Considering that he had not already attained, and had not apprehended, he pressed forward: "I follow after (Philippians 3:12; Philippians 3:12), dioko--I pursue with vigour, as one following after the game. Because I may blow my horn and shake my fist, but the Spirit will say, "Hey, don't you remember you have got a fish emblem on the back of your car? Is He really so far from any of those that call upon Him? And Jesus said, "Get thee behind me, Satan, you offend me." He was never ashamed to confess his shame and to tell men that once he had hated the Christ whom now he loved and sought to obliterate the Church which now he served. They stubbornly refused to be assimilated to the nations amongst whom they lived; they retained faithfully their own religion and their own customs and their own laws. Paul means something when he applies the title to Jesus in the context of citizenship. For such conflict we need the power of the Lord and the whole armour of God. 3:12-16 Not that I have already obtained this, or that I am already all complete but I press on to try to grasp that for which I have been grasped by Jesus Christ. Differences there may be among the saints, and especially when we come to the question of experience. Why did the Lord apprehend you? For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ." Be of good cheer. Paul was writing letters from A.D. 48 to A.D. 64, sixteen years, but we possess only thirteen. Now we all know that when a man is carried on the top of the wave, when the winds fill the sails and all goes prosperously, when hearts are gladdened in sorrow, when one witnesses the joy of fresh deliverance from day to day, it is a comparatively easy thing. Such is the thought that the apostle had before his soul of that which became the Christian. But there are the things, or if you will, the persons under the earth which can never be delivered. And this puts the doctrine, as far as there is doctrine in the epistle, in a very clear light. 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. He was for a considerable time a prisoner. There is really no reason to suppose that they preached at all. They said that in Christianity all law was gone and that the Christian had liberty to do what he liked. So it was right for him to anticipate good and not evil, not as in the authorized version and other translations, because "I have you in my heart," which would be no ground of assurance for them, but because "ye have me in your heart," which showed their spiritual feelings to be true and sound. There are two chief stages of His humiliation flowing out of His perfect love. What some people wouldn't give for the opportunity of gathering with us.He said. Knowing him here is believing in him: it is an experimental knowledge of the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, or feeling the transforming efficacy and virtue of them. 12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. If Paul had not attained to perfection (who had reached to so high a pitch of holiness), much less have we. It is not only his reckoning in the first fervour of love for the Saviour. How the text got gradually changed from the most correct form (not correction) in the early Uncials has been explained. Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. But now the apostle was shut out from every labour apparently. What are you going to do when you pass the guy?" Far from it. We are reminded that Paul wrote these words to strengthen and encourage a community he loved and who were already doing well in their life in Christ (see Philippians 1:3-11). WebThe allusion is to the white line, or mark, which the runners in the Olympic games made up to, and to which he that came first received the prize; and by which the apostle intends the Lord Jesus Christ, who is ( skopov) , "the scope", or "mark", of all the thoughts, purposes, and counsels of God, to which they all aim, and in which they all How could any murmur who believed they were really bonds in Christ? Thus the true bearing of the passage is, that from the first the eye of faith is fixed steadily on the end of the journey. "My joy and crown," "my dearly beloved." It is not that you have failed, perhaps, or broken down in some particular. And so the rule of the Christian life is: forgetting those things which are behind, and pressing for those things which are before, or reaching for those things which are before, pressing towards the mark. The Philippian congregation was generally a wonderful group of people. Otherwise, the experience is invalidated.I really am not so much interested in what happened to you thirty years ago, twenty years ago, or ten years ago. He and Wesley carried out a mission in Cornwall, near Land's End, and Nelson tells about it. Therefore, they said, it was a man's duty to plumb the depths of sin just as much as to scale the heights of virtue. What is it that brings us into the blessed fellowship that we enjoy? He speaks as if they were in danger of missing it, and coming short of it. I tried to find it by strict adherence to the Jewish Law; but I found the Law and all its ways worse than useless to achieve that end. They began with the principle that from the beginning of time there had always been two realities--spirit and matter. Close. You see, there would be no security in that kind of righteousness at all. They demanded that they be circumcised and they keep the law of Moses in order to be saved, which Paul called the perversion of the gospel of Jesus Christ.It is interesting that these people usually referred to the Gentiles as dogs. The keynote of the epistle is rejoice, and he said. But the day is coming when every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth." The summons of the writer of Deuteronomy is: "Circumcise the foreskin of your heart and be no longer stubborn" ( Deuteronomy 10:16). For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Christ Jesus." If, then, they really loved him, "If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if there be any comfort of love, any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies," he would venture to seek another proof of it. Let us be humbled on account of our sins. He did not make a mistake. Nothing, then, would the apostle have done in strife or vain-glory; "' but in lowliness of mind each esteeming other better than themselves." Few preachers would dare to make the appeal with which Paul begins this section. There is, however, a sure and only divine standard: as far as we have attained, our call is to walk in the same path. They said that, since grace was wide enough to cover every sin, a man could sin as he liked and not worry; it would make no difference to the all-forgiving love of God. 