This morning, I would ask you
to take your Bible and let's turn to Philippians chapter 3. Philippians chapter 3. And the
apostle says, finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you,
to me, indeed, is not a burden. It's not grievous, but for you
it's good. It is safe. Now, I've often tried
to emphasize on this radio program the truth of salvation as it
is revealed in the Word of God. That salvation is in a person,
not a denomination, not a feeling, not an experience. That salvation
is in a person. Jesus Christ, the Lord Jesus
Christ, is the Savior of the body. The Lord Jesus Christ is
the head of the church, and believers stand complete, accepted in the
Beloved, in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, the Apostle makes this abundantly
clear in this chapter of Philippians 3, where he says in verses 8
and 9, he counts everything lost that he may win Christ and be
found in Christ his righteousness. Now, we're not accepted because
of our religion, but rather because of the Lord Jesus Christ himself. We are not justified because
of what we have done or not done, but rather because of what Christ
has done. His priestly work, His sacrifice,
what Christ has done for us as servitude, mediator, and what
Christ has done in us. He's made us a new creature in
Himself. Now, every believer can find
great reason, as Paul does here, to rejoice in the Lord. Now,
remember, when he says this, Paul is in prison while he's
writing this epistle. And he's writing these believers,
encouraging them to rejoice in the Lord. Paul has much reason
to rejoice, even though he's in prison, no matter what our
circumstances may be, good or bad. Every believer has abundant
reason to give thanks and to rejoice in the Lord, in his person,
who he is, God incarnate. In the sufficiency of his blood
atonement, it's in Christ we have redemption. In the power
of His intercession, He ever lives to make intercession for
us. In the wisdom of His providence,
all things do work together for good to them who love God, to
them who are the called according to God's purpose. You see what
He is saying here, my friends, brethren, believers, do rejoice
in the Lord Jesus Christ. And then in verse 2 of Philippians
3, He gives us a warning to beware. Beware of false preachers. He
calls them here dogs. He calls them here evil workers.
He calls them here the concision. Believers are to beware of false
preachers and their false teaching. Those who would say that the
Lord Jesus Christ is not enough. Those who would say that Christ
plus my work equals salvation. My friend, that's just not so.
We stand complete in Christ. Nothing needs to be added. That's
why we rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. And then in verse
3, he describes believers. He describes true believers. He says, for we are the circumcision. Now, under the law, circumcision
was a picturing type of spiritual regeneration. And he's saying
here that true believers have a heart experience of God, of
saving grace in their heart. We are the circumcision. That
is, God has revealed Christ to our heart. He says next, he says,
we worship God in spirit. We worship God. We honor and
magnify God as He's revealed in Scripture, the Sovereign,
the Almighty God. And we do this in spirit, not
in the flesh. Not with fleshly emotion and
fleshly outward expression, but in the heart. Salvation is a
heart work and we worship God in the heart. And then he says,
we rejoice in Christ Jesus. We rejoice in Christ alone. We worship God in spirit and
in truth. And we rejoice in Christ. We have much reason to give thanks
for all that he has done for us, for the promise of salvation.
that's vested totally in Christ, and then he says, furthermore,
we have no confidence in the flesh. Before-after conversion,
our total confidence, that is for the believer, our total confidence
is in Christ. Paul in another epistle says,
we know that in Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead
bodily, and we stand complete in Christ Jesus. Now again, in
Philippians chapter 3, verse 4, Paul said, Though I might
also have confidence. If anybody did have confidence
to boast, he said, I the more. If any man thinketh that he have
whereof to trust in the flesh, Paul said, If anyone had a reason
to trust in his flesh, he said, I the more. See, he uses himself
as an example to illustrate this point. Now, read verse 5 and
6. He said, here's the reasons that
I might have confidence in the flesh. He said, I was circumcised
the eighth day. Paul was born in a Jewish family,
kept the Jewish law, and kept the Jewish traditions of the
stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, the favorite tribe.
He said, Hebrew of Hebrews. You see what he's saying here?
He said, if any man has reason to trust in the flesh, I the
more. His daddy was a Hebrew. His mama was a Hebrew. As touching
the law, he said, I was a Pharisee. You know, the Pharisees were
those who trusted in themselves and despised others, those who
justified themselves before God. Verse 6 of Philippians 3 said,
Concerning zeal, he said, I persecuted the church. And certainly he
did. Saul of Tarsus was a hater of God and a hater of the gospel. And yet he thought he was doing
the will of God. Concerning zeal, boy, he was
a zealous man. Persecuting believers, oh, Saul
of Tarsus. was breathing out slaughter and
threatening against the Lord and against His church. But he
says this, touching righteousness, concerning zeal and touching
righteousness, no one could meet him. No one could match his zeal
or match his so-called outward righteousness. He said when he
was in that condition, he said, I considered myself blameless. Saul of Tarsus was so zealous
in his self-righteousness that he was blinded to the truth.
