Do you have a joyful, confident relationship with God?
And I want you to think, your relationship with God,
is there joy in it?
And are you confident that He is your Heavenly Father?
If you don't, I pray that you will
by the time you leave this service today.
That God will show you what needs to take place in your life.
That you'll sense Him calling you, enabling you
to make that kind of commitment.
But if you do, what are you basing your confidence on?
You know, it's one thing to be confident.
I mean, there's times when I'm confident.
I could outrun Jake Alexander back there.
I mean, I think that sometimes.
But that's a stupid thing to think.
So sometimes we can be confident about things that's not true.
That's not real.
There's no basis for it.
And so as we go through this message,
think about, if you say,
I am confident about my relationship with God,
is it a solid confidence?
Is there a reason for it?
A God-given, God-accepting confidence?
I want you to turn with me back to the book of Philippians.
We continue our study.
I was off last week, and Ralph Carter did a great job.
Lisa and I watched the service,
and he just did a great job.
I enjoyed the message, powerful message,
and I appreciate him coming and preaching.
But this morning, I want us to go back to where we were,
beginning a new chapter, chapter 3.
And I want us to see in this some things we need to be clear about.
That we can leave here this morning knowing
that we do have a joyful, confident relationship with God
for the right reason, that he approves.
Philippians 3.1
Finally, brothers, rejoice in the Lord.
Lord, to write the same things to you is no trouble to me
and is safe for you.
Look out for the dogs.
Look out for the evildoers.
Look out for those who mutilate the flesh.
For we are the circumcision,
who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus
and put no confidence in the flesh, in ourselves.
In what we do.
Though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also.
If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh,
I have more.
Circumcised on the eighth day of the people of Israel,
of the tribe of Benjamin,
a Hebrew of Hebrews,
as to the law of Pharisee,
as to zeal,
a persecutor of the church,
as to righteousness under the law,
blameless.
But whatever gain I had,
I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.
Indeed,
I count everything as loss
because of the surpassing worth
of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
For his sake,
I have suffered the loss of all things
and count them as rubbish
in order that I may gain Christ
and be found in him,
not having a righteousness of my own
that comes from the law,
comes from obeying the law,
but that comes through faith in Christ.
The righteousness from God
that depends on faith.
That I may know him
and the power of his resurrection
and may share his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death,
that by any means possible,
I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Paul is going to point out some things
to help us to be clear
and confident
about our relationship with the Lord.
Let's look at it.
Let's be clear about where we find Christian joy.
Look at verse one again.
Finally, my brothers,
rejoice in the Lord.
We'll stop there.
The word finally
is used here to make a transition.
Paul is not like someone
who might give a speech or a sermon
and about halfway through
or three quarters through
will say finally.
And you think it's about over,
but it's not.
He is just,
that's just his way
using that word here in this context.
It could be translated then
or furthermore,
because he's got a lot more to say
in this letter.
He begins this section
by calling attention to joy.
We're going to define it
a little bit later,
but it's Christian joy.
And that's one of the main themes
of this letter.
We have seen
in earlier studies
one of the things Paul
repeats over and over again
about there is joy
to be found
in a right relationship
with Jesus.
We as Christians,
of all people in this world,
we have a lot to rejoice about.
He talked about his own joy
and about the Philippians,
the members of this church,
their joy.
Now,
I want to remind you
of something we looked at
when we first began this study.
There is a difference
between Christian joy
and the emotion of happiness.
Happiness is an emotion
that mostly occurs.
We're happy
when things are going our way,
when we have good health,
when people are treating us
in a good way,
a positive way.
Well,
when people don't treat us well
and things are not going our way,
we are not happy,
are we?
And that's just life.
That's just who we are
as human beings.
Sometimes we're happy,
usually based on our circumstances.
Sometimes we're not
because of our circumstances.
Happiness comes and goes
in everyone's life.
Christian joy is different now.
It's really a part of the fruit of the Spirit.
As Christians,
with the Spirit of God living within us,
He works in us to develop our character
and joy is really a character quality.
It's also an attitude.
But Christian joy is not without emotion.
