I'd Rather Have Jesus

Text: Philippians 3:1-11 Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters,* rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.

2 Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved. 3 For we who worship by the Spirit of God* are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, 4 though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more!

5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.

7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ.* For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. 10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, 11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!

(Tyndale House Publishers. (2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Php 3:1–11). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.)

Introduction: Somewhere beneath a sprawling live oak tree in Lake City, Florida there is buried treasure. I know this to be true because I put it there. As many of you know I grew up in Lake City. When I was about 14 years old into my possession from my step-grandfather, Papa, to me, came a couple of $20 gold pieces. I did not know their value at the time but I did know they were something to hang onto. So along with a few other coins that I had collected I placed them in a small flat metal box and buried it under that oak tree that was often the area in our yard where we played. I forgot about that treasure till I got into Bible College and came home for summer vacation. At that time I was in to coin collecting and realized how much those coins were worth. I decided I was going to dig up my buried treasure. I was sure that I recalled the general area where it was but could not find it. I finally had to give up the search. Years later on trips back home I would go out and poke around in the ground to see if I could find it…again to no avail. Years later after mom and dad passed we decided to sell the property. Before finally closing on the transaction I went on the search once more with dedication and purpose to find my buried treasure. Once again, to no avail! My valuable treasure may be found one day…but most likely not by me. Alas! Somewhere beneath a sprawling live oak tree in Lake City there is buried treasure that is probably worth hundreds of dollars.

J. B. Fowler relates the account of the famed treasure hunter, Mel Fisher, who owned Treasure Salvoras, Inc. and had been looking for the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha, for at least 17 years. That ship was reported to be loaded with valuable cargo sank in 1622 during a terrible hurricane. She was on her maiden voyage from Havana, Cuba to Spain.

On a July day just before his 64th birthday, Fisher discovered the ship and her treasure about forty miles west of Key West, Florida. One can imagine the excitement as his divers brought up from the deep an estimated 150 pounds of gold, including 76 gold bars, gold chains, and gold disks. Additionally, the find included more than 900 silver bars. The estimate of the value of the discovery was more than $340 million dollars.

Finding such a treasure is mind-boggling! Just think what you could do with such a trove as that! But as amazing as that is, that treasure pales in comparison to a far greater treasure that is waiting to be found. The treasure of which I speak is not of silver nor of gold, or of $20 gold pieces. It isn’t kept in a bank vault. It doesn’t need to be protected from thieves who might come and steal it. And you don’t have to dive for it or dig for it to have it as your own. It is available to any and every one. Millions have found this treasure and claimed it for themselves, and it’s value has not been depleted one iota. There is as much of it today as there ever has been and it is available to all. It is available to YOU!

It is what Jesus described in Matthew 13:44-46. 44 “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field.

45 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. 46 When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!

Jesus parables here about the Kingdom of Heaven is not to teach that the Kingdom is for sale because no amount of money or wealth can purchase it. These parables rather are emphasizing the great worth of this treasure. It is worth far more than anything we have.

As great as its worth is it cannot be attained by our good works.

I. Heaven is not Gained by Good Works

We must heed the “Beware” sign that Paul has posted in verse 2-4. False teachers that have dogged Paul’s ministry have arrived in Philippi and they are spreading their false teaching that salvation for the Gentiles is available but only by becoming a Jew first through the practice of circumcision. In fact in verse two he uses this strong word “beware” three times. He is saying there is terrible danger here…Beware! In fact, he even says, “Beware of the dogs!” The “dogs” he refers to are the Judaizers with their false teaching of salvation by “works.”

As we have already noted in our journey through Paul’s letter to the Philippians: Good works do not and cannot earn our salvation. That is provided by the grace of God through the sacrifice of Jesus, His Son. The result of our being saved will manifest itself in the works that we do that glorify Him. To say it another way: We do not and cannot work enough to be saved; but once we are saved through our acceptance of His grace our salvation will be demonstrated by the works of our new life in Jesus Christ. Good works are not the cause of salvation; but rather the result of our salvation.

That’s what James had in mind when he said, “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself…I will show you my faith by my works.” (James 2:17,18). That’s what Jesus had in mind when He said, “Let your light shine before men in such as way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16). And, that’s what Paul was referring to when to the Ephesians he wrote, “8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

II. Heaven is not Granted by Merit

Paul told the Philippians that if anyone could be saved by his merit, he would certainly qualify: 3 For we who worship by the Spirit of God* are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, 4 though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more!

5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.

In this passage Paul’s is giving us his very impressive resume. It is a drop-dead resume. He is listing his credentials which are second to none. He is saying that if personal merit and pedigree really counts then I certainly qualify.

He delineates six impressive items; the first three are his qualifications by heritage; the last three are his by his own choice.

He begins at his birth and his family’s adherence to the Jewish Law to circumcise male children when they were eight days old. He’s saying, “I got started off on the right foot.” Paul was not proselyte. He was pure Israelite “of the stock of Israel.”

He indicates that he was from the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin was the son of Rachel, Jacob’s beloved wife. He was the only son of Jacob born in Palestine. The tribe of Benjamin gave Israel Saul, its first king. The tribe of Benjamin was the most honored tribe in times of battle. The tribe of Benjamin was the only tribe that remained faithful to Judah when the kingdom was divided. (1 Kings 12:21). Obviously Paul took pride in his heritage…he was of the tribe of Benjamin.

