profit and loss

Philippians 3:1-11

I don’t know what it is about the end of the year, or the aftermath of the Christmas season, that provokes a sort of introspection.  For me, it’s always been somewhat of a  depressing time of year.  My birthday comes the day after Christmas, and when I was a kid I sometimes felt like because of the date it didn’t get quite the attention that I thought it deserved.  And now that I’m getting to the age when I don’t want to be reminded of how old I am, it seems that Christmas, my birthday, and the New Year can be sort of like a triple whammy.

Even a few of the popular Christmas songs seem to promote a sort of melancholy introspection.  John Lennon wrote a song called War is Over, which has never been a favorite of mine, but which seems to play on the radio once every three minutes.  And there is a line in that song which says, “so this is Christmas, and what have you done, another year over, and a new one’s just begun.”

I don’t know what sort of new year resolutions  you may be considering as we enter into this new year.  If you’re like me, you probably want to lose a few pounds, or begin a new exercise program that you hope you can actually stick to for more than a few days.  They say this is the time of the year when gym memberships soar, and more sales of exercise equipment happen than at any other time of the year.  Unfortunately, most of it will be sitting out in the front lawn in a yard sale by the end of the summer.  Most of us are just not that good at keeping New Year’s resolutions.

And I think the reason most of us fail in our resolutions is because before there can be any lasting resolution, there must be an internal revolution.  This is the problem with most people’s concept of getting religion or going to church.  There is perhaps a recognition that something needs to change in their lives, but simply trying in their own power to turn over a new leaf doesn’t seem to have lasting results.  Many people are just trying to exchange one set of external conditions for another set of external conditions.  But the difference between adopting Christianity as a religion or turning over a new leaf, and being born again, is that in real salvation there is an encounter with Christ which results in an internal metamorphosis.

As we look at this passage today, Paul is giving us a picture of his own personal metamorphosis.  We know the story of his conversion as recorded in Acts, being on the road to Damascus and having the light of the glory of the Lord fall upon him and blinding him, and hearing the voice of Jesus call out, “Paul, Paul, why are you persecuting me?”  And Paul answers, “Who are you?”  And the voice responds, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.”  And for Paul in that moment, though he is blind, yet spiritually he now sees.  He believes in Jesus Christ as the Messiah, as the Son of God and is converted.  And yet there is not a lot of information as to the details of that conversion.  So here in Philippians Paul is fleshing his conversion out in a way that can be very instructive for us today.

The passage can be broken down into a kind of profit and loss statement.  If you own a business, you might be inclined to look at your financial results in terms of a profit and loss statement.  Even if you don’t have  a personal business, you may still find yourself evaluating your progress in some way or another, much like the song by John Lennon: another year is over, what have you done?  What did you accomplish this year?  What did you gain? What did you lose?  Where are you now in regards to where you were a year ago? And how much more important is it for us to consider what we have done from an eternal perspective?  What have we done in our lives that will count as far as God is concerned?   So I hope that as you consider Paul’s profit and loss statement, it will prompt you to consider your own profit or loss in relation to the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus asked the question in Matt. 16:24, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” My hope is that after we have finished with this message, you will have determined that which is profitable in the eyes of God and that which is worthless.  And that we will order our lives according to what God tells us is profitable.

So first Paul is going to list 7 things that he once thought was worthwhile, he once thought made brownie points with God, and now since his conversion he realizes are worthless, compared to the surpassing value of knowing Jesus Christ.

Number one, starting in verse 5, his circumcision.  He lists this first undoubtedly because this was the big one for the false teachers.  These Jewish teachers were saying that basically you needed to become a proselyte of Israel in order to really be accepted by God.  Faith plus circumcision.  And Paul says, I too was circumcised on the eighth day.  This was the standard for children born to Hebrew parents.  And as I said last week, it became a standard of Jewish nationality.  You were either of the circumcision or you were an uncircumcised dog, a Gentile.  And circumcision had lost all it’s spiritual significance.  It was a fleshly mark by which they determined acceptance into their culture, but it had no real spiritual significance.  It was just a religious ritual, done even before they had a chance to know what was happening to them, and somehow they thought that this would guarantee them a place in the kingdom of heaven.

The fact is, the church is still practicing certain rituals today that have lost all spiritual significance, but people are trusting in them to add some sort of credibility or acceptance with God.  Baptism is very often in many denominations added to salvation by faith alone as a requirement for acceptance with God.  In some cases they even practice infant baptism, the same idea that was happening in Paul’s day with infant circumcision.  The baby has no concept of what is being done, and yet they are teaching that baptism of the infant is a means of placing the child within the blessing of God.  Circumcision was a symbol of a need for an inward cutting away of sinful flesh. And as a symbol it could never save.  Baptism is a symbol of an inward change from death to life, and as a symbol it can never save.  The sacraments like the Lord’s Supper, or Communion, are a symbol, a picture of Christ’s atoning sacrifice for our sins, but it is only a symbol in remembrance of what Christ did.  But if you haven’t personally appropriated what Christ did on the cross for yourself, then just the picture alone can never save you.  Paul counted circumcision as a loss.

Secondly, Paul says he is “of the nation of Israel.”  The name Israel, you remember, was the name God changed Jacob’s name to.  He became the father of the 12 tribes of Israel, which became a great nation as God had promised to his grandfather Abraham.  They were called the chosen people, God’s chosen people.  And Israelites trusted in their nationality as a means of belonging to the family of God.

There is some similarity in this claim to what we find happening here in America as well in the 21st century.  We somehow believe that Americans have managed to secure a larger portion of God’s grace than the rest of the world.  I am afraid that we have a superior view  of our nationality.  We think as Christians we deserve an American version of the blessings of God.  Our idea of what it means to be an American Christian is to enjoy a four bedroom, 3 ½ bath, brick two story house with a two car garage and new cars and all the toys and gadgets that modern ingenuity can provide.  Our view of Christianity is completely different than what Christianity looks like in virtually every other country in the world.  And I can assure you that such a view is seriously flawed and not supported anywhere in the Bible.  Christianity does not assure one of the American dream.

Thirdly, Paul says, “of the tribe of Benjamin.”  And this had many implications.  It was a point of pride that he could even support his lineage.  Not all Jews could trace back their lineage due to the fact that during the exile they had lost records or intermarried.  And so it was  a big deal in Jewish society to be able to say you were of the tribe of Benjamin.  Benjamin, if you remember, was the favorite son of Jacob, and is home to it’s greatest city,  Jerusalem.

It’s not hard to make a modern day association with this, is it?  How many times today do we hear that someone “comes from a good family?”  That the person is of the right kind of pedigree?  How many of us have determined our religion by what our kind of religion our parents adhered to.  We go to certain churches because our parents went to that church, or our grandparents are buried in the grave yard.  Family lineage, Paul says, goes in the loss column.

Fourthly, Paul says he was a “Hebrew of Hebrews”.  And this is taking the previous claim just a little bit further.  It means his parents were Hebrews and raised him to speak Hebrew and observe the Hebrew customs.  They sent him to the best Hebrew schools; he was trained by Gamaliel, one of the most revered teachers of the law.
Today, someone might be born of devout Christian parents, gone to Christian schools, Christian universities, trained in every facet of Christianity.  It’s counted as loss.

Fifthly, Paul says, “as to law, a Pharisee.”  This referred to a sect of Jews that adhered to the letter of the law in a ultra strict way.  Jesus said that they even  tithed of the mint, dill and cumin in their herb garden.  They measured and weighed everything to the nth degree in an effort to keep the letter of the law.  They were the religious leaders of Judaism.

