The Life of the Christian - Philippians 3:1-21

By David Woods

Discussion: If you were to guess, what do you think the definition of success would be for each of the following persons?
Bill Gates
Martha Stewart
Donald Trump
Hillary Clinton

Activity: I would like you to write down your personal definition of success. Since this is somewhat personal, I will not ask you to share your definition, unless you would like to do so.

Discussion: If you were to judge who was a Christian between the two following descriptions, who would you pick?
Person #1: He is a very clean-cut man. His hair is nicely trimmed. He is wearing a pair of slacks and a shirt with a tie.
Person #2: He has long, stringy hair. His jeans look like they are halfway down his legs. He is listening to loud music in his Walkman.

When I gave you these two descriptions I did not have any two "real" people in mind. I simply wanted to give you a mental picture of two different extremes of people you might run into on a daily basis.

Discussion: Why did you say you thought one or the other was more likely to be a Christian? Do we tend to judge people on appearances? Is this a good standard to judge others by? Why or why not?

Read Philippians 3:1-8

Before he became a Christian, Paul would have been considered a model Jew. In the Jewish religious leader's view, Paul was what all Jews should strive to be.

Now, looking back, Paul puts the value of all his "good works" on one side of eternity's scale. On the other side, he places the value of knowing Christ intimately. The value of knowing Christ far outweighs every good deed Paul had ever done.

Paul considers his legalistic works-righteousness so worthless that he calls them "dung." According to the Working With the Word section of our lesson, "the word translated 'dung' is used nowhere else in the New Testament. It means 'chaff,' 'refuse,' or 'excrement.' It carries the idea of something that is cast to the dogs, never to be touched again." (p. 58) That's pretty strong language!

Discussion: Why was Paul so emphatic about the worthlessness of his work-righteousness? Shouldn't his goodness as a pre-Christian count for something? Why not?

Discussion: When we regard different seekers who come to our church services, do we also "level the playing field" as Paul did?

Read Philippians 3:9-11

In these verses Paul expresses his one supreme desire - to know Christ. I think it is almost obvious that "knowing" Christ to Paul thus means more than a head knowledge of Christ. It also means more to him that simply trusting in Christ for salvation, although that, of course, is the first step.

In verses ten and eleven Paul explains what it means to really know Christ - to know Him intimately. So I would like us to talk about these verses.

Read 10a-b

Paul had already experienced the power of the resurrection in that he had experienced the saving grace of Jesus. Yet he desired a continued experience of resurrection power?

Discussion: What is such power of the resurrection?

Read 10c

Discussion: What sane person wants to suffer? Why did Paul want to suffer with Christ?

Discussion: What does it mean to suffer with Christ?

Discussion: What privileges are there in suffering with and for Christ?

Read 10d

Discussion: Who put Jesus on the Cross?

Discussion: What made Jesus willing to die on the Cross?

Discussion: Therefore, what does it mean for us to be conformable to His death?

Discussion: How does the crucifixion of self enable us to know Christ better?

Our lesson comments say, "John Wesley said that this meant to 'be willing to die to everything here below.' Death to self is the ultimate expression of uniting with Christ." (p. 55)

It is our privilege and responsibility to preach the wonderful doctrine of entire sanctification - that there is provision in this life for our nature to be cleansed by the blood of Christ of the carnality with which we are born.

This is a wonderful experience - a calamitous experience in which we totally submit our lives to Christ's control. Another scripture which talks describes this experience is Romans 12:1-2.

Read Romans 12:1-2

I want us to note something in both our lesson text and also in Romans. In the original language, the word used for "present your bodies as a living sacrifice" signifies a one-time event. In contrast, the word for "be transformed" in verse two signifies a continuing action.

Similarly, in Philippians 3:11 the word used for "being made conformable to his death" signifies a continuing action. While I believe that Paul is pointing toward the experience of entire sanctification in this verse, I do not think he is limited this conformation to Christ's death to a single spiritual experience. I think this is backed up by what Paul writes in verses 13-16

Read Philippians 3:13-16

Discussion: What is one of the greatest dangers of spiritual pursuit, according to these verses?

Discussion: Hoe does our memory of the past hinder our present and future?

Discussion: How can we keep from letting past victories distract us from today's battles?

Read Philippians 3:17

I have heard conflicting opinions on "having heroes." Some have pointed to the personal heroes. Others have said problems can arise from having heroes.

Discussion: What kind of heroes should the Christian have? How can we pick good heroes to emulate?

Read Philippians 3:18-19

Discussion: The holiness movement is known for its standards. How can we continue to teach careful living without making one's sleeve length, lack of technology, etc. our "god", like the Judaizers made the belly their "god"? (see verse comments for background explanation)

Read Philippians 3:20-21

I would like to suggest that the main truth our scripture teaches is that:

Big Idea: The highest aspiration for life is complete identification with Christ.

Think about that statement for a moment. What are the implications of a "complete identification with Christ"? Could most Christians claim a "complete identification of Christ"?

Discussion: What does it mean to completely identify with Christ?

Now, this idea is radical. The final two verses of our text tell us why we observe such a different mindset about life.

Discussion: Why is the Christian's highest aspiration a complete identification with Christ?

Reflection: At the beginning of this lesson I asked you to write out your personal definition of success. Our scripture teaches us that our highest aspiration is complete identification with Christ. How does your definition of success match up with this truth?

Prayer: As we close in prayer, I challenge you to talk to the Holy Spirit about your life. If there are changes He is talking to you about, I urge you to let Him have His way in your life.