Phillipians 3:15-21

The Hope of the Gospel in Philippians 3

The wonderful thing about the Word of God, and going through the Word of God. I want to make sure I say this right here. Going through the Word of God, verse by verse, like we are the Lord, not that He wasn't before, but it's more evidence that He is always right on time, and that He always does all things.

Good.

And in this passage of Scripture this morning that we're going to look at from Philippians chapter 3, we're going to pick up in verse 15 and read through verse 21. We're going to look at several things in this passage of Scripture this morning, but primarily, as has been the case through the entire letter to the Philippian church, the gospel of Jesus Christ gives hope.

And I want to take this a step further and say, not going beyond what the Scripture says, but personally in my statement, the gospel of Jesus Christ gives hope beyond this life. And I think that you would have to be blind not to see that this is the prevailing theme throughout this letter to the Philippian church, because Paul has told them from the beginning based upon the gospel of Jesus Christ, and in the midst of His sufferings, and in the midst of the church's sufferings for the gospel of Jesus Christ, there is this theme of hope that just continues to rise to the top as we read.

And for the apostle Paul being in prison and the Philippian church being persecuted as they were for the gospel's sake, and yet continuously, Paul keeps talking about joy. Paul keeps talking about hope.

Paul keeps talking about this longing. And Paul, where we left off three weeks ago, Paul talks about doing something and that something is pressing toward the mark of the high prize of the prize of the high calling of God, which is in Christ Jesus.

He has in his aim a target. The target is not our best life now, but our target and our aim is to attain the promise that Jesus Christ has made to His children. And that is one day after a while, we don't know when, but that we will go to the prepared place that God has made for us because God is faithful and God is true to His word.

And so again, Philippians chapter three, we're going to pick up reading in verse 15 and read down through verse 21. And I'll give you kind of an outline of what we're going to look at throughout each verse so that you can know where we're heading with this.

And so that hopefully you can glean from the word of God and that if your heart is saddened today, you will have hope from God's word because that's the only place that you're going to find any hope is in the Lord.

Verse 15, the Bible reads, therefore, let us as many as are mature. And that word mature is something we're going to focus on in that verse there, the maturity of the believer. Let us therefore, as many as are mature, have this mind.

And if anything, you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule. Let us be of the same mind. Brethren, join in following my example and those who so walk as you have us for a pattern.

For many walk of whom I told you often and now tell you even weeping that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly and whose glory is in their shame, who set their mind on earthly things.

Take note there, Paul makes a distinction between those who have their mind on earthly things, those who are worldly, those who are lost outside of the grace of God. And he contrasts that with his next statement, the 20th verse, he reminds the Philippian believers for our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to his glorious body according to the working by which he is able even to subdue all things to himself.

Heavenly Father, God, today we would, I would ask this of you right now, Lord, help me to preach the gospel, help me, God, today to rightly divide the word, to give the sense of your word that your people, dear God, may grow in grace and in knowledge, that we might have a better understanding of who you are in order, God, that we might love you more, that we might serve you more acceptably, and God, so that you would get glory in your church, for it is in Jesus' name I pray.

Amen and amen. We see here the Apostle Paul, just to give you a recap and a summary to bring us up to speed, we see here the Apostle Paul writing this epistle with a hope of a better life to come. He does not write this letter as a worldling.

And I want to, this is another one of those old words that I wish that you would incorporate into your vocabulary. There is a difference between a worldling and a Christian. A worldling is a person who maybe even professes salvation in Christ, but they do not possess the salvation of the Lord.

It is one who may say that they have believed because they have trusted in their own works down through life, or what someone else has told them, but they do not know Jesus Christ. Paul is not speaking to a group of people whom he assumes does not know Jesus Christ.

He is speaking to the church of the living God. How do we know this? Because in the beginning of the letter he says this is written to the saints, which are at Philippi, to the bishops and the deacons.

He is writing to the entire body of the church. He is not leaving the pastors out. He is not leaving the deacons out. He is not leaving the saints of God out. He is including everyone. I would say that he is writing to the church according, as Sir shared in Sunday School, the importance of knowing that the Word of God is God breathed out.

