To Be One in Christ: We Have Treasure in the Jars of Clay (7)-3

To Be One in Christ: We Have Treasure in the Jars of Clay -- the Series of Explanation and Analysis of Scripture (7)-3

The Explanation and Analysis of Some of the Verses in Chapter 3 and 4 of PHILIPPIANS

“But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What 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 and be found in him, 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. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.” (PHILIPPIANS 3:7-11)

Before and after one believes in LORD, there must be significant changes in his favors, opinions, thoughts and ideas and so on. Christ is the criterion for the believers to evaluate all things. What used to be boastful, now has nothing to boast about because of Christ. If the believers have something outside Christ to boast about, it shows that he has not recognize the preciousness of LORD yet. If one evaluates things mistakenly, and takes the loss as the gain, just as takes the debt as the property, it will surely result in the collapse and bankruptcy of the entire life -- and finally go to the destruction.

Whatever does not belong to Christ is a loss and should be abandoned. Whatever hinders us to truly know Christ, even through from the viewpoint of the world, it is good; we should consider it a loss. For many times, the reason that we can not give up some worldly things is because we don’t consider them a loss, but lovable. To experience Christ is not something casual, one must have a mind that can truly distinguish right and wrong. If one does not recognize what is really good beforehand, he might pick up what he has thrown away before. Christ is the surpassing greatness; while all things are rubbish. The difference of the value is uncountable. Christ and all things can not put together. The more things we have lost, the more Christ we will gain. The more room of our mind we empty, the more room will be filled with Christ. If we grasp everything seemingly good and won’t let it go, it will make us lose Christ. It is because it will substitute Christ and make us lose the enjoyment in Christ.

The righteousness through faith in Christ reconciled us to God, and let us be in Christ. There are many believers; although they have been in Christ, from them others can not see any likeness of Christ. It is because they do not know that after the “righteousness through faith”, they must let Christ be in charge of their life, press on to be holy and to be one in Christ, let Christ in us immerse the whole person of us, and let the life of Christ show. Otherwise, even though they are in Christ, they are always incompatible with Christ, live a life not in accordance to God at all, and conduct themselves completely unworthy of the Gospel of Christ (Php 1:27). If they do not repent, they will be spit out finally (Rev 3:16). We were reborn in Christ. It is the grace given freely from God through faith, and it is not because we observe the law or have good deeds. However, after we are in Christ with rebirth, we must conduct ourselves worthy of Gospel (Php 1:27). Nowadays, many believers are confused by these concepts and think that they still do not need to have good deeds after the rebirth. These are against the truth on the Bible, the will of God and the teachings of LORD! To make every effort to be holy and to be one in Christ, are what every Christian must do. It will not only determine the reward, but also determine the eternal life. As to one with the rebirth, if he lives a life outside the life of Christ, he is still the disobedient son and the object of wrath. If does not repent, will surely go to the destruction.

“Becoming like him in his death”, indicates to be united with him in the likeness of his death, or to enter into the relationship with him in his death and make everything satisfied with the requirement of this death (2Co 4:10-11); that is, our old self was crucified with him on the cross (Rom 6:6; Gal 2:20). To know Christ is the initial experience of the rebirth; it is also the further experience after the rebirth. The rebirth is only the beginning to know Christ. Then we need to press on to know more about Him on everything. The believers usually have the knowledge of the objective truth first, and the knowledge though subjective experience later. The believers are through the cross of Christ to commune in his sufferings, and to conform more to his likeness. Therefore, the more we experience the cross, the more we conform to his likeness. We are put in the model of Christ’s “death” so that our natural life will be completely dead and the life of Christ will live completely. The mature believers are willing to suffer together with Christ and know that they must become like him in his death.

The death is before the resurrection. If we do not have the experience of death on the cross, we won’t have the experience of resurrection and being exalted to heaven. “If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.” (K. J. V.) “Might” does not show that Paul has no self-confidence or is too modest. What the believers must be clear about is: all the authorities are completely in God forever and ever. Firstly we should guarantee that by relying on Christ, we do obey the will and words of God so that we can enter the promise land of God. The historical lesson of the Israelites entering the promise land is a warning to the believers of us nowadays. We must be as Joshua and Caleb in order to enter the promise land.

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. ” (PHILIPPIANS 3:12-14)

For the believers to press on to gain more Christ, they must not have a casual attitude; and they must neither stop nor slack, and must be vigorous and enlivened, try their best to get rid of all the barriers, press on to be holy, deny oneself and carry one’s own cross everyday, in order to gain Him all the time. Even Paul thought he need to press on more and make more progress, no mention about us! We must press on to be one in Christ. And to be one in Christ completely, one will be perfect.