Paul was also “a Hebrew of Hebrews.” We know that Paul knew Greek, Aramaic and Hebrew, but he had not forsaken the Hebrew language and customs of his people for those of the Greeks. He was fiercely proud of his heritage.

We know from the book of Acts that Paul’s father was a Pharisee (Acts 23:6). Paul was a Pharisee which meant that he had high educational attainments and it meant that he had a high reverence for the Law of Moses, so much so that his zeal for that law drove him to become a...

“persecutor of the church.” He was an activist. He was among those who stoned Stephen, the first Christian martyr (Acts 7:59-8:1). It should be noted that before Paul became a Christian he was a persecutor of Christians but after he became a Christian he was persecuted as a Christian.

Finally Paul says that regarding his commitment to the Jewish Law he was “faultless”. A. T. Robertson indicates that this means that “Paul knew and practised all the rules of the Rabbis. A marvelous record, scoring a hundred in Judaism.”

Now here’s the point: by any measure of that day Paul’s credential’s were amazingly impressive…a resume to be proud of…achievements to boast about. But note that after he lists all his personal merits, he quickly points out that none of these brought him salvation! So far as salvation was concerned, they were worthless. Paul goes on to assert that all of his achievements were nothing more than rubbish when compared to what God has provided through His divine grace in Jesus Christ:

New Living Translation Chapter 3

7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ.* For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.

Essentially Paul says, “These things that used to be so important to me, the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord outshines them all!” The word he uses is the word hyperecho which means “the super-thing.” He asserts, “I have found the super-thing. I’ve found something so brilliant the things that used to control me no longer have any power over me. The things that used to drive me no longer have any influence and control in my life.”

I love Tim Keller’s take on this passage. “Paul says here the thing that made him a Christian was not that he changed his attitude toward his sins. He always knew his sins were wrong. He always knew if he sinned it was bad, and when he sinned, he repented. He said, ‘I counted all of these wonderful things loss for the sake of Christ.’ That meant he had to completely reorient the way he looked at his good deeds, at his credentials, and his accomplishments…Christianity is not an add-on. Christianity isn’t something you add to your life. Christianity isn’t just a little power you add to get you over the hump toward your goals in life. Christianity isn’t the salve you add because you know you’re a sinner and you do bad things so you need some forgiveness. Paul says here you’re not a Christian unless you have utterly changed your entire way of looking at everything about yourself, everything. He says, ‘All of the things I looked at this way, I now look at them in a completely different way.’” Paul now knew what real treasure is. It is not valuable coins buried in the ground. It is not finding a sunken ship whose cargo is worth millions. It is not a large bank account or thriving investments. It is not anything that this world has to offer and it most definitely is not an impressive resume of significant accomplishments. The greatest treasure…the super-thing…is found in Jesus Christ and in Him alone!

We should note the very first part of verse 8 that has in the original five particles which could literally be translated, “yea, indeed, therefore, at last, even!” (Kenneth Wuest). In other words, pile them up…stack them high. Put all of your achievements…all your merits…all your worldly treasures...everything good that you have done…don’t leave anything out and once you have listed it all, cross through it all with a big X and say it amounts to nothing…it’s all rubbish…it’s nothing but waste compared to knowing Christ as Lord and Savior.

Because, you see...

III. Heaven is Through Jesus Alone

To Paul, the greatest treasure of all is “the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ.” He is life’s greatest treasure. He’s the super-thing. Notice what he says in verse 8-11:

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8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ.* For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. 10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, 11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!

Our path to heaven is Jesus and Jesus alone! That’s what Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6). That’s what Peter preached, “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among me, by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12). That’s what Paul preached, “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” (1 Timothy 2:5).

So, the issue before us today is not that we have a sterling resume…it is not that we have amassed a lot of good deeds…it is not that we feel good about ourselves…it is not that we can list a lot of things we don’t do…it is not that our parents and grandparents were Christians…it is not even that we “go to church”…and it is not that we are not nearly as bad as some other people are. None of those is the issue!

The issue is: Have you found Jesus Christ? Is He your Lord and Savior? Is He the super-thing in your life? Have you surrendered yourself, your pride, your resume to Him? Is He on the throne of your heart? Can you honestly sing without reservation: I’d rather have Jesus than anything this world afford today?

Conclusion: Many of us have either read the novel or seen the movie, Ben Hur. It’s the thrilling story of Judah Ben-Hur and his conversion to Christianity. One of the most moving scenes of the movie is the crucifixion of Christ on Calvary. But you may not know the background of that book by Lew Wallace (1827-1905).

The man who challenged Wallace to write Ben Hur was Robert Ingersoll (1833-1899). Neither Wallace nor Ingersoll was a Christian. Ingersoll was a lawyer and an agnostic who over a thirty-year period attacked Christianity at every opportunity.

One day as Ingersoll and Wallace were riding together on a train through St. Louis, Ingersoll notice all the churches, crosses and spires dotting the landscape and he suggested that Wallace write a novel about the moral character of Jesus and dispel all this show of Christianity. “It’ll be a best-seller,” he told Wallace.

Wallace accepted Ingersoll’s challenge and during the time he was governor of the New Mexico Territory, Wallace wrote Ben Hur. As he did his research for his novel a strange thing happened. As he studied history and Scripture about the life of Jesus Christ, Wallace became a Christian.

It has happened again and again through history. When a sinner takes seriously the claims of Jesus as they are presented in the Gospels, he is transformed as he discovers life’s greatest treasure.

That same fantastic treasure is available for you as well. Now is your opportunity to say, “YES” to Christ!