There is pleasure in Christian joy
when you understand that pleasure
basically means to be pleased.
The word pleasure uses the noun
means to be pleased.
So as Christians,
in our relationship with the Lord,
there should be a lot that pleases us.
A similar word to this idea of Christian joy
is contentment
or having peace in your soul
or a sense of peace,
rightness with God.
And this kind of joy
is not really dependent
on our circumstances.
You know, you can
be going through a hard time,
strained relationships with somebody maybe,
sickness,
a lot of uncertainty in your life.
And you know,
you're not just excited about it,
thrilled about it,
you're not happy about it,
but you can,
as you draw close to the Lord,
sort of be at peace with it.
Be content in terms of
you're able to deal with it.
And the idea that
you're going to approach that situation
seeking to please the Lord
regardless of how you actually feel.
That's what we're talking about.
Now Paul explains the source of such joy
in verse three as he says,
rejoice in the Lord.
That's the first time he has said
rejoice in the Lord.
He's talked about joy or rejoice
nine times up to this point.
This is the first time he says
rejoice in the Lord.
Knowing Jesus is our Savior and Lord
gives us reason to rejoice,
to be pleased,
to be content.
Doesn't it?
You know,
most of us in this room,
we have at least one close relationship
with someone
that it just pleases us
to be with them.
Now I hope
that's your spouse
if you're married.
But it could be,
could be your child,
unless they're a teenager.
It could be a friend.
There's just somebody in your life,
hopefully,
and you may have more than one,
that having a relationship with them
just makes you more content,
even in hard times
when, you know,
difficult times goes on.
You know,
I've thought about that.
Brian's my friend.
And I truly,
there's a lot of times
I have joy,
it pleases me
to spend time with him.
But when life's hard,
if I'm sick
or I'm just in turmoil,
I don't really care
if he's around.
I want Lisa there.
I'm serious.
Lisa makes everything better.
Don't you,
I hope you have somebody
in your life
that just having them there
makes everything better.
Well, that's how the Lord
should be if we're Christians.
We should have such a relationship
with him,
we're able to talk to him,
we sense his presence,
and just knowing
that he's promised
to never leave us
nor forsake us,
no matter what,
knowing him
gives us a sense of joy.
It pleases us.
It makes things right.
Now,
having a relationship
with the Lord
does have other benefits.
Your sins have been forgiven.
The guilt should be gone.
No Christian should live in guilt.
You are an actual child of God.
The Lord has promised
to always be with you
throughout your life
here on earth,
and when you die,
he's going to take you
into heaven.
He's going to walk
with you
into paradise.
And so,
there's a lot of reasons
why we should be able
to rejoice
in the Lord.
Now,
I want you to note,
Paul says,
to write the same things
to you
is no trouble to me
and is safe for you.
I'm taking that
to mean
that Paul has
talked to these people
a lot about joy.
When he was with them
earlier in this letter,
he could have even
written another letter
we have no,
you know,
we don't know about
that he talked about joy.
He talked about joy
a lot with them
and it never got old
to him.
And he doesn't want it
to get old
to them
either.
He talks about
at the end there.
It is no trouble
to me
and it is safe
for you.
Rejoicing in the Lord,
focusing on him
like we're talking about,
is good for our
spiritual health,
our spiritual well-being,
our spiritual safety
even.
You say,
how will that be?
Well,
it would help us
to stay off
the emotional
roller coaster
that occurs
when we allow
our circumstances
to dictate
our mood,
our emotions.
And some people
do that more
than others.
I mean,
some people in here,
you know,
you're sort of like
a flag in the wind.
Whatever the situation is,
it gets you down,
it gets you up.
You're just dependent
on what is happening
around you
to determine
your mood,
your emotional
status or stability.
And that's not healthy.
We need to rejoice
in the Lord,
focus on him,
find peace,
rest,
contentment in him,
and that will help us,
protect us,
our sanity,
our emotional stability,
as well as our
spiritual stability.
Now,
what could you do
that would help you
to rejoice more
in the Lord,
to focus more
on him
on a daily basis?
You know,
one thing would be
to begin each day
talking to him.
Spend some time
in prayer.