In my own family, I know of people like this.  They have taken strict standards and made them even stricter, even more outlandish, in an effort to be exceedingly righteous. And in our society today, we all know many people who we may describe as good people, they are involved in many worthwhile charities and endeavors.  Sometimes to the point of making Christians embarrassed we don’t do nearly enough.  And yet Paul says this too was merely rubbish.

A man once remarked to R.A. Torrey following a message about the need to be born again, “I know some people who make no pretense of being a Christian but live fine, upright lives, they are kind and generous.  But I also know people who say they are Christians and yet live less exemplary lives.”  And Dr. Torrey replied, “It’s a matter of what state they are in.”  And he drew a square on the dust of the floor and said, “the rectangle represents the state of unregeneracy. Let’s say it’s the state of Colorado.  And one many might live high on the top of a mountain and another might live at sea level, and another man might be working down at the bottom  of a mine.  But all three men are in the state of unregeneracy.   One person might live on the mountains of morality, one might live an ordinary life, and another might live in the pit of debauchery, but all are in an unregenerate state.  We are all born in that state.

Dr. Torrey traced another rectangle and continued. “This is the state of regeneracy.  The only way out of the state of unregeneracy into the state of regeneracy is by being born again.  In the state of regeneracy one might live on the high mountain of spirituality, another might live a very average Christian life, and another might be backslidden and living a very carnal life.  But all are living in the state of regeneracy.  Outwardly, it may look like the man in the regenerate state but carnal condition might be compared unfavorably with the moral man living on the mountain in the unregenerate state,  but the fact is that one is unregenerate, and one is not.  The man living in the unregenerate state is devoid of spiritual life, no matter how moral he is.  The backslider is living in a state of spiritual life, though for the time being it is not evident. It all depends upon which state you are in.  The only way to pass from one state to another is by the gift of righteousness which comes only through Christ.”

Next, Paul says, “as to zeal, a persecutor of the church.”  Paul had been locking up and persecuting Christians even unto death.  Now that was zeal.  He took his religion so seriously that he was willing to kill for it.   And the modern equivalent of that is sincerity.  How many times have we been taught that you can believe whatever you want as long as you’re sincere, God will honor that.   You can be sincere, but sincerely wrong.

And finally, Paul says, “as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.” Jesus said of the Pharisees that they kept the law to be seen of men.  They wanted to be praised for their works, that was the motivation behind doing them.  And isn’t that the case more often than not in the church today?  It’s like the way I clean house.  I don’t really clean house very often.  My wife works to keep the house clean and the beds made and the dishes washed for all five of us.  But I have learned that if I am going to bend over and pick something up off the floor, it doesn’t really count unless she sees me do it.  So I make sure that I don’t pick anything up unless she is there to witness it.  Otherwise, it’s as if I didn’t actually do it.  And I’m afraid that we approach our Christianity that way too.  We want to be seen of men. We want to be sure to keep up appearances, and so we structure our lives to be seen by men.  The outside of the cup is shiny, but inwardly it is full of vileness.

So those are the seven things Paul says he once thought had value but now realizes are worthless.  Look at vs. 7  “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  8) More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ.”  This is the answer for the question Jesus asked in Matthew 16:24 we looked at earlier, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”  And the answer Paul is giving us is that he gave everything that he once considered gain, he gave it up as loss for the sake of knowing Christ as His Savior.  The answer to what shall a man give in exchange for his soul, is everything.  Everything.  Jesus gave an parable about a man who found a pearl of great price and went and sold everything to buy that pearl.  Jesus told the rich young ruler who had kept the law and thought he had done everything to be accepted into heaven, Jesus told him to go sell everything he had and give it to the poor and come an follow Me.  Giving all you have cannot buy your salvation, only the blood of Jesus can purchase your salvation.  But relinquishing all that you hold onto as a source of salvation is the point of this message.  All the things you think have bought you favor with God have to be considered loss in light of the immeasurable treasure of knowing Christ unto salvation.

Quickly, let’s look at five things that you gain when you come to Christ, when you jettison all the other filthy rags of self righteousness and come to Christ. You gain these five: knowledge, righteousness, power, fellowship, glory. Starting in verse 9, “and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

Number one, salvation begins with the knowledge of Jesus Christ. That's the first thing he gained, he gained the knowledge of Jesus Christ.  This kind of knowledge is the knowledge gained through intimacy of a relationship. It’s not knowing the facts about  a person, but knowing that person intimately.  Having a relationship.  To be found in Him and He in Me.  To have the communion of the Holy Spirit living inside me, knowing my thoughts, having his laws written upon my heart.  To know Him is a supernatural metamorphosis whereby God lives in me and gives me spiritual life, opening my heart and eyes that I may know Him.

Number 2, salvation gains the righteousness of Jesus Christ.  “not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.”  Romans tells us that Abraham believed God and He counted it to Abraham as righteousness.  Righteousness is not something I do, but something God gives me as a result of my faith in Christ.  2 Cor. 5:21 “God made Him who knew no sin to become sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”

Thirdly, salvation provides the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.   The power of a new life which triumphs over my dead flesh.  Like Paul on the road to Damascus, once I was blind, but now I see.  The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.  Because Jesus died and rose again, I too live again spiritually.  I was dead in my trespasses and sins.  But by the cross of Christ I have been made alive with Christ.  Though my body is still dead in the flesh, I have been made alive in the Spirit and by the Spirit I am able to live the life that God requires of me.

Fourth, salvation also brought him fellowship with Jesus Christ. Vs. 10 “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.”  This fellowship can also be interpreted communion, Christ living in me.  God’s purpose for us is that we might be conformed to the image of Christ.Rom 8:29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren. “   And in order for us to really be conformed to the image of Christ, we need to die in our flesh, so that we might live in the Spirit.  We need to suffer the loss of our fleshly desires, passions and will.  That’s what it means to have the fellowship of His sufferings.  Rom 8:17 says, “and if [we are] children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

 And that brings us to the final point, if we suffer with Him, we will also be glorified with Him.  Fifthly, salvation results in the glory of Jesus Christ.  Vs. 11, “in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

The Bible speaks of Jesus as the first fruits of the resurrection, taken up into glory.  1Cor. 15:20 “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 1Cor. 15:23 “But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming, then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.” 1Cor. 15:41 “There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” 1Cor. 15:54 “But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?"

This is the glory of Christ. The glory that he had with the Father before the world began.  And we share in that glory with him in that we are the bride of Christ which he purchased from the fallen world by his own blood.  This is the promise of glory by which all the things of this world that we once considered as profitable, we now count but loss for the sake of knowing Jesus Christ as Lord, for the sake of sharing with Him in all that the Father has planned for those that love Him.

I trust that you have done a spiritual inventory today.  I hope you have looked carefully at what you are counting on as profit in regards to the kingdom of heaven.  Perhaps you realize that you have been counting on the wrong things.  I pray that you will today count those things as loss for the sake of knowing Christ, and that in knowing Christ and having faith in Him, God credits you with the righteousness of Jesus Christ, that you may attain to the resurrection from the dead into the glory that God has prepared for those that love Him.  It can be yours if you’re willing to give up all that you hold dear, for the sake of knowing Jesus.  Let’s pray.

false circumcision

Phil. 3:1-3

Last time we looked at Philippians, Paul gave us three examples of Christian behavior that was modeled for us in human flesh.   After having presented Jesus Christ as our example of sacrifice, humility and servitude, Paul wanted to flesh that out lest we make the excuse that we are just human and so therefore cannot follow Christ’s example.  So he gives us three earthly examples of Christian living in human flesh.  Paul, Timothy and Epaphroditus are presented as examples of being a servant, a sacrifice and a soldier of Christ Jesus.

But there is an important point in these examples that needs to be underscored, and  that is what Paul is reiterating today.  And the point is that there is a real Christianity which is marked by righteousness accomplished by the Spirit working  through my flesh, and there is a false Christianity which is marked by my attempting to attain righteousness through works of the flesh.  And this is a very important distinction.  Because one is the result of a true salvation based on faith and the other results in a false salvation based on works.

