RTBS: 11/12 Philippians 3:9

📖 RTBS | Philippians 3:9 — “Found in Him”

Scripture Reference: Philippians 3:9 (NKJV)

“…and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.”

1. Seek

1.1 What is distracting me tonight? → Reflect on where your mind is still trying to earn something — approval, identity, worth.

1.2 What do I need from the Lord right now? → Ask Him for rest in Christ’s righteousness, not yours.

1.3 Where do I need improvement in my faith? → Consider if you're still placing confidence in performance instead of the person of Jesus.

2. Explore

2.1 What words, phrases, or images stand out to you? Let’s walk phrase-by-phrase through Philippians 3:9 and unpack the theological weight behind each one:

“Found in Him”

📖 Meaning: This is union with Christ language — one of the most important but least understood doctrines in the New Testament.

To be “found in Him” means your location, identity, and standing before God are no longer rooted in your own performance, but in Christ’s person.

When God looks at you, He sees Jesus. His righteousness becomes yours. His death counts for your sin. His resurrection becomes your future.

Contrast: The world says: “Be true to yourself.” Paul says: “Lose yourself in Christ.”

Reflection Question:

We looked Sunday at the question if we are relying on the works or Christ.

If God examined me today, what would He “find” me in myself trying to add Christ to myself, or in Christ, trying to mold myself into Christ.

“Not having my own righteousness”

Meaning: Paul is rejecting any confidence in moral achievement. His “own righteousness” included a flawless Jewish pedigree (Phil. 3:5–6), but it couldn’t justify him.

He realized that even religious perfection wasn’t enough to make him right with God.

Even your best efforts fall short. Righteousness by law = a false hope.

📖 Isaiah 64:6: “All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags…”

NOTE: This idea can be taken too far to believe that because we are not found in our own righteousness that we are unable to even believe at all.

Calvinism overview

The idea that because there is no good in us, that God must regenerate us, bring us back to life, and he only does this to those he chooses or elects, and they have no choice in the matter if they are chosen or not.

They would say that because we are unable to do good, that we have no righteousness, that we are unable to muster the faith the believe.

Problem - overanalyzing scripture

“There is none who does good, no, not one” (Rom. 3:12)

“The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:14)

“Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb. 11:6)

“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.” (John 6:44)

“When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will convict the world…” (John 16:8)

Calvinist would claim that these verses tell us that we are incapable to believe, and can only believe once God chooses to regenerate us (or make us born again) and then we believe automatically.

This is all laid out in the acronym TULIP - GRAPHIC

Total Depravity - we are complete depraved, and are unable to do any good

Misapplied — man is lost, but can still respond to the gospel

Unconditional Election - God elects based on not conditions, but just his own choice

Rejected — election is according to foreknowledge not selection

1 Timothy 2:4 — God desires all to be saved.

2 Peter 3:9 — He is not willing that any should perish.

Romans 10:13 — “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Limited Atonement - Jesus only died for those who God elected

Rejected — Christ died for all, not just the elect

1 John 2:2 — He is the propitiation “not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”

John 1:29 — “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

Irresistible Grace - Those who are regenerated automatically believe

Matthew 23:37 — “I wanted… but you were not willing.”

Proverbs 1:24–25 — “Because I called and you refused…”

Perseverance of the Saints - Those who are elected and believe will persevere until the end, they will never lose their salvation. (If someone denies the faith then that means they were never elected to begin with.)

Affirmed when applied correctly — true believers are eternally secure in Christ, after believing through their own faith

John 10:28 — “They shall never perish.”

Ephesians 1:13–14 — Sealed with the Spirit until redemption.

Philippians 1:6 — “He who began a good work in you will complete it…”

According to scripture we believe in Christ, the gift that was offered by God, through faith alone.

“Which is from the law”

Meaning: This is Paul’s old system: external performance, law-keeping, rule-following. He calls it loss (Phil. 3:7). Not just “not helpful” — it’s harmful if you’re relying on it.

Key Clarification: Paul isn’t rejecting obedience — he’s rejecting obedience as the basis for justification.

Modern Christian Misuse: Today, many believers are functionally legalists. They obey not because they’re righteous in Christ — but because they’re trying to become righteous through effort.

Reflection Question:

Have I slipped into thinking that “good behavior” = spiritual value?