Spend some time
reading God's word.
Focusing on the Lord
as you begin the day
or at some point
during the day.
A lot of people
in this room,
you spend a lot of time
on the road,
mornings and afternoons
going to work,
going to school.
What do you do
during that time?
Could you
maybe turn off
the radio,
iPod,
or whatever it is
you listen to?
Could you maybe
have some quiet time
as you drive
and just talk
to the Lord?
Focus on him?
Could you
maybe listen
to some Christian music
or some Christian teaching
that would help you
to focus more on him?
or even to grow
in your relationship
with him,
in your knowledge
of God's word?
Find ways
that you will be able
to focus more
on the Lord
throughout a day
because that's
what it's going to take
for us to really be able
to rejoice in the Lord
and find safety
or stability
just on a regular basis.
Now the next verse
helps us see
that rejoicing
in the Lord
doesn't make us
immune from the
harsh realities
of life
nor the negative
emotions
of being human.
Look at number two.
Let's be clear
about who we can
trust to teach
the Bible.
Paul warns
the Philippians,
this church,
about false teachers
in a very strong way.
Look at this verse two.
Look out for the dogs.
Look out for the evildoers.
Look out for those
who mutilate the flesh.
You think Paul was smiling
when he wrote those words?
You think he was
in a happy mood?
He was angry.
I think he was red-faced.
I think you could hear
it in his voice.
He was angry
as he thought about
these people,
these false teachers.
Here's who they were.
If you're familiar
with the book of Acts
or you've read
some of Paul's letters,
you know that
Paul's sort of
plan of action.
He went to a place,
he preached the gospel,
people were saved,
he started a church,
he did his best
to get them off
on the right foot,
doctrinally,
practically,
trying to help them
to understand
who they were in Christ
and how to grow.
But after Paul left,
in many of his churches,
there was a group
that came in.
They were Jews
who also claimed
to be Christians.
Bible commentators
refer to them
as Judaizers.
They were trying
to make Jews
out of Christians.
And they would come in
and say,
yeah,
what Paul preached
was okay,
it is important
to trust in Jesus,
but that's not
the whole story.
Their goal
was to make Jews
out of those Christians.
They would say,
Paul didn't tell you
the whole story,
the full gospel.
What they would say
is you've got to obey
the Old Testament law.
You've got to keep the law.
You've got to practice
the Old Testament circumcision.
That's important
for you to do.
And as a faithful Jew
obeying the law
and trusting Christ,
you will be okay.
So they were Jews,
false teachers,
telling the Gentiles
they've got to become a Jew.
And that just
incensed Paul
because it was a lie.
They were undermining
the truth
that he had been teaching them.
And Paul made it clear
in his letter
to the Galatians
that these Judaizers
were preaching
a different gospel
than he preached,
not completing his,
a different gospel,
which meant
it was no gospel
at all.
Look at what he says.
Galatians chapter 1
verses 6 to 8.
In Philippians,
his anger
is toward
the false teachers,
not these people.
In Galatians,
he's angry
about everybody.
The false teachers
who are coming in
behind him
and undermining him
and these very church members
who are embracing that,
believing that,
being led astray.
Look at it.
I am astonished
that you are so quickly
deserting him
who called you
in the grace of Christ
and are turning
to a different gospel,
not that there is
another one,
but there are some
who trouble you
and want to distort
the gospel of Christ.
But even if we
or an angel
from heaven
should preach to you
a gospel contrary
to the one
we preach to you,
let him be accursed.
Let him be
eternally condemned.
That's how strongly
he felt about
the purity of the gospel,
preserving it
and going after those
who would try to dilute it
or undermine it
or change it.
Look at how Paul
describes them.
Let's look back
in the verse.
Dogs.
Now don't think about
your pet at home.
That is not
the kind of dog
Paul had in mind.
That is our dog,
Molly.
She's a good dog.
Let me say this.
I do not believe
in reincarnation.
That is heresy.
That is moronic.
But if reincarnation
is real,
you want to come back
as Lisa Stone's dog.
You'll have the best dog
life that a dog
could have.
That's a fine dog.
