CHRISTIANITY
CHRISTIANITY
“For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the Spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh”. Philippians 3: 3.
We have in this verse a complete summary of Christianity. In the old dispensation circumcision marked the people separated to God, and the Christian company today constitute the true circumcision. This company is marked by three things. (1) They worship by the spirit of God; (2) they rejoice in Christ Jesus; and (3) they have no confidence in the flesh.
The apostle was apparently drawing his letter to a close. He comes to his “finally”, and the summing up of everything is “Rejoice in the Lord”. This is really the summing up of the will of God for us today. Nothing could be more precious and blessed. But you may depend upon it that the devil will do all he can to hinder such a result. So the apostle has, so to speak, to begin again, that he may warn us against the hindrances to our spiritual joy. They are three in number — (1) religious flesh; (2) the whole sphere of sight; and (3) the cares of the wilderness.
But before I go on to the hindrances I should like to speak a little in detail on verse 3. “We are the circumcision, which worship God by the Spirit”. John 4 instructs us as to what the Father is seeking. He is seeking worshippers. That is the great interest of the Father in this present hour. The salvation of souls is not the end. The end that God has in view in all the activity of His grace is to have worshippers. And it is only possible to worship now by
[p. 114] the Spirit of God. Note the connection between John 4: 14 and 23. The measure of our worship is the measure in which the Spirit of God has had His way in forming and building up our souls, and in putting divine affections in our hearts. The only help to worship is that which helps our souls to be more in the current of the Spirit. Music is no help. In singing a hymn, if people are thinking of the musical part of it, they are hindered. Worship is the adoration of the soul that is in the complete satisfaction of the knowledge of God. If the heart is not satisfied there may be thanksgiving, but there will not be true worship. How could we be in this absolute satisfaction, except by the Spirit of God?
The second mark of the company separated to God is that they “rejoice in Christ Jesus”. If I may venture to say so, God has taken an infinitude of pains to bring us to this point. Let me turn your thoughts for a moment to 1 Corinthians 1: 29 - 31: “That no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord”.
The central theme of this chapter is the cross, and the first thing we learn at the cross is the thorough exposure of man in the flesh. Nothing more can ever come out about us as in the flesh than has come out at the cross. Some of us have been a few years on the road, and we have learned something of what poor things we are as in the flesh. If we are left here a little longer we shall learn more. But however much experience we may have had, or may yet have, we could never find out what we are to the extent that the cross has exposed us. I admit that we have to learn by experience; but we are not left to experience, we have divine light. It is a great comfort to know that we have been thoroughly exposed. There is nothing [p. 115] to be discovered in me that has not already come to light. You ask, ‘Where?’ I answer, ‘At the cross’.
It has come out in a double way. When Christ was here all the perfection of the grace of God shone in Him. God showed all His character in that blessed Man. God was manifest in flesh. What a terrible thing to discover that when God thus comes near to me I hate Him and cast Him out! We are akin to the men that actually did it; we are of the same stock. Then, further, when the Lord Jesus was here, not only was there in Him the perfect expression of God, but also of man. Man at last had a perfect neighbour, and was thus tested as to his neighbour, as well as to God. Christ went about doing good in every way: but what was the end of it? The cross.
If we were really in the light of the cross we should never be surprised at the evil we found in our hearts. We should be humbled by it, but not surprised at it. All the evil that we can discover in our hearts can never equal the truth as it is exposed by the cross, and that is the true measure of what we are. We can learn in divine light more than we could learn in a hundred years of experience. It is really a great thing to be in the light of this perfect exposure.