What the believers think of, desire for, are fond of, and love should be only “one thing ”; that is, to seek and pursue Christ wholeheartedly. If one does not forget the achievements of the past, he will become proud and complacent; on the other side, if one does not forget one’s own failure and weakness, he will be discouraged and dismayed and can not move forward. No matter our past is good or bad, it will only have negative effect on us and hinder us from moving forward; therefore, we must get rid of all in the past in order to take a step forward. To obtain the spiritual gain, one must run like those in the race, with the strength of the whole body to run so that to obtain it.

The life of the Christians is a race. We must run with perseverance the race marked out for us. In the race to Heaven, one must run straightforward, must not run on the wrong branch or the winding and circuitous way. In the meanwhile, one must not run and stop from time to time, and must run straightforward without stopping to get to the destination. To “press on ”, one should ignore other things at side and ignore the ridicules or praises of others; one’s mind should not get off the goal and should move forward wholeheartedly. “In Christ Jesus” shows that only those who are in Christ through faith are qualified to participate the race; and the journey of the race is also in Him. God have called us and are willing to have us win the prizes. The problem is how our mind and situation are in the race. On the journey of pressing on to be holy, many believers neither run nor move. They think that to “win the prize” is an addition to the eternal life, but they do not know that the eternal life is in this prize. As to those who do not press on to be holy, and do not let Christ be in charge of their own life to be one in Christ, they can not enter the promise land.

“For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.” (PHILIPPIANS 3:18-19)

“Enemies of the cross of Christ” refer to those who disobey the truth of the salvation of Christ through the cross; although they received the salvation, they are not separated themselves from sins and still live a life as the disobedient sons and the enemies of God as before. The cross of Christ is a sacrifice of oneself for the sake of others, and is to save others out of the sins. However, those who are selfish and self-interested, only seek to glorify themselves, do everything only to benefit oneself at the expense of others, do not repent and be separated from the sins, and live in the life of the old Adam without changes and repentance, are the enemies of the cross. The salvation of the cross of Christ is to save others to be separated from sins, but not to let people continue to live in sins peacefully. It needs us to crucify our old self on the cross, deny oneself and carry the cross to follow LORD, and let Christ take the charge in us completely; thus, we can continue to work out our salvation (Php 2:12). The servants of God and watchmen sent by God give men the warnings for many times. Since the destiny of the people mentioned above is destruction -- this is a fact that makes one sad with tears.

“Their god is their stomach” implies that they put their mind on the material pleasure. However, we know that a man can not serve two masters. Whoever put all their minds on the material pleasure take the material pleasure as their god. Those who pursue the material pleasure and their own vain glory, take the shame as glory instead. They look out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. Their destiny is destruction. Even though they are prosperous in this world, and exhaust all the glories and pleasures on the earth, their destiny is destruction.

“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord 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 3:20-21)

Since the saints’ “citizenship is in heaven”, they should have strong sense of citizenship in heaven. On everything, they should think importantly of the interests of the kingdom of Heaven. As to the believers, their viewpoint of life and the viewpoint of values are different from the worldly people. Because our hope is not on the earth. We are only aliens and strangers in this world. Therefore, we do not make an eternal plan on the earth. If the believers do realize that this world is not our home, they won’t worry about any loss in this world anymore. The Christians should take the Second Coming of LORD as the center and goal in their life.

“Our lowly bodies ”, due to the sins and the fall of men, are weak and corrupted, and bend under the death. When the believers resurrect, their bodies will be redeemed and bear the likeness of the man from heaven. Christ is the first fruit (1Co 15:23). How the body of Christ is after the resurrection, so the bodies of those who belong to Christ will be. To be one in Christ is to be like and compatible with the glorious body of Christ.

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.” (PHILIPPIANS 4:4-8)

Christ in us is the source of our joy and the security of our peace.

By relying on LORD, rejoice in God only. This joy is eternal and won’t be affected by any circumstance. The joy brought by the Holy Spirit is a taste of the good of Heaven in advance. The Holy Spirit brings the oil of joy. “LORD” is the source of the joy. “In the Lord” is the secret to rejoice always. To live “in the Lord” is the necessary condition to rejoice in any circumstance. The closer we are to LORD, the more joy we have. The deeper we are related to LORD, the deeper joy we have. Joy is a heavenly joy by rejoicing in LORD. Even though you do not feel like to rejoice, and have no any reason, comfort and encouragement to rejoice, you still should rejoice. Even when you are in all kinds of trials, you still should rejoice. It is because we rejoice in LORD. By relying on LORD in us, we can rejoice in LORD any where, any time and in any circumstance. Whoever rely on God , rejoice always.

