The hope and prospect of it carried him with so much courage and constancy through all the difficulties he met with in his work. Hebrews 11:35 is instructive here. His worship is love of God and service of men. (ii) As far as the Law went, he was a trained Pharisee. Again and again Paul returns to the thought that when the Christian has to suffer, he is in some strange way sharing the very suffering of Christ and is even filling up that suffering ( 2 Corinthians 1:5; 2 Corinthians 4:10-11; Galatians 6:17; Colossians 1:24). He no longer existed. There is really no reason to suppose that they preached at all. So what Paul says is, "If you have nothing to show but circumcision of the flesh, you are not really circumcised--you are only mutilated. May it be so with us! " Little probable is it that the reading, . He knew what it was to be a Jew in the highest sense of the term, and had deliberately abandoned it all for the sake of Jesus Christ. Their gift to him was "an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well-pleasing to God." 3. Thus the degree to which we are faithful to use our talents, treasures, gifts, abilities, resources, and opportunities in life to please Him is the degree to which we will obtain this out-resurrection abundance of life." Again, Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended (Philippians 3:13; Philippians 3:13), ou logizomai. It is Christ, and Christ only, that thus disposes of grief and pressure. Indeed Paul did. It is because the world was created out of this flawed matter that sin and evil are in it. Paul had certain people that seemed to follow him wherever he went, trying to pervert that which he taught of the grace of God, especially the Jewish legalizers who sought to bring the people back to a legal relationship with God, putting them under the law. It was such an one, truly the servant of Jesus Christ, and so much the more their servant because His, even their servant for Jesus' sake it was such an one that wrote from Rome to the tried saints at Philippi. But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ ( Philippians 3:7 ). It is perfectly possible for him to observe all the outward observances of religion and yet have hatred and bitterness and pride in his heart. Roman dress was worn; Roman magistrates governed; the Latin tongue was spoken; Roman justice was administered; Roman morals were observed. and have no confidence in the flesh ( Philippians 3:3 ). With all of my efforts I could never come up to that. Not in a figurative sense, the resurrection from the death of sin to a life of grace, of which Christ is the efficient cause, for this the apostle had attained to; unless the consummation of that spiritual life, in perfect holiness, should be intended, than which nothing was more desirable by him; nor in a representative sense, for this also he enjoyed in Christ his head, being risen with him, and in him, when he rose from the dead; but in a literal sense and designs not the general resurrection of the just and unjust, which he believed; for he knew that everyone must, and will attain to this, even Pharaoh, Judas, and the worst of men; but the special and particular resurrection of the righteous, the better resurrection, which will be first, and upon the personal coming of Christ, and by virtue of union to him, and in a glorious manner, and to everlasting life and happiness: and when the apostle says, "if by any means" he might attain to this, it is not to be understood as if he doubted of it, which would be inconsistent with his firm persuasion, that nothing should separate him from the love of God, and with his full assurance of faith, as to interest in Jesus Christ; but it denotes the difficulty of attaining it, since through various afflictions and great tribulations a believer must pass, before he comes to it; and also the apostle's earnest desire of it, and strenuous endeavour for it; not caring what scenes of trouble, or sea of sorrow what fiery trials, severe sufferings, or cruel death he went through, so be it he obtained as he believed he should, the glorious and better resurrection; he counted not his life dear to himself, he loved it not unto death, having in view the blissful and happy state after it. And what did the apostle do with all this roll of fleshly advantages? as a popular and familiar mode of expression (suitable to the persons addressed), according to which the expressions . To know Christ means for him certain things. Paul warns that they are there, they were there in Paul's day; they are there today. Timothy was very dear to him, and was then with him; but he is going to part with the one that was so much the more valued by him in his solitariness and sorrow because of his circumstances at Rome. And the righteousness is accounted to me by my faith in Him. If any other" carrying on the same thought of the flesh "if any other man thinketh that he hath matter of trust in the flesh, I more. There are a lot of people running the race just to say, "Well, I ran in the race." His view in all which was, that he might attain to that glorious and happy state of the resurrection of the dead in Christ, Php 3:11, and to prevent mistakes, and anticipate an objection that might be made to him, as if he ascribed perfection to himself in the present state, he owns he had not arrived to it: all he meant was, that it was his desire to enjoy that which Christ had laid hold on him for; in order to which he buried in oblivion what was past, looking and pressing to things before hint, even to Christ, and the glory he was called unto, which was with him, Php 3:12-14. admits that the external testimony is quite in its favour, though it is hard to see what he means by the internal evidence being in this