The Joy-Filled Book of Philippians {Part 6}
{Part 5 of this series can be found here}
There is admittedly something kinda cool about getting to chapter 3 of a 4-chapter book of the Bible. Here we are half-way — we can do this! We can finish studying this book to the end! You commit to staying with me in this and I’ll commit to finishing publishing through the end!
I may have chuckled a little bit when I read the opening word to this chapter. “FINALLY???” We’ve got two chapters left in this book! Um, Paul, are you actually Southern American, because I’ve seen goodbyes this long living down in Mississippi but I didn’t know the rest of the world took so long to say their final words! :)
Alright, say a prayer, read this passage, and let’s dig in!
“(1) Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you. (2) Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; (3) for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh, (4) although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: (5) circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; (6) as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless. (7) But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. (8) More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, (9) and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, (10) that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; (11) in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”
If you have a moment, read through this passage again out loud and consider the ways you most relate to Paul in these verses.
“(1) Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you. (2) Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; (3) for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,”
Is this the beginning of the end, halfway through this book? Did Paul think he was almost done but just keep writing? If you have been reading my studies you may think that Paul and I would get along well and that, just as you think I’m wrapping up, I break into a new topic.
I think Paul uses this wording to get his real point out. This is the summary of what he’s been saying: REJOICE IN THE LORD!
Rejoice — To verbalize praise and singing
Paul moves from telling the Philippians to rejoice to discussing living a life of sacrifice for the Lord and others. Let that soak in a minute. Paul does not say “rejoice in the Lord… be so thankful for all the stuff you got from Him this week.” He tells them to rejoice and then we move towards how we should serve the Lord and also how we are to put no confidence in ourselves. But, isn’t that the gospel? I can rejoice in the Lord BECAUSE no confidence is in myself!
Paul reminds them in verse 1 that he is happy to repeat these truths over and over again if that helps the Philippians. This is such a helpful tool for us, too! When you are struggling to believe, obey, or remember a truth, write it down! Place it where you see it easily every day!
Paul warns of 3 groups of people in this passage:
- The Dogs — Most likely a picture of the wild, dangerous dogs that would wander around and ravage peoples’ homes. The picture here is the Judaizers (for more, check out Galatians 6:12–16) who wanted everyone to ‘look’ like them. They placed their legalistic rules on others of things that weren’t even clear in scripture. For more info on how to weed through these false teachings or determine if you have been affected by this, check out my article here.
- The Evil Workers — These were likely people in or around the church who were not working for unity or maybe not even for Jesus. This makes me think of the parable told by Jesus of the wheat and the tares (see Matthew 13).
- The False Circumcision — We will address true circumcision in just a sec. True circumcision should be of our heart. False circumcision is putting our confidence in our flesh and actions.
Verse 3 talks about who we should be — the true circumcision who:
- Worship in the Spirit of God
- Glory in Christ Jesus
- Put no confidence in the flesh
This is circumcision of the heart. Instead of external, it is an internal mark of belief in God and our love for Jesus. Read back through these three points of true circumcision. Do I truly worship in the Spirit of God? On Sunday and also during the week? Do I put my glory and confidence in Christ Jesus alone or am I counting on myself to save or sanctify myself? Don’t respond with your church answer of “certainly so” but think through your actions and thought process to determine your answer.
“(4) although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: (5) circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; (6) as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.”
I truly wish I did not identify quite so much with Paul in these verses. OK, I’m not of Jewish descent or a Pharisee but I might as well be. Here, Paul lists 7 things he has done that sound really good for a Christian to do or be. I could make a similar list… Christian for almost as long as I can remember, saved my first kiss for my wedding day, follower of church rules, defender of truth on facebook, modest clothes wearer, daily Bible reader, church attender, and the list continues.
What is on your list?
Don’t gloss over that question. Think about it. Write it on paper. If someone asked what made you a good Christian or how you knew you were a Christian, what would you say?
Paul reminds us in these verses that he, as much as anyone else, has a reason to put confidence in his flesh and actions.
But…
“(7) But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. (8) More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”
One of our pastors mentioned recently the “51% Club” — people who believe (whether consciously or subconsciously) that if they can keep over 50% of their actions “good,” they are OK with Jesus. But Jesus is only found in the 100% club. Not 100% perfect actions, but 100% devotion to Him.
What things did you list earlier? Do you count those as your gain or as your loss? I used to count so many things as gain that I now see as dirty rubbish attempts to gain the favor of a God who will never be swayed in or out of favor by my actions.
Paul shows that joy comes from throwing out our pride. Jesus is worth counting EVERYTHING ELSE as loss. For Paul, this even meant his personal freedom as he sat in jail writing this letter.
If you used paper to write your list, go outside and burn it, or at least send it through the shredder. We obey because we love God. All the things we “do” to earn God’s favor aren’t gain. They aren’t even neutral. We should count them as loss and rubbish (garbage, the worst trash) laid at the feet of Jesus Christ.
“(9) and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, (10) that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; (11) in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”
That I may be found… with His righteousness… to know His power. We see God’s power when we accurately view Him and ourselves.
Paul desperately desires to:
- Know God/Jesus — Do I desire this? Pray for God to give you a fire and passion for studying Him and His word
- Know the power of His resurrection — An accurate view of ourselves with a deep study of His word shows us God’s power beyond our imagination
- Know the fellowship of His sufferings — Do I long for this? Do I desire to be there with Christ and suffer for Him? This is a desire we have to pray for as it is supernatural and our flesh will never of itself desire this.
- Be conformed to His death — For most of us, this is a practical taking up of our cross and following Jesus daily. Daily.
Final Thoughts…
- How often do I rejoice — aka verbalize praise and singing to the Lord?
- Where am I adding to the gospel?
- What pieces to my life do I need to lay down?
Until next time….
Resources:
- The Bible, New American Standard Version (KJV, NKJV, Amplified, NIV, ESV also used as reference)
- The Book of Philippians by Jo Saxton
- Count it All Joy by Kay Arthur
- Various Bible commentaries as desired
