Part 08

Phil 3:1-11

Remember writing exams at school. Arriving at the exam and the super confident people, who made exam writing look so easy. But for whatever reason they went into the exam confidently. But this confidence enabled them to write the exams without panicking. Writing the exam with an assurance that they’ll pass and even do well.

Something about confidence that enables you to go ahead with something. Eg. Traveling to Hermanus on full tank of petrol. Anything we do if backed by confidence we will be more willing to do it

As a Christian it's important that we have confidence. We all want to confidently live out our faith. If we are insecure it will affect how we handle the rough spots. It will affect how we perceive our relationship with God.

It's important that our confidence is in the right place. There are confident Christians who have placed their confidence where they shouldn't. People who've called themselves Christians who've placed their confidence  where they shouldn't, and as a result fallen away from the faith. I know Christians who have stood the test of time because their confidence was in the right place.

Paul in Philippians 3 tells us  where he places his confidence. Therefore telling us where we should place our confidence, also telling us where we shouldn't place our confidence, telling us the danger of placing our confidence in the wrong place

And this confidence helps him endure / gives him perspective / helps him to keep his eyes on Jesus / helps him to handle suffering and struggle that comes his way.

So 3 headings this morning

a dangerous confidence

a worthy confidence

an expression of confidence

A dangerous confidence

verse 1-3

Further / Finally brothers and sisters rejoice in the Lord / This is a repeated phrase in Philippians / 'rejoice in the Lord' / It's a big clue i.to. of where our confidence should be / a bit like a repeated Chorus in a song / he wants to see the Philippians rejoicing in the Lord / so he says it here / again in Chapter 4 'rejoice in the Lord Always , I will say it again." / and a lot of references to joy and rejoicing throughout Philippians

It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again,

Probably referring to when he first preached to them / Remember he planted the church in Philippi many years before / What he was writing now was the same things / There were certain things in the context of Philippi that still needed to be addressed / and from what he says next we know that he is about to give a warning:

I'm writing these things as a safeguard

I'm writing to you because I'm concerned about your safety / because there is danger / and here's the danger: vs 2

Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.

He's not referring to fluffy the poodle who sits on your couch / these dogs had a connotation of disgust / Wild dogs were a thing back in those days / certainly not cute little animals who you let lick your face / He's referring to people who were saying they could find their confidence in circumcision / they were saying this is a requirement to be right with God / and along with it, you obey the Jewish law.

They're dangerous / they're evildoers / mutilators of the flesh / they're dogs

3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—

It is we who are the circumcision: / In the Jewish culture after 8 days a child would be circumcised / Paul isn't saying that's wrong, but he's wanting to show it's true meaning / Physically it was someone being brought into the Jewish culture / Symbolically of something spiritual / What God would do to people’s hearts  / God bringing his people into his kingdom / Circumcision was never something for you to place your confidence in / as Paul says here, it is dangerous to do that. / He says it's by God's spirit that we serve him. / We boast in Christ Jesus / Not by performing any rituals / sacrifices / going to the temple / we boast in Christ Jesus /He has fulfilled the law /We don't put our confidence in the flesh. / Because that is dangerous.

Where do you place your confidence?

The litmus test is if you had to imagine yourself before God one day / on what basis do you deserve the gift of eternal life? / What would your answer be? / I taught Sunday school / went to church regularly /I gave money to the church when they asked /I did the Explore course / All good things, but there's a danger in where you place your confidence / what about the confidence of comparison / you feel you don’t measure up because you compare yourself to other Christians / as a result you feel you’re not worthy

If confidence in the flesh was the way to go, then Paul should have stayed doing what he was doing. / Paul would have had all the brownie points that he needed.

vs 4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence.e If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more:

If anyone has reasons to put their confidence in the flesh, Paul did. /and we see him give a list of his credentials there in verse 5 and 6

5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.

In terms of what these false teachers were saying Paul had ticked all the boxes  / circumcised /part of the tribe of Benjamin / a Hebrew of Hebrews /a Pharisee /zealous /proven by his persecution of the church /He kept the law better than most

why is this so dangerous?

Because Paul's confidence used to be in himself /  his own ability to keep the law /wasn't in anything God had done, but in what he could do.

So if our confidence shouldn't be in the law, and shouldn't be in ourselves, where should it be then?

a worthy confidence

7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.

All of these things that Paul has just mentioned / achievements / law keeping / Everything that had to with him rising to the top / his zeal towards the Jewish political party that he was a part of / All of these things he considers a loss.

He's actually using financial language here / like a profit and loss statement / all these things that would normally be considered a profit / he considers loss / worthless / haven't contributed in any way to his salvation. The gain far outweighs the loss. / for the sake of knowing Christ / what better gain could there be?

and so he goes on to explain why these things are a loss.

8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ— the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.