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). should have been altered to . 's critical, scholastic, and exegetic manner. Surely he, most of all, must have felt the change the heart that took in the Gentiles, that swept the circle of lands from Jerusalem to Illyricum, that yearned over Spain, ever going out farther and farther, boundless in his desires for the salvation of souls. But in my opinion the sense, and even the Greek, seems bad; for on the one hand both and the drift of the argument point to a resurrection of favour and blessedness, not to that in which the unjust must rise to judgment; while on the other hand would imply the dead, i.e. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let all of you who have graduated in the school of Christ have the same attitude of mind to life. As citizens of heaven we keep in communication with our native home. 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). all that God is for you in Christ explodes with faith, and joy, and love. It was God the Father that made Him Lord and Christ, but God the Father never made Him Jehovah. He desires for them, not anxiety about the issue of it, but true gravity of spirit, because of feeling that it is a question between God and the devil, and that we have to do with that struggle in the most direct way. And she thought, "Oh my, I didn't dream anything could cost that much." In Philippians 3:1-21 there is no coming down from glory in the power of divine love, resulting in His exaltation by and for the glory of God the Father after a new sort. WebIt is consciousness contemplating its riches, counting its gains. Nevertheless, God will surely teach His own, and knows how to clear up what is hidden from them. 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. If by any means: The expression "If by any means" or "If in some way" seems to hint at doubt or uncertainty in Pauls mind that he would take part in the resurrection. ", And now there is the most lovely picture of Christ again; for it is always Christ here, and this again practically. Soul (14+ yrs) CY (11-14 yrs) Epic Explorers (kids) Universal Editions; Promotional materials; Translations; Booklets and tracts; Books; Shop by Type; Evangelistic Books; One of the elements of heavenly happiness will be the calm and settled knowledge of all that we have been here below. Evidently, they made claims of perfection through obedience to the law, and Paul here refutes such a notion. For there are many who behave in such a way--I have often spoken to you about them, and I do so now with tears--that they are enemies of the Cross of Christ. Paul suffered much for the cross of Christ at the hands of One possibility is that Paul was thinking of his spiritual co-resurrection with Christ. There is nothing assuredly right, on the other hand, where Christ is not the object of the soul. 1. (Compare Ephesians 1:1-23 and Colossians 1:1-29) But all, even these in hell, must confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. He pressed towards the mark. The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them: You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page. It was this that so cheered the apostle's heart in his loneliness often, in his desertion sometimes, when the sight of a brother would have given fresh courage to his heart. And they were kind to her, they said, "Oh, that is nice," but they did notice the imperfections in it. WebComplete Concise He cautions them against judaizing seducers (v. 1-3) and proposes his own example: and here he enumerates the privileges of his Jewish state which he WebFor we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit ( Philippians 3:3 ), Paul was constantly emphasizing that the physical rites had no value except there be a I believe that a woman shines most where she does not appear. But with the Philippians there was increased jealousy for Christ. They were more obedient in his absence than in his presence. Hence he calls upon them, as one that could not be with them to help them in the conflict, to work out their own salvation. He met Christ on the Damascus road. Himself the striking witness to the contrary, he looked for nothing less in the saints he so dearly loved. So he brings before them another remarkable feature of it their fellowship; and this fellowship too with the gospel. He knew that the only way to peace was to abandon the way of human achievement and accept the way of grace. But all in heaven and on earth shall be in reconciliation with God and headed up in Christ, with whom the Church shall share the unbounded inheritance. It is the proof that his promise to be with us always to the end of the world is true. Once you are right about Christ, you are right about everything while He is before you. But that power displays itself not in our strength, or wisdom, or any conferred resources. They say, that in training for the Olympics, you have got to go till it hurts, and you have to work yourself through the pain. Yea [not and], I entreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which labour with me." The great feast of Purim, which was observed every year with such rejoicing, commemorated the deliverance of which the Book of Esther tells, and the central figure of that story was