10-8-23 Sermon "Our Relationship" - 16 Minutes

Philippians 3:4-14

This morning I'll be reading Philippians chapter 3 verses 4 through 14. And I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Philippians 3:4-14 Paul is beginning his argument here to the Philippians by stating that if anyone has reason to boast about confidence in the flesh,,, then it should be him. Yet he counts it all as loss because of Christ. Philippians 3:4–14 (HCSB) — 4 although I once also had confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised the eighth day; of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; regarding the law, a Pharisee; 6 regarding zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless. 7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them filth, so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ —the righteousness from God based on faith. 10 My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. 12 Not that I have already reached the goal or am already fully mature, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. The word of God for the people of God,,, thanks be to God! God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning. Let us pray: Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen. ___________________________________ Last Sunday we looked at Matthew 21:23-32 and we learned that as a church,,, we follow God's word,,, allow it to guide our service,,, and our day to day activities,,, just like we should do with our personal life.

We must remember to be careful and keep Christ at the forefront of the direction we are choosing,,, so that relationship will not be hurt,,, or lost in the process.

I'm looking forward to putting this decision behind us so that we can concentrate on what God has for us to do,,, and let Him guide us,,, as we strive to show others,,, the love that God has,,, for all,,, if we just follow,,, His word,,, like we should have,,, all along!

Because when we show others that we follow Christ,,, we will reach so many more of those in our community,,, when we obey the word of God,,, instead of just going through the motions.

Our church needs a relationship with God,,, that can only be obtained,,, by following God's word,,, from the beginning of the Bible,,, to the end of the Bible,,, not just rules and regulations,, and then,,, being sure that we are using that knowledge,,, in our every day life,,, so that we can show God's love,,, to those,,, in need!

This morning we will look at these verses in Philippians 3:4-14,,, and see how they will help us in our walk with God this week.

___________________________________ Verses 4 through 9 said: 4 although I once also had confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised the eighth day; of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; regarding the law, a Pharisee; 6 regarding zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless. 7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them filth, so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ —the righteousness from God based on faith. My commentary says that for generations,,, the devout Jews,,, those who were determined to keep the covenant,,, thought that where they came from,,, their family tree,,, was very important! And Paul came from the correct family,,,also,,, he had been raised in the law,,, he had studied the law,,, and he lived by the law,,, before he met Jesus on the Damascus Road. Paul had every qualification that he needed,,, to be considered a devout Jew. In this respect,,, Paul was second to none. But he considered it all as a loss to him because of Christ. He thought that he had everything that he needed,,, until Christ showed him that the law wasn't the answer. His faith now is in Jesus Christ alone,,, nothing else will do now! ___________________________________ Verses 10 through 12 say: 10 My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. 12 Not that I have already reached the goal or am already fully mature, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Paul's goal was to truly know Jesus,,, and the power of His resurrection,,, along with the fellowship of suffering that he was enduring now in prison. My Faithlife Study Bible says that when Paul says that he is being conformed to His death,,, he means that he wants to imitate the sacrificial love that Jesus displayed on the cross. It also says Paul anticipates that being conformed to Christ’s death will lead to new life in the power of Christ’s resurrection. So we can see from this,,, that when "we" respond by faith during any of our trials,,, this makes us one with Christ. ------------------------ John Wesley says "There is a sense in which the Christian is always being crucified with Christ." "He is to die daily." "He is constantly to mortify the flesh." "This enables him to rise in “newness of life,” to walk as a “new creature in Christ.” "Only as he has put off the “old man” can be put on the “new man.”

It’s how we can grow,,, as we daily study His word,,, that helps us see what God does for us,,, each and every day! ------------------------ Then in verse 12,,, Paul wants the readers to know that even though he is making every effort to reach the goal,,, he hasn't reached it yet. And even though he hasn't reached it,,, we can see from his words,,, that Jesus Christ has,,, taken hold of him! ___________________________________ Verses 13 and 14 say: 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. My Bible Knowledge Commentary says Paul pursued Christlikeness,,, with the enthusiasm and persistence of a runner in the Greek games. He was still pressing on,,, pursuing that for which Christ Jesus took hold of him. And he hasn't taken hold of it,,, not yet attained the perfection that is promised through Christ. But he was determined that he would forget the past and,,, like a runner,,, press on toward the goal. Paul refused to be controlled,,, or absorbed,,, by his past heritage or his accomplishments. Vigorously and with concentration,,, Paul sought to win the prize to which God had called him heavenward. Again the Greek games must have been on his mind as he wrote of the prize. The winner in those games,,, was called to the place where the judge sat,,, in order to receive his prize. Here,,, Paul may have referred to ultimate salvation in God’s presence,,, or,,, to receiving rewards at “the judgment seat of Christ” like he talked about in 2 Corinthians 5:10. The important thing,,, is that he was intent on receiving this prize! ___________________________________ As I read these verses earlier this week during my study time,,, I was struck with the question,,, what do we think that Paul is actually striving for?

And,,, more importantly,,, what are "we",,, striving for,,, what are we trying to obtain?

Well,,, Paul was trying to live a life for Christ!

Live a life that showed God's love for others in all that he did,,, or said,,, striving for perfection like Christ,,, even while he knows that he may not obtain that life until Christ comes again.

Building that relationship with God that helps him each and every day,,, it's personal to him,,, you can see that in the words that he has written.

___________________________________ Which brings us back to the question,,, of us,,, what are "we",,, striving for,,, what are we trying to obtain?

To have our sins forgiven?

So many times today,,, when we are asked,,, why did Jesus die on the cross,,, I'm afraid that our only answer is,,, so that I can have my sins forgiven,,, and I can go to heaven.

When,,, truthfully,,, (well,,, it does include that,,,) but oh,,, so much more than that,,, as well!

God intended for our relationship with Him,,, to be restored,,, which includes our sins being forgiven,,, "sure",,, but that's not all!

We must remember that "our God",,, "our Creator",,, has restored our connection to Him,,, and it's there,,, we just have to reach out,,, and grasp it!

It's available to us right now,,, at this moment,,, while we live here on earth!

Not just for our future,,, for our day to day living,,, each and every day!

That's why Christ died on the cross!

Yes,,, our sins are forgiven,,, but along with that,,, is our ability to speak with God,,, one on one!

We don't need a priest,,, or a preacher to speak to God for us!

Although I do believe that praying for each other in the church is important,,, there is strength in numbers!

But when you are alone with your problems,,, your trials,,, God is there,,, and He's there,,, because Jesus Christ died on that cross,,, to restore,,, "you and me",,, to a relationship with Him,,, that last's for eternity,,, "that's true",,, but don't ever forget,,, it's intended,,, to help us in our daily walk with Him,,, each and every day,,, right now,,, where we are,,, as He continues to guide us,,, and help us,,, to stay on the narrow path,,, that leads us all,,, home!

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