Sermon: Count Them As σκύβαλα (Part 2)

The Call to Authentic Joy in Philippians

Hey, everybody. I'm Pastor Jeff Durbin with Apologia Church. I want to thank you all so much for watching the content right here on Apologia Studios channel. What you're about to watch is a sermon, a message from Apologia Church's worship service.

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So thank you again so much for watching these and sharing them. God bless you. All right, brothers and sisters, if you would open your Bibles to Philippians chapter 3. So if you have been following Apologia Church online, you're visiting today.

We've been gone for some time. We've taken a sidestep off of our series, The Kingdom of God, an exposition through the gospel according to Matthew. We're in Philippians. For a small sidestep series working through this amazing, amazing work from the Apostle Paul, this inspired letter, while he is in chains.

And we've been talking about how this can transform us as believers individually and also as a body. And one of the things we've tried to emphasize the most is, as you get there, the fact that the Apostle Paul, it cannot be avoided, he is pursuing authentic joy in Jesus Christ.

You cannot read this letter without seeing the call to joy, the call to rejoicing. And what I've tried to emphasize.

Is.

It's my conviction that we need to avoid the pursuit of Christian joy that is external, right? It's the kind of thing that you put on that plastic smile and you sort of carry that covering into church.

We used to call it early on in the history of Apologia Church, David knows this, the God face, right? You come into church, you have the God face on, you're, you know, having the worst possible day at home, that you're depressed, you're lonely, you're struggling, and then you sort of come into church parking lot and it's magical, right?

You open that car door and all of a sudden a smile falls from heaven onto your face and, you know, it's just, it's all pretend. And I've tried to argue that there's no use pursuing that kind of.

False.

Joy, right? It's pseudo joy. It's not real. And I've argued that what the Apostle Paul is referencing over and over and over is authentic joy. So we've talked about worry, we've talked about anxiety and how to be free from that and to actually rejoice in all things.

We've talked about how it's possible for us to have authentic joy, real, actual joy in the midst of difficulty, trial, tribulation, and I think it's wonderful and providential, of course, that the Lord allowed us to do this series in the midst of the trial we didn't even see coming.

It's perfect. It really is perfect. So we're in Philippians chapter 3 now. This is part 2. So again, if you've missed, if you missed the first one, I really encourage you to listen to that one and then listen to this one and listen again.

Go back to the text that I referenced because I'm going to give you a smattering of verses and try to unpack some as much as possible. But next week, Dr. White is going to be doing a little more of an expanded look at this particular topic of the imputation of Christ's righteousness, justification, and I believe comparing that even to some other false claims made by religion elsewhere.

But we're in Philippians chapter 3 and I want to emphasize as we start to open this up as I did last week, this is core. This is essential. Pastor James noted during the catechism that Christians throughout the ages have had to actually face difficulties, trials, things like the black death, the black plague.

It's not the first time in the history of the church that we've had to face these sorts of difficulties, but here we are. Here's our time. This is our moment. And I agree that what carried many of these believers through those difficult storms and trials and tribulations.

Was.

Particular truth. There was an anchor. There was something underneath those believers. We talked about the external, right? The plastic smile, the shell. Well, that will fall apart. It's going to come to pieces.

It's going to unravel. It's going to get taken down if it's not built upon a firm foundation of truth. And I want to encourage you, strongly urge you, when you come to this particular truth.

Of.

The imputation of Christ's righteousness, receiving a righteousness from God through faith. When we come to this truth, understand that this is one of those truths that you lay everything down for, you give up everything for.

Because this is a particular truth about how we have peace with God. It's all about reconciliation with God. It's all about peace with God. And I'm going to get to the text here in a second, but I want you to be considering that as we get to this text and you're looking through it and you're thinking about it in light of what matters the most.

And as we're thinking about death a lot right now, people are thinking about finally sickness and death and their own mortality. We have to start asking the question, what matters the most? Like what's the main theme of life?