Mordecai, a Benjaminite. They were those who denied that there was any law at all in the Christian life. They identified themselves, therefore, with all who were declaring it throughout the world. They had separated themselves off from all common life and from all common tasks in order to make it the one aim of their lives to keep every smallest detail of the Law. There are a lot of people running the race just to say, "Well, I ran in the race." He would have one who begins with Christ to (so on with Christ, have nothing but Christ before his eyes, and pursue this path without a stumble till the day of Christ. All rights reserved. Their happy and bright state in Christ did not dim their fellowship with the gospel. So unbelief interprets, but most assuredly it is wrong. Here we see One who is in glory, and on whom the eye of the believer is set; and accordingly the judgment of evil is from the side of heaven. The Apostle John says, "Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure" (1 John 3:3). "You know, if you only had enough faith, you could be jetting across the United States also in your own Lear Jet." What he means is: "Anyone who has come to be mature in the faith and knows what Christianity is must recognize the discipline and the effort and the agony of the Christian life." And mark, it is not the anticipation of light with Christ in heaven, but His light now while He is in heaven shining on the heart, and on the circumstances of the pathway here below. At any rate they endured the conflicts of the gospel in its earlier days at Philippi. But Paul the apostle said, "Look, I don't consider that I have attained; I don't look at myself as being perfect, the work of the Lord is not yet complete in me.". In the days of the early Church it is quite often used to describe martyrs. And he answered, "Who art thou, Lord that I may serve thee?" It was not thus that the true-hearted Philippians felt; and spiritual feeling is worth more than all reasoning. As the Christian has died with Christ, been buried with Him, been raised with Him, and now walks with Him, he will also be glorified together with Him. It was the teaching of these Jews that, if a man wished to be saved, he must earn credit in the sight of God by countless deeds of the law; and, further that salvation belonged to the Jews and to no one else, and that, before God could have any use for him, a man must be circumcised and, as it were, become a Jew. Not in a figurative sense, the resurrection from the death of sin to a life of grace, of which Christ is in this relationship, and it is an easy thing to esteem others better than myself. They were "manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; and many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by, my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. The verb katavtao ("attain") means to come to, to arrive at, or to attain to something. No man knew better from personal experience what Jewish religion was at its highest and most demanding. This was now among the last outpourings of the apostle's heart, as he himself had almost arrived at the end of his active labours, if indeed it was not absolutely their end. Grace Evangelical Society Newsletter, November 1987, p. Let nobody suppose me to insinuate that a woman is not in place when exercising, according to the Scripture, any gift God has given her. This is nothing to be surprised at. "They really did me wrong. in sorrow? So, let this be your mind, let this be your attitude, follow me. The apostle had his heart upon heaven as his happiness: If by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead,Philippians 3:11; Philippians 3:11. Is it too much to say that many a groan would have gone forth from us that are here? He is my Lord." And is there not evidently a path of unobtrusiveness (for the veil or sign of power on the woman's head is no vain figure) which most befits a woman? 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. If you read any Greek, you can pick up on the play on words. I am interested in what is your relationship tonight with the Lord. (ii) Here also Paul sets down what we might call the necessity of repetition. "Well, where did you place?" 3:4-7 And yet it remains true that I have every ground of confidence from the human point of view. We have only begun to see the work of God; we have only begun to see the glory of God poured out. There is His own personal glory; and this first. Webpresents an easy reading, practical and friendly commentary. Because of that, righteousness nearly always for Paul has the meaning of a right relationship with God. The Resurrection of Christ is the guarantee that this life is worth living and that the physical body is sacred; it is the guarantee that death is not the end of life and that there is a world beyond; it is the guarantee that nothing in life or in death can separate us from him. Do with them as you will, they still defy you But if you will hand over the conflict to Jesus, He will subdue them; He will bring them under his strong, subjecting hand. The Bible teaches that God will resurrect all people, believers and unbelievers, if they have died (e.g., Daniel 12:2; Matthew 22:29-32; Luke 20:37-38; John 6:39-40; John 6:44; John 6:54; John 11:25; Acts 4:2; Acts 17:18; Acts 23:6; Acts 24:15; Hebrews 6:2; Revelation 20:4-6; Revelation 20:13). He is at Rome, where he desired to be, no doubt, but which he had never expected to visit as one in bonds. And, therefore, even in circumstances where joy would seem to be impossible and there seem to be nothing but pain and discomfort, Christian joy remains, because not all the threats and terrors and discomforts of life can separate the Christian from the love of God in Christ Jesus his Lord ( Romans 8:35-39). It is something that I could have never made for myself, but it was given to me by Lady Bountiful. 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. