God Works in You
Heb 13:20-21, “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen”.
God works in you through Jesus Christ. “Through Jesus Christ”. You must be saved before God can be working in you through Jesus. You are saved by his death, burial, and resurrection and by his shed blood.
“Through the blood of the everlasting covenant” modifies “that great shepherd of the sheep”. God sacrificed Jesus, who shed the blood of the everlasting covenant for the sheep. Then God raised him from the dead and made him the great shepherd of the sheep.
1 Pet 2:21-25, Christ suffered for us… his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree… by whose stripes ye were healed… for ye were as sheep going astray: but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. Is 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He is the Shepherd and those who trust him are his sheep.
Jn 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. Jn 10:15 I lay down my life for the sheep. Jn 10:17-18 I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This is a reference to his Resurrection.
Acts 20:28 take heed… to all the flock… to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. The church of God, purchased with Christ’s blood, is the flock.
Many people credit God for their talent, performance, good fortune, etc. But you don’t often hear them mention Jesus. The reason is that, for many who thank God, Jesus isn’t their Savior. He’s not your shepherd until you’re one of his sheep.
If God is working in you, he’s doing that work through Jesus. But if Jesus isn’t in you doing the work, then God isn’t working in you. You’re just taking his name in vain. God’s power comes to us through Jesus.
God works in you to make you perfect. “Make you perfect in every good work”. We all like the idea of being perfect. And we all probably like the idea of doing good work. But with God, not all the good work is good.
What we don’t often realize is that this “good work” involves suffering. Heb 5:8-9 Jesus was made perfect by the things which he suffered. He suffered reproach, dishonor, ridicule, and death. His Gethsemane, trial, and crucifixion were brutal. On top of that he suffered the complete wrath of God upon him for our sins. But he did good work; he was the best.
Paul, who picked up the ministry to the Gentiles after he was saved, knew going in that he was going to suffer greatly, Acts 9:15-16. But he was absolutely perfect for the job God called him to do. And he did good work; he did the best.
1 Pet 5:10, God makes us perfect after we have suffered a while. Because suffering is involved in God’s work in us, most people settle for much less than perfect. They’re good with mediocre. One of the worst things happening to American Christians is that we have it way too easy. We’re enduring very little for Christ’s sake, 2 Cor 12:10. God’s not getting much good work done in us.
God works in you to do his will. “To do his will”. God doesn’t work in you to do your will. If you’re doing your will, things may be going well and you may be very successful. But it’s not God that’s getting that stuff done. It’s you. And when you get to the judgment seat of Christ, you’re going to be shocked at how much of what ‘you’ accomplished will go up in smoke.
Phil 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”. Rom 12:1-2, “… that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God”. We have to take up our cross for this to happen (where his will crosses ours). This takes submission to God’s will. The most successful Christians find God’s will and do it.
God works in you that which is well pleasing in his sight. And what’s well pleasing in his sight might not be well pleasing in your sight. For example…
“It pleased the Lord to bruise him”, Is 53:20. Jesus prayed in the garden before his crucifixion that God would take that cup from him. God didn’t. Rather, it pleased the Lord to bruise him.
God is well pleased with sacrifice. Phil 4:18 “…the things which were sent from you, an odor of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well pleasing to God”. Heb 13:15-16, “… the sacrifice of praise to God continually… to do good and to communicate forget not, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased”. It takes God working in us to sacrifice, 2 Cor 8:1-2.
Conclusion: as you can see, when God works in you there is going to be salvation to make you his sheep, suffering to make you perfect, submission to do his will, and sacrifice to be well pleasing to him. If these things haven’t happened in your life or if they aren’t happening, God isn’t working in you.
Modern Christianity is far from these four things. Today Christians are pleasure seeking, self loving, carnal babes. You can see why God said he would spue the Laodiceans out of his mouth. They are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. They may be rich down here, but they are bankrupt spiritually. And in heaven they will have little to no reward. You do not want to be this kind of Christian.
If you will yield to God and let him work in you the way he works, you are going to be perfect, successful, and pleasing to God. And in heaven, when Christ enters his glory “to whom be glory forever and ever”, you will be glorified with him, Rom 8:17-18. Let him have his way with thee.