Those who rejoice always, must know to be gentle and humble themselves. Those who do not know to be gentle, are busy with seizing this and grabbing that, are always worry about their gain and loss; they can not rejoice. The believers should think for others here and there. As to one who is filled with Christ in him, his life must be in tranquility. No matter in what kind of circumstance, he won’t be disturbed by the storms outside. The believers should be gentle to each other. The real secret is to rely on LORD and think of heavenly matters and the Second Coming of LORD.

The anxiety usually shows that one lacks confidence on the care and protection of God. The reason of “rejoicing” is that “do not worry about anything”; the way that “do not worry about anything” is through “payer” and entrustment. This rule is inexhaustible for us to use and enjoy. Since the believers have God take care of us, they should not be anxious. No matter how severe are our trials, how deep are the pains, how big are the difficulties, these can never be the reasons for us to be anxious. No burden of us that LORD is not willing to carry. The anxieties show that we do not trust LORD and are not willing to entrust our burden to Him. One who is anxious about the worldly things, can not rejoice. If one wants to rejoice, he must overcome all the anxieties. All you who are weary and burdened, and LORD will give you rest (Mat 11:28). By relying on LORD, we can be free of the anxieties.

No matter the prayer is granted or not, we should always give thanks to LORD. Because everything of us is supplied by LORD. Apart from Him, we have no good. “'For in him we live and move and have our being.’” (Act 17:28) We should always give thanks to God for what we already have.

“In Christ Jesus” is the fountain of our joy and peace. In Christ Jesus, one must have the joy and peace.

In the Lord, one should think about and carry out such things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy.

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” (PHILIPPIANS 4:12-13)

Christ in us is the source and secret of our strength.

The secret of the believers to be content is to be united with LORD at any situation all the time. The believers should not care about the material pleasure. They should be hard-working, thrifty and self-disciplined to live a life. Those who complain in the poverty, and are extravagant in the rich, have not got this secret yet. Those who have got the secret, will rely on God in poverty and make best use of the wealth for the work for God in rich. The “secret” of our strength is to rely on LORD completely, rejoice in God only and be one in Christ. The average people do not know the secret to calmly deal with things when they are facing different circumstances. However, as long as the believers rely on Christ completely, as time passes, they will learn this secret well.

Only those who are strong inside can do everything. If we rely on the strength given by LORD, we can do everything. What we can not do, by relying on the One who “gives me strength” , we can do it. If the believers live in LORD, that is the source of our strength to be strong permanently. If LORD allow things come upon us, LORD must add strength to us. God are always at work. God also work through us. Since God will do something through us, He will take the responsibility to give us the strength. The prerequisite condition that God work through us, is to let God work on us first. Only those who are willing to let God work on them, have the strength to work. If we can apply the faith to entrust everything of us to LORD, we must be able to be content in any situation. “In Christ Jesus” is the principle key of the secret of the believers to be content.

It is edited and compiled under the guidance of Holy Spirit. All thanks, praises and glories be to God!

(PHILIPPIANS 3:7-21; 4:4-8, 12-13)

PHILIPPIANS 3:7 “ But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ”

(NOTES)

What Paul mentioned in verse 3:4 to verse 3:6 that he used to consider he can boast about, altogether are not only valueless, but also a loss.

“was” and “now” show the change of his life because of Christ.

“profit” and “loss” show the huge difference in his recognition, each of them is at two extremes of the balance.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Before and after one believes in LORD, there must be significant changes in his favors, opinions, thoughts and ideas and so on.

(2) Christ is the criterion for the believers to evaluate all things.

(3) What used to be boastful, now has nothing to boast about because of Christ. If the believers have something outside Christ to boast about, it shows that he has not recognize the preciousness of LORD yet.

(4) If one evaluates things mistakenly, and takes the loss as the gain, just as takes the debt as the property, it will surely result in the collapse and bankruptcy of the entire life -- and finally go to the destruction.

PHILIPPIANS 3:8 “ What 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 ”

(NOTES)

Here, “all things” versus “Christ ”; “rubbish” versus “surpassing greatness ”; “lost ” versus “gain ”.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Whatever does not belong to Christ is a loss and should be abandoned.

(2) Whatever hinders us to truly know Christ, even through from the viewpoint of the world, it is good; we should consider it a loss.

(3) Recognition is before the action. The recognition of “a loss” brought in the action of “have lost”.

(4) For many times, the reason that we can not give up some worldly things is because we don’t consider them a loss, but lovable.

(5) If we really consider all things a loss and the rubbish, we will “have lost all things” .

(6) To experience Christ is not something casual, one must have a mind that can truly distinguish right and wrong. If one does not recognize what is really good beforehand, he might pick up what he has thrown away before.

(7) Christ is the surpassing greatness; while all things are rubbish. The difference of the value is uncountable.

(8) Christ and all things can not put together. The more things we have lost, the more Christ we will gain. The more room of our mind we empty, the more room will be filled with Christ.

