Philippians 3:1-14

In Philippians 2:25-30, Paul instructs the Philippian church to receive Epaphroditus. Paul goes to some length to tell of the sacrifices Epaphroditus has made and the risks that he has taken for the sake of serving Christ. Epaphroditus was faithful even in the midst of illness that nearly resulted in death.

Against this background, Paul tells the believers in Philippi to rejoice in the Lord. However, he does also include a warning against false teachers in the following verses. False teachers were a common problem at that time, just as they are today. However, first century Christians didn't have the advantage of a written New Testament to which they could compare these teachings. They had to rely on Old Testament writings and the teachings of the apostles. But this naturally brings up the question of who were true apostles and which ones were false.

In verse 2, Paul warns the church against those he calls "dogs" and "evil workers." There were some who were teaching that new Christians must be circumcised and adhere to Jewish law. They did not see Christ's death and resurrection alone as being complete atonement for sin. These teachers were known as "Judaizers". When Paul would visit a city for an evangelistic campaign, he would always go first to the Jewish synagogue. At that time, most believers were from a Jewish background. Christianity and Judaism had not yet split into two separate religions. The apostles considered themselves to be Jews, even though they fully believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah. There was still much debate at the time as to whether Gentiles who came to faith in Christ needed to follow Jewish law.

Paul says that we are the true circumcision. He is saying that God has circumcised our hearts through the Holy Spirit living in us. Because of this, there is no need for the physical body to be circumcised. The Expositor's Bible Commentary points out that the Old Testament frequently makes mention of the heart being circumcised (Lev. 26:41; Deut. 10:16; Deut. 30:6; Jer. 4:4 and Ezek. 44:7). The commentary goes on to explain that there are a number of characteristics that appear in those who have received the circumcision of the heart: they worship by the Spirit of God rather than human traditions; they glory in Christ Jesus, knowing that our justification comes through him alone, and they put no confidence in the flesh, that is, they recognize we are powerless to achieve righteousness in God's sight on our own.

In verse 4, Paul writes that he has as much reason as anyone to put confidence in the flesh, if righteousness could be achieved by our own works. He goes on to list a very impressive spiritual pedigree in verses 5 and 6. The Expositor's Bible Commentary expounds on Paul's reasons that he might have confidence in the flesh. He was circumcised at eight days old, so he was a natural descendant of Abraham, rather than a Gentile convert. He was also from the tribe of Benjamin. This is the one and only Israelite tribe that remained loyal to King David's throne when Israel was divided into two kingdoms. Jesus was a direct descendant of David. By "Hebrew of Hebrews" he may have meant that both of his parents were Jewish and neither was of Gentile descent. This was extremely important to Jews at that time. He may have also been referring to his cultural and linguistic upbringing, meaning that he spoke Hebrew and Aramaic. Jews living outside of Palestine were called "Hellenistic Jews" after a program by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC to promote Greek language, culture, and religion. Hellenistic Jews spoke Greek rather than Hebrew or Aramaic.

The commentary goes to explain that Paul had chosen to be a Pharisee, which meant he was extremely strict in interpreting and following Judaic law. He had studied under Rabbi Gamaliel, a famous first century rabbi, meaning that he would have had the finest education available anywhere at the time. He was very active in persecuting the early church prior to his conversion on the road to Damascus. He had kept the Pharisee interpretation of the law with such zeal that no person could accuse him of breaking it.

But in light of him being made righteous through Christ, he considers all these things worthless. They hold no value in making a person righteous before God, though they are highly impressive by human standards. Verse 8 says that he counts all these things as "rubbish," but the original Greek carries a stronger connotation. The original language text actually says he counts them as "manure."

Paul gives the reason in the last phrase of verse 8 and in verse 9, "So that I may gain Christ 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." Paul is very blunt in saying that this is not a righteousness that he produces on his own, but rather one that is bestowed on him by God through his faith in Christ. The verse makes it very clear that Paul is not teaching salvation by works. It is clearly a gift from God that we have not earned, nor are we able to earn it.

Verse 10 says that Paul wants to know Christ and the power of his resurrection. The phrase "know Christ" means to know by experience. It isn't simply referring to academic knowledge. That means placing our faith in Christ, allowing him to be the one to pay our sin debt, and living obediently to his commands. Living obediently to his commands is not separable from placing our faith in him. The fact that he paid the price for our sin on the cross and rose from the dead is still the basis for our salvation.
 
Paul also said that he would share in the fellowship of Christ's sufferings. As the Expositor's Bible Commentary points out, this is not referring to Christ's suffering on the cross when he paid for our sin. Only Jesus could bear that burden. Jesus was also rejected and persecuted by his own people. Jesus said that believers would share in his suffering in this way, and history has certainly borne witness to the accuracy of Jesus' prediction. Persecution of Christians continues to this day in many parts of the world with varying degrees of severity.

What does Paul mean by him "being conformed to his (Jesus') death?" The Expositor's Bible Commentary states that it involves such identification with Jesus that it can only be explained as a death to the former life. This must be demonstrated in the life of the believer. This is a continual process and should involved ever-increasing conformity to the life of Christ.

Verse 11 states that the purpose is to attain to the resurrection from the dead. It cannot be emphasized too strongly that this is entirely due to Christ's work on the cross and his resurrection from the dead. It is not due to any works that we have done on our own. The fact that Paul uses the words "may attain" does not indicate any doubt on his part. We are assured that all who place their faith in Christ are made children of God and will be included when the righteous are raised from the dead.

Verse 12 says that Paul doesn't claim to have been made perfect yet, but that the process of being sanctified (that is, becoming more like Christ) is happening. There is some debate among theologians as to whether sinless perfection can be achieved in life or not. It is the writer's point of view that this cannot be achieved this side of heaven, but that does not excuse us from pressing forward to become more like Christ than we are right now. Paul was looking forward to his heavenly reward for his service to Christ. Our primary motivation, of course, should be our love for God and others, but Scripture also clearly teaches that we do, or at least should, lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven by serving Christ here on earth.

The idea of forgetting what is behind us and pressing on to that which Christ calls us to do is reinforced in verses 13 and 14. Paul was reaching forward for the heavenly treasures that he had laid up for himself by his service to Christ. Jesus counseled us to do the same (Matthew 6:20).

[JT]