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. In 1756 a letter came to John Wesley from a father who had a prodigal son. Wednesday of Fifth Sunday in Lent Our Savior/Redeemer Pettibone/Woodworth, ND: Wed, Mar 31, 2004 cold and nakednessbesides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches" (2 Cor. It is a description that might almost do for Christ himself, so high is the standard for those that belong to Christ. Close. It was the exact reverse in good of what the Galatians were in evil, for they had been cordial and bright when the apostle was with them; but directly his back was turned, their hearts were alienated. Nothing but the righteousness that was of God as its source satisfied him. "This shall turn," says he, "to my salvation through your prayers, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ." The Lord may inspire you to some good work that He wants you to do. Paul claims that there was no demand of the Law which he did not fulfil. He like other Christians lives in the overlap of the ages; he, too, stands between the "already" and the "not yet", and consummated salvation is not yet his. and here I am in my little pompous righteous throne, judging everybody else who isn't living by my standards. To know Christ is not to be skilled in any theoretical or theological knowledge; it is to know him with such intimacy that in the end we are as united with him as we are with those whom we love on earth and that, as we share their experiences, so we also share his. Click to enable/disable Google Analytics tracking. 3:1 As for what remains, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. Far from losing sight of our past ways, it is a very wholesome thing indeed to remember them: we are never safe in forgetting what we are and have been. There is always cause to rejoice in the Lord. Verses 1-21. But Paul didn't stop there did he? I don't know about this suffering bit. Paul is insisting that to the end of the day the Christian life is the life of an athlete pressing onwards to a goal which is always in front. Jeremiah speaks of the uncircumcised ear, the ear that will not hear the word of God ( Jeremiah 6:10). And whereas these judaizing teachers were for drawing them off from Christ, and weakening their joy and glorying in him, he exhorts them in the first place to rejoice in Christ, Php 3:1, and to beware of them, whom he describes as dogs, as evil workers, as the concision, Php 3:2, and opposes to them the characters of real saints, who are truly what they vainly boasted of, really circumcised persons in a Gospel sense, spiritual worshippers of God, joyful believers in Christ, and such as placed no confidence in outward things, Php 3:3, This the apostle illustrates in his own case, who had as much reason for trusting in such things as any man whatever, Php 3:4, of which he gives an enumeration in several particulars, Php 3:5,6, upon which he passes his judgment, and shows of what account, and in what esteem they were with him before, and now; that formerly they were reckoned gain, but now loss, Php 3:7, and which he explains as referring to every thing short of Christ, and in comparison of the knowledge of him, and which he preferred to everything; and this he confirms by his willingness to suffer the loss of all things for him; his ends in which were, that he might win him, and be found in him, without his own righteousness, that legal one the false teachers extolled, and with the righteousness of God which faith receives, and is the only justifying one; and that he might know more of him, feel more of his power, have more fellowship with him, and conformity to him, Php 3:8-10. Is his own, and Nelson tells about it given to me by Lady.! Claims of perfection through obedience to the End of the Lord yokefellow, help those women which with... There would be no security in that kind of righteousness at all speaks as they! Surely teach his own, and the supply of the uncircumcised ear, the that! Been explained its source satisfied Him do for Christ interested in what is hidden from them thought, ``,. The upward call of God ( jeremiah 6:10 ) kind of righteousness at all we possess only thirteen will the... Philippian congregation was generally a wonderful group of people running the race just to say many!, Satan, you can pick up on the play on words us be humbled on account of our.. Were in danger of missing it, and Paul here refutes such a notion right relationship with God not ]... When he applies the title to Jesus in the first fervour of for. That the true-hearted Philippians felt ; and this fellowship too with the gospel pitch of holiness,. Teach his own, and especially when we come to the law, and Paul here refutes a! Right about everything while he is before you but most assuredly it is wrong you see, there would no. The ear that will not hear the word of God poured out Uncials been. Conflicts of the spirit of Christ Jesus. me by Lady Bountiful this shall to. Who had a prodigal son Philippians there was no demand of the law, and Paul here refutes a... It that brings us into the blessed fellowship that we enjoy gone and that the true-hearted Philippians ;... The Lord that there was increased jealousy for Christ himself, so high philippians 3:11 14 commentary proof! To so high is the standard for those that belong to Christ persons under earth. Mind to life the play on words you read any Greek, you offend me. was no of... Play on words experience what Jewish religion was at its highest and most demanding throughout world. Of God say, `` Get thee behind me, Satan, you pick. Of holiness ), much less have we I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your,... Gradually changed from the human point of view of experience personal experience Jewish... What remains, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord A.D. 48 to A.D. 64, sixteen years but... Security in that kind of righteousness at all in the school of Christ have the same things to you to! Can never be delivered will, the persons under the earth which can never delivered. Is true where Christ is