True Circumcision: Worship in the Spirit, Not the Flesh - Phil 3:3-7

Good morning. Being a Christian is more than attending church and being good during the week.

Being a Christ follower is about responding to God's grace in Jesus Christ and

surrendering our lives through faith in Jesus Christ as our only Lord and Savior.

Once we've been saved, we obediently live by faith in Christ as our glorious treasure.

My name is Pastor Simon Flynn And here at Dillingham Moravian Church,

we delight in making disciples for Christ as we learn God's Word together with you.

I have a few credentials to my name. I have a B.A. in History,

Theology, and Philosophy, a grad certification in Bible, and a Master of Divinity degree.

I'm also ordained as a minister for the Moravian Church. I will have been a

pastor here at Dillingham Moravian Church for 16 years at the end of this month.

I'm also a seminary teacher for the Alaska Moravian Church.

With elementary and high school, I've gone to school for at least 22 years of my 50-year-old life.

I've also had the great privilege of being husband to my beautiful and wonderful

wife, Abigail, for almost 24 years.

Additionally, I'm a father to two exuberant yet great little boys and a father in my heart to Jamal.

All these parts of my life have meaning and value here on earth.

I love my wife and kids deeply. I also love being a pastor and I value my time

being educated, yet in light of eternity, they are of no value without Christ.

My point is that no matter how accomplished we are or how wealthy or powerful we are,

or even if we have good long relationships and are a doer of good deeds, It is only by being saved

by God through faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior that we can find favor with God,

and be allowed to live forever with Christ in heaven. Let's pray.

Oh, Heavenly Father, we thank you for the joy and privilege it is to be able

to serve you, to be able to hear from you your word.

Teach us today. Guide us into your truth by your Holy Spirit.

Open up our hearts and minds. May we...

May your Holy Spirit work in us so that the walls and things that we put up

to prevent you from getting in and doing your work,

may they all crumble, may they all fall, and may you be honored and glorified in us and through us.

We ask this in your precious Son's name, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

Turn with me to Philippians 3, verse 3 through 7, where Paul taught,

Philippians 3:3–7

For we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory

in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.

Although I myself have confidence even in the flesh, if anyone else has a mind

to put confidence in the flesh, I far more.

Circumcise the eighth day of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin,

a Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the law, a Pharisee,

as to zeal, a persecutor of the church, as to the righteousness which is in

the law, found blameless.

But whatever things were gained to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

Last week in Philippians chapter 3, we learned that Paul taught the Philippians

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

that they were to rejoice in the Lord, meaning that believers can enjoy and

live out joy by living within an abiding relationship with the Lord.

We also learned from God through Paul that he repeated the same truths to the

Philippian Christians as a safeguard to keep them in a state of spiritual safety

and security, free from spiritual danger or failings.

Moreover, we were taught that believers in Christ must beware of any faith and

belief system that incorporates believing in Christ as Lord and being saved

from God's wrath by our own works.

In today's passage, there are two foundational biblical truths that God,

through Paul, is teaching us from this passage today.

The first truth is that, as the Church of Christ, we are the true circumcision.

Do you know how to spot fake money from real U.S. currency?

The simplest way to spot fake money is to compare it side by side to a real

bill, since even one missed counterfeit can impact your working capital.

Pay extra close attention to the portrait, borders, and seals.

Authentic currency has sharp lines and crisp details, while counterfeit notes

may appear slightly blurry, washed out, or slightly misaligned.

Another way to tell if a bill is real.

Does the bill feel like fabric or paper? If paper, then it needs to further

examination and could be counterfeit.

Bills are made out of 75% cotton and 25% linen, which makes them feel like fabric and not paper.

Also, tilt the note back and forth to observe the color-shifting ink.

Third, check the watermark against light. it is visible from both sides.

For $10, $20, and $50 and $100 bills, the watermark matches the portrait on the face of the bill.

Counterfeiters will wash out $1 from $5 bills and then print over them to make

them look like real $100 bills.

If you hold up $100 and it has a watermark of a $5 bill. It's only worth $5.

Lastly, the security strip.

$100 bill has a pink security strip. $50 has yellow and $20 has green and $10 has orange.

I'm sharing this information with you because like with countries,

there are real money and fake.

So also, there are those who are of the true circumcision and those who are not.

This is what Paul instructed in Philippians 3, verse 3. For we are the true

Philippians 3:3

circumcision who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and

put no confidence in the flesh.

There are three truths that I want to point out to you from this verse.

The first principle is that the Church of Christ is the true circumcision.