And I would say that God is the ultimate. It's part of our catechism, right? First question is what is man's chief end? In the modern, what is man's primary purpose? And our answer to that from the catechism is man's primary purpose is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.

That's a bold claim that that's the main point of your life. To glorify God and to enjoy him forever. We can substantiate that and prove that through scripture, but that's the truth. And if that is what we're created for, if all of the universe, if every galaxy, if this entire created order, which is so vast, it's incomprehensible and so detailed down to the microscopic level, if it's really about the glory of God, if it's really about God as a center, then we have to ask ourselves the question, how are we with God?

What is my relationship with God? Listen, it goes beyond the relationship you have with your spouse. The pursuit of marriage, if you're single, or even the thought of having children as maybe a newly married couple.

It goes beyond, where am I going to buy a house? What kind of job or career will I have? It goes beyond the kind of relationships you surround yourself with, what you invest yourself in. It goes beyond the amount of money you're trying to earn and to build up.

It goes beyond any other goal in your life. This is the most important thing. What is your relationship to your creator? Are you reconciled to God? Do you have peace with God? Now you might be saying, well, there's lots of religions that try to answer that question.

Exactly. And that's my point. How is reconciliation and peace with God actually possible from the mouth of God? What does he say? And I'm going to argue that if you don't know, please hear me on this, if you don't know the answer to the question, what is justification?

What is the imputation of Christ's righteousness? If you don't know the answers to those questions, then get to know them, because these are truths that you let goods and kindred go, your mortal life also.

You lay everything down for these truths. We lose these distinctive elements of the biblical faith. We've lost biblical faith. We've lost everything. So we're in Philippians chapter 3, now that we've laid that down.

Philippians chapter 3, starting in verse 1, I'm going to read through this and we're going to pick up sort of where we were last week with a couple of reminders. Philippians chapter 3, verse 1. Hear now the words of the living and the true God.

Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you. Look out for the dogs. Look out for the evildoers. Look out for those who mutilate the flesh.

For we are the circumcision who worship by the spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh. Though, I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more.

Circumcised on the eighth day of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the law, a Pharisee. As to zeal, a persecutor of the church. As to the righteousness under the law,.

Blameless.

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as.

Scubala,.

Rubbish.

In order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.

That I may know him and the power of his resurrection and may share in his sufferings, his sufferings becoming becoming like him in his death. That by any means possible, I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Thus far is the reading of God's holy word. Let's pray. Father, please bless for your glory this message. We pray that this truth would transform not only us here in this room, but those who will hear this at another time.

We pray that you would use these truths to transform, renew, strengthen, empower your church. I pray that we would go forth into the world with these glorious.

Things.

And tell everybody about them. Please get me out of the way. I pray that you would teach by your spirit and I pray that everyone forgets me and remembers what they've learned from you in Jesus name. Amen.

So we have again been talking about that the fact that these are things to die for. Again, listen, there are core issues in the biblical faith. And look, you see it in the apostle Paul right here, scuba law, right?

Rubbish, rubbish, refuse, dung. I mean, there's all kinds of ways you could describe what the apostle Paul is saying there, but that's a scandalous term, right? And he puts it in a letter like you want to know how I feel about all this stuff on my attainments, you know, the being a pharisee, that top school, right?

All my zeal, persecuting the church, all this rubbish, refuse, dung, all of that. I want none of it. I want the righteousness that comes from God through faith. So for Paul, this is clearly core. It's everything.

And when we think about the Christian faith, we understand that we're fallible people. We're surrounding an infallible word from God. It's the reference point. And so all of us as fallible human beings going through time throughout church history are supposed to go to this revelation as the anchor.

This is the point that corrects us. But we know as believers, we do have different opinions about particular things. And that's okay if it's something that is adiaphora, if it's on the side, it's not essential stuff that affects everything else.

