DEPENDENCE DAY
Series: A Declaration of Dependence
Philippians 3:2-11
July 4, 2004
Series Introduction:
Today our nation celebrates Independence Day. But as a nation we are in danger of forgetting that we owe our independence to our dependence upon God. Our forefathers clearly recognized this truth and sought to build our nation on it. On October 3, 1789 George Washington said, “It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly implore his protection and favor.” (SermonCentral)
On April 30, 1863, Abraham Lincoln appointed a National Fast Day and declared, “It is the duty of nations as well as men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon, and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history: that nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord.” (SermonCentral)
And yet we find the exact opposite attitude in vogue today. Our nations courts are ordering the removal of the Ten Commandments from courtrooms and other public sites. There is a blatant move being led by the ACLU to see that all mention of God is removed from public life. The Supreme Court has ruled that the phrase “under God” will remain in the pledge of allegiance to the flag, but only because of a technicality. The court did not rule that the phrase was constitutional, but only that the father who brought the case did not have any legal right to do so because he did not have legal custody of his daughter on whose behalf he filed the case. So now it will surely only be a matter of time before someone with legal standing brings a similar case.
Thomas Jefferson, our third President, asked, “And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure, when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with his wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just: that his justice can not sleep forever.” (Becker, SermonCentral)
Can a building remain in place if you remove its foundation? How can our country remain strong while we are systematically chipping away at the very foundation upon which it is built? We have forgotten God. We have forgotten that the independence we celebrate every 4rth of July we owe to our dependence upon him. And so this month I will be sharing with you a series of messages titled “A Declaration of Dependence.” The goal of this series is to have us as individuals, as a church, and as a nation declare our complete dependence upon Almighty God in all areas of life.
Sermon Introduction:
Today we are going to start at the very beginning. For our nation Independence Day marks the day of our separation from England and our birth as a new nation. For the Christian, Dependence Day marks the day of our separation from sin and our birth as a new creation. This is a day of dependence because we are completely dependent upon God for our salvation. It is something that we can never hope to achieve on our own. Paul said, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).
Today we are going to look at Philippians 3:1-11 to see how Paul transitions from a life of dependence upon himself to a life of dependence upon God.
Paul begins with this warning:
2Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. 3For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh –
This warning is against a group of people known as Judaizers. They were a group of Jewish Christians who emphasized the necessity of keeping the Old Testament law with its regulations and rituals in order to be saved. They didn’t deny that one needed to trust in Christ, but they added the requirement of works to faith.
He says their character is that of “dogs.” He was probably thinking of the half-wild dogs of that area that prowled around campsites to feed on the leftover garbage. These people were feeding on the leftovers of the Old Covenant rather than feasting on the blessing of the New Covenant through faith in Christ.
He then says that their conduct is “evil.” They claimed to be Christians, but were in effect working to turn Christianity back to Judaism. It may well be that their intentions were good, but what they did was actually evil because it turned people away from depending on Christ alone.
Paul describes their creed as mutilation. “Mutilators of the flesh” is an obvious reference to their insistence on the importance of circumcision for salvation. The New Testament church teaches that real circumcision is now a spiritual cutting away of sin from the heart of the believer. Just as circumcision was a mutilation of the flesh so their creed was a mutilation of the truth.
True believers who are depending on Jesus for their salvation are just the opposite. True believers are the real circumcision. It is as Paul wrote to the Colossian church, “In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ” (Colossians 2:11).
The creed of true believers is to worship by the Spirit, not through ritual observances. Our conduct is that of glorying in Christ rather than in our own works. The Greek word here rendered as “glory” means to boast or exult. William Barclay said, “The only pride of the Christian is that he is a man for whom Christ died.” And finally our character is that of “putting no confidence in the flesh.” “Flesh denotes all that man is, or thinks he is, and achieves aside from the Spirit of God.” (John A. Knight)
As you can see those who depend upon God are totally opposite those who depend upon themselves. But these verses serve only as an introduction and an overview. Paul is about to get very specific about the things that we shouldn’t depend on by using himself as an example. As we look through this list of examples that Paul gives us I want you to look over your own life. Ask yourself if you are guilty of depending on one or more of these things to make you right with God. Then make a declaration of dependence upon God. Declare this morning that you will no longer depend on any of these things.
