No Greater Thing

Read Philippians 2:19-3:11

“Rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same
things to you again, and it is a safeguard to you.”
(Philippians 2:14)

Thoughts… Paul is saying that the experience of authentic joy in the Lord is so important to the believer that he’s going to keep saying it until we get it. And in fact, Paul says, Christian joy safeguards our faith.

Now just what is it that our faith needs to be safeguarded from? Simply this: Trying to achieve salvation—the fountainhead of our joy—through human effort. That’s the crux of what Paul goes on to attack in the next several verses. Last

The truth is, we can never achieve our way to joy. So Paul launches an assault in verse 2 against those who teach that you can: “Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh.”

He’s talking about a group of “false teachers” who came to be identified in the New Testament era as Judaizers. These folks believed that Jesus was the Savior, but they taught that true salvation was evidenced by observing the Law.

In their theology, you had to conform to all the Jewish rituals, observe the Jewish feasts, follow Jewish traditions, and mainly, submit to the Jewish rite of circumcision. This was a very big controversy in Paul’s day—the first heresy the Apostles came up against.

Notice “kind” words Paul uses to describe these Judaizers: They’re “dogs.” Not the kind of family pets we’re used to, but the kind of dogs you see a lot in the third world. They’re mangy, flee-bitten scavengers. They’re filthy, vicious, dangerous and to be avoided.

Paul also calls these Judaizers “men who do evil.” That is, they pervert the Gospel of “salvation by grace through faith” by teaching that salvation is by grace plus by works of the Law. People who corrupt the truth that our good works are the result of and not the means to salvation are, frankly, evil! Literally, the Greek says they “promote evil.”

And Paul takes it a step further calling them “mutilators of the flesh”. He is referring to the practice of circumcision and he uses a descriptive and forceful word. The normal word for circumcision is “peritome”, but the word he uses in verse 2 is “katatome”, which some translations put, “false circumcision”, but the NIV renders with blunt and brutal accuracy, “mutilators of the flesh.”

Paul’s language is so graphic because what these false teachers are insisting on is akin to the pagan religious practice of cutting the body, a practice that did nothing to transform the heart. And as strong as Paul’s indictment was here, he takes it a step further in Galatians 5:12 by saing, “As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!”

Here he uses an even stronger word that meant to castrate. Paul’s point is that if these Judaizers believed that the mere outward ritual of circumcision is what pleased God, why didn’t they take that devotion all the way and castrate themselves. Using circumcision, or any other religious act, to feel good or be good before God, is just abhorrent to God. True righteousness and real joy comes from putting our confidence in Christ alone—not from cutting ourselves.

Paul knew this from first-hand experience, which he describes in verses 3-9,

“For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh…”

In other words, who come to God because of a relationship, not through ritual…

“…though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more…”

Then Paul goes through a litany of efforts people sometimes rely on the impress God:

“…circumcised on the 8th day [rituals], of the people of Israel [race], of the tribe of Benjamin [rank], a Hebrew of Hebrews [reputation]; in regard to the law, a Pharisee [rules];

In other word, he was depending his religious past and pedigree…

“…as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.”

In other word, he was depending his reputation for passion and perfection.

Let me paraphrase what Paul is saying, “I was a church member all my life. I attended church every Sunday—it was the biggest and best in town. I took notes, sang in the choir, served as an usher, taught junior high. I was a deacon, too! I was sprinkled as an infant, and just to make sure, baptized as an adult. I never missed communion—red juice only, and I always gave more than my tithe. I spoke in tongues and interpreted my own messages. I was the model Christian.”

Paul had climbed the ladder of spiritual success, only to realize when he got to the top, it was leaning against the wrong wall. All the accomplishments, awards, and applause that were once the foundation of his righteousness and joy were gone in an instant when he met Christ on the Damascus Road.

What is Paul saying? That the joy of our salvation that safeguards our faith is simply the pure pleasure of knowing—intimately knowing—Jesus Christ as our Savior—the one who saves us by his grace, and Lord—the one who rightly rules over our lives with love and purpose.

Why don’t you safeguard your faith today by making every other pursuit, every other effort, every past accomplishment, a distant second to knowing Jesus.

Prayer… There is no greater thing than knowing you, Lord Jesus. You are first, you are best, you are the greatest, you are my all in all. And I lovingly give myself to you.

One More Thing… “Everything that Jesus did while He was here, He did it for you.” —Maze Jackson