So obviously, this is a matter of extreme importance.  And we need to be discerning in regards to the truth of the gospel and deviations from the truth which can result in shipwreck of your faith.  It’s important to know doctrine, and furthermore to be able to make distinctions between truth and error. 

Too many times we see a pendulum reaction to certain things, whether they be good or bad, and yet the pendulum swing in and of itself can lead to extremes that can be harmful.  For instance, the tragedy in Connecticut was heartbreaking.  But as people want to somehow respond to this tragic event, there is the real possibility that we as a society can overreact, and if the pendulum swings to far over, it is possible to add further error to injury. 

And to some extent we can have the same thing happen in the doctrine of the church as well.  As we respond to the legalism of the OT, sometimes the pendulum can swing too far in the other direction.   As we go from works to grace, from law to liberty, or from flesh to Spirit, there is the possibility  for error on either end of the spectrum.  For instance, liberty can easily become licentiousness if taken too far.  So the proper Christian walk must be balanced by what the Word of God actually says, as opposed to a knee jerk reaction that is based on sentimentality or emotion. 

So Paul is going to balance this out for us as he goes through this text and we are going to look specifically at the first three verses today.  He starts by saying “finally”, which is a preacher term that means getting a second wind.  It doesn’t really have anything to do with the amount of time it will take to finish.  In this case, it means Paul is only half way done.  So finally, in my case, I’m ready to leave my introduction and start the exegesis of the first verse.

Paul says in verse one, “finally then brethren, rejoice in the Lord.”  And by now we should know that rejoice or joy is a key word in this book.  Paul uses it over and over again.  And what it means, by way of a reminder, is that we find our joy in the Lord.  Not in circumstances which may change from day to day.  We don’t find joy in some fleeting happiness due to external situations that we find ourselves in.  But our joy is in the constancy of our relationship with the Lord.  He never changes.  His promises are everlasting.  Our joy is found in the hope of His appearing. And I don’t want to just string a lot of platitudes together in a row and hope it sounds spiritual.  I want you to understand the faith that finds joy in the Lord whether in pain or sorrow, sickness or health, fortune or poverty.  That can only be found in keeping our gaze fixed on Jesus Christ.  That can only be found when I am surrendered to Him completely.  And that can only be experienced when I have completely given Him my heart to do with what He wills.  When my life is committed to live for Him and for His purposes.  A joy like that endures like Paul and Silas had joy when they were flogged and thrown in prison and they sang hymns all night.  A joy like Peter and the disciples when they were flogged for preaching about Jesus and they rejoiced that they were considered worthy to suffer for Him.  That’s joy.

Vs. 1 continued;  “To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.”  Paul had either written them before or more than likely, some of his earlier letters to other churches had circulated through the church at Philippi as well.  But the point that Paul is making is that repetition is an aid to learning.  I sometimes am accused of repeating things from week to week.  And part of that comes from the fact that the same doctrines and principles are repeated over and over again in the Bible.  And so if you’re preaching book by book, you’re going to be repeating some of the same principles in each book.  Paul is alluding to that here.  And secondly, repetition is a great aid to learning.  This is how you memorize songs, or verses or your multiplication tables for that matter.  This is one of the benefits of good songs by the way.  Through repetition you can learn doctrine.  And this repetition is a safeguard for us.  It’s like first responders practicing a rescue maneuver over and over again to the point that when they are actually in a dangerous situation they know exactly what to do.  So Paul is saying “I don’t mind repeating these things because it will result in your confirmation.”

So much effort is being spent today in churches trying to find some new way of presenting the gospel.  But the true ministry of the gospel is not born out of novelty, but out of repetition.  Newness is something that the Holy Spirit brings to light through passages and pathways worn out with familiarity.   Each time you read some of these well worn passages, God can bring out something new and exciting and revelatory. 

And then starting in Vs. 2 Paul is going to compare and contrast true Christianity with false Christianity.  He says,  “Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision;   3  “for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh…”

First, he describes the character of the false teachers of false Christianity.  He says they are dogs.  Today in our culture, dogs are thought of as slightly superior to people.  We love our dogs.  I’ve even seen a prayer which says, “Lord help me to be the kind of man my dog thinks I am.”  But in Paul’s day, dogs were not viewed with the same kind of sentiments.  Dogs were not pets, they were vicious, unclean, snarling, barking feral animals that roomed the streets in packs.  Interestingly, the Jews of that day called anyone that wasn’t a Jew a dog.  It was a term of disdain, a slur on one’s character.   And this is what Paul is getting to here.  These false teachers were Judaisers.  They were people that were trying to lay Jewish ceremonial laws upon the backs of these people in Philippi, claiming that in order to really be of the real family of God, you must include rituals like circumcision.  And Paul turns the tables on these people who called the uncircumcised Gentiles dogs, and instead he calls them dogs.  He sees their character as unclean, vicious, snarling, barking dogs that bring unnecessary worry and distractions upon the church.

I’ve always had a fear of dogs.  And when I was a boy I had a paper route that seemed to have a vicious dog on every street.  My brother also had a paper route.  But he never seemed to finish his route.  Dad would come looking for him before dark and he would be playing football with some kids and his bike would be laying there with all his papers.  I tried to be conscientious and do my work, and for my labors my dad made me take over my brother’s route as well.  So I had two paper routes.  And anyhow, these routes were full of dogs that just ran loose back then.  There was some houses that I was scared to death to deliver the paper to.  I would try to creep down the street as quietly as I could until I got a house or two away, then I’d get my paper ready and start peddling as fast as I could and throw the paper.  I didn’t care if it landed in the street, my focus was on going past that house as quickly as I could.  And sure enough, that dog would hear my bike clanking down the street, baskets shaking and chain rattling and he would come out like a bear after her cubs.  It was a scary thing. I would be so afraid of those dogs that I would never collect from those houses.  I had to deliver the paper cause they would call the office and complain, but every week or so we had to go from house to house and collect .25.  And I wouldn’t go to those houses because the dogs would come out and try to bite me. 

That’s maybe the gist of what these dogs Paul was describing were doing to the church at Philippi.  They had them so worried and confused.  And what Paul was afraid of  was that they would end up depriving the church of the joy and peace that should have been theirs. So dogs describes the character of false teachers that worry and cause the believer undue alarm.

Secondly, Paul describes the conduct of the false teachers.  He calls them evil workers.  The word for evil can also be interpreted as depraved.  It’s referring to the inward motives of these false teachers.  Not only were they men of bad character, but they were men of bad desires that is worked out in their actions.  Their words promised peace but inwardly Jesus said in Matthew 7 they were ravenous wolves.  In  Matthew 23:28            Jesus said to the false teachers "So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”

Thirdly Paul describes the claims of the false teachers.  “Beware of the false circumcision.”  And the word there for false circumcision is “karatome”.  It literally means mutilation.  It was used in the OT to describe the prophets of Baal as they whirled and danced and slashed themselves with knives hoping to appease their gods and goad them to action.  So Paul is saying here that these Judaisers, these false teachers who are trying to add that in order to be saved you needed to be circumcised and keep the ceremonial laws of Moses, Paul is calling these guys mutilators. 

See, Jewish people distinguished themselves as a nation by the fact that they were circumcised.  The actually referred to themselves as being “of the circumcision,”  meaning they were Jewish.  They called Gentiles the “Uncircumcised”.  For them, it had lost it’s spiritual significance, and become a cultural, nationalistic significance.  They believed that it was a means of grace.  A means of securing God’s blessing.  And they failed to understand that like all the ceremonial laws, it was merely intended to be symbolic, an outward picture of what had happened inwardly.  So Paul uses a play upon words and calls these false prophets the mutilators rather than the circumcision. 