4though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless
In this passage Paul gives us his pre-Christian pedigree. He shows us that if externals mattered he would have more to place his trust in than most others. He lists for us seven of his qualifications for being righteous. Remember that seven is the perfect number. But these are all things that he no longer depends on and he lists them so that we will not make the same mistake he did before coming to depend on Christ. Will you make the following declaration?
I Will Not Depend On . . .
Religious Rituals
Paul’s first qualification was that he was circumcised on the eighth day. He was circumcised when he was eight days old as was commanded in the Law of Moses found in Leviticus 12:3, “On the eighth day the boy is to be circumcised.” This ritual act was of utmost importance to the Judaizers and Paul had fulfilled it. This ritual signified that he was a Jew from birth because converts to Judaism would not be circumcised until they converted – usually as adults.
Are there any religious rituals that you are trusting in to make you right with God? Taking communion or the Lord’s Suppers won’t save you. Being baptized doesn’t guarantee you a place in heaven. Nor do church membership, confirmation, perfect attendance at Sunday school, tithing or any other religious ritual you may practice.
Now please understand that these rituals do have some value, but not as saving acts. Apart from dependence upon Jesus Christ they are empty symbols at best.
Faithful Family Trees
Paul’s next three qualifications all deal with his family tree. First, he was “of the people of Israel.” The Ishmaelites could claim to be descendants of Abraham and the Edomites could claim to be descendants of Isaac, but only the Jews could claim to be descendants of Israel or Jacob. You see not all of the children of Abraham and Isaac were God’s chosen people. God’s chosen people, the Jews, were only those descended from Jacob whose name was changed by God to Israel.
Next he says that he was of “the tribe of Benjamin.” This was a very prestigious tribe among the Israelites. This tribe produced Israel’s first king, a man named Saul (1 Samuel 9:1-2,17). Years later when Solomon’s son Rehoboam became king Israel rebelled against him and declared a man named Jeroboam to be their king. God had declared that the throne was to remain in the house of David and of all Israel only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin remained loyal to God and to Rehoboam (1 Kgs. 12:20-21). The rest of the tribes followed Jeroboam into idolatrous religious practices. Because of these things the tribe of Benjamin had a special place of honor and was highly esteemed. To be a part of that family tree was something to be proud of.
Finally he points out that he was “a Hebrew of Hebrews.” He was a Hebrew and his parents were Hebrews. It is also believed that Paul could still speak the Hebrew language when most Jews of his day could only speak Greek or Aramaic. Apparently he was quite devoted to the old ways.
Paul could claim to be a part of quite a faithful family tree. He had a tremendous heritage and of that he could be proud. But that would not save him. Are you depending on your family tree to make you right with God? Are planning on riding someone else’s coattails to heaven? Were your parents Christians? Were your grandparents? Are you a part of a people group such as Americans that tend to be labeled as Christian? These things can all be a tremendous source of blessing, but none of them can save you. That is good news this morning for those of you who don’t have a faithful family tree.
Prestigious Positions
Next Paul tells us that he was “a Pharisee.” The Pharisees meticulously observed the whole Mosaic law. They were by far the strictest sect of Judaism. They were ardent expositors and defenders of God’s word. They even added their own regulations. We also know that he was trained by Gamaliel, who was one of the most respected teachers in all of Israel.
Are you depending on your status or position in the church to save you? Are you a Sunday School Teacher, part of the Praise Team, a board member or some other high profile position? Do you think that means that you’ve got it made? What about your denominational status? The Pharisees were sort of like a denomination within Judaism. Are you counting on your denominational affiliation? None of these things will save you.
Astounding Accomplishments
Paul was very zealous about what he believed. So passionate was he that he persecuted the church because he thought they were heretics. He pursued them from town to town and had them arrested and thrown into prison. He even oversaw the execution of one high profile Christian evangelist named Stephen.
He also said that as far as legalistic righteousness was concerned he was faultless. And let me tell you that with all the hundreds of regulations Pharisees had in addition to the Old Testament Law that was quite an impressive accomplishment.
What accomplishments for God or for the church are you most proud of? If you are a Christian your good deeds can earn you reward in heaven, but if you are not a Christian they can never earn you a ticket to heaven.
In this passage Paul lists a number of very impressive qualifications. If he were putting together a resume to present to God, I am sure that he would have been very confident. But there is one glaring problem with all of Paul’s qualifications and it is the problem with all of yours and with all of mine as well. The Bible says, “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;” (Isaiah 64:6). The best that we can achieve by ourselves is viewed from heaven as a filthy pile of stinking rags. That’s it!