(9) If we grasp everything seemingly good and won’t let it go, it will make us lose Christ. It is because it will substitute Christ and make us lose the enjoyment in Christ.

(10) The candle must burn to give out light; the believers must lose something to benefit others.

(11) Whether one’s spiritual life is poor or rich depends on how much he knows about Christ. Christ is precious to the believers of us. The more we know Him, the more we can enjoy Him.

(12) From what one boasts about and what he considers precious, it can be told what kind of person he is.

(13) In verse 7, Paul considers “whatever is my profit” a loss; here, he considers “all things” a loss. The deeper the believers know LORD, the more things he will have lost.

(14) The worldly people hold the opposite viewpoints on values of all the worldly things; therefore, they make every effort to seize and to seek. Only those whose eyes of the hearts are opened by God, can recognize the superb value of LORD and delightfully give up all the worldly things.

(15) If someone did give up all things but without gaining Christ (for example, those who are disillusioned with the mortal world, donate all their properties to the temple for Buddha.), this is a worthless giving-up.

PHILIPPIANS 3:9 “ and be found in him, 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. ”

(NOTES)

“be found in him”:

not only refers to the relationship of the past, but also refers to the continuous relationship now.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The righteousness through faith in Christ reconciled us to God, and let us be in Christ.

(2) The faith in Christ is the faith in God. If one only believes in God without believing in Christ, he can not be declared righteous, and can not be connected with the true God.

(3) There are many believers; although they have been in Christ, from them others can not see any likeness of Christ. It is because they do not know that after the “righteousness through faith”, they must let Christ be in charge of their life, press on to be holy and to be one in Christ, let Christ in us immerse the whole person of us, and let the life of Christ show. Otherwise, even though they are in Christ, they are always incompatible with Christ, live a life not in accordance to God at all, and conduct themselves completely unworthy of the Gospel of Christ (Php 1:27). If they do not repent, they will be spit out finally (Rev 3:16).

(4) We were reborn in Christ. It is the grace given freely from God through faith, and it is not because we observe the law or have good deeds. However, after we are in Christ with rebirth, we must conduct ourselves worthy of Gospel (Php 1:27). Nowadays, many believers are confused by these concepts and think that they still do not need to have good deeds after the rebirth. These are against the truth on the Bible, the will of God and the teachings of LORD! To make every effort to be holy and to be one in Christ, are what every Christian must do. It will not only determine the reward, but also determine the eternal life. As to one with the rebirth, if he lives a life outside the life of Christ, he is still the disobedient son and the object of wrath. If does not repent, will surely go to the destruction.

PHILIPPIANS 3:10 “ I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ”

(NOTES)

“know” :

does not refer to the knowledge of the objective truth, but refers to the knowledge though subjective experience.

“becoming like him in his death”:

indicates to be united with him in the likeness of his death, or to enter into the relationship with him in his death and make everything satisfied with the requirement of this death (2Co 4:10-11); that is, our old self was crucified with him on the cross (Rom 6:6; Gal 2:20).

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) To know Christ is the initial experience of the rebirth; it is also the further experience after the rebirth. The rebirth is only the beginning to know Christ. Then we need to press on to know more about Him on everything.

(2) The believers usually have the knowledge of the objective truth first, and the knowledge though subjective experience later.

(3) On the spiritual road, the revelation is in the front, usually followed by the experiences. Without the revelation, there won’t be the experience; and the higher the revelation is, the deeper the experience is.

(4) The believers are through the cross of Christ to commune in his sufferings, and to conform more to his likeness. Therefore, the more we experience the cross, the more we conform to his likeness.

(5) We are put in the model of Christ’s “death” so that our natural life will be completely dead and the life of Christ will live completely.

(6) The mature believers are willing to suffer together with Christ and know that they must become like him in his death.

PHILIPPIANS 3:11 “ and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

(NOTES)

“attain to the resurrection from the dead”:

The “resurrection” here refers to the special resurrection, the resurrection from the average dead, which could be called the surpassing and outstanding resurrection or first resurrection (Rev 20:5). Although at the time of final judgment, all the dead will be raised up. But only those Christians who have overcome can share in the surpassing resurrection and the inheritance with Christ in the kingdom of God (Rev 20:4-5).

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The death is before the resurrection. If we do not have the experience of death on the cross, we won’t have the experience of resurrection and being exalted to heaven.

(2) In the original text, it is “If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.” (KJV version). “might” does not show that Paul has no self-confidence or is too modest. What the believers must be clear about is: all the authorities are completely in God forever and ever. Firstly we should guarantee that by relying on Christ, we do obey the will and words of God so that we can enter the promise land of God. The historical lesson of the Israelites entering the promise land is a warning to the believers of us nowadays. We must be as Joshua and Caleb in order to enter the promise land.