But that's not
who Paul is calling
these false teachers.
Look next.
That
vicious,
wild,
scavenger
kind of dog
that roamed
the streets
of the day,
nobody's pet.
when Paul
called these people
dogs,
it was a hateful
term
of scorn.
It was about
as strong
an insult
as he could say.
Jews
in Paul's day
condescendingly
often called
Gentiles
dogs.
And a lot of times
Gentiles
returned to favor.
Then Paul
next calls them
evildoers.
He considered
what they were doing,
undermining the gospel,
leading people astray
as doing
evil.
And then those
who mutilate
the flesh,
that's what Paul
thought of
circumcision
if it's added
to the gospel.
It's nothing
spiritual.
These
false teachers
taught a salvation
by works
is what they were
doing.
It was a man
made religion,
a man made
salvation.
But Paul
tells us here,
salvation is work
of the Spirit
of God.
Salvation is work
of the Holy Spirit
who indwells
us as Christians.
The gospel
calls everyone
look to Jesus
Christ
for your
salvation.
There's nothing
you can add
to it.
Don't even
try.
Look at this,
verse 3.
For we are the
circumcision.
He's talking about
spiritually here.
He's talking about
how in Romans
it says it this way,
the Holy Spirit
circumcises our
heart.
He's just talking
about how God
does the work
of salvation
in these kind
of terms.
For we're the
circumcision
who worship
by the Spirit
of God
and glory
in Christ
Jesus
and put no
confidence
in the flesh.
our good
works,
our keeping
the law
and all
these kinds
of things.
Paul wants
to make sure
that the
Philippians
understand
I know
what I'm
talking about.
Paul wants
them to
understand
that if
anyone could
be right
with God
by doing
what these
false teachers
say,
I could
and I
would.
Look at how
he describes
his heritage
and his
good works.
He says,
though I
myself have
reason for
confidence in
the flesh
also,
if anyone
else thinks
he has
reason for
confidence in
the flesh,
I have
more.
It's like
one of the
greatest Jewish
resumes
that a Jewish
leader could
have.
Look at
this.
Circumcised
on the
eighth day,
of the
people of
Israel,
of the
tribe of
Benjamin,
a Hebrew
of Hebrews,
as to the
law,
a Pharisee,
as to zeal,
a persecutor
of the church,
as to righteousness
under the law,
blameless.
Paul was a
Jew's Jew
from birth.
And as he
grew up,
as he went
through his
adult life
until he came
to Christ,
he never
wavered.
Now,
I want us
to pause
here and
think about
what Paul
is saying
because the
idea here,
the concept
here is a
matter of
life and
death.
It's a
matter of
spending
eternity
in heaven
or hell.
In
Paul's
day,
many Jews
thought they
could score
points with
God because
they were
born a Jew.
They tried
to keep the
Ten Commandments
and that's
what the
false teachers
were teaching.
today,
in this
community,
maybe in
this church,
some people
think along
that same
line,
what about
you?
Think with
me.
Were you
born into a
Christian home?
Did you have
godly parents?
Have you been
to church
basically all
your life?
Well,
those things
are great in
that they gave
you the
advantage of
having Christian
role models right
there in your
home.
You had the
advantage of
being taught the
Word of God
and you still
know a lot
that you learned
even at a very
young age.
But I want
you to
understand,
your parents'
faith and
your Bible
knowledge and
your church
attendance has
absolutely nothing
to do with your
personal salvation.
In fact,
our exposure to
Christian role
models like in
our homes,
our exposure
to biblical
teaching,
God expects
us more
accountable.
God expects
more of you
and me if we
grew up in a
Christian home
and been taught
the Word of
God more than
someone who
was a pagan,
an ungodly
home and never
even heard
anything that
was in the
Bible.
You say,
I don't know
about that.
Look at what
Jesus said in
one of his
parables.
Everyone to
whom much
was given
of him,
much will be
required.
That's the
principle of
life.
Even as a
Christian right
now,
if God has
given you
spiritual gifts
and talents
and abilities,
I mean,
you're sharp.
By the grace of
God, you are a
sharp Christian,
talented,
a lot of
abilities.