Obviously we should be careful of holding too high a view of our accomplishments and ourselves. But that is our tendency. Let me tell you a true story about a man named Speedy Morris. Speedy was a basketball coach for LaSalle University. He was shaving one day when his wife called out to tell him he was wanted on the phone by Sports Illustrated. Speedy Morris was so excited by the prospect of national recognition that he nicked himself with his razor and ran –with a mixture of blood and lather on his face—down the hall promptly falling down the stairs. Limping and in some physical distress he finally got to the phone and the voice on the other line said: “For just seventy five cents an issue you can get a one year trial subscription….” (SOURCE: Nelson’s Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations and Quotes, 2000, pg. 222.)
Winston Churchill was once asked, "Doesn’t it thrill you to know that every time you make a speech, the hall is packed to overflowing?" "It’s quite flattering," replied Sir Winston. "But whenever I feel that way, I always remember that if instead of making a political speech I was being hanged, the crowd would be twice as big." Norman McGowan, My Years With Winston Churchill, Souvenir Press, London
We should not hold too high an opinion of ourselves for if Paul, the highly decorated Pharisee, can’t make it to heaven with his accomplishments then there is no hope for us. Yet there is hope – the hope of the gospel. If we will stop depending on ourselves and start depending on God, we will gain tremendous blessings. Will you make the following declaration?
By Depending Upon Christ I Will Gain . . .
A New Perspective
When Paul came to Christ his whole spiritual worldview was changed. He had a new perspective on his achievements and status.
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
Paul was using the commercial language of profit and loss. It is as if he was writing in a ledger and all of the things he had just listed were entered on the credit side of the ledger. Initially he saw all of these things as credits in his favor. He saw them as profit. Interestingly the Greek word for profit is plural. So he saw these as many different items of credit to his account – the total of which would earn him salvation.
However, he now considers them as loss. He has gained a new perspective on things, which has resulted in his rewriting his ledger book. He now moves these items from the credit column to the loss column in his ledger. It is interesting to note that while the Greek for profit was plural the Greek word for loss is singular. What Paul had once viewed as many items of credit to his account he now sees as one big loss.
Then Paul goes beyond these seven things he had listed when he said, “What is more, I consider everything a loss…” Anything that could possibly be seen as being personally meritorious he now sees as loss.
When he says, “I have suffered the loss of all things” the verb is in the aorist tense. The tense points to a definite time when Paul suffered this loss – to a definite time when his perspective was changed. Surely he had in mind his experience on the road to Damascus. He was on his way there to arrest any Christians he could find when Jesus appeared to him, struck him blind, and called him to be an apostle to the Gentiles. It was in that moment that Paul was converted. In that moment the blinding vision of Jesus forever changed his perspective. He would never see himself or his accomplishments in the same way again.
Not only did he suffer the loss of all these bragging points, but he also suffered other great losses for his commitment to Christ that day. He would have been excommunicated by the Pharisees, disowned by his family, shunned by his friends, and may have even had his property confiscated. Truly he suffered the loss of all things.
Even though his loss was great he viewed all that he lost as rubbish. The Greek word is much stronger and literally means dung. This was a much stronger term than loss and indicated something that was to be thrown out and never touched again. This is God’s estimate of all religious observance and practice not rooted in faith in Christ.
Through dependence upon Christ Paul had gained a new perspective. Do you, like Paul, need to gain a new perspective? Are there things that you have been recording in the profit column of your life’s ledger than should be moved to the loss column? If so that change can be made this morning in a moment as it was for the apostle. Will you choose to depend upon him?
A New Position
When you choose to depend upon Christ alone you will also gain a new position.
that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him,
Paul’s new position is that of having gained Christ and being found in him. The word gain speaks of the continuous compounding of value. Paul Rees says, “Life with Him is cumulative in value. It mounts in richness … He is to us a greater and greater Christ as we live in His love and are nourished by His mind.” Paul is saying that Christ far out values all that he has lost so that his new position is actually one of far greater spiritual gain. From his new perspective he had given up little in order to gain much. Elliot said, “He is no fool who gives up that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” That is exactly what Paul did. Are you willing to do the same?
