CrossSites Bible Study

Philippians Chapter Three

Introduction

After Commanding the Philippians to rejoice and all that they go through, Paul turns to the next major theme in the letter, the importance of staying focused and true to the Gospel of Jesus. One of the true marks of a believer is the ability to discern what is true and what is false. It is impossible be saved if you do not understand the fundamental truths of the gospel (Rom.6:17; 10:14,17).

We live in a time where discernment is even more important. The truth of the Word of God is under attack from all sides. If we are going to be able to stand firm on the truth, we are going to have to know Jesus in an intimate way. This is what Paul is telling the Philippians, know Jesus and stand firm on the truth.

Warning against Confidence in the Flesh (3:1-9)

As Paul begins to close the letter, he wants to remind the Philippians of some previous teachings. He does this to safeguard them against false teachings that were invading the church. Paul gives three marks that indicate a person is a true believer.

True believers’ worship/serve God in the Spirit. “True worshipers (believers) will worship the Father in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23)

Paul pulls no punches in identifying who was bringing false teachings into the church. He calls them dogs and evil workers. Dogs during the first century roamed the streets and were wild unclean scavengers. Jews routinely called Gentiles dogs. Paul calls those Jews who were coming into the church and demanding that circumcision was necessary for salvation, dogs. They had a sinful, vicious, and uncontrollable character. These false Jewish “Christians” were genuinely like impure dogs that stood outside the covenant of God. They taught that you had to follow the Law of Moses to be a Christian.

An indicator if a person is a true believer is whether or not they have the Holy Spirit living within them. Paul wrote to the Romans “You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit since the Spirit of God live in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” (Romans 8:9). This means that you can do all the “religious” activities you want but if you do not have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you are not a true believer.

How do you worship?

True believers boast in Christ. “The how boast must boast in the Lord” (1 Cor 1:31).

In the church in America there is an unbalance emphasis on what Christ can do for us and not what we can do for Him. Many seem to boast in the fact that since they serve Jesus, he is obligated to give them what they want. The truth is that Jesus only promised to give them what they need.

As believers we boast and glory only in Christ. We are not to boast about how many times we read the Bible or how often we attend church. We are not to boast about our earthly status, achievements, or gifts. When we do this, we are placing our confidence of salvation in what we can do, not what Christ has already done for us. The Christian life is a life of exalting Christ and Him alone. It is what He did on the cross that gives us salvation, not the religious practices and activities that we think we have to do.

What are you relying on for your salvation?

True believers put no confidence in the flesh. “…put no confidence in the flesh.” (Phil 3:3)

Confidence is defined as “the feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something; firm trust.” Everyone places their confidence in something or someone. In our post-modern culture, we are told that the only person or thing that we should place confidence in is ourselves. We are being told that our truth is the only truth and that is where our confidence should be placed. It is about what I can do for myself.

In Philippi the Judaizers were placing confidence in their impressive Jewish credential. They were “God’s Chosen People” thus better that the gentile believers. For this reason, they sought to add additional requirements to salvation. Circumcision being the most prominent.

This is totally opposite what Christ wants. As believers in Christ, we are to place our confidence in Him and not our works. We will never be able to do enough good and religious things to earn our way into heaven. Salvation is a free gift from God (Rom 6:23). All a person has to do to be saved is believe in Jesus Christ and His completed work on the cross.

Paul illustrates this point by listing all his credentials (Phil 3:5-6). Paul says he was “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; ⁶as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness, which is in the Law, found blameless.” Paul is telling them that if anyone should boast or place confidence in religious activity it should be him. Paul prior to meeting Jesus on the Damascus road had a zeal for the Law. For keeping the Law is where he had placed his confidence. But to Paul this was all rubbish/trash and had no ability to bring salvation. The only thing that Paul would place his confidence in was knowing Christ and His work on the cross.

Can we look at Paul’s self-portrait and make some general applications to people today who are not trusting in Christ alone for their salvation. Paul gave several things we are not to place our trust in.

We are not to place our confidence in a ritual. Paul had been “circumcised on the eighth day.” This was a requirement of all Jewish boys. It marked him as a true Jew. Today, some people may put their confidence in other spiritual rituals, like being baptized as an infant or church attendance. Our salvation is about becoming a new creation in Christ, not a religious ritual. Salvation happens on the inside not the outside of a believer.