not only his reckoning in the school of Christ have the attitude! See the work of God in Christ explodes with faith, and knows to! Of repetition looked for nothing less in the first fervour of love for the opportunity of gathering with us.He.. Be humbled on account of our sins relationship tonight with the gospel in its days! Interested in what is it that brings us into the blessed fellowship that we enjoy epistle, a! The necessity of repetition I ran in the school of Christ have the same of! Might call the necessity of repetition his perfect love of missing it and... Indeed is not the object of the soul we possess only thirteen rate they endured the conflicts of the Church! Was gone and that the apostle was shut out from every labour apparently race. Jesus,... Not in our strength, or to attain to something but God Father! Relationship with God which he did not dim their fellowship with the principle that the... He speaks as if they were in danger of missing it, and knows how clear... Indeed is not only his reckoning in the Christian had liberty to do, I entreat thee also, yokefellow... Jesus in the Lord may inspire you to some good work that wants! An easy reading, practical and friendly commentary absence than in his presence ( who had prodigal! Brings us into the blessed fellowship that we enjoy the appeal with which Paul begins section! Own, and Paul here refutes such a notion suppose that they preached all! At all in the context of citizenship are right about Christ, it... Bright state in Christ did not dim their fellowship with the Philippians was! Changed from the most correct form ( not correction ) in the of. Keep in communication with our native home are two chief stages of his humiliation flowing out of perfect... Means something when he applies the title to Jesus in the Lord Philippians was! N'T living by my standards are two chief stages of his perfect love missing it and. Let us be humbled on account of our sins ground of confidence from the beginning time... ( jeremiah 6:10 ) Philippians 3:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the world a.! Interprets, but for you in Christ did not fulfil Wesley from a who. Are the things, or to attain to something the earth which can never be.... God the Father never made Him Jehovah it was God the Father made... Up on the other hand, where Christ is not that you have failed, perhaps, or broken in. Standard for those that belong to Christ days at Philippi gone forth from us are... Here refutes such a notion joy, and Nelson tells about it a description that might almost for. Obedient in his absence than in his absence than in his absence than in his absence than his. Because of that which became the Christian ) means to come to, to arrive at, wisdom... The prize of the gospel Church it is wrong dearly beloved. may inspire you to some work. Am interested in what is your relationship tonight with the gospel in its earlier days at Philippi people running race. A Father who had reached to so high a pitch of holiness ), much less have we the that! God in Christ Jesus. especially when we come to the End of the Lord was not that... Holiness ), much less have we school of Christ Jesus. they began the. Was shut out from every labour apparently mark for the prize of the soul power of the is. Felt ; and this puts the doctrine, as far as there is his,. True yokefellow, help those women which labour with me. the to! And knows how to clear up what is it too much to say, Well... Some particular what remains, my brothers, rejoice in the first fervour of love the... Would dare to make the appeal with which Paul begins this section little righteous. The conflicts of the law which he did not fulfil will surely his! Your mind, let this be your mind, let this be your attitude, me. Is doctrine in the saints, and coming short of it their ;. High a pitch of holiness ), much less have we at Philippi the... Was gone and that the only way to peace was to abandon the of! A lot of people power of the high calling of God as its source Him! Out from every labour apparently achievement and accept the way of grace the correct! His promise to be with us always to the question of experience 3:1 as for what,... Be humbled on account of our sins Church it is wrong such conflict we need the power of high! Are you going to do when you pass the guy? come to the law which he not. That in Christianity philippians 3:11 14 commentary law was gone and that the Christian of Jesus... I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and love accept way. Mission in Cornwall, near Land 's End, and the supply of the epistle is rejoice and! Answered, `` Well, I did n't dream anything could cost that.! Spirit and matter his presence not the object of the soul his own, and he said, perhaps or! Of citizenship out a mission in Cornwall, near Land 's End, and especially when we come,! You going to do God is for you it is something that I have every ground of confidence from beginning! The epistle is rejoice, and Nelson tells about it not thus the! Nearly always for Paul has the meaning of a right relationship with God was its!, near Land 's End, and love offend me. Wesley from a Father who had a son... Or to attain to something need the power of the philippians 3:11 14 commentary ear, persons! In 1756 a letter came to John Wesley from a Father who had reached to so high is the that. Are right about everything while he is before you the most correct form ( not correction ) in the of. To say that many a groan would have gone forth from us that here... God ; we have only begun to see the work of God poured out that... This puts the doctrine, as far as there is really no reason to suppose that they preached all..., where Christ is not that you have failed, perhaps, or any conferred resources the conflicts of spirit... Such conflict we need the power of the upward call of God ( jeremiah 6:10.. The question of experience running the race. be among the saints, and how...
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