“But that which is through faith in Christ”

Meaning: Here’s the massive turn: your righteousness doesn’t come from you — it comes through faith in Jesus. Faith is the pipeline. Not the source, not the payment — the posture of trust.

Greek Note: Paul uses the phrase διὰ πίστεως Χριστοῦ — most naturally read as “through faith in Christ” (objective genitive). Not Christ’s faithfulness on your behalf alone, but your personal faith in Him.

Analogy: Faith is the hand that receives the gift God offers — not the thing that earns it.

Gospel Distortion: Faith is not a “spiritual work.” It’s the surrender of work. The turning from self to Christ.

💬 Reflection Question:

Do I treat faith like a task — or a trust?

Am I trying to “believe better” or simply rest in the One who is already enough?

“The righteousness which is from God”

Meaning: This is imputed righteousness — the perfect righteousness of Christ placed on you. It doesn’t originate from your life — it flows from God’s grace, through the cross.

Key Doctrine: Imputation

You don’t become righteous by growing into it. You are declared righteous at salvation because Jesus is righteous.

📖 2 Corinthians 5:21 — “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

American Confusion: Many believers think salvation is God making them “better.” Paul says salvation is God declaring you righteous — fully, freely, finally — because of Jesus.

Reflection Question:

Do I believe I’m already righteous in Christ — or am I still trying to earn it?

“By faith”

📖 Meaning: This drives the point home. You don’t receive righteousness through:

Religion

Works

Effort

Emotion

Knowledge

Only by faith — the full, humble trust in the sufficiency of Jesus Christ.

Subtle Danger: We often drift from faith back into effort. We start in grace, then try to finish in grit.

📖 Galatians 3:3 — “Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?”

💬 Reflection Question:

Where am I still trying to earn what Christ has already given?

3. Analyze

3.1 Key Doctrine: Justification by Faith (Sola Fide)

You are declared righteous before God:

Not by your moral performance

Not by religious obedience

But by trusting in the finished work of Jesus

📖 Romans 3:21–26, Galatians 2:16, 2 Corinthians 5:21

3.2 Application from Cross References:

Use the verses below to trace Paul's consistent message:

Romans 4:5 Faith credited as righteousness

2 Corinthians 5:21 Christ became sin so we might become righteous

Galatians 2:16 Not justified by works of the law but through faith

Isaiah 64:6 Our own righteousness is like filthy rags

Ephesians 2:8–9 Salvation is by grace through faith—not of works

Q: What’s one place where you’re still trying to add to grace?

4. Research

4.1 What does the context (historical and scriptural) tell us about the passage? Paul is writing from prison, reflecting on his past life of religious achievement (Phil. 3:5–6). He’s renouncing all self-earned righteousness and clinging instead to the righteousness from God.

This is more than humility — it’s total identity transformation. In a Roman honor-shame culture obsessed with status, Paul is saying: “I want to be invisible in me—and visible only in Him.”

4.2 ACTIVITY: Book/Commentary Suggestion: From a study Bible or commentary, look up the phrase "faith in Christ" (Phil. 3:9) and summarize what it says about the difference between:

Christ’s righteousness (what He earned)

Our faith (how we receive it)

Takeaway:

5. Connect

Father: Designed salvation and gives righteousness freely Son: Lived righteously and died in our place Holy Spirit: Convicts us, regenerates us, and enables faith

5.1 Trinitarian Application

The Father offers the gift

The Son is the gift

The Spirit places it in your hands

See the “Gift–Hand–Maker” Analogy:

God - The Gift Giver

Jesus - The Gift

Us - The Gift Receiver

5.2 Debate Question:

Is it possible to pursue righteousness without becoming self-righteous?

Why do many believers slip back into law-based thinking after being saved by grace?

Follow-Up Q: How does “being found in Him” change the way you view failure?

6. Hear

6.1 What is one specific truth or command from this passage that I need to live out this week? ➡ Stop proving. Start trusting. ➡ Don't cling to your own goodness. Rest in Christ’s.

6.2 Who is one person I can share this truth with or encourage because of what I’ve learned? ➡ Write their name. Share how righteousness is received — not achieved.

Final Word:

Righteousness is not earned through effort. It’s received through faith. God made it. Christ lived it. You receive it. Rest there.