Preached Sunday, July 8, 2012 from Philippians 3:4-11
Theme: True ‘conversion’ is to forsake one’s confidence in the ‘flesh’ for righteousness before God, and place it all on Christ.
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)
This morning, we come to a passage of Scripture that tells us a story of “conversion”. And it’s a very important conversion story; because it’s the story of the conversion of the apostle Paul.
You’re probably already somewhat familiar with the story of Paul’s conversion—at least in terms of its historical aspects. It’s a story that’s told to us in the book of Acts—a story of how he had lived zealously for the religion of the Jewish people, how he fiercely persecuted the Church, how he sought to arrest Christians and bring them to prison and punishment; but also how the resurrected Lord Jesus had met him on the road to Damascus and said, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”; of how the Lord called him to become the preacher of His gospel, of how he was struck blind, until he was led into the city of Damascus by hand and a Christian named Ananius came to him and prayed for him; and of how his sight was restored. It’s a story of how he, who had formerly been the greatest antagonist of the Christian faith, became it’s greatest missionary and preacher. Wouldn’t you agree with me that it qualifies as the greatest “conversion” story in all of recorded history?
But that’s the ‘historical’ dimension of that story. We might call it ‘the outsider’s view’ of the story. Today, in Philippians 3, we come to what we might call ‘the insider’s view’ of the story. In ‘the insider’s view’, we’re given insight into the very heart of Paul with respect to his conversion. In it, we’re allowed a closer look into his inner-being; so we can see what it really was that he was converted from, and what it really was that he was converted to.
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To fully appreciate this ‘insider’s view’ of the story, we need to begin at the starting point of the section in which it’s found. In Philippians 3:1-3, Paul writes;
Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe. Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation! For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh . . . (Philippians 3:1-3).
We studied this passage a few weeks ago. And as we did so, we saw that the apostle Paul was telling his fellow-Christians in Philippi what they needed to do in order to experience true and lasting joy. He was stressing to them that they needed to be sure to rejoice “in the Lord”. He stressed this because others were seeking to get them to place their trust in their own human efforts to make themselves righteous before God through obedience to religious rituals and ceremonies. Paul was urging them, therefore, to be make very sure that it was in the Lord Jesus Himself they were trusting and rejoicing—and not in their own abilities to make themselves righteous before God. They were, Paul said, to “have no confidence in the flesh”. True joy is a product of making sure you have your confidence in Jesus Christ alone.
And it’s then that Paul begins to tell his own conversion story—from ‘the insider’s view’:
. . . though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead (vv. 4-11).
I don’t believe I can stress enough what an important passage of Scripture this is! It’s far more than just a part of Paul’s conversion story. Some have justifiably called it the “heart”—the very “essence”—of Paul’s theology of salvation.
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Now; I hope you notice something very important about this remarkable “conversion” story as I have read it to you. The ‘insider’s view’ of the story shows us that Paul didn’t simply experience a “conversion” from one religion to another.
That, unfortunately, is how we often speak of “conversion”, isn’t it?—that someone “converted” from one system of “faith” to another; from one religious “tradition” to another? But Paul didn’t simply convert from “Judaism” to “Christianity”. As his own telling of the story shows us, the best way to describe his conversion is as a change in his “trust” from one “person” to another for his standing before God. He completely ceased to trust in the efforts of one person (that is himself in terms of his own “fleshly” efforts, by means of his own power, to live a religiously devoted life through keeping the rules and regulations of his “religion”); and fully trusted instead in the finished work of another Person (that Person being Jesus Christ.). In fact, Paul became completely absorbed in love for this Person—the Lord Jesus. The wonderful Savior Jesus had met Paul, and Paul had entered into a personal relationship of love with Him. And now, Paul wanted nothing else but Jesus. In fact, he shunned anything else that he formerly trusted in, and only trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ.
That, really, is what true conversion is! It’s not a conversion from one religious system of works of the flesh to another religious system of works in the flesh. That’s not conversion at all! It’s just a change of the outward form and shape of the same old thing—trust in one’s own fleshly efforts to make one’s self righteous before God. True ‘conversion’ happens when we utterly forsake our confidence in the ‘flesh’ altogether; and rest all of our confidence for eternity upon the Person of Jesus Christ alone—and in what He has done for us to make us righteous before God.