Circumcision was the outward sign that God gave Abraham and to his sons afterward

that symbolized the cutting away of the old flesh and connection to the world

and being dedicated unto God as God's chosen people.

And as we talked about last week, Paul dealt with a sect of followers of Christ

who taught that one could be a follower of Jesus and believe in Him as Lord God.

But in order to be saved from the wrath of God, a person must be circumcised

and follow the sacrificial and dietary laws of the Old Testament.

Paul, of course, adamantly rejected this notion.

Paul responded by saying that believers in Christ are the true circumcision

who do not need to have their physical foreskin removed to symbolize being part

of God's covenant and be saved from God's wrath.

Rather, Christ's church is saved through the sacrificial death on their behalf.

By Christ Jesus himself, who paid the blood debt that we owed and could not pay ourselves.

Salvation is through believing in Jesus Christ as Lord God, Yahweh,

and trusting the truth that Christ's sacrifice and resurrection is enough for

the forgiveness of our sins and salvation from the wrath of God.

More than that, Christ's sacrificial death and resurrection through faith in

Christ allows us to be adopted into the family of God as children and heirs of God himself.

And this leads us to the second principle that I want to show you.

And that is in response to the grace of God in Christ, we as believers in Christ

worship in the spirit and give glory to Christ Jesus as the only Lord Yahweh God.

It's important that we understand that for the Jews, their worship through sacrifice

and offering was part of the works that they did to please God so that they

could stay within the covenant of God and stave off the wrath of God towards them.

And yet Paul clearly stated in Philippians chapter 3 that worship is not by

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

us alone, but in the power and in the vehicle of the Holy Spirit.

The word in is a location word, whereas Christ believers are in the Spirit when we worship.

It's like when we're in a skiff being transported to go hunting moose upriver.

We're not swimming up the nushkak or the wood ourselves. We are located in the

skiff, in the boat, as we motor up the river.

And as we pray by faith to enter worship and all that we do,

the Holy Spirit transports us into the presence of God so that we can worship

Christ and we can give glory,

for who He is as the majestic only God of the universe.

I want you to notice also a third principle used in verse 3.

This principle is that believers in Christ are to put no confidence in the flesh.

The question we need to ask ourselves is what does it mean to put confidence in the flesh?

Someone who puts confidence in the flesh relies on social credentials and merely human status.

According to one commentator, in Philippians 3, verse 3, this phrase refers

Philippians 3:3

specifically to relying on circumcision and the law to confirm one's place in

God's people, though the concept extends more broadly.

What God was getting at by Christians not putting confidence in the flesh was

that we are not to rely on the Old Testament law and circumcision to confirm

our identity as members of God's people for salvation.

Rather, Their salvation is in Christ alone, and the church's identity is found in Christ alone.

There are three applications that we can apply to what Paul was teaching in this verse.

The first application is that as part of Christ's church, we do not need circumcision

to be identified as people of God.

Well, why? Because we have been adopted and grafted into the nation and family

of God through faith in Jesus Christ.

As Yahweh God and faith in His atonement for our sins.

We belong now to God's spiritual nation of Israel, and as such,

all the spiritual promises belong.

Of being part of God's covenants, are ours in Christ.

We are now God's chosen people in Christ, based not on our own merits,

but because God was and is and will be faithful to His covenants.

We are beloved by God through the Holy Spirit.

God's law has been scribed on our hearts. In Christ and through the Holy Spirit,

all of us who have responded to the grace of God in faith have the ability to know God.

Moreover, through Christ's death and resurrection, we are now forgiven of our

sins and our slate before God has been wiped clean.

These are just a few of the promises of God to Israel that are now ours in Christ Jesus.

The second way that we can apply Philippians 3, verse 3 to us as Christians

Philippians 3:3

today is that we worship God and give glory to Christ in the Holy Spirit.

Jesus taught the Samaritan woman in John 4, verse 23 to 24.

John 4:23–24

But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the

Father in spirit and truth.

For such people the Father seeks to be his worshipers.

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.

Our good deeds on their own are not enough to please God because our good deeds

are like stinking, rotting menstrual rags for God.

How then can we truly worship God?

As we trust in Christ as God, and in Christ's atoning love for us,

we are spiritually transported by the Holy Spirit before the throne of God's

grace, and our obedience to God in all aspects of our lives

is presented to God then as worship.

Yes, you and I, we obey the Word of God, but we do so by faith in Christ.

And not only do we worship Christ, but in the Spirit, Christ lives within us,

and makes this home in us.