We need to be gracious and love one another. We've talked about this, but there are core things that matter the most. And you do see biblical prophets, you see Jesus, you see Paul, you see Peter. When there is an essential, essential aspect of biblical faith that is in danger or is being muddied, that's where you see the gloves come off.

And so when we think, thank you brother, when we think about biblical faith, we think about things that matter the most, core things. For example, when we go to the Mormon temple to do evangelism, unfortunately, Mesa temple is being fixed up and changed right now.

So it's just a mess right now. So I don't even know when we're going to be back there to do evangelism. We'll go to Salt Lake City. You'll notice that we try to stick to essential parts of the biblical faith.

The truth about the true God and how we can have peace with God. We try to avoid conversations that go off into things that don't really matter because we have this little window, this small space to communicate the essential truths to this person.

Just moments. Another example of how we have to do this is when we go to the abortion mill to preach the gospel, to save lives. What do we do? We condense the message down to the things that matter the most.

These are the core things. Who is God? What is the gospel? What does this person need right now? They need to be reconciled to God. So we say things like at the abortion mill, please don't murder your child.

Here's who Jesus is. Be reconciled to God. Here's what he did. Turn to him in faith. We'll help you condense it down to what matters most. And I want to argue when you condense down the biblical faith to what matters the most, you need to talk about the essentials.

Who is God? What is the gospel? We need to, as God's people, know the answers to those questions. If you don't know, especially kids, when we have family integrated church at times, there are things that may go way over your head.

But the things that you need to grab hold of are those essential things. Who is God? What is the gospel? As God's people, we should be able to articulate what we believe about the trinity. Do you know?

Can you articulate it? I'm not asking you this. Can you comprehend the trinity? That would be foolish for any creature to say, I do. Dangerous person who says something. I totally comprehend the triune God.

No, you don't. You're a creature with a three-pound brain. You do not. But we do apprehend truths from God that he's communicated about the trinity. So the question is, if you're a believer, if you call yourself a child of God, you say that you're redeemed, you belong to Christ, can you articulate what the Bible teaches about who God is?

Can you communicate the truth about the triune God from scripture? And then further, when we talk about the gospel, why is your message good news? Why? What makes it different from the world? What makes it different from Joseph Smith Jr.'s revelation or Brigham Young's revelation or David Koresh's revelation or Mary Baker Eady?

Why is your message good news? More to the point, why was it called good news in the New Testament? What makes it good news for the world? Can you articulate that? Listen, we need to raise our standards as God's people.

I'm going to challenge you with that. You have to raise your standards as a child of God, as a Christian. We've lowered our standards in evangelism in this generation in the West. We don't even want to know what the essentials are to communicate those things.

The history of the Christian church is replete with examples of believers who died for truths that many of us would say today, that was stupid. That was dumb. That was irrelevant. Not necessary. Why bother dying for something like that?

I mentioned that recently we were in, we were doing ministry for Edibor Chanel in Northern Ireland, in the Republic of Ireland, that's the South, and also in Scotland. And when we were in Scotland, we got to do a three and a half hour tour with a representative of the church that had us out.

We got to do a three and a half hour tour talking about the covenanters. Now, that's a long story, a lot of history there, and there's some conflict, and there's failures with the covenanters. But one thing that I think we should consider is these covenanters, these Christians, they would die and be tortured.

I mean, seriously.

Maimed.

Body parts broken while they're cognizant, aware, thinking they have time to endure this, right? Not just a quick death, not just an easy one, not just a simple beheading, as simple as that can be. But we're talking about having your thumbs crushed and your legs broken, and then you're dragged down the street for about a mile to be brought up onto a platform in public to have your head cut off or whatever the case might have been.

And you think like, why would someone do something so stupid? Right? I mean, was there a way out of it? Was there a way to maneuver around it? And the answer is.

Yes.

Yeah, there was. There was a way to maneuver out of all that torture, all that pain, all that difficulty, all that soul-crushing difficulty. And what was it? Well, all you had to do was acknowledge that the king has authority over the church.