He even boasted that he kept the law. But something happened. He met the Lord Jesus Christ. He met Christ on his road of
persecution. He met the Lord. He met the Master. And now his testimony is this
in Philippians 3 verse 7, But what things one time were gained
to me, All my religious zeal and all my religious efforts,
he said, one time those things were gained. They were a plus
to me. But now I count them all but ruin and loss for Christ. Before he met the Lord Jesus
Christ, he thought all of his religious merits were necessary
to obtain God's favor, were necessary to justify him and entitle him
to salvation. But after he met the Lord Jesus
Christ, after God revealed Christ to his heart, what he thought
was gain in reality, God taught him it was loss. That which was
everything to Saul of Tarsus, all his religious zeal, all of
his religious works became nothing to the Apostle Paul. He counts
them all now loss and dung and ruin. Because Christ is everything. Furthermore, he says in verse
8 of Philippians 3, yea, doubtless, furthermore, I count all things
lost, everything but loss. Now watch this, four, the excellency
of knowing Christ, the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord, for whom I suffered the loss of all things, but count
them all but ruin, dung, rubbish, that I may win the Lord Jesus
Christ be found in him. What a blessed place to be to
count all things lost compared to knowing God in Christ. The knowledge of true knowledge
of Christ is salvation. And this is a revelation of God. This is eternal life that they
might know thee the only true God. This excellency of knowledge
is not a general knowledge, but a special and spiritual saving
knowledge of God in Christ. Paul says, I know whom I have
believed in 2 Timothy 2, 2 Timothy 1 verse 12. I know whom I have
believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that
which I have committed unto him against That day, it's not attained
by natural reason, but rather by spiritual revelation. I've
suffered the loss of all things, he says, reputation among men,
comforts of life, position in religion, suffering at the hands
of wicked men, which is nothing but rubbish. Oh, that I could
count all things but loss and be found in Christ. I believe
every believer has this testimony of grace. We have lost the false
way and gained the true way. The Lord Jesus said, I am the
way, the truth. We have lost our false peace
and gained Christ who is our peace. Being justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We lost
spiritual death and gained Christ who is life, salvation. redemption. We lost spiritual
bondage and gained liberty and freedom in Christ Jesus. By grace,
he has set us free. You see what he's saying here?
I believe this is the testimony of every believer. One time we
were very religious, just like Saul of Tarsus, going about to
establish our own righteousness, being ignorant of God. being
ignorant of the righteousness provided in Christ. But one day,
He sent the truth. He taught us that salvation is
all of God. He taught us that salvation is
all in Christ. And He gave us a desire to be
found in Him. Now, read carefully, if you will. Philippians 3, verse 9, in closing. He says, I count all things but
loss. And He says, I count all things
but rubbish. That I may win Christ. Everything
but Christ, my friend. Let's be honest. Everything but
Christ in reality, in the light of eternity, is just rubbish.
That we may win Christ. And be found in Him. Salvation's
in Him. Now listen to him carefully.
Not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, which is
of my hand, which is of my work, but That which is through the
faith of Christ, or the faithfulness of Christ, the righteousness
which is of God by faith." Now, my friend, this is true salvation
to be found in Him. Neither is there salvation in
any other. Being chosen in Him by grace,
there is a remnant according to the election of grace. Being
redeemed in Him by His blood, the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses
from all sin. Being united to Him by faith. By grace are you saved through
faith, and that not of yourself. It is a gift of God. My friend,
are you found in Christ? I didn't ask you if you joined
a church. Being found in Christ. I didn't ask you if you had a
religious experience. Being found in Christ. the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's salvation. Now, secondly,
he said, not having my own righteousness, which is illegal self-righteousness. We're not found in Christ because
of something we do. We're found in Christ because
of God's sovereign grace. We have a righteousness which
is through the faithfulness of Christ, through his obedience. God made Him to be sin for us
who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of
God in Christ. Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to everyone that believe it. The sole ground
of our salvation before God is the justifying righteousness
provided for us by the obedience of Christ, by the death of Christ,
by the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Now that's our hope. Listen to
it again. Yea, doubtless I count all things
that loss, for the excellency of knowing Christ my Lord, for
whom I have suffered the loss of everything, and I count everything
that I have lost rubbish, that I may win Christ, and be found
in Him, that salvation, not having my own righteousness, but the
righteousness of Christ, imputed freely by His grace. Listen to
this scripture. In Romans 4, blessed is a man
to whom God would impute righteousness without work. We must have a
justifying righteousness to stand before God, and that is freely
given by imputation, credited to us by the sovereign grace
of God, received by faith. Now, my friend, I would challenge
you to go back and read Philippians chapter 3 and pray that the Lord
would Do this very thing in your heart as he had done for old
Saul of Tarsus, made him a new creature in Christ Jesus. If
you'd like to have a copy of this message, you can call me
at 631-9053 or you can write to me at Zebulon Baptist Church,
6088 Zebulon Highway, Pikeville, Kentucky.