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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. 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—though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If someone else thinks they have reasons to put 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; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.
But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 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.
Philippians 3:2-9
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
After Jesus completed His salvation mission and ascended to sit in total authority over all things in heaven and on earth, His mission, passed on to all who would believe in Him, became the greatest priority in life for any and all Christians.
As stated by the Savior of the world, that Great Commission was as follows:
“...go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Matthew 28:19-20
These were (and are) the orders for the Christian church and all its members.
As read in many of Paul’s letters to the early churches, many of which he planted, we see him voicing concerns about people infiltrating the congregations with different ideologies regarding the Gospel. Specifically, a group known as the Judaizers was pitching the dogma that more was required to gain salvation than just simply professing belief in Jesus.
Circumcision was one of the actions they pushed, a tradition established by the covenant God had made with Abraham, long considered the founding father of the Jewish nation. Of course, this added requirement conflicted with God’s intention for salvation as it was to be received by grace and grace alone, not works.
And so Paul had a big issue with the Judaizers and we see this once again evident as we turn to the third chapter of his letter to the Philippians. Look again at his words here:
Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. 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—though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If someone else thinks they have reasons to put 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; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.
But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 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. Vv. 2-9
Although not mentioning the Judaizers by title, it’s obvious who Paul is addressing as “dogs”, “evildoers”, and “mutilators of the flesh”. Paul himself was no stranger to being fervent in his Jewish faith and testifies as much concerning his own circumcision, tribal affiliation, and zeal as a Pharisee and Christian persecutor.
And yet, when Paul encountered Jesus, everything changed in a very big way. All that he considered important was seen as worthless through the lens of what was most important, that being the surpassing greatness of the cause of Christ, a cause Paul was willing to sacrifice everything to support just as Jesus had sacrificed everything to save him.
It was this Christian attitude and commitment that Paul wanted the Philippian believers to adopt because he knew it would overcome any attempts by the Judaizers or any others who would seek to pervert the Gospel. In the end translation, all Christians need to see that simply knowing Jesus and therefore gaining eternal life through Him is greater than anything else in life, greater than anything the world offers and greater than any past human achievement that may have brought any form of stature.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
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