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Philippians 3:1-21 in other words…
Rejoice in the Lord!
Rest in the Lord.
Jump into the Lord with both feet.
Surround yourself without and within the Lord.
Find real relevance in the Lord.
Only in the Lord is repeated joy!
To say this over and over is not hard for me and it’s a reminder, a guard rail for you. Guardrails are good; they keep us from falling off the edge. We have short attention spans and are always following the next bright thing with our eyes.
2. Beware of the outsiders, those who are not of us, those who want you to stumble and fall to join them. Beware of those who say they are separated aliens to God and are not.
3. We are truly separated from the world. We are truly aliens who prove the worth of God by our actions by the Spirit of God who makes it possible to revel, bask and submerge ourselves in Jesus Christ and we do not trust what we can see, touch, and feel, but rather, we trust in what was promised by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
4-6. If anyone can have faith in what can be seen, touched, and felt, Paul says he can. If anyone else can be confidently pragmatic, Paul can, more so.
A. He was set apart according to God’s promise to Abraham to be a special nation among nations.
B. Of that promise, of the nation of Israel, a son of the promise to Jacob.
C. Of the Tribe of Benjamin with a perpetual inheritance here in the world according to birthrights in the land of promise.
D. Among Hebrews of the promise a stand-out guy.
E. As to the Law of Moses, very devout.
F. A devout patriot in his nationalism and sect, a persecutor of the followers of Jesus who were called out of Paul’s nationalism.
G. As to self justification and pride in the Law, without blame.
7. Whatever I thought made had me something, I count as nothing; I discard, throw it away it for the sake of Christ who really is something. I throw away the nothing I thought was something to gain everything which is Jesus!
8. More than that, I throw away everything I ever thought was important just for the tremendous value of just seeking to know Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I lose and throw away all things and attainments and consider them to be degrading and disgusting manure in order that I may gain Christ. I trade everything for Christ. I no longer seek relevance or experience here; instead, I seek only relevance in Christ. To gain Jesus Christ is to become relevant. Not me, Him in me.
9. When I gain Christ, I have no righteousness gained by my own works, not in or of me by me, but I have the righteousness of Christ through faith, the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith; faith being repentance that lets go of what I see to grab hold of what I don’t see but wait eagerly for.
10. That I might intimately know first hand the power of His resurrection (in me) and the fellowship of His sufferings being conformed to His death; I leave all behind and suffer gladly because it keeps me calling on Him for succor and salvation so I will be brought to life from His death. I die to this life gladly to gain real life, His life.
12. Not that I’ve been resurrected yet or even become mature yet, but I press on, I push against the tide so that I might grab hold of that life, that resurrection which is why Christ laid hold of me.
13. I don’t have it yet, but this one thing I focus on; forgetting everything I thought was important, forgetting and casting off everything the world thinks is important, I have my sight, my aspirations, fixed high.
14. I press on toward the goal, Jesus. I press on to the prize; life, which is what I was called to by God in Jesus Christ. This consumes me.
15. You who are mature, or aspire to maturity, have this same attitude… If you have a different attitude, God will show you… but will you listen?
16. Live by the standard to which you’ve attained. Don’t go back. Only go forward. Grow.
17. Follow my example. Watch those who walk as I do. Follow this pattern of single-mindedness in reaching the goal; the only goal worth having.
18. Speaking of walking: Many have walked, but now I tell you, while weeping, they are now enemies of the cross of Christ (Heb. 10:26)
19. They will be perpetually destroyed. Their god is their self-willed desires. They have it all backwards: What they glory in, what they say is good is shameful. They love the world. What consumes them is what they see, touch, and feel as if it was truly of importance. They grasp death willingly with both arms and embrace it.
20. Not us! We are citizens of Heaven. We are passing through as pilgrims and aliens headed to our home; the Kingdom of our Lord King Savior Jesus whom we eagerly, longingly wait to see.
21. He will transform us from what we rejected to be conformed, made like, the body of His glory, LIFE, which is what we embrace! The same power that gives us LIFE is the same power by which He made all things and the same power by which He will subject all things to Himself.
Amen!
P.S. Friend, what do you aspire to?