Then we see at the cross how completely God has judged the exposed man. If I admit that my character has been exposed there, I must be sure that as in the flesh I could only be dealt with in holy judgment. Nothing would do but the absolute removal in judgment of man in the flesh. Christ was found under that judgment, and in His death the end of all flesh came before God. The judgment of God upon us is complete — nothing can be added to it. The deepest repentance, the greatest self-abhorrence, add nothing to the completeness of the judgment that has been exhausted by the One who went into death for us in matchless, divine love. We have the knowledge of this now as [p. 116] divine light for our souls. Some people make experience everything, but divine light is a much greater thing than experience. I know that experience is often needed to prepare us to receive the light, but divine light gives us a perfect measure of things, and experience is always more or less imperfect.
Then at the cross the love of God is fully disclosed; it is the point where the love of God meets us. We see there that our condition has not been able to turn aside the thoughts of blessing which were in God’s heart for us. We see there the boundless love of God overleaping all the barriers that our sin had put in its way. God has taken everything into account, and has so dealt with our sin, that He is free to lavish the infinite love of His heart upon us.
The sin is removed in judgment: the love remains to triumph in its own great thoughts of blessing for us. And this brings us to 1 Corinthians 1: 30: “Of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord”. Here we see the completeness of the triumph of divine love. We are before God according to His own way of dealing with our condition. Hence Christ Jesus is made unto us first “wisdom”. We learn in Him, and by His cross, God’s wisdom to meet our condition. Then, as to “righteousness”, Christ Jesus is out of death, and as Man is in unclouded favour with God, and He is made righteousness to us. Further, as to “sanctification” we have no true idea of it until we see what a wonderful place Christ has taken as risen and glorified — completely apart from the whole scene of sin and death. Finally, in “redemption” we see the greatness of God’s power. He has come in and raised up Christ from among the dead, and set Him in a glorified body at His own right hand. Very soon we shall have bodies like His. “We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is”. We find in Him our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, and it is all of God. All that we were is cleared away in judgment at the cross, and Christ Jesus remains. We “rejoice in Christ Jesus”. Divine light brings us into this — experience never would.
In the light of all this we can have no confidence in the flesh. We can have no expectation of any good ever coming out of it. You may make a drunkard into a sober man; you may reform the ways of a liar; and in this way a great deal can be done for man in the flesh. But the end of all this is to leave him further from God than he was before. You may say that this is a hard saying, but I think it is easy to see that the better man is in the flesh, the more likely he is to trust in the flesh. He has more reason to be proud of himself, and satisfied with himself, and he is less likely to receive the grace of God. “The publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you”. Matthew 21: 31.
In Philippians 3 fleshly religion is brought before us as a spiritual hindrance, and Paul was chosen to be the vessel of this truth because he had most reason to trust in the flesh. “Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless”. What a record! All this was a gain to Saul. No doubt he had a great reputation. He had more to boast of in a fleshly way than any other man; but he says, “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ”. None of us [p. 118] here have such a record of fleshly gain; but a very little bit of anything that we think is a credit to us may be a great hindrance to our spiritual progress and joy. A little bit of reputation among a small circle of Christians even may be a snare to us. If there is anything about us that makes other people think well of us there is danger that it may become a source of satisfaction to us. If we are like Paul it will not become a source of satisfaction; we shall count it loss. But if otherwise, one of two things will happen. We shall either go off the line of true Christianity, or God will come in and put His finger on that which is gratifying to us, and blight it. Paul was a man whose heart was fully set for Christ, and everything which would have given distinction to Paul was judged in the light of affection for Christ. “Those I counted loss for Christ”; that referred to what he had in Judaism. But he says further, “I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord”. Everything that would have given him credit or reputation, he day by day counted to be loss. One supreme commanding Object dominated his heart — “Christ Jesus my Lord”. This is bridal affection — the only thing needed to put everything right in our souls. Ten thousand things that cause perplexity would be solved in a moment if this affection burned in our hearts. Where shall I go? What companions shall I choose? How shall I spend my time? What book shall I read? All these questions would be quickly answered if we were counting everything “but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord”.