PHILIPPIANS 3:12 “ Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. ”

(NOTES)

“perfect”:

refers to being absolutely and completely perfect, which is different from the status of being perfect (Heb 10:14), or the deeds of being perfect to some extent (Col 4:12; Heb 13:2; Jam 1:4).

“take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me”:

That is the will that Christ predestined for him.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) To yearn is one thing, while to “press on to take hold of” is another thing. Only to yearn without to “press on to take hold of” is of no help. To “press on to take hold of” in addition with yearning can make it into reality.

(2) As to the average believers, after they have a little spiritual experience, they are getting self-satisfied little by little and their intention to press on are reduced little by little.

(3) For the believers to press on to gain more Christ, they must not have a casual attitude; and they must neither stop nor slack, and must be vigorous and enlivened, try their best to get rid of all the barriers, press on to be holy, deny oneself and carry one’s own cross everyday, in order to gain Him all the time.

(4) Even Paul thought he need to press on more and make more progress, no mention about us! We must press on to be one in Christ. And to be one in Christ completely, one will be perfect.

PHILIPPIANS 3:13 “ Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,”

(NOTES)

“Forgetting what is behind ”:

It is not because of carelessness to forget, but to forget on purpose. Not only forget those sins and evils, failures and bad things, but also put all the achievements and victories out of one’s mind and do not bear with them in mind constantly.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) What the believers think of, desire for, are fond of, and love should be only “one thing ”; that is, to seek and pursue Christ wholeheartedly.

(2) If one does not forget the achievements of the past, he will become proud and complacent; on the other side, if one does not forget one’s own failure and weakness, he will be discouraged and dismayed and can not move forward.

(3) No matter our past is good or bad, it will only have negative effect on us and hinder us from moving forward; therefore, we must get rid of all in the past in order to take a step forward.

(4) No surpassing achievement is obtained without effort in the world!

(5) To obtain the spiritual gain, one must run like those in the race, with the strength of the whole body to run so that to obtain it.

PHILIPPIANS 3:14 “ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. ”

(NOTES)

“press on toward the goal”:

implies to run or work for the goal by fixing one’s eyes on the goal without any deviation from it.

“prize”:

refers to “the crown of life” that Christ has promised to those who love him (Jam 1:12), which has the eternal value. Paul compared running the race for the prize to his attitude to pursue Christ.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The life of the Christians is a race. We must run with perseverance the race marked out for us (Heb 12:1).

(2) In the race to Heaven, one must run straightforward, must not run on the wrong branch or the winding and circuitous way. In the meanwhile, one must not run and stop from time to time, and must run straightforward without stopping to get to the destination.

(3) To “press on ”, one should ignore other things at side and ignore the ridicules or praises of others; one’s mind should not get off the goal and should move forward wholeheartedly.

(4) The prize that we will be rewarded, is not on the earth, but is from the calling of God on us heavenward.

(5) “in Christ Jesus” shows that only those who are in Christ through faith are qualified to participate the race; and the journey of the race is also in Him.

(6) God have called us and are willing to have us win the prizes. The problem is how our mind and situation are in the race.

(7) On the journey of pressing on to be holy, many believers neither run nor move. They think that to “win the prize” is an addition to the eternal life, but they do not know that the eternal life is in this prize. As to those who do not press on to be holy, and do not let Christ be in charge of their own life to be one in Christ, they can not enter the promise land.

PHILIPPIANS 3:15 “ All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. ”

(NOTES)

“who are mature ”:

refers to those who are mature in spiritual life in Christ.

This verse implies that whoever has a mature spiritual life, should have the same mind and viewpoint mentioned from verse 12 to verse 14 to press on toward the goal. If someone does not recognize the necessity to “press on toward the goal”, and if on some point they think differently, that too God will instruct them.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Although our experiences are not complete, we should try to be mature spiritually.

(2) What we pursue are largely depending on our thoughts. If one does not think about Christ, he will pursue things outside Christ.

(3) Many things nowadays lure us to deviate form the goal of “Christ”. Therefore, it is necessary that God instruct and remind us frequently and bring us back to the correct path.

(4) The attitude and goal (12-14) of Paul to press on toward are correct, and all the believers should take such a view of things. Hope that all of us won’t think differently.

PHILIPPIANS 3:16 “ Only let us live up to what we have already attained.”

(NOTES)

“let us live up to ”:

The original text is “let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.” It implies that we walk by the same way and do not act on one’s own and do at wills.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) God give different requirements to the believers based on what life they attained.

(2) The believers should be responsible to the truth that they have understood already. The more truth they know, the more they should put into practice.

(3) The words of God are for us to obey. Everyone who hears the words of LORD and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand (Mat 7:26-27).

(4) The spiritual progress should be along a prescribed path and proceed in an orderly way; one cannot be opportunistic and want to reach the sky in a single bound.