Right? That the government has, the state has authority over the church as well. That's it. Just say it. That's all you have to do. Just say it. Just acknowledge that the king has that rightful place on the throne, essentially, of the church as well.

And these were Christians, thousands of them, who suffered, starved, were crushed, were drowned, were mutilated, were beheaded, all the rest, because they just wouldn't say it. They just, they wouldn't say it.

People would, and they lived. And then they wouldn't, and then they would be starved for months at a time, living off four ounces of bread. Many of them died of exposure while in jail, which is not a jail.

It was just outside of a courtyard in Scotland, freezing. I mean, it's challenging weather there. Listen, it's Christians dying because they won't say something. How about the first century of the church?

Kaiser Kyrgios. Caesar is lord. That's it.

That's all you have to say.

Kaiser Kyrgios. Just that. Just acknowledge that Caesar is the ultimate. Just say that the state is the ultimate, that Caesar is lord. That's all you have to say, and you survive. Rome is pagan. They don't care what god you worship.

It's paganism. You worship any god, but you just have to say, Caesar is lord. And the Christians were saying, Jesus is lord. I can't say that you're the ultimate. I can't say that you are lord, that you're the ultimate.

I'll be a good citizen in Rome. I will be an obedient citizen. I'll do all that, but I cannot say that. And so Christians were mutilated, set on fire,.

Tortured,.

Killed, ripped from their families, lost everything. Why? They just wouldn't say it. Kaiser Kyrgios. How much does truth matter to us today? How much does it matter? Well, I think Pastor James is right.

I mean, I think the context we're living in, so many people don't think about death and the future and their own mortality and the fact that they're going to face god one day. So what does it matter? Why are these things really important to you?

What's important to me is what's in my pocket, my smartphone, the plans that I have, what's the new app, you know, do I have enough money in my accounts? Like, yeah, what am I going to, where am I going to go on vacation?

Like the relationships around? These are the significant things right now, but we're not thinking about mortality, our own death. But I think I love the moment that we're in right now that people are starting to think about it.

What matters the most? What? And I want to argue, brothers and sisters, that this, what we're talking about here, when Paul says things like skubalah, when we're talking about things, count them all as loss.

I just want his righteousness. We're talking about the things that matter the most. And I want to challenge you as we finish this study and as you hear pastor James next week, get to know this truth and be willing to lose everything for it because it's one of those things that matters the most.

So.

We talked about the fact that the apostle Paul, the beginning here, uses harsh words, strong words. He says things like the dogs. He says things like evildoers and those who mutilate the flesh, says that we're the true circumcision, us.

We're the circumcision. It's a matter of the heart, Paul says. That's what matters before God, the true circumcision. That's you guys, the believers. Be aware of these evildoers, these dogs. Argued that those are strong words and the apostle Paul is clearly using a serrated edge.

So I pointed you last week to Galatians chapter 1 and Galatians 5, where the apostle Paul uses the serrated edge. He's careful about when and how he does it, but when it matters most, he uses it very strongly.

I won't go over all of last week, but I'll just say anathema is a very strong term. Eternal, separation from God forever, a cursed anathema. If I come back to you or an angel comes from heaven and preaches any other gospel to you, let him be anathema.

And the apostle Paul is very, very clear about what the issue was in Galatia. I mean, think about it today in terms of how we will muddy truth today and just say, you know, let's just have sort of a unity that's not really a unity.

It's just an indifference or an ignoring of what matters and we'll say it's no big deal. What? It's just a proposition, right? It's just a simple doctrinal proposition. Just keep the circumcision, right?

We've got Jesus. We've got the scriptures, all that. Let's just maintain unity. Let's just say the circumcision. You at least got to carry that aspect over and just keep the circumcision. We can't have all these uncircumcised people all, you know, mingling together with us.

And the apostle Paul says in Galatians chapter 5, he says, look, if you receive circumcision, if you go that route, he says, then Christ is of no benefit to you. You have become severed from Christ. Whosoever of you attempts to be justified by law, you've fallen from grace.