And my hope is that the Holy Spirit has brought someone into our presence this morning who needs to hear that. Perhaps you have thought that you are “converted” simply because you have embraced the religion called “Christianity”. And as a result, you seek earnestly and sincerely to fit into the patterns and ordinances of this religious system called “Christianity”, and to faithfully obey its rules and regulations in the hopes that it will make you acceptable in the sight of a holy God. But if that’s the case, then you’re still not really “converted”. Your confidence is still—ultimately—in your own efforts. And there’s no ultimate, lasting joy to be found in that! Nor is there any salvation!
This morning’s passage is a wonderful invitation to make sure that you are truly “converted”; and that you have taken all of your confidence off of one person (that is, yourself), and place it completely upon Another (that is, Jesus Christ).
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That’s how this man—formerly “Saul of Tarsus”; now the apostle Paul—was converted. Let’s begin by considering . . .
1. WHERE PAUL ONCE HAD HIS CONDIFENCE (vv. 4-6).
He said in the third verse that he and his fellow-Christians were “the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh”. But then, he quickly adds in verse four; “. . . though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so . . .” (v. 4).
Paul was holding himself up to his readers as an example. He was showing that—if anyone actually could “have confidence in the flesh” in order to earn righteousness before a holy God—no one could have had more of it than he did. In any “contest” of who—humanly speaking—had the best potential of “earning” righteousness through the power of the flesh, he would have consistently won “first prize”. And to prove this remarkable claim, he goes on in verses 5-6 to put several religious “accomplishments” on display. The first four “accomplishments” were his “in the flesh” by birth; and the last three were his “in the flesh” by his own labors. And when all put together, it’s clear that no one could have boasted in more religious “accomplishments” than he could.
First, he said that he was “circumcised the eighth day”. He mentions this one first, because it was what the Judaizers who were troubling the Philippians were making such a big fuss about. They wanted the Gentile believers to become identified with that all-important symbol of the Jewish religion. And yet, he already was what the Judaizers were demanding that everyone else become. And there’s more. Some of those Judaizers had not been circumcised on the eighth day. They became circumcised later in adulthood—when they “converted” to Judaism. Paul, however, was circumcised on the eighth day of his life—just as the Old Testament law had commanded. Score one for Paul!
He also said that he was “of the stock” (or “nation”; or “people”) of Israel—a true member of God’s chosen people. Not many people in the world could claim that. Some of the folks who were demanding that other people obey the rules of “Judaism” were themselves “converted” from the Gentile world. But not Paul. He didn’t have to “convert” in that way; because he was already born of the Jewish nation. What’s more, he even knew which of the twelve tribes of Israel he was from. He was “of the tribe of Benjamin”. What an honored tribe! It was the tribe of King Saul—which may be why Paul’s original name was Saul. When all of the other ten tribes broke away from King Solomon’s son Rehoboam, only one other tribe remained true to God along with the tribe of Judah—and that was Benjamin, the tribe that Paul belonged to. Score two more points for Paul!
He went on to affirm that he was “a Hebrew of the Hebrews”. That meant that there was not a trace of Gentile blood in Paul’s veins. He was “a Jew through-and-through”. He could trace his ancestry all the way back to Benjamin, then on to Benjamin’s father Jacob, then on to Jacob’s father Isaac, then on to Isaac’s father Abraham—and there would be not one interruption in his Jewish lineage. Score yet another point for Paul. That’s four points to his favor over most of the Judaizers—and so far, he hadn’t even done anything yet. These things were all already his the moment he was born!
Then, given all the benefits that were his at birth, he goes on further to speak of the remarkable religious accomplishments that he himself brought about in the power of the flesh. He said that he was, “concerning the law, a Pharisee”. Did you know that Paul was a Pharisee? In fact, according to his own testimony elsewhere in Scripture, he was “a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee” (Acts 23:6). As readers of the Bible, we have grown accustomed to thinking of Pharisees only in a negative light. But that wasn’t the case in Paul’s day. The Pharisees was a religious sect that was the very picture of diligent obedience to God’s law. Jesus once used the Pharisees as one of the highest examples of righteous faithfulness in the flesh when He said that “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). And Paul was an outstanding Pharisee! He was a Pharisee’s Pharisee! He once said, “I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers” (Galatians 1:14). Score yet another for Paul. (If you’re keeping count, that’s five now.)