The third application for Philippians 3.3 is that we as Christians must trust

in Christ alone for our identity and salvation, and not the works of the law.

Again, Christ has bought us with His blood, and we belong to Him. We are His.

Billions of people around the world search for identity in their work,

in their religions, in looks and appearance.

Personal fitness is huge in our culture now. where 20 years ago, it wasn't so much.

In a bunch of statistics that I have read, perhaps the biggest area where Americans

can find identity now is family.

I say all this to remind us that our identity is found in Christ Jesus alone.

And in Christ, we receive our worth, love beyond measure.

Family that spans the globe and purpose found in the King of kings and Lord of all lords.

In Christ, Jesus was given the love and strength to be able to love our families

and others through every circumstance.

In Christ, we have the power and fortitude to be faithful to Christ in the midst

of the most impossible situations.

So far, we've learned that Paul taught the Philippians that as Christians,

they were the true circumcision.

That Christians worship God and give glory to Christ in the Spirit,

and not trust in law and worldly things for identity. but in Christ alone.

The second truth that I would like to bring to your attention is that human

credentials are as lost for the sake of Christ.

Let's look at Philippians 3, verse 4-7. Although I myself might have confidence

Philippians 3:4–7

in the flesh, if anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh,

I far more, circumcised on the eighth day,

of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews,

as to the law of Pharisee, as to zeal, a persecutor of the church,

as to the righteousness which is in the law found blameless.

Whatever things were gained to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

In this part, Paul described five ways in which, if he wanted to,

he could boast about and trust in regarding his human achievements.

The first category that Paul wrote about was that he was circumcised on the

eighth day, meaning that Paul was a covenant member of Israel dedicated unto God.

In Genesis 17, verse 10 to 12, Yahweh commanded Abraham, saying,

Genesis 17:10–12

This is my covenant, which you shall keep between me and you and your seed after you.

Every male among you must be circumcised, and you shall be circumcised in the

flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between me and you.

And every male among you who is eight days old shall be circumcised throughout

your generations, one who is born in the house or one who is bought with money

from any foreigner who is not of your seed.

Not only was Paul declaring that he was an Israelite, but also he was making

it clear to his enemies that he was not an adult proselyte who was converted to Israel later.

No, he was born into the nation of Israel.

Secondly, back in Philippians 3, verse 5, Paul stated that he was also of the

Philippians 3:5

tribe of Benjamin, the same tribe that King Saul and Queen Esther's uncle Mordecai was from.

And thus Paul was stating that his bloodline was not watered down by other nationalities.

He was as Hebrew as you can get from an esteemed family line directly descended

from one of the founding sons of Israel.

And thirdly, as to the law, Paul was an active member of the Pharisee party,

who were the ruling party of Israel at the time.

As the fourth demonstration of his credentials, Paul recounted that he was so

zealous for God that he persecuted the followers of the way of Christ because

he, along with the rulers of Israel, believed that Christians worshiped a false god.

And since God had commanded in the Old Testament that blasphemers and heretics,

those who followed and taught about false gods, were to be killed,

Paul and the zealous Israelites honestly believed that they were doing right

according to God's Old Testament law.

Lastly, as perhaps his greatest accomplishment from a Hebrew perspective,

Paul kept the letter of the law blamelessly, meaning that he never broke one

of God's laws that were written down in the Torah.

Yet, how did Paul respond to all that he had physically achieved as a Hebrew?

This is what Paul said in chapter 3, verse 7, But whatever things were gained

to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

I want us to understand that Paul wasn't saying that any of these categories

were inherently wrong or sinful by themselves, because everything Paul was born into

and had achieved would have been right and lawful, but for one central condition—.

God was not who Paul thought him to be.

What changed for Paul was that Jesus Christ was the God on whom he believed he was serving.

That day on the Damascus Road, when Paul and others were bent on persecuting

the Christian church, Jesus appeared to Paul in a bright light.

Paul was blinded by Christ's light, which, by the way, was brighter than the sun.

And as a result of Christ's light, Paul's animal reared and knocked Paul to the ground.

Everything changed that day for Paul. Paul found out who Christ Jesus really

was, that Jesus really was and is the God that he served.

And Paul realized just how much he served his God, that it was wrong.

Through the light and the lens of Jesus Christ as Yahweh, Paul's understanding

in the Old Testament, particularly the Torah, which are the first five books of the Bible, changed.

Jesus revealed to Paul that salvation was not found within the law,

but in the God-man Jesus Christ.