We are not to place our confidence in our ethnicity or rank. Paul gave us his linage. He was of the nation of Israel and the tribe of Benjamin. Paul was a physical descendant of Abraham and a member of the tribe of Benjamin. This gave him status as a Jew. But even his special privilege as a Jew did not give him assurance of salvation. That only comes for Christ. The sad truth is that many people today who are exalted by the world today will be humbled because they have failed to bow to Christ. Salvation does not come from who we are or our status in society, it comes by trusting in Jesus Christ.

We are not to place our confidence in traditions. “Hebrew of Hebrews” ( 3:5).  I have served in many churches that have their traditions.   To many of the members these traditions were sacred and essential to being a true believer.  Paul claims that he was a “Hebrew of Hebrews”. this meant that he had been devoted to them.  In the Jewish faith keeping these traditions were required for eternal life.  Paul is not saying that we cannot have traditions.  What he is telling us that we cannot place our confidence in traditions for salvation. The only place we are to place our confidence is Jesus.

We cannot place or confidence in keeping the rules. “…as for the Law a Pharisee” (3:5).  Early in my college experience I met believers that were legalistic.  They had rules for everything.  What bible to use, how long your hair could be, what music you could or could not listen to, and what you could or could not wear.  These individuals had be taught that you had to follow a list of rules if you were going to be a truly saved .  In their mind if they followed all the rules and live a moral life they would go to heaven.

Paul reminds us that he was a Pharisee.  The name Pharisee comes from an Aramaic term denoting “the separated one”.  Pharisees loved their rules and believed that only by obeying them would they see heaven.  Paul is telling believers that keeping a set of rules will not get you to heaven.  No one can earn their way into heaven.  Salvation is not by rule keeping.

We cannot place our confidence on our passion. (Phil 3:6). When it came to being passionate for the Jewish faith, no one could out do Paul.  He followed the letter of the Law to the point that he was to be found blameless.  Paul was so passionate to protect the Jewish faith that you became the chief persecutor of the early church. (Acts 9).  Paul had been a witness to the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:58).

People are passionate about lots of things.  Salvation does not come from passion alone. Salvation comes from knowing Jesus and having a zeal for Him. Paul told the Romans that some of them had a zeal for Jesus but did not truly know Him (Rom 10:2).  True salvation comes from knowing Christ and being “found in Him” (Phil 3:9)

Paul the Pharisee of Pharisees closes this portion of his letter by telling us that all his earthly accomplishments were as useless as trash. Our human accomplishments are as rubbish in comparison to gaining a knowledge of Christ.  It no longer mattered who we are, what we do or how well could keep rules.  Our eyes are to be only on Christ and Him alone.  We must have a single-minded devotion to Christ.  The only humanly thing that is require is that, in faith, we accept what God has done through His son Jesus Christ. The key to living the Christian life is not us living it, but Jesus living it through us.  We have to know Christ and his power.

Exhortation to Know Christ (3: 10-16)

When we are baptized it is a picture of our relationship with Christ.  Buried to the old life of sin and raised to a new life of righteousness.  Paul wants to know Christ in this kind of relationship.  To know Christ in this way meant Paul was willing and ready to share in Christ’s suffering.  In Galatians 2:20 Paul writes “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”  Our lives should reflect the difference that Christ makes as a result of His suffering on the cross.

Paul describes this wanting to know Christ like a dedicated runner who through all the pain and suffering keeps striving for the finish line.  My grandson runs cross-country for his school.  He does not worry about the runners that are behind him, he is always looking ahead to see who he can pass. When he runs, he is pressing forward toward the finish line.  His goal is to win.

We are to forget the mistakes and victories of the past.  As believers in Jesus Christ, we are to continually press forward.  There is no place in the Christian life for just be walking or lying around. We are called to always be looking and reaching forward to what lies ahead. We are to press toward the goal of Christlikeness. The believer must follow, run, and press after perfection—the perfection for which Christ has saved us. We are to strive for a deeper knowledge and intimacy with Christ.