Paul says choose grace or law, right? You're trying to get a righteousness through obedience in even one aspect. And he says this, choose that aspect. No benefit. Jesus is no benefit to you. He says you've become severed from Christ.

You who attempt to be justified by law, you've fallen from grace. Christianity has always been, from the beginning of the Bible, a religion of grace. Abraham believed God and it was credited to him, counted to him as righteousness.

When?

Was this.

After the law was given? It was long before the law was given. Was it after circumcision? It was before circumcision. Abraham believed God. Empty hand of faith. It's a religion of grace. And Paul says this, you choose law.

You want to bring that over and attempt to be justified before God? You've fallen from grace. And he uses a serrated edge. Really? When he says that he hopes these people who are troubling them would go all the way, that they would mutilate themselves, that they would cut themselves off.

I quote it from The God Who Justifies, our pastor's work, where he essentially summarizes what Paul is saying there in Galatians 5. I hope these guys who like to play with knives go all the way. I hope they slip with the knife and cut themselves off.

That's hardcore. That's not very Christian. But that's the kind of language he uses when it matters the most. And so you see that language there. Paul goes from joy, joy, rejoice, rejoice. I don't know which one I want to do.

I'm hard pressed between two decisions. I don't know. To stay on, live with you in the flesh. It's fruit. It's righteousness. It's all that. He says, but to depart and be with Christ is far better. So I don't know what I want.

To live as Christ, to die as gain. He's just joyful, joyful, joyful. And then he says, look out for the dogs. Look out for the evildoers. Look out for those who mutilate the flesh.

Shift.

Right? A little bit of a shift in tone. We always have such a hard time with tone. Well, I, you know, in, in, in social media, it's a big deal where like, how am I communicating properly? We always be cautious with that.

Make sure that we can communicate in a way people don't misunderstand. I think we understand his point here and how he feels about it, right? I think Paul is being very, very clear. And I don't think there's a way to misunderstand him about how serious this issue is for Paul.

And I want to just point this out as we get to this text here, because we're talking about righteousness and peace with God. He's addressing a religious issue. All creaturely rebellion, please hear this, all creaturely rebellion seeks to establish their own righteousness.

That is just indicative of all of human history. All creaturely rebellion seeks to establish their own righteousness. Name the flavor and I'll show you where it's at. Name it. You want to talk about Rome and its perversion of the gospel of God's grace?

You want to talk about Mormonism and its perversion of grace? You want to talk about Jehovah's Witnesses, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society? You want to talk about Islam? You want to talk about how atheists also seek to establish their own righteousness by saying, I'm a good person.

I'm not as evil as that person. I haven't done as many bad things. I'm basically a good person. Every creature in rebellion against the true God seeks to establish their own righteousness. Find the false religion and you will find in there somewhere where that religion is attempting to establish its own righteousness before God.

Something is broken. So you have to fix it and the fixing it is not a matter of grace and God and his glory and his accomplishment. But it is a matter of fixing it according to your own accomplishing, according to your own obedience, your own cleansing of yourself.

Biblical faith looks away from the self and it looks towards the work of Jesus Christ, which is what Paul is doing in the text. I'll point out to you there again in four, verse four. He says, though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh, also if anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more.

Again, we said last week, just a summary of last week. This is Paul throwing himself into the ring saying, I'll play. You want me to play the game? I'll play the game. These people over here, these dogs, these evildoers, the ones who mutilate the flesh, you want to compare resumes?

Let's compare resumes, guys. He says, here's my pedigree. Here's where I'm at. These are my bona fides right here. I am of the tribe of Benjamin, circumcised the eighth day of the people of Israel. He says, a Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the law, a Pharisee.

So that's the highest school. Like these are the respected dudes in the day, right? They've done their homework. They've done their training. You know where they're at according to the law. Their rigorous commitment to law to the degree that they're even doing things that are above the law in terms of added to the law.