Our founding fathers were willing to give up all that they had for the sake of something that they found to be a greater gain – liberty. Of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence, few were long to survive. Five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes--from Rhode Island to Charleston--sacked and looted, occupied by the enemy or burned. Two of them lost their sons in the Army; one had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 died in the War from its hardships or from its more merciful bullets. I don’t know what impression you’d had of these men who met that hot summer in Philadelphia, but I think it’s important this July 4, that we remember this about them: they were not poor men, they were not wild-eyed pirates. These were men of means, these were rich men, most of them, who enjoyed much ease and luxury in personal living. Not hungry men-- prosperous men, wealthy landowners, substantially secure in their prosperity. But they had learned that liberty is so much more important than security, that they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. And they fulfilled their pledge--they paid the price, and freedom was born. (SOURCE: Paul Harvey, News and Commentary. July 4, 1974)
Being found in Christ was like being found in a city of refuge in the Old Testament days. What was a city of refuge? In those days if you would have accidentally killed someone a member of his family would have had the responsibility of coming after you to kill you. His title was “the avenger of blood.” Knowing that the avenger was coming you would have fled to the nearest city of refuge. These were specially designated cities throughout Israel. If you were found in a city of refuge, the avenger could not harm you. You would be safe there until you went to trial.
The city of refuge was a picture of what it is like to be found in Christ. In Christ we find refuge. Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29).
A New Possession
Paul may have lost all his prized possession, but now he had the most prized possession of all.
Not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.
The righteousness of his own was gone. His faultless legalistic righteousness no longer appealed to him at all. In its place was real righteousness. This was a righteousness that couldn’t come from the law, but only from God through faith.
And this righteousness is available to you this morning. Paul wrote to the Romans: “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe” (Romans 3:21-22). Maybe you don’t have Paul’s problem this morning. Maybe you don’t have a long list of religious history and experiences to bank on. Maybe you haven’t been living a moral life like he had. None of that matters because this righteousness is available to all who believe.
You may ask, “What do I have to believe?” Paul goes on to say, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement” (Romans 3:23-25). Jesus died on the cross giving his life as a sacrifice for your sins. Those of us who are sinners, and we all are, are justified or forgiven and made righteous when we choose to depend upon Christ’s sacrifice. Will you make that declaration of dependence this morning?
A New Passion
10I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so , somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
The passion of Paul’s life was no longer to keep the rigid requirements of the law, but to know Christ. He did not want mere familiarity with Christ nor an analysis of the facts about Christ. He wanted a personal, experiential knowledge of Christ. He wanted an intimate relationship with Christ.
He wanted to know the power of his resurrection. He wanted to experience the power that raised Jesus from the dead operating in his own life. This power would raise him from the death of sin to newness of life in Christ. “Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5).
Paul also said that he wanted to know the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings. That sounds strange at first, doesn’t it? But Paul was no fair weather Christian. You may know what it is like to have fair weather friends – they are there for you when everything is going good, but when you have problems they are no where to be found. Paul wanted to have a close relationship with Christ in the good times as well as the bad.
Christ’s sufferings were redemptive in nature. He suffered so that we could be saved. By seeking to share in Christ’s sufferings Paul is seeking to live a life permeated with a redemptive quality. He viewed his own sufferings as an extension of Christ’s sufferings. Elsewhere he wrote: “Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness” (Colossians 1:24-25). Just as Christ had suffered for the church so was Paul prepared to give his life in service for the church.
Some would say, “I am depending on Christ for my salvation alone and so I don’t need the church. I don’t need to go to church or be involved in church. I am just depending on Christ alone.” But that is the opposite of the attitude that we find in Paul. No he is not depending on the church for salvation. No he is not depending on church attendance to save him. But depending on Christ means becoming like Christ and becoming like Christ means being a servant of the church. Paul said, “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25). If you are like Christ this morning, you too will love the church and give yourself in service to her.
A Churchgoer wrote a letter to the editor of the newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. "I’ve gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can’t remember a single one of them. So, I think I’m wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all."
This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:
I’ve been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this: They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today.
Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!" (Dean Kennedy/SermonCentral).
Paul says that knowing Christ like this will result in his becoming like Jesus in his death and enable him to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Paul told the Romans, “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Romans 6:4). Christ died for sin; the believer has died to sin. We have now risen again spiritually to live a life of holiness to God. But one day we will be raised physically as well. Later in chapter three Paul said, “Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21). This was the passion of Paul’s life. This was his new agenda – his life’s goal – to know Christ.
Conclusion:
Is that the passion of your life this morning? If not, it can be. If you have come to the realization this morning that you are depending more on yourself than on Christ for salvation, you can do something about it. I challenge you to make a declaration of dependence upon Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. If you do, this will be your Dependence Day.