So where Paul used to place his confidence - is loss on the great balance sheet /But where Paul now places his confidence is gain / Here's why:  / It's a loss because it could have kept him from knowing Christ /If God didn't intervene on the road to Damascus /miraculously change Paul's heart / He would have continued on the path of self righteousness /continued on the path of self confidence /It's a loss that would have kept him from knowing Jesus

all of his achievements and those things listed are a loss compared to the worth of knowing Jesus. / Achievements have their value /                                          Him living righteously would have had it's benefits /Obeying God's Old Testament law has some great consequences /But it all meant nothing because it was steeped in self righteousness / it was a righteousness that was all about Paul / Saul as he was known at the time / it was a confidence that was all about Paul /Paul was the one who was going to earn salvation.                                                                                               

Those other things are garbage / those achievements / My righteousness / My Hebrewness / the NIV has been very conservative with the word that is used for Garbage. / some translations use the word 'dung' /that's how strongly he feels about all of this / I consider them Garbage / dung, that I may gain Christ and be found in him. / anything that has set you on a path of self righteousness / has made you feel "I can do this on my own" /  that has diminished your need for Jesus. / it's all garbage / dung.

I mentioned the comparison thing earlier / sometimes in a self righteous way /we see someone else who has messed up /I'm not so bad then / actually you are bad /the Bible says that you're a sinner /and you need Jesus

Jesus tackles this issue head on /He tells a story in Luke 18  of two men who go to the temple to pray. / One of the men is a Pharisee  /The other man is a tax collector /Two totally opposites when it comes to righteousness and living by the law. / The Pharisee made sure he got the law right /he would have been looked up to by the community / when measured against the law it would be difficult to point out anything he did wrong.

The tax collector /No one liked tax collectors / parasites  / they were Jews who collected money from the Jews for the Roman govt. / would add on a nice chunk to the amount for themselves. / Legally they could pretty much name the percentage that they took / therefore they weren't very much liked, even by their own people.

Luke describes the setting into which Jesus told this parable. / there was always a context to a parable / the best way to grasp most of the parables that Jesus told, is to understand the situation into which Jesus told them /So in verse 9 of Luke 18, Luke says: To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else - Jesus told this parable

The Pharisee prays first / he stood by himself and prayed /This is what he says:  /God, I thank you that I am not like other people /robbers, evildoers, adulterers /Or even like this tax collector /I fast twice a week /I give a tenth of all I get /Now you may not pray like that /but you may think like that / You may think you're ok because you're not as bad as some other people

Then the tax collector gets up to pray /Luke tells us that he stands at a distance /He can't even look up to heaven /and as he prays he beats his breast /This is what he says:  /"Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner" /no comparisons to other people /no 'Lord please acknowledge all the good I've done' / There's no sense of entitlement and deserving of anything /Just a simple - "Lord have mercy on me, a sinner" /I'm not worthy of knowing you / I realize I've offended you /   You are Holy  / I'm a sinner / I acknowledge that there is no way I can put my confidence in my own righteousness

Back to Philippians

vs 9, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ -

Here is where our confidence needs to lie /This is where Paul finds such assurance and hope /and this is where you and I should find such assurance and hope /Not a righteousness of my own that comes from the law /I cannot rely on me being good / No matter how I try by my strength I cannot meet the mark / all of us here this morning have committed some sin since we woke up this morning

                                                                                                                                               

but Paul says here  / I haven't placed my confidence in a righteousness of my own that comes from the law /But that which is through faith in Christ Jesus / So Paul is saying: "Here's where my confidence lies" / it's not through a r/ness of my own  / It's not through me obeying the law /because I know I'm not good enough / It's through faith in Christ Jesus /- I'm trusting in what Jesus has done / that Jesus took on my sin /The punishment that I should have taken on /the guilt and shame that should be mine /the wrath of God that should have been directed towards me / was directed towards Jesus

When Jesus died on the cross he took care of the problem of sin and death / and we know that he conquered sin and death because he rose again / Jesus didn't just stay in the grave / He rose again from the grave / Paul's confidence is in a righteousness that comes through faith in Jesus Christ

Where is your confidence this morning? Eg Love languages. Gifts. / If just giving gifts were a love language - then this would be God's love language / He has given us the greatest gift of all /He has gifted us with eternal life /He loved us so much that he gave it to us /and it's a gift / iow - You can't earn it / You don't deserve it / But you have graciously been given it / a gift you can put your confidence in

an expression of confidence

vs 10-11 I want to know Christ— yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,  11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

So Jesus has achieved so much through his death and resurrection / and because of this amazing gift that we've been given /We should want to share in his sufferings / we should be willing to suffer for him / It's how we get to know Jesus / Jesus experience is suffering before Glory / After suffering the resurrection comes / after suffering the glory comes / Jesus said to his disciples  /if anyone wants to follow me they must deny themselves, take up their cross daily and follow me

Do you have a desire to want to know Jesus? / so much that you want to share in his sufferings /that you want to become like him in his death /attaining to the resurrection from the dead / take the road of suffering for the one who suffered for you /take up your cross and follow Jesus as you take the road to glory / seeing things in the perspective of this short temporary life

vs 10-11 10: I want to know Christ— yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,  11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

Conclusion

Where is your confidence?

How can we be a church with vitality that places our confidence where it should be?

What if you've never placed your confidence in Christ?

Home Group questions

Read Philippians 3:1-11

A Dangerous confidence vs 1-6

1. What did it mean for the Philippians to place their confidence in the flesh?
2. How did Paul place his confidence in the flesh before he came to know Christ?
3. Why does Paul consider all these things a loss and garbage?
4. What are some examples of putting your confidence in the flesh today?

A worthy confidence vs 9

5. Where should our confidence be placed?

A confidence expressed

6. How should this confidence be expressed / ie how does this confidence help us to live as a Christian?
7. Try and identify areas where you’ve placed your confidence in the flesh / in yourself?