The next one is one that I believe he mentioned with a sense of sorrow in his heart; “concerning zeal, persecuting the church”. The Bible tells us that Paul—when he was known as Saul of Tarsus—burned in his zeal to persecute Christians. Elsewhere he testified, “Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities” (Acts 26:9-11). This was something that he felt great shame over later. But he mentions it here to show that no one could have had more zeal for one’s religious commitments than he did. Score yet another point for Paul.
Finally—and I think quite remarkably—he said, “concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless”. In other words, when it came to the strict outward conformity to the Mosaic law, no human being could have found fault with him. Now; I say “outward conformity”; because inwardly he was a sinner who was not righteous before a holy God. He even admits later in Scripture that he was the chief of sinners. But that was in the eyes of God. With respect to the eyes of people, however, his conformity to the law of God would have seemed flawless. That’s seven points for Paul—a perfect number!
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Now; that’s an amazing record! What other man could boast it? Others may try, of course. And it wouldn’t be in the things that Paul boasted in. It would be in good works and religious performances of other kinds. Perhaps someone would boast in how God ought to consider them righteous because of there perfect attendance at their church and their involvement in it’s ministry. Others might boast in the ways they have given themselves over to good deeds and to acts of service to their fellow man. Others may boast in their care for the environment and for the ways that they have helped better the planet. Others may even trust in simply “believing” the right things and in having a commitment to the right doctrinal truths.
And none of those things are wrong in and of themselves—any more than Paul’s Jewishness was wrong. But they become wrong when they become what we trust in to make ourselves righteous before God. When it came to boasting in things that they could have done to make themselves righteous, no one could have boasted more than Paul. And yet, he forsook it all. He met Jesus; and now he—who said that no one could boast in the works of the flesh more than he could—no longer trusted in any of those things. He was genuinely “converted” in terms of where he had placed his trust.
As so; as we read on, we see . . .
2. HOW HIS CONFIDENCE WAS ‘CONVERTED’ (vv. 7-8).
He wrote, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ” (v. 7). It was as if he formerly had those things in the “gain” side of the ledger; and had now moved them over to the “loss” side.
When I think of this, I think of the story in Acts 27 of Paul’s voyage to Rome; and the shipwreck that occurred. They were trying to sail for Rome in a large merchant ship; but it got blown terribly off course in a strong wind, and drifted dangerously in the storm. At one point, the sailors had to lighten the ship by throwing off several things—first the cargo, then the ships tackle, then the skiff, and finally their remaining food. Those things were, of course, very valuable. But in their situation, those things that would otherwise be “gain” were a detriment; and they all had to be thrown out as “loss” in order to gain life. They couldn’t have both. And in a similar way; Paul knew that he couldn’t trust in his own works of righteousness and at the same time trust in Jesus. He counted those other things loss so he could gain Christ.
And, in fact, he goes on to speak in even stronger terms. He wrote, “Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ . . . (vv. 6-8). When it came to those old things, he uses a word that—in some translations—speaks of disgusting garbage and food scraps that are only fit to be thrown out to the dogs. Some scholars, however, believe it should be translated as it is in the old King James Version—a word that, we might say, is not very “flowery” . . . but that speaks of something that certainly helps flowers grow! In either case, the point is the same. In the light of the excellence of the knowledge of a wonderful Person named Jesus Christ, he now counts all those things that he used to trust in as repulsive to himself as garbage . . . or something worse. And he counts them that way—to such a degree of loss to himself—in order that he may “gain” Christ.
And let me just pause here and point out something very important that this is telling us: We cannot have it both ways. Trusting Jesus Christ and trusting our own works of righteousness have an expulsive power over one another. One trust drives out the other. Paul put it very strongly once. He spoke of those who place their trust that most quintessential symbol of all “religious works” and wrote;
Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace (Galatians 5:2-4).
If you are going to trust in your own religious works of righteousness to make yourself righteous before God, then you need to know that—by the authority of no less than the apostle Paul—Jesus Christ can profit you nothing. If that’s the course you want to take, you cannot take Jesus along with you. You must go it alone in your own power—and you must do so perfectly.
