This Week's Study

3:1 Paul has asked the saints at Philippi to rejoice. Now he asks them to do so in the highest way possible—in the Lord. He realizes the process of transformation is steady and repetitive, but also necessary. So he has no trouble writing the same things again. In fact, his effort to remind them brings safety to their souls. Paul has addressed what he is about to write before.

3:2 Paul repeats the phrase “look out” three times and describes those he is about to warn them about in very severe terms. At the heart of the matter were the false teachings of those who taught that one must become a Jew before being saved. This was dangerous because it undermined the work of Jesus and faith in the believers’ lives. Anything that robs Jesus of glory and our utter dependence on his saving work on the cross is detrimental to one’s faith.

3:3 Some Jews taught that in order for salvation to be legitimate, one had to adhere to the Old Testament ceremonial law of circumcision. Circumcision, however, was an Old Testament sign that signified what Jesus would do in the hearts of those who believed in him. After Jesus’ resurrection, it was no longer necessary. True circumcision, as Paul describes it, refers to those who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ, not in self. At the core, we put no confidence in the flesh—which has no capacity to save us, no matter how religious our actions may be. We should guard against anything that diminishes our need for Jesus—whatever it may be.

3:4–6 Paul now begins, hypothetically and through exaggeration, to describe himself as someone who put confidence in the flesh. He played the game of righteousness by works better than any of the people peddling that doctrine. He goes on to describe why he was so confident. He was circumcised, of the people of Israel, and zealous to fulfill the law—so much so that he persecuted the church, thinking he was pleasing God. He was blameless under the law (not literally, but as close as one could get).

3:7–8 Even though Paul had the right to be most confident in his Jewish customs, he counted every gain from his lifestyle as loss for the sake of Christ. Not only that, everything is counted as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus. Paul had literally and figuratively lost it all—his former status as a Jew and even his freedom. Yet all of this was worth it for the sake of gaining Christ. Anything that keeps us from Jesus is rubbish.

3:9–11 The righteousness that Paul desires is much higher—one that depends on faith in Christ. This faith motivates him to know Jesus and the power of his resurrection. This faith also motivates him to share in the sufferings of Jesus, to the point of becoming like him in his death. This faith changes who we are and what we desire at the core. This faith gives us a “by any means” necessary kind of attitude. Paul longs to attain the resurrection from the dead.

3:12 Faith in Jesus does not lead one to sit idle and do nothing. Faith in Jesus leads to an active resolve. Paul realizes that he has not obtained the resurrection or reached perfection. Instead, he presses on to make it his own, motivated by the fact that Jesus has made him his own. Our security in Jesus—because of Jesus alone—gives us the greatest motivation to serve him wholeheartedly.

3:13–16 Paul looks to make perfection and resurrection his own by the twofold resolve of forgetting and straining. He forgets what lies behind and strains forward to what lies ahead. We tend to do the opposite—we forget what is ahead and worry about what is behind. He describes this as pressing toward the goal for the prize. Like an athlete whose training is demanding, he disciplines himself through Christ in order to reach his mark. Paul describes this kind of mindset as maturity. Mature people have a resolve to grow in maturity. Paul is sure that even if they don’t think the way he does, God will reveal to them what is necessary. As God reveals this mature way of thinking to them, they must hold true to what they have attained.

3:17 Confident in his way of living and thinking, Paul asks them to imitate him—not only him, but also those who walk according to this example. We grow through imitating other mature brothers and sisters in Christ. Maturity is not a solitary road. Paul tearfully reminds them that many walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. He reminds them that their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and their glory is in their shame. What they constantly think about is the things of this earth. These are the people we should not imitate. He reminds them that, unlike those people, believers have their citizenship in heaven and await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. This Savior will transform their lowly body to be like his glorious body. He will do this by the same power through which he has subjected all things to himself. God’s people await transformation.