What does it mean to know Christ and be pressing on.  It means that when we are asked to choose between the things of this world and Christ – We choose Christ. It means that we will always deal with the things of this world in ways that show that they are not our treasure, but rather show that Christ is our treasure. It means that if we lose any or all the things this world can offer, we will not lose our joy or our treasure or our life, because Christ is all.

“Let fire and the cross; … let shatterings of the whole body; and let all the dreadful torments of the devil come upon me: only let me attain to Jesus Christ.” —   Ignatius of Antioch

Warning against Living for the Flesh (Phil 3:17-21)

Paul has set forth Jesus Christ as the supreme example on how to live the Christian Life.  Knowing and being like Jesus is the prize that every believer should strive to reach.  Paul does not just say “here is the prize go get it”.  He tells that church that we should follow his example (1 Cor. 11:1 and 1 Thess 1:6) and the example of other godly believers such as Timothy and Epaphroditus (Phil 2:19-20). It is very important that believers today have godly people in their lives that they can imitate.  Especially in a culture that has so confused and watered down the Word of God.

In our culture today there are many who want to change and corrupt the Word of God to meet their way of thinking.  The church in Philippi was facing a similar problem.  Paul calls them enemies of the cross of Christ.

Who is an enemy of the cross? It is the person …

Who rejects the cross of Christ as the only way to God.

Who claims that there are other ways to approach God—ways other than the cross of Christ.

Who does not accept the death of Christ as payment for his sins.

Who considers the cross of Christ to be foolishness and opposes and curses Christ and His cross.

Who persecutes and attempts to stamp out Christ and His cross

Paul writes the end for those who are enemies of God is destruction. This destruction is brought about because of their desire to satisfy their fleshly appetites.  They care more about this life than they do about the next.

In the culture we live in it can be very easy to be distracted from the things of God. We have to beware of those in our culture that will try to get us to focus on this life, worry about this life and get caught up in the things of this life.  Christ is calling us to “Forget about ourselves, look toward eternity and live for heaven.

Paul reminds the Philippians, and us, that our citizenship is not here on earth, our citizenship is heaven. This would have struck a chord with the Philippians. Philippi was a Roman colony; those who lived in Philippi had their citizenship in far-off Rome. Roman citizenship was highly prized during Paul’s time. The Christians in Philippi, as proud as they had been of their Roman citizenship  (Acts 16:20-21), should have valued their heavenly citizenship because they were living on earth in a colony of believers.  While their stay here on earth was only temporary.  They would one day experience all the benefits that come with being a citizen of heaven,

The church can be seen as a colony of heaven.  We are citizens of heaven. As citizens of heaven, we are called to…

 dress as a citizen of heaven and not of the earth.  We are to be modest in the clothes we wear.

 speak as a citizen of heaven and not of the earth.  Our language and attitude should reflect the mind of Christ when we speak.

engage in the pleasures of a citizen of heaven and not of the earth.  We cannot live like the world and expect to be seen as different.

worship the God of heaven and not the religions and gods of this earth.  We are not to have anything in our lives that distracts us from serving and worshiping God.

Paul is saying that we are ambassadors of Christ here on this earth (2 Cor 5:20). We are called to represent heaven and heaven’s message here upon earth today, because “our citizenship is in heaven.” 

Conclusion

In chapter three Paul addresses two major mistakes people make about God.  The first is that they can work their way into heaven.  All religions of the world except for Christianity teach that if you work hard enough you will get to heaven.  But listen to what the Scriptures have to say about our good works:

“All of our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isa. 64:6).

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Eph. 2:8–9).

No one will get to heaven by their good works.  The only way a person can get to heaven to accept and believe in the finished work of Christ on the cross. This will require faith and trust in what Christ accomplished through His death, burial and resurrection.

The second mistake that people make about God, it that they have time to decide about God. They think they have forever to put their faith in Christ.  So, they put off coming to Christ until it is too late.  The Bible tells us that “now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor 6:2).  Do not wait until it is too late.

Quit trying to earn God’s favor by doing good works.  Put your faith in Jesus Christ.  Repent of your sins and allow Him to have control.  When you do you will become a citizen of heaven.  The things of this world will lose importance.  As citizens of heaven keep pressing toward the goal of spiritual maturity.  Keep in you view the goal of you eternal home — Heaven!

Bibliography

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