And by the way; your righteousness would have to far-exceed that of even Saul of Tarsus. Because he—who far outdid anything we could ever do—considered all his works to be “rubbish” in order that he might gain Christ.
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So then; we’ve seen where it was that Paul once had his confidence—that is, in his own works of righteousness. And we’ve seen how Paul was truly “converted” from that confidence—so that he no longer trusted in himself but in the Person of Jesus Christ.
And so, look with me at what he goes on to say concerning . . .
3. WHO HIS CONFIDENCE WAS NOW IN (vv. 9-11).
He said that he gave it all up that he may gain the Person of Jesus Christ; “. . . and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith . . . (v. 9).
What wonderful words those are! They are expressing the essence of Paul’s great burden in his preaching—the message that he traveled around the world to declare—the message that was the great theme of his letter to the Romans, and of his letter to the Galatians, and that is a thread that runs through every other letter that he wrote: the great doctrine of justification by faith. Paul now no longer trusted in his own religious works to make himself righteous before God. He wouldn’t dare be found by God clothed in a righteousness of his own making through the law! Instead, he trusted in the righteousness that is the free gift of God as a gracious gift to those who place their faith in His Son Jesus Christ—” the righteousness which is from God by faith”.
Verse nine speaks of Paul’s justification in Christ. And in a sense, it also speaks of the promise of his future glorification in Him. But verses 10-11 go on to speak of his sanctification—his ongoing experience in life right now of enjoying the glorious benefits of a living relationship of love with Jesus. He says, first, that he has rejected all those other things he used to trust in, and trusts in a righteousness by faith in Christ alone “. . . that I may know Him . . .”
To “know” Jesus in this way isn’t speaking of mere head-knowledge about Him. It speaks of a deep, personal, experiential relationship of love. And can you see now what is meant by saying that conversion isn’t simply a change from one religion to another? It’s a change in our trust from one person to Another. We enter into a saving relationship with a wonderful Person named Jesus Christ—a relationship in which we forsake our own efforts and rest instead in the work of our Savior and Lord who is also our dearest Friend; a relationship of love that grows deeper every day; a relationship in which He fellowships with us, and strengthens us, and supports us in our trials; a relationship of dependence in which He shares all of His divine resources with us; a relationship in which the more of Him we get to know, the more like Him we grow to be. No amount of religious ‘good works’ through the flesh could ever give us that!
Paul also speaks of knowing “the power of His resurrection . . .” To know Christ is to experience the impact of His resurrection in our own lives every day. I’m quite sure this is what Paul was speaking of in Ephesians 1:19-23; when he prayed that his readers would know what is the exceeding greatness of God’s power toward us who believe,
according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (Ephesians 1:19b-23).
How much better to forsake our trust in our own works, so that we can experience the exceeding excellence of the resurrection-power of Jesus Christ in our daily lives!
Paul also talked about forsaking his own works of the flesh and gain Christ so that he could be “being conformed to His death . . . (v. 10). Here, I believe Paul is recognizing that to follow Jesus faithfully means to daily deny our self, take up our cross, and follow Him in paths of suffering in this world. Paul is being honest about that—and certainly, he was also a great example of the truth of it. Forsaking his own works as his trust led to great suffering in his life for the cause of the gospel. It’s truly hard, in fact, to think of anyone who suffered more for Christ than he did.
But I think what he says in verse 10 about the fellowship of Christ’s suffering is meant to go along with what he says in verse 11; “. . . if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” He uses a word that is used only here in the New Testament—a word that roughly means “out-resurrection”; and I believe what he means by it is that he would conform to the death of Christ in this world so that—as he walked about in this world—he would live an “out-resurrected” kind of life; that he would live the life of someone who had been raised from the dead. I believe he explains perfectly what he means in verses 12-14;
Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (vv. 12-14).
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Let me close by asking: Is that your experience? Is that how you have been converted?
True conversion isn’t simply trading one set of religious works done in the flesh for another. True conversion is to change your trust from one person to another. Have you truly ceased to trust at all in your own religious efforts; and placed your full trust instead in the Person of Jesus Christ?—to trust no longer in your own righteousness, and to trust instead in the righteousness that is God’s free gift through faith in Christ?—to truly know Jesus and enter into fellowship with Him?—to know the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings?—do die daily with Him so that you can live daily in His power?
May God help us to be able—along with Paul—to say, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.”