partnership.» That’s my first point: faithful partnership. If you’re taking notes, my first point is faithful partnership. Paul states that the reason he gets excited about the Church of Philippi is because of their partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, as mentioned in verse 5.

What does that mean when he talks about their partnership in the gospel? He is referring to their financial support of the work of the ministry. They were financially partnered with him. A partner is someone who is in it with you, someone who is financially supporting the endeavor. He expresses, «I’m grateful to God; I know God’s going to keep working in you because you’re a faithful partner.» Here’s the issue: most people in church are just consumers. They come and only consume; they never contribute. They feel like they’ve done God and everyone else a favor by showing up. However, every believer has a responsibility to be financially invested in the ministry. That is a biblical responsibility. I don’t just want us to be a church that is laid back, where you can attend dressed casually and be real; we must also understand our responsibilities. We are responsible for taking a portion of the resources that all belong to God and investing some of that into charity, ministry work, and missions. That is our responsibility. Paul affirms, «I know God’s working in you because you’re a faithful partner.»

How do I define «faithful»? Look at what it says in verse 5: «You didn’t just start giving to me; you started at the beginning and you’re still doing it.» Faithful partnership is consistent. It’s not the kind of person who makes a resolution on New Year’s Eve, only to fall off by February. Are you faithful? Are you consistent? Where have you fallen off? Some may say, «I fell off track with my workouts. I fell off track with my diet. I lost track of my reading. I fell off track with my writing.» Have you fallen off track with your partnership and your financial responsibility to support ministry work, missions work, and charitable organizations? There are benefits that come with it as well.

In chapter 4, I’m going to spend a few minutes discussing how Paul picks up the theme of partnership. As he writes to the Philippians, he expresses his gratitude, stating in verse 10, «I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it.» He is referring to how they gave to him again. They wanted to contribute, but they hadn’t had the opportunity. A man named Epaphroditus brought a financial gift from the Church of Philippi to Paul, and he rejoiced over it.

What you must understand is that when you support people who serve God—who work in missions or ministry—it encourages them. It’s uplifting when you support those who dedicate their lives to serving God, often depending on the financial generosity of others. Most of us work for a paycheck, but some people have committed their lives to missions work, traveling overseas to spread the gospel or working in shelters. They may be doing this by faith, trusting that God called them to do this work, and often the people they assist cannot provide the financial support they need. They rely on income from others to fund their efforts. Paul emphasizes that he greatly rejoices in their support. It encourages people. And I want to clarify: whenever I talk about money, I know people might think I’m just trying to get something from them. Let me go down to verse 17 quickly…