He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion

Philippians 1:4-6 (NIV)

4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

The work of grace is but begun in this life; it is not finished here; as long as we are in this imperfect state there is something more to be done. If the same God who begins the good work did not undertake the carrying on and finishing of it, it would lie forever unfinished. He must perform it who began it. We may be confident, or well persuaded, that God not only will not forsake, but that he will finish and crown the work of his own hands. For, as for God, his work is perfect. The work of grace will never be perfected till the day of Jesus Christ, the day of his appearance. When he shall come to judge the world, and finish his mediation, then this work will be complete, and the top-stone will be brought forth with shouting. [Matthew Commentary]

Nicholas Kristof, an op-ed columnist for The New York Times wrote a column in March 2015 entitled, "A Little Respect for Dr. Foster." Kristof makes clear that he isn't an evangelical Christian yet he says, "But I've been truly awed by those I've seen in so many remote places, combating illiteracy and warlords, famine and disease, humbly struggling to do the Lord's work as they see it … " He focuses on "Dr. Stephen Foster, 65, a white-haired missionary surgeon who has lived in Angola for 37 years—much of that in a period when the Angolan regime was Marxist and hostile to Christians."

"We were granted visas," [Foster] said, "by the very people who would tell us publicly, 'your churches are going to disappear in 20 years,' but privately, 'you are the only ones we know willing to serve in the midst of the fire.'"

Kristof writes, "One son contracted polio; a daughter survived cerebral malaria; and the family nearly starved when the area was besieged during war and Dr. Foster insisted on sharing the family rations with 100 famished villagers."

Kristof concludes: "The next time you hear someone at a cocktail party mock evangelicals, think of Dr. Foster and those like him. These are folks who don't so much proclaim the gospel as live it. They deserve better." (Although there's probably much more proclaiming than Kristof realizes. Dr. Foster's website carries the banner: Hope for Angola through healthcare, agriculture, education, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ.)

As long as we live in this world we will never find perfection in life. Through our lives we can show others the good things God has to offer. Then one day God will finally complete the good work He started in us and bring us to perfection through His Son Jesus Christ.