He is writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and he is able to do this in the midst of his circumstance of life, because Jesus is what he said he would be to the believer. He is that well of water that springs up into everlasting life.

Previously, in the previous verses, he has denounced any trust in his own good works. For he said, I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is still the central theme and still the message of this letter to Philippi as he is the central theme and the message of the entire Word of God.

The Bible goes on to tell us as Paul denounced a trust in his own good works and only trust in the righteousness of Jesus Christ in the light of the context of this passage. I wrote this down. In the light of the context of this passage, he was saying, I'm not going to be apprehended by the good things that I thought were what made me right in the sight of God.

But he said that he was forgetting these things and reaching forward toward the real goal, which is the prize of the high calling of God, which is in Christ Jesus. And so, having said that, we pick up in verse 15.

He begins and continues his speech of encouragement to the Philippian church. And he says, therefore, or because of this, let us. And when he says us, he's speaking to the Christians. He says, let us, as are many, as are mature.

There is a, I will call it a lie, just to tell you the truth, where folks accept the lie as a truth that there are many who are saved, who are just going to remain infants their entire life. That is not what the scripture teaches for the believer.

The scriptures teach that the believer will grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, because God in the person of the Holy Spirit applied the finished work of Jesus Christ to the life of the believer.

And God himself intends for his people to be mature. We do not, any of us, intend to remain immature, or we ought not to intend to remain immature. A Christian throughout the course of his or her life is progressively, and not even of our own selves, according to the scripture, because the scripture interprets scripture.

Remember when Paul told the Philippians earlier, work out your salvation with fear and in trembling? He wasn't telling them to do that, Pat, in their own power. He said in the next statement, for it is God who works in you, both to do and to will of his good pleasure.

Does that sound like the Lord intends for any of his saints to be immature? No, it doesn't. And so there is truly no excuse for immaturity in the life of a Christian. Now, are there reasons? Yes, those reasons are neglect of faithful attendance to the house of God.

Those reasons are neglect of reading and studying the word of God. Those reasons are neglect of praying unto the Lord, both publicly and privately. And I'm going to make one of those direct statements right here that is liable to maybe get me in trouble, but I'm going to make the statement, maturing in the faith is the inevitable result of biblical salvation.

And you say, what am I saying? I'm saying that according to the word of God, if you profess to be saved, then you will grow in grace. Elsewise, if you are not growing, Pat's a tree, man. What do you call a tree that does not grow anymore?

Dead. What did Jesus say that a tree that does not produce fruit anymore is good for? He said it is good for nothing but to be hewn down, cut down and thrown into the fire. Salvation is not something that you do of yourself.

Salvation is of the Lord. And the inevitable result of faith or the inevitable maturing in the faith, that is the inevitable result of biblical salvation. And so the question here would be what the question was posed to many of the churches throughout the New Testament is this.

Are you saved? Examine yourselves to see whether you be in the faith or not. Because if you are, you will produce fruit. So he talks about being mature, about being able to handle and to appropriately respond to trials and to temptations that come about in this life.

Now, I'm not saying that we're all going to be, you know, gray headed scholars per se. But I'm going to say this, that if you are saved, that for any amount of time through the experiences of life, you will gain the knowledge on how you ought to respond when those circumstances come up again.

There's not a one of us in this room, there's not anybody that will hear this message that can say they've only experienced something particularly maybe once in their life and they've lived 60 and 70 and 80 and 150 years like Miss Lincoln, right?

A lot of times the same things just creep up and creep up and creep up. And the answer, simplistic as it may sound, is always to trust in the Lord. To do not lean on your own understanding. But in all your ways, the Word of God teaches us this, acknowledge Him in everything.

Well, preacher, God don't understand what I'm going through. He understands completely He made you. He has seen it all and He has handled it all and He has conquered it all. And so the question for you, another question would be this, are you becoming more Christ-like?

Are you?

I can't answer that for you. Are you becoming more Christ-like? Are the evidences of salvation being demonstrated in your maturity? So here we go, what does it mean to be mature? To be mature does not mean that you snub up your nose when somebody, your brother or sister in Christ does something stupid, right?

Right. Correct.

