Counting It All As Loss

This summer we have been in a series focusing on the book of Philippians. Today we are looking at Philippians 3:1-9 and a passage from Psalms 63! The beautiful thing about Paul’s letter to the Philippians is that it’s an exchange between people who cared about each other very deeply. In this text, we see Paul warn the Philippian church about a type of individual or a type of teaching that had started to weave its way into the church at large. Let’s dive in!

Look Out For The…Dogs?

Chapter 3 starts out with an interesting warning from Paul. “Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, who mutilate the flesh” (v 2 ESV). If you’re anything like me - you read this and wonder who exactly Paul is talking about. Approaching the text in 2025 can make this seem unrelatable and difficult to digest.

If we look carefully at the remainder of Paul’s warnings, we can find some clues that help us understand the kind of person Paul is referring to, even if we can’t peg it down to someone by name. Paul continues his thought by saying “For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh” (v. 3). While Paul doesn’t directly tell us he is comparing “we” with “the dogs,” we can sense that Paul is distinguishing “the true circumcision” from this group of “evildoers who mutilate the flesh.” 

In other words, Paul is teasing out a difference between two groups. How can we describe these two groups? The second group is described as those who worship by the Holy Spirit, glorify Jesus, and put no confidence in the flesh. By contrast, that means the first group are those who put their confidence in the flesh. We can further find details about this group of “evildoers” by looking at verse 4, where Paul ironically states that “if anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more.” This statement is intended to rebuke the individuals from group one - the dogs, the evildoers, and those who mutilate the flesh.

Paul’s warning to the church in Philippi is to be careful about those who think they have reason to be confident in and of themselves. Be careful about those in the church who puff themselves up with morality and their own self-righteousness. The truly set apart for God are the ones who find their confidence in Christ and put no confidence in their flesh!

The Truly Circumcised

More digging into related passages and historical context will reveal that Paul is likely talking about the group of Jewish believers who were telling Christian converts that they had to be circumcised in order to be saved. Circumcision was the distinct physical mark that Jewish men had that set them apart as the chosen people of God. As Christians, this mark is the seal of the Holy Spirit and the work of Christ in us - not a physical marker.

There was a group of jealous Jewish converts called Judaizers that were teaching new Christians that they needed to perform Jewish religious practices (such as circumcision) in order to be right with God. That somehow, these Jewish practices made them more holy. This is why Paul uses the term “mutilator of the flesh.” Because they were suggesting that full-grown adult converts had to be circumcised to get right with God.

The application for the believer in Philippi was to avoid this false teaching and lean on the grace of Christ alone. For us today? The warning is simple. Be careful about those who suggest that your right standing with God has anything to do with your righteousness. We have no reason to feel good about ourselves or be confident in our own good works. Don’t fall for the lie that your good works are what makes you good!

Don’t Fall For the Lie That Your Good Works Are What Makes You Good

Legalism has existed in the church across cultures and across the ages. We see it in messages like these:

• Women can’t wear pants, only skirts or dresses.

• You must read your Bible every morning for 1 hour or you aren’t a good Christian.

• If you miss church more than X amount of times a year, you aren’t a good Christian.

• You must speak in tongues to be saved.

• You must never experience a relapse or temptation to be saved.

• You must vote republican to be a Christian.

• You must…fill in the blank.

Think of this in your own life. When have you felt looked down upon in the church for not being “good enough?” Or - when have you looked down on others for not living up to the same standard that you choose for yourself? 

Paul is telling us that the truly “circumcised,” or the truly “set apart to God,” are those who worship by the Holy Spirit, glorify Christ, and put no confidence in their flesh at all. To be set apart isn’t to follow a set of rules or rituals or laws - even when they are good ones. To be set apart is to fall at the feet of Jesus and allow Him to be your sufficiency.

It’s All Rubbish

Paul uses his own story as an argument for the worthlessness of our good works. He claims that “I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh” and that “if anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more” (v. 4). Then he goes on to list his own personal accolades under the law:

• Circumcised on the 8th day (set apart since birth)

• Of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews (Jewish to the core)

• A Pharisee (stuck to the law and then some extra laws on top of that)

• Persecuted the church (cared deeply about Jewish doctrine and sought out heresy)

• Lived righteousnessly under the law (he was the best Jew a Jew could be)

Paul is making a point to build up his resume and prove that he has much to be proud of under the law. He lived as perfectly under the law as a flawed human could possibly live. He builds up this resume almost sarcastically, as if to put these Judaizers back in their place and put himself in the position to decide how worthwhile all of these Jewish qualities and a righteousness under the law really is.