And this is still going on today in our modern churches. There are other rituals and ceremonies that certain false teachers are trying to lay on people by saying that to be full citizens in the kingdom of God, as a condition to full righteousness, then one must  add certain rituals and ceremonies and laws.  And perhaps they don’t call it circumcision, but they may call it baptism, or they say you have to take the sacraments, or you have to keep certain dietary laws, or keep the Sabbath, or keep certain feast days.  And to the degree that any of those things are a means of obtaining right standing or righteousness before God, they are in fact nothing less than this false circumcision that Paul is talking about here.  They teach a dependence upon a ritual for salvation and consequently Paul says they have fallen from grace. Paul said in Gal 5:4 that if you had circumcision as a requirement for salvation then “You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.”  He says, “Christ is no longer any benefit to you.” 

It’s like the guy trying to swim across the Atlantic.  And a boat comes by and offers him a ride.  Nope, he says, I think I can make it, thank you very much.  He may have all the best intentions in the world.  He may even be a good swimmer.  But there is no way he’s going to swim the Atlantic.  And as the boat, his salvation, sails away, that offer of salvation is no longer any benefit to him.  It’s no benefit to him because he is not in the boat which was his salvation.  He has chosen to try to make it in his own power. So it is with salvation.  It’s either by faith in Jesus Christ by which we receive grace, or it’s by our own efforts at righteousness, by which no one the Bible says will see God. Rom 11:6 “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.”

Now let’s look at what Paul says the true Christian life looks like.  Vs. 3. “for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.”  First of all, we need to know what circumcision is, or what it was supposed to be.  It was an OT law given to Abraham and for his children, which preceded the law given to Moses at Mt. Sinai, and therefore was considered by Jews to be of greater importance than any of the other laws.  At 8 days old, a baby boy was to be circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.  And though it is believed that it has some physical benefits in terms of hygiene, the main purpose that God imposed this ordinance was to be a symbol of salvation.  The act itself had little benefit.  It wasn’t exactly something that could be seen by the average person, so it obviously was not meant to be some outward manifestation of righteousness.  But it was an individual symbol of obedience to God, separation unto God, cleanliness and purity unto God, but most importantly  a reminder that there needed to be a cutting away of the flesh, so that we would be able to produce spiritual fruit for God.  It was a physical reminder that in the flesh, in our own efforts we could not produce true fruit for God.  It was also a reminder that this reproductive member of our bodies would always produce in it’s natural state, another sinful seed, just as from Adam’s seed, sin was passed on to every man that has been born.   So circumcision pictured the spiritual cutting away of the flesh, that enables the work of the Spirit.  Circumcision is the symbol of salvation, the cutting away of sin.

So Paul says we are the true circumcision.  The true Christian is one who has been circumcised in their heart. Col 2:11 says, “ in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;”  Rom 2:29            “But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.”

In the new covenant, the ceremonial laws were set aside.  The pictures had now been replaced with the actuality.  Jesus had come in the flesh and fulfilled all the prophetic pictures in the law.  We no longer needed to ascribe to these veiled images that we performed in rituals and ceremonies.  At the cross, the veil of the temple was torn into from top to bottom. 

Hebrews 8 tells us that there were priests in the old covenant  “who offered the gifts according to the Law; who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things,” but “if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second.” However,  “THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.” 

So what Paul is saying here is this exact same thing.  The circumcision of the old covenant has been replaced by a circumcision of the heart in the new covenant which marks the true child of God.    So firstly then, a true Christian has been circumcised in their hearts, the cutting away of the sinful flesh by the work of the Holy Spirit, as we yield our hearts by faith to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

And then secondly, notice that the true Christian is marked by true worship. Vs.3 “for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.”  Worship is such a misused, misunderstood term today in the church.  I hear pastors and music leaders refer all the time to “leading worship” as a time of singing songs or listening to the singing of songs.  I can assure you, that is not what worship is talking about. 

Notice also that it says, “who worship in the Spirit of God”.  And in some religious circles that gives license to all sorts of crazy, weird stuff that is believed to be of the Spirit simply because it’s crazy and weird.  And I would suggest that we are told to check the spirits, because there are many spirits in the world.

So first, let’s define our terms.  Here is the Greek concordance definition of worship. 

Worship; latreuō: 1) to serve for hire.  2) to serve, minister to, either to the gods or men and used alike of slaves and freemen.  a) in the NT, to render religious service.

b) to perform sacred services, to offer gifts, to worship God in the observance of the rites instituted for his worship.  c) of priests, to officiate, to discharge the sacred office. 

Obviously, this is a term used to describe the duties of a priest of God.  To minister to God by rendering service.  Now, you could make the point that praising God in song may be a part of that, and I would not argue with that.  However, I would rebut that argument with the verse found in Matt. 15:8            'THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.  BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'"

Once again, we see this constant emphasis on the heart, the soul of man, the seat of the mind and emotions which must be changed, circumcised by the Holy Spirit in order to produce fruit for God.  People often wonder what it means to be in the Spirit, or to walk in the Spirit, and the best way I have been able to describe it is that it is the result of crucifying the flesh.  When the flesh is cut off, when the flesh is crucified, when the flesh is put to death every day, then the Spirit can work through my dead flesh to perform services to God.  It doesn’t mean that somehow I don’t struggle against sin.  It doesn’t mean that  a spiritual life does not take any effort or discipline on my part, it doesn’t mean that the Holy Spirit is somehow going to overwhelm me and I just need to put it in neutral and let the Holy Spirit move me like I’m some sort of robot or puppet. 

No, it means that when I submitted my life to Christ as Lord, the Holy Spirit changed my desires.  He has written God’s laws upon my heart.  I now want to do the things of God, to be pleasing to God. Gal 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” To walk in the Spirit requires a sacrifice, a crucifixion of my flesh. This is what Romans 12:1 is talking about when it says, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” 

See, we’ve been saved to become instruments of God, ministers of God, priests of God, that render true worship to God.  You were bought and paid for, you were ransomed from sin to become priests of the Most High God. Do you not realize that you are a priest of God?  1Cor 6:19 “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?  For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”

1Pet 2:5 “you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”  What sacrifices is Peter talking about?  What kind of services are we supposed to be rendering to God? 1Pet 2:9            “But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

We are to be a light unto the world that is in darkness.  Our behavior is supposed to be exemplary. Remember Phil. 2:15?  We are to “prove ourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world.”   We are to let no unwholesome word come out of our mouth.  We are to be witnesses of the gospel of salvation.  We are to be about the ministry of the kingdom of heaven, and not captivated by the kingdom of this world. We are to pray lifting up unsoiled hands, living holy, exemplary lives in our communities, to our neighbors, to our fellow workers, under the authority of our leaders.  This is our ministry.  This is the short list of our priestly service.

Finally, there is that word again finally… finally, vs. 3 sums it up with the two simple phrases which characterize the true Christian  “who… glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.”  A true Christian glories in Christ Jesus not in his flesh.  See the false teachers glory in the flesh.  Their spirituality is nothing but a mask of pride in their flesh.  But the true Christian puts no trust in the flesh.  He sees the flesh for what it is, a sinful heart which needs to be cut away by the power of the Holy Spirit, which results in a transformation of our desires.  The unconverted heart of flesh has desires which are sinful, depraved, debased, lustful, prideful, constantly sinning, and which sooner or later are displayed in the body.  Whereas the transformed heart has desires which have been changed by the Holy Spirit because He has written the laws of God upon their hearts, and they result in works of righteousness, service to God, obedience to God, and true worship of God as priests as they continue to crucify the flesh and live in the Spirit.