Amen. Votey Bogum says amen, somebody. Maturity is responding appropriately. What does maturity in the Christian life look like? Well, it is the fruit that is produced by the Holy Spirit of God. Guess what we're going to do?

We're going to go over to the book of Galatians. Galatians chapter 5, if you would. Galatians chapter 5, and that's before Ephesians. So we've got 1st, 2nd Corinthians and then Galatians. So Galatians chapter 5.

And from the Word of God, we're going to look at what a mature believer, the fruit that a mature believer produces. And we're going to see the fruit of a worldling. Because you need to know, are you a worldling or are you a child of God?

Is your citizenship in this world or is your citizenship in heaven as was the hope of the Apostle Paul to the Philippian church? I cannot answer that, only you can. But you can measure this according to the Word of God.

What being lost and saved looks like? What does being lost and saved look like? Philippians chapter 5. Philippians chapter 5. And let's begin in verse 19. Galatians, I'm sorry, Galatians chapter 5.

Sorry.

Thank you.

Hallelujah though. That's what the preacher needs. When I step aside even accidentally, you say, wait a second, we were right here. Because you don't need the preacher to get up here and wander off everywhere, right?

You need us to stay focused. It's hard enough for you to sit under an hour and a half, two hours of preaching. But you need to stay on track, right? I'm just teasing, I promise, not that long. Galatians chapter 5 verse 19.

This is what it looks like to be lost. It's the works of the flesh. That's the indicator right there. The works of the flesh are evident. Which are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like.

Or in other words, anything that is in the same category as these things. Of which, I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those, the people, those who practice such things, those who continually live doing such things, those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Now, that's a pretty narrow statement. Very clear. Very concise. What it looks like to be lost. Here's what it looks like to be saved in verse 22. But the fruit of the Spirit. If anybody tells you that the evidence that you have the Spirit of God is that you do signs and wonders or that you do this or that, Claude Ramsey's going on the record today and saying they are not telling you the truth.

The Spirit's purpose, according to John's gospel, is to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. And the fruits of the Holy Spirit being evidenced in the life of the Christian are these.

The fruit of the Spirit is love.

Joy.

Peace.

Long-suffering.

Kindness.

Goodness.

Faithfulness.

Gentleness.

Self-control. Against such, there is no law. And those who are Christ, clear distinction, those who are Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. There is a degree of discipline required as part of evidence or as evidence of you, as a believer, being mature in the faith.

It doesn't mean you always do the right thing. But it does mean when you do the wrong thing, that you recognize the wrong thing. That when the Lord chastens you, that you pick up and you move on and you start doing the right thing so that when you're tempted to do the wrong thing again, like you were tempted to do the wrong thing before, you've learned from your experience.

But it is a discipline that is required. Hallelujah, good news, here it comes. The Holy Spirit, God Himself, does not call you to do something that He does not enable and empower you to do Himself. Hallelujah for that.

And so maturity is an important part of being a believer. So Paul encourages the Philippians back to Philippians, back to do the book of Philippians now. Paul encourages those Philippian believers to be mature, to have this mind.

Remember, previously he's reminded them to have the same mind, that concerning the doctrine of Christ. And if anything, Paul said, if anything you think otherwise, God is going to reveal this to you. Now remember, he's not giving his opinion.

He's not saying, if God shows you something different, he's saying, what I am saying, or we know from, because we have it here in the inspired Word, that he was under inspiration of the Holy Spirit when he made this statement.

And he's not contradicting the statement. He is saying, this is what God calls us to do. And if you think anything otherwise, marker down, buster, God is going to show you. Verse 16, Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.

Verse 17, Brethren, join in following my example. Notice this language again, this is a personal language, brethren. It's not being used flippantly, it's a term of admonition and love. He says, Brethren, join in following my example.

And then he says this, note what he says, And note those who so walk as you have us for a pattern. Look for men and women who have lived according to the gospel, men and women down through the ages, and what he was referring back to here is not only those in their present time who were living faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ, but even going beyond that, back to the New Testament saints, to those who are mentioned, I'll make this assertion here.

If you go to the book of Hebrews, many people will say, we don't know who authored Hebrews, and truly no one does. But when you begin to study, you'll see many like phrases from the epistles here that you'll see in the book of Hebrews that Paul uses.