That's how rigorous. And he says, I argued rather tongue-in-cheek knowing his theology, knowing what he believes about mankind and knowing what he believes about the law. He says, as to the righteousness under the law,.

Blameless.

You couldn't find, you want to try to find a fault, guys? That's how rigorous I hold to it. You want to see? Blameless. Here's what he says, but whatever gain I had, like all of that, all my bona fides, all the pedigree, all the zeal, all of it.

He says, whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Between the two things, my rigorous commitment to the law, blameless, my zeal, my pedigree, my bona fides, all of it. He says, I want Christ, not that.

I want Jesus. That's a very strong statement from a person that spent their life invested in a particular worldview and way of thinking about the law itself. Indeed, he gets deeper. I count everything as loss.

I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. For his.

Sake,.

I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as.

Scubala.

Scubala.

So again, back to the main thing we've been aiming at this whole time. Authentic joy. Authentic joy. Authentic joy. How do we have true, divinely inspired, authentic joy? Not the external shell, not the pseudo joy, not the plastic smile.

Paul's telling you right here. How do you do it, Paul? You're in prison, beaten times without number, constantly in danger, shipwrecked. He's in danger from false brethren, his own countrymen. All of that stuff eventually is martyred for his faith in Jesus.

He said, how do you have so much joy in chains? Right? Are you just the eternal optimist? You're just so optimistic, right? You ever know a person like that? They're always always half full glass. They're always the optimist, even to their own detriment.

Is that what you're dealing with, Paul? He says, here it is. I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. For his sake I have, for his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ.

There's the source. There's the foundation for his rejoicing, for his peace, for his hope. In order that I may gain Christ, and here it is, and be found in him, make a note. Union with Christ is the core issue.

You see, that's the thing from which everything else comes. You want to know what makes biblical faith different? What makes it distinct?

What makes it.

Amazing? That truth. Be found in Christ. Union with Jesus Christ. That new identity in Jesus Christ is the heartbeat that from which everything else flows. He says this, be found in him not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ.

The righteousness from God that depends on faith. And there it is. There's the truth that I argued. You need to be willing to let goods and kindred go, your mortal life, also everything, because that's the core of what separates.

True.

Salvation, reconciliation, and peace with God from all other world religions. Just consider it for a moment. You guys, many of you have probably been out with us to do evangelism at the Mormon temple.

I know many of you guys live in Mesa. Some of you guys live in Mesa. You're in Mormon communities, and you've had more missionaries show up at your door. I mean, just consider the message from the Book of Mormon, the message that perverts biblical faith.

And it's just a little twist. It's just a little turn the different direction in terms of grace and what the Bible says about it. I'll give you the verse. You know it. You could finish it for me, right?

For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not according to works, lest any man should boast. And then you have in this new religion created by Joseph Smith Jr. In the 19th century, you have, by grace are you saved after all you can do.

2 Nephi 25 -23. By grace you've been saved after all you can do. It's the mingling, the mingling together of grace, gift, and your work and your labor, what you accomplish. We believe that through the atonement of Jesus Christ, all mankind may be saved.

And you go, hey, that sounds beautiful. That sounds gracious. This is from the Articles of Faith of the Mormon Church or the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We believe that through the atonement of Jesus Christ, all mankind may be saved.

And here it is, through obedience, through obedience. And then there's the law, right? Laws, principles, ordinances, all these things that you must do, that you must accomplish. And there it is again.

It's a religion that even co-ops Christian language, co-ops the concept of grace and faith and salvation and peace with God, co-ops the ideas of a death and a resurrection and the Messiah, borrows biblical language, borrows from the Bible, and then twists the message and distorts it.

And where is it distorted? At this point. How are you going to have peace with God? Because the Apostle Paul says, through inspiration, he says, I count everything, verse 8, as lost because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

For his sake I've suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him. Not having a righteousness of my own that comes through the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.