PHILIPPIANS 3:17 “ Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.”

(NOTES)

“take note of ”:

implies to follow.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The believers should conduct themselves according to the examples of others.

(2) We should remember our leaders, who spoke the word of God to us. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith (Heb 13:7).

(3) Only those who become like him in his death (Php 3:10) can be as the examples for others.

(4) What we should take note of others, are Christ on them, but not their “old self”.

PHILIPPIANS 3:18 “ For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ”

(NOTES)

“enemies of the cross of Christ”:

refer to those who disobey the truth of the salvation of Christ through the cross; although they received the salvation, they are not separated themselves from sins and still live a life as the disobedient sons and the enemies of God as before.

“say again even with tears”:

try to persuade with a feeling of sorrow.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The cross of Christ is a sacrifice of oneself for the sake of others, and is to save others out of the sins. However, those who are selfish and self-interested, only seek to glorify themselves, do everything only to benefit oneself at the expense of others, do not repent and be separated from the sins, and live in the life of the old Adam without changes and repentance, are the enemies of the cross.

(2) The salvation of the cross of Christ is to save others to be separated from sins, but not to let people continue to live in sins peacefully. It needs us to crucify our old self on the cross, deny oneself and carry the cross to follow LORD, and let Christ take the charge in us completely; thus, we can continue to work out our salvation (Php 2:12).

(3) The servants of God and watchmen sent by God give men the warnings for many times. Since the destiny of the people mentioned above is destruction -- this is a fact that makes one sad with tears.

PHILIPPIANS 3:19 “ Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.”

(NOTES)

“their god is their stomach”:

implies that they put their mind on the material pleasure. However, we know that a man can not serve two masters. Whoever put all their minds on the material pleasure take the material pleasure as their god.

“their glory is in their shame”:

that is, to show off what is actually shameful.

“earthly things”:

refers to the worldly and secular things.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Those who pursue the material pleasure and their own vain glory, take the shame as glory instead. They look out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ (Php 2:21). Their destiny is destruction.

(2) Even though they are prosperous in this world, and exhaust all the glories and pleasures on the earth, their destiny is destruction.

PHILIPPIANS 3:20 “ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,”

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Since the saints’ “citizenship is in heaven”, they should have strong sense of citizenship in heaven. On everything, they should think importantly of the interests of the kingdom of Heaven.

(2) As to the believers, their viewpoint of life and the viewpoint of values are different from the worldly people. Because our hope is not on the earth.

(3) We are only aliens and strangers in this world (Heb 11:13-16; 1Pe 2:11). Therefore, we do not make an eternal plan on the earth.

(4) If the believers do realize that this world is not our home, they won’t worry about any loss in this world anymore.

(5) The Christians should take the Second Coming of LORD as the center and goal in their life.

(6) The Second Coming of Christ is the day that the believers escape from the groaning and burden. Therefore, how can’t we wait for him eagerly?

PHILIPPIANS 3:21 “ 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.”

(NOTES)

“our lowly bodies ”:

Due to the sins and the fall of men, our bodies are weak and corrupted, and bend under the death (Rom 8:10; 8:20-23; 1Co 15:42-44).

“transform”:

When the believers resurrect, their bodies will be redeemed and bear the likeness of the man from heaven (Rom 8:11; 1Co 15:49-53).

“be like his glorious body”:

Christ is the first fruit (1Co 15:23). How the body of Christ is after the resurrection, so the bodies of those who belong to Christ will be.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The worldly people seek for the pleasure of the bodies. But none of these is the object that we believers pursue.

(2) The bodies of the believers should be noble, not “lowly”. However, compared with the glorious body in the future, it is “lowly”.

(3) The believers live on the earth now, they are limited in their bodies by all kinds of things, such as hunger, illness and pains, emotions and so on. However, all these troubles will disappear with the transform of the body at the Second Coming of Christ.

(4) The Second Coming of LORD Jesus is the biggest hope of the believers. For the salvation that we can not enjoy completely now, at that time, we can experience and enjoy completely.

(5) To be one in Christ is to be like and compatible with the glorious body of Christ.

PHILIPPIANS 4:4 “ Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ”

(NOTES)

Here, it is given as a command, a command from God. God always give supply first and give requirement afterward. He never asks us to do anything impossible.

“Rejoice”:

refers to a feeling and mood of joy deeper than pleasure.

“Rejoice in the Lord always”:

Since joy is a feeling and mood, how can one give a command on it? It is because joy is a kind of mood. It does not come from the smoothness of the outward circumstance, but it is generated from the inward mind. The joy brought by the Holy Spirit is a taste of the good of Heaven in advance. By relying on LORD, rejoice in God only. This joy is eternal and won’t be affected by any circumstance.