Folks, until you have had a circumcision of the heart, you cannot please God.  You cannot serve God.  All your righteousness is nothing but filthy rags.  But the heart that submits fully to God in repentence, God will not turn away.  He will come in, and cleanse our hearts, and change our desires.  I hope that you have had that change.  A circumcision made not with hands.  A work not of the flesh, but of the Spirit.  Let’s pray.

a sacrifice, servant and soldier

 Philippians 2: 17-30

We find ourselves at this passage that we are looking at today, I would just remind you,  because we are studying through the book of Philippians as is our habit on Sunday mornings and this happens to be the passage upon which we next come.  I certainly would never ordinarily pick this passage to preach on otherwise.  In fact, I considered briefly that I might just skip over it and bet that no one noticed, but I dismissed that thought once I started to study it, because I believe there is much for us to learn here.

We come upon this passage after being introduced by Paul to the principle in ch.2:5  that we are to have the same attitude, the same mind as Jesus Christ.  That although Jesus is our sacrifice and our substitute, and only He could atone for the sins of the world, yet at the same time, Christ is also supposed to be our example, our pattern for how we are to live.  As Christ humbled himself to be obedient to the Father’s will – so are we.  As Christ laid down His life on the cross – so should we.  As Christ served the church – so should we.  If we are to one day be glorified with Him and reign with Him, then the Word tells us that we must also suffer with Him. Rom 8:17 “and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

But there is a possibility that because Jesus was the Son of God, we might think ourselves excused of really trying too awful hard to follow Christ’s example.  After all, we might say, “I’m just human.”  Christ was Divine. Since I don’t know what He knew, and I can’t do what He did,  we might feel justified to let Christ do all the sacrificing and serving, and we’ll just settle down comfortably on the couch and let Him do all the work while we watch TV.

But Paul isn’t about to let that happen.  So in addition to Christ He gives us three earthly examples of humility and servitude and sacrifice.  Examples of men that lived like Jesus lived.  Of men that were purely human. (1)Paul gives us himself as an example of sacrifice.  (2).He gives Timothy as an example of a servant, and (3) he gives Epaphroditus as an example of a soldier.  And so we’re going to look briefly at the characteristics of these three men as their lives relate to the example of Christ.

First of all, Paul is presented as an example of a sacrifice.  Vs. 17 tells us that he was being poured out as a drink offering, a libation.  The drink offering that he is speaking of there is the wine that was brought with the burnt sacrifice in the Old Testament.  When they offered a burnt lamb for their sins, there was also the requirement that a certain measure of wine would be added to the sacrifice as well.  It was the crowning finish to their sacrifice.  God spoke of it in Numbers 14 as a sweet smelling aroma.   So Paul sees himself as something added to the main course, which is their sacrifice and service.  He was humble enough to recognize that he wasn’t the main thing, he was merely an instrument in accomplishing the finishing of their sacrifice of faith, being the aroma that is quickly burned up to bring them to perfection.

Paul speaks of this sacrifice in 2Cor. 2:14 “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.  For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing;  to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things? For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God.”

So the purpose of Paul’s sacrifice is to enhance and finish the service and sacrifice of the church at Philippi.  And he not only is modeling it, he is calling them to it as well.  He is saying that the sacrifice he is making is his joy, and he is rejoicing in being found worthy to be offered in sacrifice.  He sees this sacrifice as an opportunity to better serve Christ and not a burden, and so he rejoices. Phil. 1:29  “For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear to be in me.”

We see a similar example in Peter and the Apostles who were flogged and released with orders not to preach Jesus Christ in Act 5:41  “So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.”

So Paul also tells the Philippians in vs. 18; “You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me.”  Paul considered it a joy to be called upon by God to render service as a sacrifice, and he is telling the church at Philippi, that great joy comes through great sacrifice. In fact, the greater the sacrifice, the greater the joy. What a contrast to the message of the church today.  Today there is no mention of sacrifice.  Instead, the gospel is presented as a means of gain, usually financial gain.  “Come to Jesus and tell him what you want out of life and He will give it to you.” That’s the popular message today.  And if you preach that message, you can fill a football stadium with people who want to have their ears tickled.  But try preaching Romans 12:1,2, “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service,” and you will empty out the church.  And if any one is left, add the next verse;  “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed, by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”  Folks, to be a disciple of Christ you are going to have to sacrifice some things, but Paul says thats where you find true joy.  The world tells us that joy is found in obtaining things.  Whoever dies with the most toys win.  But simply watch your children or grandchildren just a few hours after opening all their toys on Christmas morning and it doesn’t take much deductive powers to recognize that obtaining things of this world doesn’t bring joy.  Real joy, Paul says, comes from sacrificial living in Christ.

Secondly, starting in vs. 19 Timothy is presented as an example of a servant.  Timothy’s whole life had been spent in service to the gospel.  His mother and grandmother had raised him and taught him the Word of God since he was a small child.  And at some point at a young age, Paul leads him to the Lord, and he begins to follow Paul and serve in ministry with Paul.   Note vs.22  “But you know of his proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father.”  And I believe the emphasis there is on serving.  Serving Paul.  Serving the churches.  Serving the gospel.  This is a young man whose entire life is dedicated to the service of the gospel.  And notice the word “proven”.  That ties in with the verse I read from Romans 12, that you may prove what the will of God is.  Proven means to have gone through testing and come out the other side still believing, still faithful, still standing.  Timothy proved his faith by service to God.

As far as we know, Timothy did not have a wife, did not have children of his own, did not own  a home, did not have a career.  He left his home, his mother and grandmother at an early age and went on the road with Paul, serving Paul, learning from Paul, sharing in almost all of Paul’s trials and tribulations from Athens, to Corinth, to Thessalonica to even Rome.  He had proven himself faithful.

He shared with the Apostle in all of his trials, and all of his triumphs.  Look at vs. 20: “For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare.”  This last semester at my two older kids college, there is a weekend that is designated as parent’s weekend.  And I really felt it was important for us to go see them then and support them physically and emotionally.  There is only so much you can do by phone.  I think they were missing home a little by then, school was starting to feel a lot like work, and I felt  it was important for us to reaffirm their commitment by our being there.

But there were a couple of problems with that.  One, their school is in California, and secondly, there was the matter of my ministry here.  I haven’t been able to take a Sunday off in 7 years and so I knew that I couldn’t go.  But the next best thing to me going would be if my wife could be there.  And I thought then of this verse in this passage where Paul says, “No one else has a kindred spirit.  No one else is going to have the same degree of concern for their welfare like my wife.  After all, they are her kids too.  And so no one else could possibly feel the same way about my kids and look after my interests than my wife.  I knew she was the next best thing to being there.

And perhaps that’s as good an illustration as any of how Paul saw Timothy.  Timothy was as close as family to him.  And we need to realize that this illustration is an example to us of what Paul is saying should be the attitude of the church.  We should be so unified in our purpose that we have the same goals, the same kind of spirit, the same purpose.  We have to lose this type of modern mentality which sees a separation of clergy and laity.  The Bible doesn’t make that distinction.  There may be different functions, different roles, but there is one body and one purpose.  My hope is that as you spend time in the Word with me, spend time in this ministry with me, that you will adopt the same passion for this ministry as I do.  And that you will commit yourself to this ministry to the same degree as I do.

Unfortunately though, the modern church is only propagating this misconception of a church body that exists only to be served by the clergy, instead of being taught that their purpose is also to serve as the Bible teaches.  Our congregations in many modern churches today are practically anonymous, walking into a darkened auditorium, watching an entertainment driven spectacle on stage, and walking back out again blinking at the sunlight in a confused daze, wondering what it all really has to do with me.

