Christ Alone
Philippians • Sermon • Submitted
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Transcript
Scripture Reading
Scripture Reading
1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.
2 Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. 3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.
7 But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Introduction
Introduction
What is the basis of your hope for salvation? What is the basis for your reconciliation, right standing with God?
That is the question the Paul addresses in this passage for his own life, and that he emphasizes for these believers in Philippi.
Now, if we’re well-versed and taught in the Scriptures, I think we would all say that it is only by grace through faith that we are saved. But I wonder if we all really believe that in reality, and we’ve allowed that truth to properly sink in?
As we turn to our text this morning, let us consider together just how far Paul goes in emphasizing that this salvation that we have is only by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Christ Alone must be seen as our hope of salvation.
1. Exhortation to Rejoice (v.1)
1. Exhortation to Rejoice (v.1)
As we being our study of this passage this morning, we see that Paul gives an exhortation to rejoicing. In verse 1, Paul writes:
1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.
The word “finally” here almost sounds as if he’s bringing a conclusion to the letter, but he’s in actual fact only half way through!
This exhortation to rejoice is a fitting way to introduce an important matter that Paul is about to deal with.
We know well that this letter is a letter dealing extensively on the topic of Joy. Even in the midst of trials and persecutions, Paul is encouraging the believers to live with joy. But the question then becomes, what is the source of that joy, and the reason for that joy. This is a Gospel question!
Paul is going to remind these believers of core doctrinal truths; truths that define the very reality of who they are, truths that form the basis of who they are. He writes that it is no trouble for him to write the same things to them again…
This repetition of the basic but fundamental truths of the Gospel is so significant. We will never mature enough as Christians that we do not need to listen again to the Gospel truth of Christ crucified and what that means for us as Christians. Paul says to these Christians that this is a safeguard for them. Peter said to the believers that he wrote to....
12 So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have.
And so, even as we delve into these words of Paul, may we once again be confronted with the powerful truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the implications of that for our own lives.
As Paul goes forward, he begins by giving an important caution to these believers in Philippi.
2. An Important Caution (vv.2-3)
2. An Important Caution (vv.2-3)
Paul’s caution begins in verse 2 with some exceedingly strong wording. He writes...
2 Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh.
The emphasis of the warning is lost in the NIV here. In the original there is a three-fold repetition of the word “Beware” (watch out).
2 Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision;
A three-fold repetition to the original audience conveys a serious warning here. On each occasion he calls the people that are warned against by a different name, but they all refer to the same group of people that were posing a danger and a threat to the church in that day. The people that he is warning against is those known as the Judaizers.
I will touch on each of those names just briefly here, and notice with me the force of what he’s saying.
Firstly, he says that they should “beware of the dogs.” Now, if you recall our study in the Gospel of Mark, you will recall that the term “Dogs” was usually used by Jews to refer to the Gentile unbelievers; those who were not part of God’s people; those who were considered to be unclean. And so Paul is not using this here as any kind of insult, or abusive term. Rather he’s taking the term that the Jews associated with those who were unclean, and he’s using that very term to describe them.
One commentator writes on this: “Paul, therefore, is making a startling point: the great reversal brought in by Christ means that it is the Judaizers who must be regarded as Gentiles” [1]
Paul develops this thought in the second “Beware” where he says that they should “Watch out for those men who do evil...”
We must ask, what evil is being spoken of here by Paul? In the context of what he’s saying, and what is to follow where he will speak of his own credentials, he is not speaking about blatantly sinful actions, and those who are living in outright sin. Rather, his emphasis is on the evil of the Judaizers - those who say you should hold to some aspect or dimension of the law - who place a burden on people, causing them to turn the basic trust and faith away from Jesus Christ. The evil that he is speaking of here is a lack of faith and trust in Christ alone for salvation, and the idea that it is necessary to include something more in order to be saved.
In Galatians 3:10, Paul made this very clear. He said this:
10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”
There is quite literally a curse upon the one relying on the law, because no person can live in full and perfect obedience to the law. That’s the very reason that we required a perfect Saviour.
Thirdly, Paul says that they are to watch out for those mutilators of the flesh. He is speaking here of those who required of the Gentiles, and everyone, to be circumcised in order to be obedient to God. In order to be part of God’s covenant community, they would say, you need circumcision. It is a requirement. In other words, there can be no salvation outside of circumcision.
This was the very aspect that the Jerusalem council addressed in Acts 15. In verse 1 of that chapter, we read:
1 Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.
And so the Jerusalem council was held, and this is what was said to those gathered by Paul...
7 After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10 Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? 11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”
By Grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. That is the Gospel message!! There is no other external act of obedience that can contribute to your salvation. Certainly there will be wonderful good works that flow out of conversion, and union with Christ, a life of love and service, but friends, we need to be brought entirely on our faces before God, and throw off all reliance on our own works and self-righteousness, and trust fully, and only in Christ our Lord.
Paul’s caution here is a strong one, but in order to truly emphasize it, he then goes on to outline his own credentials, if anyone were to have hope of obtaining to salvation through obedience to rules and regulations.