“For whom I have suffered the loss of all things”. So far as I know this is the only place where he speaks of this. We may gather elsewhere that he was a man of some position, but here only does he mention the fact that for Christ he had suffered the loss of all things. Nor was he looking back as Lot’s wife looked back to Sodom. No;
he says, “I count them but dung”. You may depend upon it that when people have a long tale to tell you about what they have lost, given up, or suffered for Christ, there has not been much given up for Christ. The things you give up for Christ are rubbish to you, which you are glad to be rid of. You do not look back, as if you half regretted them, or as if you had done a great thing in giving them up. It is a satisfaction and relief to your heart that you are clear of them.
“That I may win Christ”. It is to have Christ known in the heart for present gain and joy, so that everything else becomes worthless. The knowledge of Christ is the only gain worth pursuing. The question with us is, How much are we after Christ? Religious flesh is nothing to the heart that has really come under the attractive power of Christ. Such a heart would be glad to be nothing but an object of divine love. Each one of us is either a John or a Peter. Peter was a disciple who loved Jesus, John was a disciple whom Jesus loved. If I am a disciple whom Jesus loves, it makes nothing of me, and everything of His love.
But too often we are more like Peter, and get self-confident, so that we have to be reduced to a point where we are glad to nestle down into the sweetness of being nothing but a disciple whom Jesus loves.
A second great hindrance to spiritual joy is the whole sphere of sight or “earthly things”. “Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. (For many walk, of whom I have 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 mind earthly things.) For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according [p. 120] to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself”. Philippians 3: 17 - 21. A solemn danger which besets the saints is that they may be earthly minded. The apostle speaks of three different classes of people — (1) “thus minded”; (2) “otherwise minded”; (3) “earthly minded”. The first class were all right; the second class had their faces in the right direction; but the third had their faces in the wrong direction, and were all wrong. If your face is in the right direction God will come in and help you. You may not be up to Paul, you may fall short of his amazing energy; but if your face is in the right direction God will help you. The solemn thing is when we get our faces turned in the wrong direction. Some were minding earthly things; I dare say the apostle was thinking of earthly religious things. To be on that line is to be on the way to hell; it is the way that leads to destruction. The apostle might well weep for them; they were enemies of the cross of Christ — enemies to that place of suffering and death in this world of which the cross was the symbol. If you get on to that line there will be no rejoicing in the Lord.
In chapter four another hindrance is considered — the cares of the wilderness journey; and the Holy Spirit says, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus”. It is an easy thing for the cares of the pathway to cloud the joy of the soul; but do not alter the words we have been reading, “Be careful for nothing”. The apostle says, ‘I am not theorizing, I am only telling you to do what you have seen me do’. People say, ‘I wish I could keep the peace of God’. It says, ‘the peace of God shall keep your hearts and minds’.
1 Peter 5: 7 says, “Casting all your care upon him”. Have you ever tried to do it? You say, ‘I thought I did [p. 121] cast it on Him, but I came away and found I had brought it away with me’. Ah! you did not begin soon enough. What goes before that? “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you”. It is only as you own the mighty hand of God in your trying circumstances, and as you humble yourself under it, that you can cast your care upon Him. What a wonderful solace to know that we can turn to God!
If it is a question of religious flesh, we judge it — have no confidence in it. If it is a question of earthly things, we turn from them, for “our conversation is in heaven”. And if it is a question of the cares of the wilderness journey, we can turn to God, who says, ‘I will not simply listen to you, but I will make your care an object of consideration; and I will give you my own peace, to be a garrison in your heart and mind, so that all the questionings and reasonings of Satan and unbelief shall not be able to invade your repose’.
If we are in the power of these three things nothing will interfere with our joy. We shall be able to enter into what the apostle says, “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord”. That is the will of God for us. Consider it well. The will of God for His people today is that they should “rejoice in the Lord”. To this end He would remove all confidence in the flesh, all occupation with earthly things, and all care about our wilderness circumstances. May we better know what it is to “rejoice in the Lord”.