Which leads the average churchgoer to think that Christianity doesn’t really have much application to real life.  It’s presented as some sort of experience where you go into a church, have some sort of emotion driven experience which they call spiritual, and then go back into the real world.  And that compartmentalizing of what is thought to be spiritual leads to living out our lives in a fleshly, selfish existence.

I was struck by the phrase, “I have no one of kindred spirit”.  Sometimes I get discouraged in the ministry when I look around at the lack of commitment, and also at the lack of men and women that are still standing true for the Lord after so many years of ministering in this community.  And it’s easy to get discouraged.  But in a way, this statement by Paul is an encouragement to me.  I’m not even 1/10th the man of God that Paul was.  And yet at this time in his life he has very little people around him that are still standing strong.  In 2 Timothy he says, “for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.”  Titus we know was a pastor.  But it seems that Paul is saying here that the lure of this world is so strong, and many people who start out on the journey don’t stay on the path.  They fall away.  And I guess the encouragement for me is that if Paul experienced this, then it should not be thought uncommon if I experience this too.  And instead I thank God for the people that are still standing firm as we continue to preach the Word, in season and out of season.

Far too often the state of the state of the modern church goer  can be summarized in vs. 21: “For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.”  At best, Jesus is some sort of addendum that serves to help us achieve our earthly goals.  And that theology is in direct contradiction to the Biblical view that our earthly goals should be subjected to the service of Christ Jesus.  A servant is concerned first and foremost with his Master’s concerns, rather than his own.

And then the third example Paul presents is that of Epaphroditus as a soldier.  If Paul and Timothy fail to challenge us because we think they are something of giants in the faith, then Paul gives us another example who is simply a common man in the church. A man virtually unknown in history other than in these few verses.  And because of that he is really our best example.

So Paul describes Epaphroditus as a soldier, but he also calls him a brother, (in contrast to Timothy as his son) and a fellow worker, and a messenger and a minister.  Additionally, I think you can easily make the case for Epaphroditus also as an example of a servant as was Timothy, and a sacrifice as was Paul.  But I have chosen soldier as the best description of Epaphroditus because I think the position of a soldier encompasses all of these things.

The other night I went to the VFW to see a surf movie about Vietnam era surfers, which was actually my movie that I had loaned to a guy I know that was  a veteran of the Vietnam war.  And he liked the movie and wanted to show it at the VFW and invited me and a bunch of his surf buddies.  And as I looked around at the photographs in the VFW hall of past heroes and servicemen, and watched this movie about some of those soldiers service to our country, I was amazed at the level of sacrifice that many of those men were willing to make for our freedoms.  These veterans are worthy of our sincere thanks and admiration for their service and their sacrifice.   So I feel like a soldier encompasses so many of the characteristics that Paul wants to model for us.

Not a lot is known about Epaphroditus.  He is mentioned again in chapter 4:18 and it is clear from that verse that Epaphroditus was sent by the church at Philippi to minister to Paul by the means of a monetary gift for his support.  But vs. 30 of chapter 2 gives us a little more insight into what this mission cost him.  It says that he risked his life to complete what was lacking in the churches service to Paul.  What does that mean except that the gift that had been taken up by the church for Paul for his financial support could not exactly be sent by registered letter, or by Fed X, and so somebody had to be willing to travel from Philippi to Rome to take this money to Paul.  And they had chosen this man Epaphroditus as someone who was willing and able to make the sacrifice and undergo the rigors of travel in those days, and willing to leave his home and friends and family for the sake of the gospel.  I think the scripture is telling us that he went on this trip at some great risk to his own life.  Travel in those days wasn’t easy.  It was a long, dangerous trip.  He was carrying a good deal of money, and it would not be inconceivable to imagine that there would have been people who were willing to murder him to get their hands on that money.  And so he risked his life, perhaps traveling alone for a great distance, to faithfully bring this money to Paul.

I think the thing that makes Epaphroditus such a great example for us is his ordinariness.  He wasn’t a pastor.  He wasn’t an Apostle.  We never hear of him again.  And yet God used him in a great way and his name is preserved forever in heaven because of his service to Christ, to his Apostle and to his church.  So Paul calls him a fellow soldier.  Perhaps he had actually been a soldier.  We don’t know, but we do know that he was something of a risk taker.

In fact, vs. 30 uses a term for the phrase “risking his life” which was “paraboleuomai”, which during the days after the formation of the early church was the basis for a group who called themselves “The Paraboleuomai” which meant the Gamblers. They took as their hero Epaphroditus who gambled with his life. And it was their aim and their mission to visit the prisoners, to visit the sick, especially those with infectious, dangerous, communicable diseases. It was their mission to unhesitatingly, unflinchingly and boldly proclaim the Lord Jesus Christ in every environment without any hesitation.

Epaphroditus was a name that among Greeks was connected with the goddess Aphrodite,  and they called upon her for luck when playing dice games or gambling games by using the name Epaphrodite.  And so Paul is using a play on words here, saying Epaphroditus gambled his very life in service to Christ.  

Now whether or not Epaphroditus was somehow injured in this journey and his wound became infected and he almost died, or whether or not he put himself at risk in some other way to bring the gospel to people, we don’t know for sure.  But we do know that Paul tells us that he got very sick, unto the point of death.  Vs. 27 tells us that “For indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow.”

And notice, by the way, that there is no mention of Paul healing this soldier of Christ.  By this time, this is nearing the end of the Apostolic period, a time when the Apostles had been given certain miraculous abilities for the confirmation of their gospel. 2Cor. 12:12 tells us that “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles.”  They were a miraculous attestation from God that He was speaking His gospel through these specific men.  But now it’s near the end of the Apostolic period and you begin to see these powers begin to wane.  Paul tells Timothy in another passage that he should drink a little wine for medicinal purposes because Timothy had stomach problems.  He didn’t send Timothy a special handkerchief that he had prayed over and told him to put it on his stomach.  Instead, he tells him to drink some medicine.  And in this case of Epaphroditus, we understand that God spared this man and he recovered from his sickness.  Paul seemed to have nothing to do with it.

But the thing we should take away from the example of Epaphroditus is this illustration of a soldier.   A soldier who was willing to give his life in service to his King, for the sake of the Apostle Paul and Timothy, his ministers, and for the sake of his church at Philippi.  Now that he is well, Paul says in vs. 25, I am planning on sending him back to you.  And Paul is obviously sending him back with this gospel, this Epistle to the Philippians.  First, Epaphroditus risked his life bringing this gift to Paul, he is injured and becomes so sick he almost dies, and now he is headed back there again, willing to put his life at risk once more for the sake of bringing the Word of God to his church.  This trip was about 810 miles as the crow flies, and would have taken between a month and two months to complete, including travelling part of the way on ship which could only be done in certain weather.  And so it was no easy task, and it was no small sacrifice.

John McArthur said and I quote, “ultimate joy comes from the ultimate offering of one's life to the will of God.”  God does not always require the ultimate sacrifice of losing your life for the sake of the gospel.  Paul and Timothy would eventually die in service to Christ.  Paul was likely beheaded, and his statement that he was being poured out as a drink offering was probably prophetic in that he was looking at shedding his blood for the cause of Christ.  Timothy would go on to Ephesus to be it’s first pastor, and while speaking out against a lurid worship of the goddess Diana he would be bludgeoned to death.  Epaphroditus we don’t know how he died.  We might assume that he died a normal death in his old age.  But one thing we do know, he was willing to lay down his life in service to the kingdom of Christ.   He risked his life repeatedly.

We may not be called upon to risk our life, but we are called upon to be willing to lay down our lives as a living sacrifice in service to the cause of Christ.  We are called upon to be a servant to the body of Christ.  And we are called upon to forsake this world and all it’s enticements for the austerity of soldiering in the service of the King.  Paul said in 2Tim. 2:3  “Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.  No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.”

