A Word in Season: Christ’s Righteousness and Ours (Philippians 3:9)

Paul’s Former Confidence in His Own Righteousness

What righteousness do you have? Or perhaps more specifically and importantly, whose righteousness do you have? The Apostle Paul, writing to the church in Philippi, discussed the righteousness that he had once imagined himself to possess, what he describes in verse 9 as his own righteousness, and it had to do primarily with his inheritance and his outward obedience.

He was circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews. He was a true blood Jew. He belonged to the right nation. He was in the right family. He was undeniably one of God's old covenant people, and he was persuaded that that was righteousness.

Concerning the law, he was a Pharisee. He belonged to the strictest sect of the Jews. He would have been almost obsessive, if not actually so, about ticking all the boxes and making sure that he did everything that God required, and even going beyond what he believed that God required.

Concerning zeal, he persecuted the church. He was persuaded that Jesus of Nazareth was in everything he was, and taught, and affront to God and his holiness, and he was determined to trample on his name and stamp out his disciples.

No one could have been more zealous than the apostle Paul in seeking to honor the God of Israel. And concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. Having been circumcised, having become a Pharisee, having persecuted the church, Paul thought he was indeed doing everything that God might require of him.

Externally, he was a man who was covering all the bases, and he was absolutely persuaded that he therefore had accumulated a weight, a deposit of righteousness that was his own production, by means of which he would be acceptable with God.

Counting All Things Loss for Christ

But he goes on, What things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having my own righteousness which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.

Paul had come to realize what Isaiah had long ago declared. That his righteousnesses were filthy rags, that they were vile and unclean things, that his best efforts still fell short of the glory of God.

And that righteousness which in his pride he had thought was his own and sufficient to stand before God, was actually a degrading and disgusting thing, that he had no plea before God, that even though he imagined himself by birth and by behavior to be spotless, yet nevertheless his sins came up before heaven and he deserved the judgments of God.

He fell short of his glory. He had left out things that he ought to have done and done many things that he should not have done. And in fact, when he writes to Timothy toward the end of his life, the Apostle is even more plain, that though he was externally the man who was righteous, yet he was in his heart truly the chief of sinners.

Christ’s Perfect Righteousness Received by Faith

So how then can a man who in imagining he's building up his own righteousness had actually increased his sin be acceptable with God? That's why he says, my great desire is that I may be found in Christ.

Not having my own righteousness from the law, not having a righteousness that is because of my own works, which is no real righteousness, but obtaining the righteousness in Christ, which is from God by faith.

You see, Christ is the truly righteous man. Christ is the one who has obeyed God perfectly, doing all that is required of him and leaving nothing out, internally and externally, everything in perfection, so that his is the very righteousness of God.

And if you put your faith in Christ Jesus, then that God righteousness, that Christ righteousness being put to your account becomes that basis on which you may now deal with God and God will deal with you, so that when God looks upon you, he sees you as having the righteousness of his own beloved son and treats you accordingly.

It is not the righteousness of the law, not the righteousness of works by which we are justified, but a Christ righteousness received only by faith in him.