“Rejoice in the Lord always” shows that this is a unique joy. The joy is not generated from the outward circumstance, but a joy in LORD. The Holy Spirit brings the oil of joy. Whoever rely on God , rejoice always.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Here, it gives us the command of rejoicing repeatedly. It is obvious how important rejoicing is to us.

(2) It gives us as a command, which requires our obedience and determination. When we determine to obey the command of God, we will have the joy spontaneously.

(3) “LORD” is the source of the joy. “in the Lord” is the secret to rejoice always. To live “in the Lord” is the necessary condition to rejoice in any circumstance.

(4) The closer we are to LORD, the more joy we have. The deeper we are related to LORD, the deeper joy we have. Joy is a heavenly joy by rejoicing in LORD.

(5) Even though you do not feel like to rejoice, and have no any reason, comfort and encouragement to rejoice, you still should rejoice. Even when you are in all kinds of trials, you still should rejoice. It is because we rejoice in LORD.

(6) By relying on LORD in us, we can rejoice in LORD any where, any time and in any circumstance.

PHILIPPIANS 4:5 “ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ”

(NOTES)

“be evident to all”:

It is not to show off deliberately in front of others. It is that the virtue inward is shown to make others know (Mat 5:16).

“gentleness”:

indicates that under the principle of without doing harm to the righteousness, forgive others’ mistakes and do not seek to get one’s own rights satisfied. Therefore, besides modesty and forbearance, it also implies another positive meaning: can bear with the low and mean circumstance, or the disrespectful attitude of others. “gentleness” is neither to give the impression of weakness, nor to give up one’s own position. On the contrary, we must stand firm on the position of truth for LORD.

“near”:

refers to both near in terms of time and space. The former indicates that the day of the Second Coming is near; the latter indicates that LORD is not far away from us, He is beside us and He is in us.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1)Those who rejoice always, must know to be gentle and humble themselves. Those who do not know to be gentle, are busy with seizing this and grabbing that, are always worry about their gain and loss; they can not rejoice.

(2) The believers should think for others here and there, and the leaders especially need this “gentleness”(2Co 10:1).

(3) As to one who is filled with Christ in him, his life must be in tranquility ( another original meaning of “gentleness”). No matter in what kind of circumstance, he won’t be disturbed by the storms outside.

(4) The believers should be gentle to each other. The real secret is to rely on LORD and think of heavenly matters and the Second Coming of LORD.

PHILIPPIANS 4:6 “ Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ”

(NOTES)

“be anxious”

refers to the self-centered and unconstructive anxiety. It usually shows that one lacks confidence on the care and protection of God.

“Do not be anxious about anything”:

It does not mean that one should not normally think of and care about things of their own, their family, the church and God (2Co 11:28). But as to these things, we do not need to take all the responsibilities on ourselves and worry about them.

“in everything”:

refers to all the things no matter small or big in the daily life.

“prayer”:

refers to the average prayer.

“petition”:

refers to the special and earnest request.

“thanksgiving”:

No matter the prayer is granted or not, we should always give thanks to LORD. Because everything of us is supplied by LORD. Apart from Him, we have no good. “'For in him we live and move and have our being.’” (Act 17:28) We should always give thanks to God for what we already have.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The reason of “rejoicing” is that “do not worry about anything”; the way that “do not worry about anything” is through “payer” and entrustment. This rule is inexhaustible for us to use and enjoy.

(2) The anxieties of the believers are not only baseless, but also unnecessary. It is because the anxiety is of no help.

(3) Since the believers have God take care of us, they should not be anxious. No matter how severe are our trials, how deep are the pains, how big are the difficulties, these can never be the reasons for us to be anxious.

(4) No burden of us that LORD is not willing to carry. The anxieties show that we do not trust LORD and are not willing to entrust our burden to Him.

(5) Keep ourselves in the peace and joy in Christ, we won’t be anxious about anything.

(6) Being worry, anxious, suspicious, and distrustful is the weakest point of the Christians.

(7) The believers should not be anxious about anything, but should pray for everything.

(8) To pray to God is the privilege of our Christians. No matter we are in the favorable or adverse circumstance, we can tell God about “everything”.

(9) We should bring “everything” in front of God! There is nothing of us that God will think it trivial that we should not pray to Him.

(10) Anxiety and prayer are two opposite source in daily life.

(11) Prayer and petition, in addition to thanksgiving, is the best way for the believers to put their anxieties on God. A Christ who prays on everything is one who does not be anxious about anything.

(12) If we can give thanks to God for those things that we are anxious about, it will halve our pressure.

(13) One who is anxious about the worldly things, can not rejoice. If one wants to rejoice, he must overcome all the anxieties.

(14) All you who are weary and burdened, and LORD will give you rest (Mat 11:28). By relying on LORD, we can be free of the anxieties.