Paul said to the Philippians concerning Epaphroditus, when he completed this life risking trip to carry the epistle back to the church at Philippi that they should “Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard.”  And this is the hope and joy set before us as well, when we are willing to live our lives like Paul, like Timothy, like Epaphroditus, Jesus promises us that there will be a day when we will be received in heaven with joy.  When the Master will say, “Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.”

shine like lights

Phil. 2:14  “Do all things without grumbling or disputing;  15 so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world,   16  holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.”

As we consider today’s passage in our ongoing study of Philippians, it is a good idea to review the previous doctrine that Paul has presented thus far, in order to understand correctly what we are looking at today and be sure to keep it in the proper context. 

This section of scripture really begins when Paul tells us that Christ’s example of a servant’s attitude is to be our attitude as well.   He said in vs. 5, have this same mind,  have this same attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus.  So as Jesus humbled himself to be our servant and serve God, not seeking his own glory, so our attitude should be one of humility and service, as we present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God, which Romans 12 tells us is our reasonable service.

And furthermore, Paul says, not only did Christ have this attitude of humility and servitude, he says Christ was obedient to the will of God.  Again, Christ is our example.  We need to be obedient to the things God shows us in His Word.  That should indicate the necessity of knowing God’s Word.  How can we know the true God and know what He requires of us if we don’t know His Word?  Without that absolute truth, we end up fashioning a god in our own image, making an idol of our own creation, as we determine what we think God should be like, rather than learning what God actually is like.  The Word is the only authority for absolute truth.

In regards to this obedience, Paul reminds us in vs. 10 that one day every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.  And we discussed in great detail last time what the word Lord signified, not only to the Gentile, but also to the Jew.  In both cases, it meant that to confess Jesus as Lord meant being exiled in most cases from either the Jewish or Gentile communities.  It quite possibly meant the loss of one’s property, the loss of one’s job, the loss of one’s family, and even at times the loss of one’s life.  That’s why Paul makes the correlation in vs. 8  that Jesus was obedient  unto death, even the shame of a cross.  And again, Jesus is our example for us that would claim to be His disciples.  We go where He goes.  We pattern our lives after His life.  And as we confess Him as Lord, we bow our knees to His will and His purpose, not just in lip service, but in life service.

This life service is what vs. 12 is talking about, to work out, or live out our salvation, to live out the righteousness that God has put in us, and he adds the phrase, with fear and trembling.  Once again this idea of fearing God is a foreign concept to the modern day Christian.  After all, no one is afraid of Santa Claus. You may remember that during the Iraq War they had a phrase we heard on the news every night which was “shock and awe.”  And in some ways, this phrase fear and trembling makes me think of shock and awe.   During the Iraq War it meant that the army of Iraq trembled in fear of the overwhelming power and might of the United States military.  And I think to some degree that is what Paul is getting at here.  As we consider our salvation, as we consider the extent of Christ’s suffering and shame, as we consider the depths that Christ lowered himself to in order to serve as our substitute and sacrifice, then we should live out our salvation with an awe and reverence for the grace and mercy that has been bestowed on us.  We should consider our responsibility and stewardship that God has entrusted us with, with a healthy measure of fear and trembling. 

An illustration might be of a young man who had been given an apprenticeship with a well respected jeweler in NYC.  And this apprentice considered himself very fortunate to have obtained this job, for many people sought his employer’s expertise and craftsmanship, and his reputation was well known.  One day his employer called him into the office and showed him a special diamond, a gem of the greatest rarity which was worth a great fortune.  His employer had been called upon to cut and polish this very expensive diamond for a wealthy client and now that it was finished, he wanted the apprentice to carry it across town to a gold smith’s shop where it was to be mounted.  And so very carefully they wrapped up the stone, put it in a satchel and with a severe warning to be extremely careful, to not turn to the right or to the left but go straight and quickly to the destination, the young apprentice was sent out into the busy NYC streets.  And as he carefully yet quickly walked through the bustling streets and sidewalks of NYC, the young apprentice trembled in fear knowing the great value of what he carried, and the responsibility of what had been placed in his care. His journey took him past street vendors hawking all kinds of wares, but he wouldn’t turn aside to look at their merchandise.  He passed by restaurants emitting the appetizing aroma of tantalizing cuisine, but he kept pressing ahead.  He pushed through oppressive traffic and crowds and walked swiftly through the seedier areas of town where all sorts of temptations lurked on every street corner, calling out to him seductively, some even reaching out to him trying to pull him aside.  But the young man shrugged them off and hurried resolutely ahead. When he finally reached his destination and was able to safely deposit it in the waiting hands of the goldsmith, he felt a great sense of relief to have successfully carried out his duty.

Like the young apprentice, we too are given a treasure of great value, which was purchased at an incalculable price.  And the responsibility that we have been tasked with is a stewardship of this salvation, to take it out into the streets of this world, and live it out, to be the emissary of Jesus Christ himself.  We should fear lest we fail in this great commission, that somehow we become distracted by the amusements and the vendors on the streets.  We should fear we might not fulfill our sacred duty which  has been entrusted to us.  We tremble at the thought of failing in our mission.

The other night after everyone left our house at Bible study, I was talking to my wife and somehow we got on the topic of people who once were a part of our fellowship and now have fallen away.  They once were faithful.  They once were eager to hear the Word.  They once were learning and growing in their faith.  And yet today they are no longer with us.  Many of them no longer have anything to do with the Lord.  They became distracted by the enticements of the world.  They became distracted perhaps by a girlfriend or a boyfriend.  They became enticed by the desire for a career.  They were turned away by drugs or alcohol.  And they strayed away from the fellowship, strayed from God’s word, and eventually rejected the preaching of the truth and turned to an amusement, an enticement.  They turned away from the priceless treasure of salvation for a cheap bauble offered by a street vendor.  Jesus said in Mark 8:36  "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” 

This great stewardship of salvation should fill us with fear and trembling as we recognize that God has chosen us to be the vessels of His mercy, that He has entrusted us with the message of the gospel, that He has filled these jars of clay with nothing less than the treasure of the Spirit of God Himself, which now lives in us, working in us, conforming us to the image of Jesus Christ, as it says in vs. 13, His Spirit is now working in us to do HIS will, and to perform what pleases HIM.  That God would choose to do this in us is an amazing thing, and it should be a humbling thing, and it should fill us with fear and trembling at the awesome responsibility that we have been given to live out this great salvation.

Now having that understanding of the preceding verses, we now come to our text which follows logically upon the prior verses.  Having then this great responsibility, this awesome stewardship, having been entrusted with such a great salvation, Paul says in verse 14, “do all things without grumbling or disputing...”  Which begs the question, do what things?  And it simply refers back to those righteous responsibilities that are part of living out your salvation, of working your salvation out to the world.  It says, all the things that God has entrusted you with, as you work them out, do them without grumbling or disputing. 

And those are a couple of interesting words.   Grumbling can also be interpreted as murmuring.  Whispering.  Muttering under your breath.  It was a word that was often used in reference to the tribe of Israel when Moses brought them out of the land of Egypt.  They hadn’t  even crossed the Red Sea when they started complaining sarcastically to Moses that maybe there hadn’t been any graves in Egypt, so he had taken them into the wilderness to die.  Then once God had opened up the Red Sea for them and destroyed the following Egyptian army, they quickly forgot that and started complaining and murmuring and grumbling again against God and Moses.  It was the pattern of their life.  They grumbled about the food God provided, they murmured they were thirsty, they complained about Moses leadership, and even whined to Aaron that Moses was spending too much time on the mountain with God.  And Numbers 21:5 tells us that God called this murmuring sin and eventually punished them for it by sending fiery serpents among them. So then murmuring is a sinful, emotional, gut level complaint about the circumstances God has chosen for your life and the requirements He has for your conduct.