case denied; for he suggests himself that may have been a correction proceeding from those who thought that the sense which the context requires, "the resurrection from the dead," could not be extracted from . Paul did not express doubt by this statement; he asserted a fact. Shall we turn now in our Bibles to Philippians 3 .Again, remember that the background of this epistle, Paul is chained to a Roman soldier in Rome, in prison, writing to the Philippians. But still, that is not enough to bring a man an entrance into the kingdom of heaven.Now, here they were going around and trying to tell the Gentile believers that you had to keep the law to be righteous. It is the proof that his promise to be with us always to the end of the world is true. 7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. When Christ laid hold of us, it was to bring us to heaven; and to apprehend that for which he apprehended us is to attain the perfection of our bliss. This is what brings him, if one may so say, into the dilemma of love. The hope of the Christian is that the day will come when his humanity will be changed into nothing less than the divinity of Christ, and when the necessary lowliness of mortality will be changed into the essential splendour of deathless life. He had to divest himself of every human claim of honour that he might accept in complete humility the mercy of God in Jesus Christ. Sweet and wondrous word to say that Christ is our life; but the question is, how are we living? The lad had found a joy which not even the scaffold could take away. Hence it may be remarked that in the epistle to the Philippians it is not a question of lusts of the flesh; the flesh is not so much as named here, except in a religious way; not in its gross sins, as man would judge, but in its pretensions to religion. However, one is correct in understanding that these words express his humble expectation and hope (1 Corinthians 15:20; 2 Corinthians 5:1). I have not yet accomplished that purpose. The verb katavtao ("attain") means to come to, to arrive at, or to attain to something. WebPhilippians 3:11. Women may have gifts as well as men. Therefore he intreated them to "do all things without murmurings and reasonings, that they might be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom they shone as lights in the world; holding forth the word of life." "Let your moderation be known unto all men. of Thus "forgetting those things which are behind" refers to the progress that we may make. Thus, as at the beginning of the chapter, there was the energy that went out against the evil workers, with a religious mind after the flesh, so now there is the energy that bursts forth against those that were misusing Christianity, making it an earthly system, setting their mind on things here below, under the name of the Lord Jesus; and between the two, is set forth the positiveness, if one may so speak, of Christ Himself. "They really did me wrong. WebPhilippians 2:1-5. "For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's. This is unfortunate, since his works contain priceless gems of information that are found nowhere except in the ancient writings of the Jews. Dikaiosune ( G1343) is always difficult to translate in Paul's letters. Superficially this verse seems to suggest that Paul had some doubt about the certainty of his resurrection. It can be a very dangerous thing.On the other hand, I can recognize that I have a problem with sin, with myself, with my flesh. That is a wonderful thought. The Philippians were extremely giving towards Paul, both when he was with them (Acts 16:15, 16:32-34) and when he was apart from them (2 Corinthians 8:1-7, 9:1-4, and 11:9). Reason and sense are out of the question, though reason must reject a creature's becoming God. [Note: Saucy, p. We do not speak of standing in Christ now, but of their allotted services. He gave him time to repent; and not only so, but a heart to repent." Let your every contact with the world be just as light as possible." In God there is ample supply. In common language it was popularly derived from kusi (compare G2965) ballomena ( G906) , which means that which is thrown to the dogs; and in medical language it means excrement, (dung, as the King James Version translates it). When first he tasted it, he found it so sweet that he cared for none other. Father, I would that those who You have given to me, to be with me here, would also share with me in the Kingdom. "Again I say, Rejoice." It is the cry of the Psalmist: "Zeal for thy house has consumed me." They really mind the earthly things. The word signifies the resurrection in general, both of the just and unjust; may signify that of the blessed only. or are there mingled ways and mixed motives? But you will never know the life of the resurrected Christ until you have experienced the fellowship of the sufferings. His opponents might have attempted to say, "But you are a Christian and do not know what you are talking about; you do not know what it is to be a Jew." It is of great use in the Christian course to keep our eye upon heaven. In 48 B.C. 3:8-9 Yes, and I still count all things loss, because of the all-surpassing value of what it means to know Jesus Christ, my Lord. I am forestalling the plan of God. ", Finally, he calls them again to rejoice, and now with more emphasis than ever. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website. Bengel hesitated; but Dr. Wells in this, as in many other instances, showed his sound judgment and quiet courage in rejecting the common text, and adopting that which has by far the best authorities. The cross was essential and necessary for Him to experience the power of the resurrection. 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