But Paul in the book of Hebrews chapter 11 refers to what is known throughout theology as the hall of faith, men and women who live their life for God through faith, looking for something more than what this life had to offer.

And so he says, note those who so walk, and one of the things that you should look for as a Christian, look for people in the faith who do not place confidence in the flesh. If there's a proud, arrogant believer who may have this or that, who may do this or that, who may say this or that, that's not the one you want to look to.

Look to the people, men and women throughout church history who know that they have nothing, that they are nothing, that there'll never be anything outside of the grace of God. That won't get you a book written.

It won't get you popular and have everybody rush to you. But my friend, it is biblical. No confidence in the flesh. Look to those who place no confidence in the flesh and who place every bit of their hope and strength in the finished work of Jesus Christ.

That is the pattern. The pattern. Those who have walked in the faith. Verse 18, notice as we're moving through as quickly as we can here. Verse 18, many walk, Paul said, many walk. He's been preaching to them about the gospel, been preaching to them about teaching them the importance of being unified around the doctrine of Jesus Christ, around the finished work of Jesus Christ.

And then he addresses the issue of false teachers here. But notice the words that he uses. He says, for many walk of whom I told you often, I've warned you about these who are not speaking the truth of the gospel.

There were many Judaizers in the church, which means those who held to Judaism, the works of the flesh to attain righteousness. But my friend, we're taught according to the word of God, that a man is not made righteous in the sight of God by the works of the flesh, but by the finished work of Jesus Christ.

And that was the message then. And it is the message now. The message of the Judaizers who came into the church, who tried to belittle and put on the back burner the finished work of Jesus Christ,.

Went on then.

And guess what? It goes on today. That is why we must remain faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul said, for many walk of whom I tell you often and now tell you. And then this word here, even, weeping.

Paul's attitude toward those who proclaimed a false gospel and who talked falsely was number one of intolerance. He didn't tolerate it. God don't tolerate it. In the commandment, God said, you shall have no other gods before me.

For God said, I am a jealous God. However, Paul says here, not that we're to lay aside indifference to false teaching, not that we're to lay aside intolerance of false teaching. But he says, in this intolerance, or what we see here, I'm not going to say what he said, but in this intolerance, we see a man who has compassion.

We must be concerned about those who teach falsely. And the best place that we can take those who teach falsely is to the throne of grace. I'm talking about being a tattletale. I'm talking about calling out their names before the Lord and saying, God, these people seem to be defacing your name.

They seem to be casting your shame and putting your glory in and of and on themselves. But my friends, we need to cry out to God because God alone will be the one who shows mercy or meets out justice unto them.

He will not tolerate false doctrine. He will not tolerate false teaching. But Paul says, even I tell you now, weeping. So we see his compassion. We see his concern. In verse 19, we see the end result of those who teach falsely.

The end result is contrasted with that of the worldling versus the Christian. Paul says, whose end is destruction. Their reward is destruction. Ultimately, false teachers will receive destruction. Whose end is destruction?

Whose God? And he's so clear in this. Whose God is their belly.

What's that mean?

Their appetites. What they long for and what they desire. You can hear this if you listen to any teaching. Turn on the TV, turn on the radio, and you'll hear it. You'll hear the appetite of the person who is teaching or preaching come out in the words that they say.

Is their appetite for the glory of God being the chief end of all man? Or is their appetite more about attaining things for themselves in this life? Their end is destruction. Their God is their belly.

And they glory in the very thing that they ought to be ashamed of. It's what the scripture says here. Who set their mind on earthly things. Then Paul says in verse 20, for our citizenship. Country of origin.

Our homeland. Our citizenship is in heaven.

From which?

And he's saying this. Heaven is our aim. And from will come the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. And we do not passively await this. We do not with a yawn say, come Lord Jesus, whenever. But the words used here, we in anticipation of Jesus Christ coming to claim.

We wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. For this reason. Because He is going to transform our lowly bodies. That it may be conformed to His glorious body. According to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Our hope as Christians, church, is that we have more than what this life has to offer to look forward to. In the book of Colossians, the letter to Colossae, Paul writes, set your affection. Set your appetites.