He puffs up this resume - and then immediately tears it down by stating “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order 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 comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection…” (vv. 7-10a).

What was the gain that Paul had? His righteousness under the law! Paul could rest assured that he did all the things he was supposed to do. He was Jewish to the core. He followed the law the best he could. He stood up for Jewish beliefs. He had no reason to stand ashamed before his fellow Pharisees and before the Jewish people. And yet - it was worth nothing compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord. It was all rubbish.

Paul met Jesus on the road while persecuting the church out of his zeal for the Jewish faith, and realized he had gotten it all wrong. What seemed right to him ended in him persecuting the very Messiah he had likely read about and longed for his entire life. And so in that moment, he threw away whatever gain he had - and he counted it as rubbish - as garbage - so he could know Christ as Lord. He realized that all of his accolades, all of his respect, all of his public image, all of his prestige and honor and everything that went with it - was worth nothing compared to Jesus Himself and the righteousness He can offer us.

If Christ Isn’t Worth Everything To You He Can Give Nothing To You

Paul came to the realization that Isaiah came centuries before in Isaiah 64:6, where he says that “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” We have nothing to offer Christ. My background, my morality, and my prestige cannot be my Lord. Only Christ can be my Lord.

If we want to receive the righteousness of Christ, we must set aside any desire to be righteous on our own. The truth is that there is no “secret sauce” you can add to the gospel to get an extra pat on the back from God. Paul wants us to see that works cannot make the work of the cross more sufficient. When we try to build up our righteousness on our own, we are adding garbage to the cross and calling it beautiful. The cross is already beautiful, and we are not. So our job is to let the cross be what it is, let Christ be our Lord, and stop trying to help Him to do the job.

There are only two options. Option 1: Your righteousness comes from yourself and your works under the law. Option 2: You instead get a righteousness that comes from Christ by faith, and you get to know Christ and the power of His resurrection. Paul says that he counted all his gains as loss so that he could be found in Christ and no longer receive his righteousness from himself or his good works but rather so that he could be found in Christ where he might receive a righteousness not his own, but that is Christ’s, by faith. 

He is teaching us that we cannot cling to the things that make us feel good about ourselves, or that make us feel sufficient, and still receive all the benefits of Christ. You either cling to your own goodness and all the world has to offer you, or you cling to Christ. You have to let one go. If Christ isn’t worth everything to you - He can give nothing to you. He is not a security blanket to add on top of your pre-existing safety nets and safeguards. He is here to tear down everything that ever made you feel secure so that you might come to rest in Him and Him alone.

Christ must be more valuable to you than all the riches, righteousness, or status in the world - and only then can you know Him and the power of His resurrection. Only then can He stand in your place. I must do like Paul and give up my own righteousness and accept that all I am, all that I have, all that I can offer God - is rubbish. If I refuse to do that, then I do not receive the grace of Christ. I am bound to the law. I’ve told Him I don’t want what He has to offer. But If I choose to give it all up - I receive more than I could have ever hoped for in a grace that I do not deserve.

When You Are Satisfied in God Alone

In Psalm 63:1-4, David paints a picture in which he is thirsting after the Lord, fainting for his desire for God. He realizes that God’s “Steadfast love is better than life” and that because God is his help, his “soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and [his] mouth will praise [God] with joyful lips.” David and Paul agree about this - that God is greater than anything the world could possibly offer us. Paul was willing to give up all he had built his life upon to receive the promises of Christ. David understood that nothing else in this world could satisfy him, but that with God’s help, he could rest completely secure. 

The truth is that there is nothing on this earth and nothing within us that can give us the satisfaction and the goodness that we desire. But with Christ, we can be satisfied because He is sufficient for our every need and our every shortcoming. May we throw our gains away and rest secure in the satisfaction that comes from delighting in God above all else!

-------------

Philippians Week 5: July 6th, 2025. Preached by Julia Castro

Article Edited by Julia Castro