God's Gift Does Not Replace Our Effort...

From John Piper's A Godward Life, pg. 39:

God commands what he wills and grants in measure what he commands, but we should always pursue what he commands. He says, "Work out your salvation...for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:12-13). God does not say, "Since I work, you shouldn't." He says, "Because I do, you can." God's gift does not replace our effort; it enables and carries it.