God expects you
to be using them
for his glory and
the good of the
people around you,
including this
church.
We are
accountable for
what God
brings into
our life,
what God
gives us.
Think about
this.
Have you
behaved yourself
pretty good
most of your
life?
I mean,
there's a lot
of people in
this room,
not Mike
Sterling-Kinney,
but there's a
lot of people
in this room
who've been
good people
most of
their lives.
You
listened to
your parents.
You weren't
defiant,
rebellious.
You have
tried to
obey the
laws of
God and
man.
In fact,
there may
be a lot
of people
in this
room that
you've
sort of
lived a
Andy Taylor
of Mayberry
kind of
life.
You've
just been
good.
But I
want you
to understand,
your good
works may
and probably
have made
your life
in this
world better.
But God
is not
impressed.
And you
have not
earned
anything
before God
by your
good life
and good
works.
Unless you
have lived
an absolutely
perfect life
and never
sinned,
you,
no matter
where you
came from
or what
you've done,
you are
not
acceptable
to God
on your
own.
You're
not.
You may
be a whole
lot better
than the
person sitting
beside you
in the pew.
You may
be a lot
better than
a lot of
people that
you know.
That's part
of our
problem.
We like
to compare
ourselves.
You know?
I would
never compare
myself with
Rudy Gray
sitting over
there.
You know,
I just
couldn't,
I couldn't
measure up.
But I
can compare
myself to
Mike Sterling
Kenny,
okay.
So you
shouldn't
sit on the
front row
with a
suit on.
That just
gets my
attention.
You see
what I'm
talking about?
You think
to yourself,
I am a
pretty good
guy and
maybe you
are in
this
community,
comparatively
speaking.
But before
God and
his perfect,
righteous,
holy standards,
you are a
sinner.
You can
do nothing
to change
that.
You can
do nothing
to overcome
that on
your own.
We need
to understand
this as
Paul points
out next.
Look at this
quickly.
Let's be
clear about
what ultimately
matters.
Verses 7
and 8.
But whatever
gain I had,
I counted as
loss for the
sake of
Christ.
Indeed,
I count
everything as
loss because
of the
surpassing
worth of
knowing Christ
Jesus my
Lord.
For his
sake I
have
suffered
the loss
of all
things and
count them
as rubbish
in order that
I may gain
Christ.
I want you
to look at
what Paul
called his
previous
religious
resume,
his assets,
rubbish.
R.C.
Sproul explains
what he meant
by that.
Look,
some scholars
contend the
Greek word
for rubbish
is actually
the ordinary
slang term
for dung
or may
refer to
garbage
thrown out
to dogs.
This stuff
had value
before Christ
but now
it is to
be flushed
away.
Christ is
now the
only thing
that counts
and Paul
put everything
else away.
Everything
that Paul
the Jew,
everything
that Paul
the good
guy in his
day thought
was important,
his heritage,
his good
works,
was really
worth
nothing,
I mean
absolutely
nothing
in terms
of securing
God's
favor.
Do you
really
understand
that?
Everything
that you
think makes
you special
or that
gives you
some kind
of special
standing
before God
like your
family,
your church
attendance,
maybe your
talents,
your gifts,
your education.
It's
worthless,
absolutely
meaningless
in terms
of gaining
God's
favor.
And anyone
who tells
you otherwise
is a false
teacher.
Anyone who
tells you
otherwise,
they're a
dog,
a scavenger
dog.
They are
evil doers.
Don't
listen to
anyone who
denies or
ignores the
fact that
you are a
sinner,
totally
dependent upon
God's
grace and
Jesus'
righteousness
for your
salvation.
I want you
to hang
on to your
hats on
this.
Whoever
tells you
otherwise
is a
false
teacher,
even if
that's your
parents
or your
grandparents
or Joel
Osteen
or anyone
else who
denies
the clear
teaching of
the Bible
that we're all
sinners,
we cannot save
ourselves,
we cannot earn
our salvation.
But don't
think I'm
being overly
harsh or
hard.
I'm just
preaching
what Paul
in Galatians
said.