3. The Apostle’s Credentials (vv.4-6)
3. The Apostle’s Credentials (vv.4-6)
In verse 4, Paul says:
4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more:
Paul has all the credentials. In fact he has greater and better credentials than any other person could possibly have. Paul enters into a section of mock boasting in his own credentials.
What are those credentials? He gives seven aspects concerning his own credentials as a man belonging to the chosen people of God that he could rely on in order to obtain favour with God. He does this in verses 5 and 6, and we’ll just look at each one very briefly…
Firstly - circumcised on the eighth day. Paul begins here with circumcision because it was the very rite of passage that the Judaizers emphasized above all others. Paul says here that he was circumcised precisely in the fashion that God had commanded to Abraham (Genesis 17:12) and the manner in which is was required in order to become one who was identified with the people of God. Many of the Judaizers would probably have been Gentiles who had proselytized (been brought into) the nation of Israel as adults. Not so with Paul! He was an eighth-day-er!
Secondly - of the people of Israel. His parents were true Israelites. Paul was not from mixed descent. He was a true Israelite in every sense of the word. His lineage could be traced back to Jacob. He belonged to the people of God.
Thirdly - of the tribe of Benjamin. Even within Israel, there may have been those descended from disreputable parts of the nation. Now the tribe of Benjamin was certainly not perfect, they had their faults and their share of sinful actions. But they were a tribe known for their warriors and their capabilities as warriors for the nation of Israel, despite their small size. Great deliverers and leaders came from the tribe. Ehud, one of the judges, delivered Israel from the Moabites. Saul was the first king of Israel, and descended from Benjamin. It was through Mordecai and Esther from the tribe of Benjamin that the Israelites were saved as a people from the evil scheming of Haman. The fact is, Paul was descended from a particular tribe in Israel, known for its zeal for God.
Fourthly - a Hebrew of Hebrews. This phrase just emphasizes Paul’s lineage through Hebrew parents. If anyone deserves to be called a man of the chosen nation of God, it is Paul.
Paul will go on to refer not only to his lineage, the fact that he has descended as a reputable Jew, but he will now outline what he has performed as a Jew - the actions that he has performed in order to ensure his upright standing as a Jew before God.
Fifthly - in regard to the law, a Pharisee. According to Acts 23:6, Paul was the son of a Pharisee. He also said of himself…
14 I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
5 They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that according to the strictest sect of our religion, I lived as a Pharisee.
We know well that the Pharisees were adept and keeping the strictest commands of God, and man. They lived what were perceived to be lives of impeccable character. And Paul was a strict Pharisee. A man who in others’ eyes would have been above any reproach.
Sixthly - as for zeal, persecuting the church. If there was anyone who was zealous for Judaism and its laws, it was Paul, who persecuted the church in the extreme because he was so zealous for maintaining the purity of the law of God. As he looked at the Christians, he saw them as those who deserved death. In Acts 9:1, it says that Paul was breathing out murderous threats against the disciples, and he subsequently went about trying to have them arrested. Paul defended Judaism more than any other.
Seventh / Finally - as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. “So strict had Paul been in his outward observance of the Old Testament law, as interpreted by the Jewish religious leaders, that in the pursuit of this legal rectitude he had become blameless (cf. Phil. 2:15), that is, in human judgment. His outward conduct had been irreproachable. Could the Judaists claim the same with respect to themselves?” [2]
As a man, Paul had lived such a good life. He had lived according to the law, the revealed law of God. He had lived a life wherein if anyone had any merit or claim to be acceptable before the Almighty, then here was the man. He excelled in this.
But all of this, all of the pomp and the show, all of the external facade of holiness and righteousness, the show of being someone that was significant in God’s economy, amounted to absolutely nothing. Zero. It was useless.
4. The Supremacy of Christ (vv.7-9)
4. The Supremacy of Christ (vv.7-9)
In verse 7, Paul makes this very clear…
7 But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
Now let us understand that the things that Paul outlined, were not in and of themselves bad things. There was nothing wrong with being circumcised on the eighth day. After all, this was commanded by God. There was nothing wrong with being an Israelite. These were the chosen people of God. There is nothing wrong with being zealous, or even living a moral life. The problem lies in the fact that men trusted in these things, rather than understanding that these things pointed to someone greater. When those gains lead to self-satisfaction, self-glorification, then they lead to the loss of life due to misplaced trust, and are in fact a great loss.
Paul goes on in verse 8 to say...
8 What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
Essentially what Paul is saying here is that he had tried everything in life in order to have righteous standing with God. He had pursued every avenue to be in right relationship with the Almighty, but through all that he’s tried and hoped for, he realises that it is truly of no value. In fact, it has only hindered his relationship with God, since it led him to rely on those things, rather than relying on the righteouness of Christ.
Far greater than any of that is the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. It is for the sake of Christ, for the sake of exalting Christ, and having Christ’s name lifted high, that he considers everything a loss. He will throw it all away.
He says “I consider them rubbish...” The word that he uses here, in the colloquial language probably referred to that which was thrown out to the dogs. But the medical term, which probably Paul had in mind when he wrote these words, was excrement - dung! He considered all of those pillars of so-called righteousness to be worthless, as nothing.
