Philippians 3:1-11

Teacher: Rusty Kennedy
​Series: Philippians

Rusty's Notes

Old Covenant vs New covenant
 - New makes old obsolete
KNOWING CHRIST
PHILIPPIANS 3
1 In addition, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. To write to you again about this is no trouble for me and is a safeguard for you.

• We are prone to forget who Jesus is and what He has done in our lives.
• Keep waving the banner.
• Paul’s tone changes… very loving man… speaks of joy… he is happy… through suffering.
• There is a conflict he has been involved with for many years.
• There were other religious people who continually undermining Paul’s ministry.
• Critics, enemies & opposition from pastors and elders of the church
• Paul rebuked religious people who led people astray.

2 Watch out for the dogs (Religious people), watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh (happy knife-cutters). 3 For we are the circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not put confidence in the flesh--

• “Evil workers.” These men taught that the sinner was saved by faith plus good works, especially the works of the Law.
• But Paul states that their “good works” are really evil works because they are performed by the flesh (old nature) and not the Spirit, and they glorify the workers and not Jesus Christ.[1]
• There is a difference between Christians and religious people… understanding, joy and humility
• Dogs – violent, mean, bark, bite and scary. Not domesticated at the time.
• God hates religion!
• Religious people believe that Jesus helps us but that He needs us to help Him.
• Jesus plus anything ruins everything
• Circumcision plus salvation nullifies the cross (Gen 17 – Circumcision was a seal of the covenant that God made with Abraham)
• Temple, priests, sacrifices not needed today
• What are some examples of us adding to our faith to make it a “religion”?
• Richard Halverson writes, “When the Greeks got the Gospel, they turned it into philosophy; When the Romans got it, they turned it into a government; when the Europeans got it, they turned it into a culture; when the Americans got it, they turned it into a business.”
• The DNA of the church produces certain identifiable features:
     - The centrality of Jesus Christ
     - The innate desire to form deep-seated relationships that are centered in Christ
     - Authentic community
     - Familial love and devotion of its members to one another
     - The native instinct to gather without static ritual
     - The internal drive for open-participatory gatherings
     - The loving impulse to display Jesus to a fallen world.

4 although I have reasons for 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;

• Most rule keeping devoted religious people of their day…
• Jesus pointed out they even tithed from their spice racks

6 regarding zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless.

• (OT has more than 600 laws and Paul was blameless).

7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ.

• Paul was auditing his own life… and realized that he had been bankrupt all along.

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 as dung,

• Garbage, refuse, filth, dung, dog dung, turds…
• Isaiah 64:6 - and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.
• I started cleaning out my office at home yesterday.
• Things that I considered valuable (ad cost me much) are now considered just junk… trash.

 
so that I may gain Christ

• Paul literally had to “lose his religion” so that he could “find salvation”.
• Religion is about what “I do”… The Gospel is about what “Jesus has done”.
• Religion trusts in “my works”… The Gospel teaches us to rest in Jesus’ works.
• Religious people confuse justification and sanctification.
• Religious people hate to repent because it reflects their wrongdoing. (You are taking away their goodness!)
• Religion lends an uncertainty to your fate in the end.
• Religion leads to pride or despair. (I can do it or I can’t do it).
• Christianity leads to humbleness and joy which makes us happy!
  
  
• Hard Religion
     - Religion tells you to “clean up your act!”
     - Religious people take things out of the Bible and add their own rules to them and beat people with self-righteous rules and restrict their joy that Jesus intended.
  
  
• Soft Religion
     - Vote, Golden rule, be nice to animals, do things for others, fight poverty…
  
  
• Everyone has religion and is building their resumes.
• Everyone wants to be righteous.
• Will you pursue it through religion or through Jesus.
• All Religions tell us how to become righteous…
  - Buddhism – To be righteous… you cease all desires
  - Confucianism – You pursue education, reflection and lead a moral life.
  - Hinduism – You detach yourself from your ego and live in unity with the divine.
  - Judaism – You obey God’s Law.
  - New Age – You should see yourself as connected with the Oneness and live in perfect harmony with the creation.
  - Taoism – You should line yourself with the Tao and go with the flow
  - Islam – You should live a moral life, do good deeds, and stand before Allah in the end and if your good deeds outweigh your bad deeds and Allah so wills it, you shall be declared righteous.
• Every single religion… both hard and soft… tells us that on our resume should be listed all the things we have done to be declared righteous.
• Paul is saying that it has nothing to do with what we have done but purely what Jesus has done.

Grace vs works
A lady was arguing with her pastor about this matter of faith and works. “I think that getting to heaven is like rowing a boat,” she said. “One oar is faith, and the other is works. If you use both, you get there. If you use only one, you go around in circles.”
‘’There is only one thing wrong with your illustration,” replied the pastor. “Nobody is going to heaven in a rowboat!”[2]
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.
Justification…

• God demands perfection and there is only one way we can become perfect. Through Christ!
• Two words on my resume… Jesus Christ.
• I have been declared righteous because of my faith in Jesus!
• Gift righteousness!

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.[3]
Sanctification…

• Everything changes. It has changed and continues to change!
• New nature, new desires, new power, new passion… a life that results in passion, purpose and JOY!
• Religion cannot compare to this!

It’s tax season and you are collecting your forms.
 - You will do your own personal financial audit.
 - What if you audit the things you do this week?
 - Is it your strength or His strength?

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, pp. 84–85). Victor Books.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 85). Victor Books.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Php 3:1–11). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.