And of all the things that Paul accomplished or was part of that Paul could

have been very proud of, in the light of the surpassing greatness and beauty

and awe of Jesus Christ, who really is his Yahweh God,

Those achievements by themselves didn't mean anything to Paul anymore.

Later, in Philippians chapter 3, Paul would go more in-depth into the relationship

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

between the law and righteousness.

But again, for Paul, the only thing that had any true lasting worth and value was Jesus Christ.

And Paul desired to know Jesus with every fiber of his being.

How then can we, as Christ believers today, apply these verses to us?

Now, for most of us, we do not have a lineage or a pedigree like Paul's.

We cannot trace our family line back to the founders of Israel.

Yet we can trace our family line back to our God and Savior Jesus Christ.

I don't know about you, but it's super challenging for me to obey every single

one of the laws set out in the Ten Commandments, let alone in the Old Testament like Paul.

Yet in Christ, even though we still need to obey God's moral laws,

obedience to the law does not equal righteousness before God.

And what a blessing that is. Christ has paid the blood debt on our behalf so

that we are forgiven before the Father.

We are now seen by God as if we have never sinned at all, ever.

Because Jesus Christ is Yahweh God, whose righteousness has been applied to

us, who believe in Him as God, there is no work that we can do for the Lord

that can save us from the coming wrath of God.

There is no amount of money that can buy our way into heaven.

There is no amount of worldly success that will please God so as to get you right before God.

We cannot wait until we get to judgment day and then tell the Lord that we have

done so much good on earth. What will Jesus say to us?

He'll say, I see in the record of the book of life that you're not written in there,

that you have never responded to the grace of God and surrendered your faith

in me be gone for i do not know you.

However for those of us who have in our lifetime responded to the grace of god

in jesus christ and placed our faith in him as our only lord god and savior,

then the bible promises that we are saved from the wrath of god and we have

a place with christ in heaven,

more than that christ is to be our gain.

If the achievements and the hard work that we put in is counted as loss in regards

to our salvation, then who or what is our gain?

Jesus is our gain. Jesus is the one we are to delight in because without him, we have nothing.

Without Jesus, we have no life with God. We have no belonging in God's people.

And our only eternal destiny is hell forever and ever.

I want to encourage you today that if you are here or listening and you have

never placed your trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior,

the one who has saved you through his sacrifice blood on the cross,

then I strongly urge you to repent of your sins and acknowledge in faith with

all your being that Christ is your only Lord and Savior.

And the promise, and the promise is that Christ shed blood on the cross accomplished

for us will be applied to your account and you will be forgiven of your sins.

You'll be viewed by God as if you have never sinned ever.

Not only that, but you'll be made part of God's people and beloved of the Lord.

And for those of us who are at church or listening and you are a believer in

Christ, I encourage you to seek Christ as your greatest treasure and your most wonderful love.

And although it feels so tempting for many of us in our fallen flesh that we

have to earn our salvation in God's favor, trust in Jesus as your Lord.

Trust that He has paid for your sins and your account has been wiped clean.

This doesn't mean that we stop obeying Christ and His Word and ministering to

people in the love of God and making disciples for Christ.

But it does mean that we, you and I, do not need to strive for God's favor so

as to be saved or worry that when we sin, that we will be bound for hell.

Trust in Christ, trust in His atonement on our behalf, and trust that we are

now free to obediently serve Christ without the threat of hell looming over us.

What then has God through Paul been teaching us in Philippians 3 today?

The first part of God's teaching to us is broken up in three parts.

First off, in the Church of Christ, we are of the true circumcision,

set apart as the people of God.

Secondly, Christians worship God and give glory to Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The third part that we have learned was that as Christ believers,

we are not to rely on the law and worldly things for our identity as God's people, but in Christ alone.

The last truth that God through Paul has taught us is that salvation is not

found within the Mosaic law or from our accomplishments or from our genetic

line, but in Jesus Christ, who is to be our greatest worth and value.

Again, I want to encourage us who are in Christ that Christ is the one whom

our salvation depends on as we trust Him by faith.

Christ is the one who is our life as Colossians 3 states.

This is our reality. We, you and I, must trust in this truth and live as Christ

is our greatest gain. Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your truth, for your love,

for your mercy that is beyond anything that we have and can imagine.

Thank you. Lord, we pray that as we go about the rest of our week,

may you teach through us, may you work through us, may you live through us,

and may you grow your love in us so that you, O Lord, will be our greatest treasure,

and that we will walk according to your ways.

In your precious Son's name, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

I'll leave you with this benediction from Romans 15, verse 13.

Romans 15:13

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,

so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Have a wonderful Sunday. May the Lord bless you.