William Barclay writes that Paul is essentially saying here… ‘I found the law and all its ways of no more use in helping me to get into a right relationship with God than the refuse thrown on the garbage heap. So I gave up trying to create a goodness of my own; I came to God in humble faith, as Jesus told me to do, and I found that fellowship I had sought for so long.’ [3]
He does this so that he may gain Christ. And into verse 9...
9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.
Paul wants to know Jesus Christ, and the righteousness that comes through Him. He’s come to the place where he’s recognised that there is absolutely no hope apart from the hope that is found in Christ. The righteousness that can be achieved through works, through trying to achieve and win God’s favour is absolutely useless, as helpful as rubbish on a rubbish dump!!
Here is the Gospel message, that the only righteousness that is of any value whatsoever is that which is by faith . Everything else, all other reliance, any other basis or addition to any kind of hope, is utterly futile, and in fact foolish.
In fact the message of Paul to the Galatians is that if anyone preaches another Gospel - in that context, it really had very much to do with a similar matter of Judaizers - he says that they are accursed.
Which leads us to our fifth and final observation from this passage:
5. The Hope Through Christ (v.10-11)
5. The Hope Through Christ (v.10-11)
As we move into these final two verses, we find Paul driving home the importance and significance of a life completely surrendered to the Gospel message of faith in Jesus Christ. He writes in verse 10-11..
10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Above all, of greatest importance and significance to Paul, is that he wants to know Jesus Christ. The word that Paul uses here for “to know” is significant. The word from the original Greek speaks about a personal knowledge, an intimate knowledge. He is not at all talking about knowing about Jesus, knowing about Christ’s work in terms of a head knowledge. It is not intellectual knowledge that is being spoken of here. He is referring to a personal experience of another person.
In the Old Testament, the phrase to know was used to speak of the intimacy that is found in marriage between a husband and a wife. In the book of Genesis 4:1, we read that Adam “knew is wife Eve” and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. It thus speaks of the most intimate knowledge of another person. Paul doesn’t want to know about Jesus, he wants to know Christ personally.
But what is it that he wants to know concerning Christ?
Firstly, he wants to know the power of Christ’s resurrection. Many Christians, when they speak about the resurrection, do so as if it were simply an event recorded in history. But that was not how the apostle Paul viewed the resurrection of Jesus Christ. To Paul, the resurrection was an event of mammoth significance in life, in the every day living of life as a believer.
God by His own great power, raised Christ from the dead, and with that same power, God raises us from spiritual death to spiritual life.
It is that power which empowers us in our lives day after day, ensuring that are able to endure as believers through the trials and storms of this life.
Ephesians 1:19-20 says, “That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms...”
The power of Christ’s resurrection is also the guarantee for all believers of the life to come, the fact that we too will be raised to new life in time to come at Christ’s return, and so we will be with Him.
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
There is great significance to Paul in the resurrection of JEsus Christ. But he does not merely want to know about this! Again, he wants to live with a deep knowledge of this resurrection that his own life is profoundly transformed and shaped by it.
Paul further says that he wants to know the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings. Here is a consistent reality in the New Testament writings - Christians will share in the suffering of Christ. They will face hardship; they will face opposition; they will be harmed! The life of the Christian is one of following in the footsteps of the master in his own sufferings in this world. Paul even went so far as to say...
24 Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.
William Barclay writes: “To suffer for the faith is not a penalty; it is a privilege, for thereby we share the very work of Christ.” [4]
Further than this, Paul wants to know Christ even to the extent of becoming like Him in His death. In an ultimate sense, this would refer to his own physical death. But Paul has much more than that in mind when he speaks of sharing in Christ’s death. He speaks more fully of the death to self, the death to sin that is so necessary in the life of a believer, one who follows after this wonderful Saviour. The picture is portrayed beautifully in Romans 6, which I think we know quite well.
1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
It is through such a life that Paul speaks about somehow attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
It is as the believers walks in this newness of life, in a life that has died to self, and is now controlled by the Spirit of Christ, that the final resurrection comes about.
“To know Christ means that we share the way he walked; we share the cross he bore; we share the death he died; and finally we share the life he lives for evermore.” (Barclay)
Conclusion / Application
Conclusion / Application
As we close, we must consider our own lives prayerfully before our heavenly Father, and our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
What are you trusting to give you right standing before God?
If we fail to recognise that our greatest need in life is reconciliation with our holy God, then the Gospel will not be a source of joy for us.
The Gospel is not about what you can do to save yourself. The Gospel is about what Jesus has done for you.
Of course there is obedience required to God. Living a life of love for Him and our neighbour.
Bibliography
Bibliography
Silva, M. (2005). Philippians (2nd ed., p. 147). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953–2001). Exposition of Philippians (Vol. 5, p. 160). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.
Barclay, W. (2003). The Letters to Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians (3rd ed. fully rev. and updated, p. 73). Louisville, KY; London: Westminster John Knox Press.
Ibid, p. 75