Set your desires on things above.

Yes, amen.

And just so there was no question. He wasn't talking about the things up on the roof. He said, set your affections of things above. Not on things on the earth, but in heaven. There is a clear distinction there.

And so in this great message of hope He gives and where we leave off in verse 21. And Lord willing, we'll pick up there in verse one of the next chapter next time we meet. But friends, I want you to recognize this.

That Paul is constantly and consistently pointing the believers to Jesus Christ and Him alone. I'm going to close by reading you a piece of a sermon by Charles Spurgeon. Preached around 1859 concerning the hope of the believer.

And this is what Spurgeon said in the message to the church there he was preaching to. He said, now believer, thou mayest be very poor and very sick and very much unknown and despised. But sit thee down and review thy calling this morning and the consequences that flow from it.

As sure as thou art God's called child today, thy poverty shall soon be at an end. And thou shalt be rich to all the intents of bliss. Wait a while, that weary head shall soon be girt with a crown. Stay a while, that calloused hand of labor shall soon grasp the palm branch.

Wipe away that tear, for God shall soon wipe away thy tears forever.

Take away that. Sigh.

Why sigh when the everlasting song is almost on thy lip? The portals of heaven stand wide open for thee. A few winged hours must fly. A few more billows must roll over thee. And thou will be safely landed on the golden shore.

Do not say, I shall be lost. Do not say, I will be cast away. For that is impossible. Whom he once loves, he never leaves.

Amen.

That's the steadfast love of God. But he loves them to the end. That's the persevering love of God. Some may say that God's love is reckless, the song that's sung today. Friend, his love is not reckless.

It is very much determined. If he hath called thee Spurgeon's head, nothing can divide thee from his love. The wolf of famine cannot gnaw the bond. The fire of persecution cannot burn the link. The hammer of hell cannot break the chain.

Old time cannot devour it with rust, nor eternity dissolve it with all its ages. Oh, believe that thou art secure. That voice which called thee shall call thee yet again from earth to heaven.

Amen.

From death's dark gloom to immortality's unuttered splendors. Rest assured, the heart that called thee beats with infinite love towards thee. A love undying that many waters cannot quench and that floods cannot drown.

Sit thee down.

Rest in peace. Lift up thine eye of hope and sing thy song with fond anticipation. Thou shalt soon be with the glorified where thy portion is. Thou art only waiting here to be made meat for the inheritance and that done.

The wings of angels shall waft thee far away to the mount of peace and joy and blessedness where far from a world of grief and sin, with God eternally shut in, thou shalt rest forever and ever. That's good preaching right there.

That is good preaching. That is, in its essence, the message that Paul is speaking to the church at Philippi. Have hope in the Lord today. No matter where you are, no matter your condition, no matter your circumstance, hope thou in the Lord.

Heavenly Father, again we thank you and we praise you for the privilege of being able to be in your house today with your people singing God, because ultimately it's what we did, the content of the songs that we sung, we were singing your word.

Thankful that we get to sing your word. Thankful that we can read your word. Thankful that we can hear your word, teached and preached as it is, dear God. I am thankful, dear God, for the witness of the Holy Spirit.

I am thankful today, God, that though this world through its many offers of what seems like goodness is nothing but things that are okay in comparison to the perfection and the splendor of what you promise us as your children.

And God, my prayer for me is that you help me not to be satisfied or content with the okay things of life, but to settle only for the very best that you have provided and that you have in store. And God, may you do this in the hearts and the minds of your people in this place.

If anybody is lost today, God, if anybody who previously has been deaf to the gospel, blind to the gospel, God, that through the work of your Holy Spirit that you might bring alive their dead hearts. And dear God, give them ears to hear and eyes to see and a heart that is made new in you,.

God.

Probably you could do that. God, it's been requested already this morning during Sunday school. God, for Tam's daughter, change her heart. For my son, change his heart, God. And for everybody in here, God, that may not have even said vocally, they know somebody that was separated from you.

God, do a work that only you can do in them. And God, help your children to grow and become mature saints of God in you. For it is in Jesus' name I pray. Amen and amen.