We need to remember that sometimes God allows difficulties to come into our lives for His purposes.  Verse 13 just finished telling us that God is working in you for His will and His purposes, and now when He does so, who are we to complain that everything is not working out like we would like? 1Peter 4:12 tells us;            “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.”

 We need to remember that Romans 8:28 tells us that God uses all things, good and bad, for His purposes, and ultimately for our good.  It may not always be fun or enjoyable at the moment, but we need to remember that God is working  out His will in our life.  He is in control and we shouldn’t grumble against that.

And the second word is disputing which comes from the Greek word dialogismos.  It is the root of our word dialogue.  It means to argue, debate, discuss with God the reasoning behind His will.  Arguing with God over what He has given us to do.  Trying to debate with Him to get Him to change His mind or His will.  It means a questioning of God’s will and purposes in your life.  Why do I have to be single?  Why do I have to endure this hardship?  Why have you allowed me to go through this difficulty?  It’s an attitude of discontentment.  Hardly the attitude that Christ had as He considered the cross, is it?  Jesus prayed, “not my will, but your will be done.”

So whatever circumstances I find myself in, as a Christian I need to recognize that God has in His sovereign will put me in this place of duty, in this position of service and I must bear up under the burden of hardship or difficulty or trial and trust God to work it out and work in me that which is pleasing to Him.  For instance, perhaps God has chosen you to be single.  It’s not something that is easy, especially in this modern culture.  It is a difficult place where God has put you.  It’s lonely, it’s painful.  And yet God has placed you there for His purpose.  For His pleasure.  And as a consequence you are perhaps more devoted to Him than you would be if you were married.  You provide a special service to Him that others cannot provide.  So what a shame to spend your life murmuring or complaining against God’s will for you to be single.  What a shame to waste your life in disputing God’s will and try to get Him to change His mind.  And you can substitute any number of other circumstances in place of the word single.  Like sick, like cancer, like poor, like jobless, or wherever God has placed you, don’t complain.  God has His purpose, and thank God that He has considered you worthy to suffer if necessary for His name sake.

I am ashamed to confess that I am guilty of the sin of grumbling and disputing with God about this place that He has put me in to serve.  I complain about everything, from the snail’s pace traffic on 26, to the climate, to the way the wind changes on a whim, to the lack of consistent surf, to the lack of commitment to the fellowship, to the lack of appreciation for the preaching of the  Word of God.  I grumble and complain all the time.  And lately I have found that it has affected my attitude, and I am often disgruntled.  I realize that I am grateful that God has even chosen me for service in any measure.  I don’t deserve to be chosen for service for God.  But He has given me a very great honor in giving me the opportunity to serve him, no matter how small the congregation, no matter what the cost of service.  I should be honored to serve Him.  God has convicted me to stop complaining and start conforming to the attitude of Jesus Christ and follow the pattern of His service.

As hard as it might be for us to see at the moment, many times God allows us to suffer so that we might be a greater testimony for Christ.  Vs. 15 tells us that this is “so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world.”  Even though our circumstances may be difficult, we endure them without sinning in murmuring or disputing God, but submitting to His will, so that we might be a testimony to the world.  I said last Wednesday that as Christians we are either being an example or an excuse.  An example of Christ that others can follow or  an excuse, an excuse not to take Christianity so seriously.  An excuse that we’re all just a bunch of hypocrites.  You’re either an example or excuse.

And just look quickly at how Paul uses three different words to describe basically the same thing.  He says in our example we are to be “blameless, innocent, and above reproach.”  I think the idea is that of the sacrificial lamb in the OT.  It was to be spotless, without blemish.  Now the lamb was a picture of Jesus Christ; the sinless, blameless, above reproach, sacrificial lamb that takes away the sins of the world.  But as Christ was, so are we to be.  “Have the same mind in you that was in Christ Jesus.”  He is our example and we are to follow his pattern.

Now concerning this testimony to the world.  Paul describes the world as “a crooked and perverse generation.”  And I don’t think that there was ever a time when this statement was more true than it is today.  Even an unbeliever must see that the world is a perverse place, a place where right is called wrong, and light is called darkness.  It seems the world is completely upside down lately.  I can’t help but believe that Christ is coming back soon. Isaiah 5:20 “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!”

And that is the state of the world.  The world is in darkness.  2 Tim.2:26  says the world is in the snare of the devil, and they are enslaved by him to do his will.   But for those that are Christians, Paul says we are to shine like lights in the darkness.  This is our testimony to the lost world.  As Christ was the light of the world, so we are to reflect that light to the world as well.  You know, the most effective witness to the world is our changed lives.  Our testimony, how we live and how we act, speaks much more loudly than our words do. 

Jesus said in Mat 5:14  "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;  nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”  Listen, it’s a whole lot easier to make converts than it is to make disciples.  Making disciples means that someone has to follow you around at work, or follow you around on the weekend, or whatever.  A disciple watches you, and sees what you’re doing and how you do it.  And folks, that is what we are commissioned to do.  Not just have great big altar calls and see a bunch of people come forward swept along on an emotional tide, but to individually disciple people to become followers of us, and in the process become followers of Christ.  Now that’s a tall order, but that’s our orders.

Then finally the last verse,  vs. 16 tells us in this process of being a shining light to the world by living out our salvation to the world, Paul says in that process to “hold fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.”  Now why does Paul throw that in there?  I believe it is because we need to keep a strong grip on the Word of God.  It is the absolute truth in a world without absolutes.  It is the key to being obedient to God’s will.  It is the power of God unto salvation for the world.  And more and more, as it has always been, it is the thing most under attack by the enemy.  

In our Wednesday evening study of 1 Timothy, Paul warned Timothy in chapter one of false teachers who would stray from the truth and end up suffering shipwreck in their lives.  And this is a constant concern of the Apostle Paul for the Christian.  If Satan can get you to stray away from God’s word, then he can get you to stray away from the truth, and the omission of that small, seemingly insignificant detail of our busy Christian lives has the effect of a ship’s captain that sets a course just one degree of his course.  At first, he may not see a big change of direction, but eventually it leads to destruction.  They soon find their lives on the rocks, shipwrecked in regards to their faith, and especially in regards to their testimony. 

Satan would love to see you suffer shipwreck in your faith, ladies and gentlemen.  And his first strategy is always to get you to abandon the Word of God.  Paul says “Hold fast the Word of God.”  Hold fast is a term that means tie your ship securely, to set your anchor in a way that it will not move.  Hold fast.  Stand firm in your commitment to keep the Word of God the main thing in your Christian walk.  So that in the day that Jesus Christ returns, the day when Christ will judge the living and the dead, the righteous and the unrighteous, in that day, we will be found not to have run in vain or toil in vain.

Yes, the place where God has placed you to serve may be tough. You may not see a lot of earthly rewards now.  But Jesus is coming back.  And one day, whether we are alive or dead, we will be raised incorruptible.  And we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.  In that day, I hope that I will find that I have not run in vain or toiled in vain.  That Jesus might say to me on that day, “'Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.”  I pray that you will find Him saying that to you as well.  That you were faithful to perform your service to him in a way that brought glory and honor to Jesus Christ. 

One of the things I’ve always liked most about the Christmas season is around Christmas Eve we go for a drive in the car and look at Christmas lights.  Something about the lights on a dark sky look beautiful.  And I think it’s cool how even the humblest little house or trailer can look really beautiful when they decorate it all up with lights.   This world is a dark place, but God has given us the job of being a light to the world, shining as an example of Jesus Christ.  This season, let your light so shine before men in such a way as to bring honor and glory to Jesus Christ.  Live in such a way so that others will be drawn by your light to Christ.