PHILIPPIANS 4:7 “ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

(NOTES)

“transcends all understanding”:

Beyond the imagination and comprehension of men, only those who have experienced it know the sense of it.

“peace”:

refers to the inward peace.

“in Christ Jesus”:

is the fountain of our joy and peace. In Christ Jesus, one must have the joy and peace.

“guard”:

is a military term. Describe the situation of the guards who take a stand to protect.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) “the peace of God” is in the innermost of men, and can not be touched by the outward difficulties and disturbance. It is a unexplainable and surpassing peace.

(2) For Lord’s thoughts are not our thoughts, neither are our ways Lord’s ways," (Isa 55:8). The love, cares and deeds of Lord are far beyond our understandings (Eph 3:18-20).

(3) When the believers put all the troubles on God, they will have the peace in their innermost.

(4) Anxieties are the attacks from the enemies to our thoughts. And stir up our thoughts to further have influence on our mind.

(5) The peace that is granted by God, is the peace of God; that is, is God Himself. The peace of God can guard our mind like the soldiers guard the city, so that all the anxieties can not go a step further to enter the city.

(6) God do not guard our environment so that nothing happens in our circumstance, but to make us peaceful in our mind.

(7) Those who are peaceful in mind, won’t be anxious.

(8) If we know that Lord daily bears our burdens (Psa 68:19), our peace in mind will transcend all the understandings. This peace is enough to guard our mind not to be anxious, and not to rely on ourselves. And it will be impossible for us to be anxious.

PHILIPPIANS 4:8 “ Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things. ”

(NOTES)

“true”:

refers to those things that are consistent both inward and outward in the morality.

“noble”:

refers to those things that are honorable, respectful and admirable.

“right”:

refers to those things that are just and right to God and to men.

“pure”:

refers to those things that do not contain any ingredient and motive of sins and evils.

“lovely”:

refers to those things that are delightful and make us be fond of them.

“admirable”:

refers to those things that are praised on everyone’s lip.

“excellent”:

refers to those things that are surpassing in morality.

“praiseworthy”:

refers to those things that are worthy of praises.

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The minds of men are the stronghold of the devil. Therefore, if one wants to get back to obey God, we must take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.(2Co 10:4-5)

(2) The believers should use their own mind actively and initiatively. If our minds are inactive and passive, they are easy to be occupied by the invasion of the devil.

(3) If the devil seizes our “life of thoughts”, it seizes “all the life” of us. Therefore, the believers must guard carefully their thoughts.

(4) “conducts” come from the “thoughts”. The thoughts of man have significant influence on one’s conducts. What kind of thing occupies one’s mind, that thing will control his language and conducts sooner or later.

(5) If all of our minds are thinking of good things, there won‘t be quarreling among us (4:2).

(6) If one’s thoughts are contaminated by the immorality things, the peace in him will disappear completely.

(7) If the believers often think about the virtue of Christ shown from others, they will be motivated and affected to be built up spiritually.

PHILIPPIANS 4:12 “ I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. ”

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) The secret of the believers to be content is to be united with LORD at any situation all the time.

(2) The believers should not care about the material pleasure. They should be hard-working, thrifty and self-disciplined to live a life. Those who complain in the poverty, and are extravagant in the rich, have not got this secret yet. Those who have got the secret, will rely on God in poverty and make best use of the wealth for the work for God in rich.

(3) “secret” is not easy to get, and need to learn through the considerably difficult journey. To find the secret to deal with all kinds of things, one must learn well. This “secret” is to rely on LORD completely, rejoice in God only and be one in Christ.

(4) The average people do not know the secret to calmly deal with things when they are facing different circumstances. However, as long as the believers rely on Christ completely, as time passes, they will learn this secret well.

PHILIPPIANS 4:13 “ I can do everything through him who gives me strength. ”

(NOTES)

“gives me strength”:

The strength is not given from the outward, but supplied from the inward.

“everything”:

refers to all the circumstances mentioned in (Php 4:12).

(LIGHT IN WORDS)

(1) Only those who are strong inside can do everything.

(2) If we rely on the strength given by LORD, we can do everything. What we can not do, by relying on the One who “gives me strength” , we can do it.

(3) If the believers live in LORD, that is the source of our strength to be strong permanently.

(4) If LORD allow things come upon us, LORD must add strength to us.

(5) God are always at work. God also work through us. Since God will do something through us, He will take the responsibility to give us the strength.

(6) The prerequisite condition that God work through us, is to let God work on us first. Only those who are willing to let God work on them, have the strength to work.

(7) If we can apply the simple faith to entrust everything of us to LORD, we must be able to be content in any situation.

(8) According to the original text, “in Christ Jesus” is the principle key of the secret of Paul’s being content.

Reference:

1. Jiale Huang: “Christians’ Digest of the Scripture Analysis Series”.