The True Gospel Philippians 3:1-11

The false gospel– v.1-3 Rejoicing is seen as a safeguard, or safety net, for the faith of the believers

The false gospel– v.1-3 Rejoicing is seen as a safeguard, or safety net, for the faith of the believers It is also a safeguard against legalism

The false gospel– v.1-3 Rejoicing is seen as a safeguard, or safety net, for the faith of the believers It is also a safeguard against legalism The church in Philippi was apparently under assault from a group of people who believed circumcision, and possibly other forms of legalism, were needed for salvation

The false gospel– v.1-3 Legalism – “is a slavish following of the law in the belief that one thereby earns merit;” – Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology

The false gospel– v.1-3 In contrast to legalism, we seek to obey the commands of God out of love and obedience, not out of a need for salvation. We are pursuing our sanctification, and not justification

The false gospel– v.1-3 Sanctification – “God setting the believer apart for Himself: positionaly at salvation, progressively throughout life, and ultimately when the believer arrives in His presence in heaven.” – Charles C. Ryrie, Basic Theology Justification – “An instantaneous legal act of God in which He forgives our sins and sees Christ’s righteousness as belonging to us, and declares us to be righteous in His sight.” – Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology

The false gospel– v.1-3 We should seek sanctification through scripture reading

The false gospel– v.1-3 We should seek sanctification through scripture reading We should also resist legalism today in all of its various forms

The false gospel– v.1-3 We should seek sanctification through scripture reading We should also resist legalism today in all of its various forms We, as believers, are still the circumcision

The former faith– v.4-7 We can clearly see that Paul has some credentials of the faith lined up

The former faith– v.4-7 We can clearly see that Paul has some credentials of the faith lined up We should all ask ourselves, “What credentials would we try to line up?”

The former faith– v.4-7 We can clearly see that Paul has some credentials of the faith lined up We should all ask ourselves, “What credentials would we try to line up?” Whatever our credentials, we should see them, not as our salvation, but as gifts

The former faith– v.4-7 We can clearly see that Paul has some credentials of the faith lined up We should all ask ourselves, “What credentials would we try to line up?” Whatever our credentials, we should see them, not as our salvation, but as gifts Everything in our life should be up for grabs for the sake of Jesus

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 This theme is so important for what we have been discussing in the past few weeks

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 This theme is so important for what we have been discussing in the past few weeks We have a righteousness, but it is not our own, it is that of Christ Jesus

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 This theme is so important for what we have been discussing in the past few weeks We have a righteousness, but it is not our own, it is that of Christ Jesus With the righteousness of Christ, we never have to fear losing our salvation

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 This theme is so important for what we have been discussing in the past few weeks We have a righteousness, but it is not our own, it is that of Christ Jesus With the righteousness of Christ, we never have to fear losing our salvation John 17:3 – Eternal life begins now

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 When our eternal life begins, we are free from our old life

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 When our eternal life begins, we are free from our old life We are free from who we used to be in our sin, and we are free from believing our talents or gifts can save us

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 When our eternal life begins, we are free from our old life We are free from who we used to be in our sin, and we are free from believing our talents or gifts can save us We may struggle with sin still, but now our call is to walk by the Spirit

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 When our eternal life begins, we are free from our old life We are free from who we used to be in our sin, and we are free from believing our talents or gifts can save us We may struggle with sin still, but now our call is to walk by the Spirit What we have gained is even more than what was lost

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 Because we have gained so much more, we are now truly saints

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 Because we have gained so much more, we are now truly saints We should be willing to go the whole way and count it all as rubbish for Jesus

Gaining Christ – v.8-11 Because we have gained so much more, we are now truly saints We should be willing to go the whole way and count it all as rubbish for Jesus We need to run the race and pursue Jesus at all costs