Look again,
but even if
we or an
angel from
heaven should
preach to
you a
gospel contrary
to the
ones we
preach to
you,
let him be
accursed.
That's how
strong it is.
That's how
important it
is that you
not be
misled by
any human
being in
this world
when it
comes to
how you
are right
with God.
Last thing,
let's be
clear about
how we
become right
with God.
Let's look
at verses
9 and
10.
And be
found in
him,
not having
a righteousness
of my own
that comes
from the
law,
but that
which comes
through faith
in Christ,
the righteousness
from God
that depends
on faith.
Let's stop
there.
Paul describes
salvation as
having a
righteousness
that comes
through faith
in Jesus
Christ.
Now what
does he
mean?
Well the
word
righteousness
simply means
to be declared
right with
God.
Don't stumble
over it,
sort of a,
look at that
word,
what does that
exactly mean?
It means to
be right with
God,
or to be
declared right
with God
by God.
God declares
us to be
right with
him,
when we
put our
faith in
Jesus as
our Savior
and Lord.
We will
never be
right with
God by
obeying
God's
law,
by doing
our best,
by trying
harder.
The good
news of
this passage
is that God
sent his
son into
this world
to be
our Savior.
Jesus
perfectly
obeyed
God's
law.
And when
we put
our faith
in Jesus
and trust
him,
we become
one with
him,
then his
obedience is
credited to
us.
Jesus took
the punishment
that we
deserve because
we've broken
God's laws
when he died
on the
cross.
And so
when you
trust Jesus,
you become
one with
him,
and his
death on
the cross
counts as
your death
to sin.
If you
don't have a
relationship
with God
through faith
in Jesus
right now,
I want
to encourage
you to
turn to
Christ in
faith.
It may
be that
you came
into this
room this
morning,
never thought
about it
like this
before,
but you
are really
trying to
work your
way to
heaven.
You're
trying to
balance the
scales of
being good
here and
doing a
little bit
more when
you're bad
there.
You're really
thinking God's
going to accept
me based on
what I do,
the good I
can do.
But that's
totally wrong.
The only way
God's going to
accept you
is to admit
you are a
sinner, you
cannot save
yourself, repent,
change your mind
about living this
way, put your
trust in Jesus
and Him alone.
Call upon Him
to save you.
Surrender
control of your
life to Him
as your
Lord.
I want to
ask you,
if you died
today,
this day,
and you
stood before
God and He
asked you,
why should I
let you into
heaven?
What would
you say?
Think about it
for just a
moment.
You died
today.
And all of a
sudden, you
stand before
God.
He looks at
you and says,
why should I
let you into
heaven?
What would
you say?
Would your
answer include
anything about
who you are,
who your
family is,
or what you
have done
to earn
your place
in heaven?
If you're
going to
answer like
that,
you're trying
to save
yourself.
And you'll
never get in.
The only
acceptable
answer
is that I
am trusting
in Jesus
and Him
alone
for my
salvation.
when we
come to
God,
be very
clear about
this.
When we
come to
God, it
doesn't matter
who we
are,
where we're
from,
or what
we've done.
All that
matters is
that we
come to
Him by
trusting
Jesus.
And that
is the only
way that He
will ever
accept anyone
when we're
united to
Jesus by
faith.
Let's pray
together.
Father,
show us
now if
we have
reason to
have
confidence
in our
relationship
with You.
But Lord,
make it
crystal clear
that anyone
here who is
trusting in
themselves and
who they
are, what
they are,
what they've
done, they
fall short.
They can't
save
themselves.
But Lord,
help us all
to see, to
be reminded,
to be
encouraged,
that if we'll
just admit our
sin, our
failure,
and hate it
and turn from
it, and
trust Jesus
and rest in
Jesus.
We will be
forgiven because
He died for
our sins.
We will be
righteous because
we have His
right standing.
So help us,
dear God,
to make the
kind of
commitment or
to just simply
say thank
you so that
we can all
leave here this
morning with
joyful confidence
that we have
a right and
good relationship
with you.
Let's just
pray and
listen to the
Lord and
respond to
Him as
He wants us
to during
this time.
Thank you.