WEBVTT 00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:09.919 Thank you for joining us for a sermon from Sojourn North. 00:00:12.080 --> 00:00:24.960 As I was thinking this week about Philippians, I I I've always loved the book of Philippians, but it's interesting how your love and and um can grow and how you can share something more the older you get. 00:00:25.039 --> 00:00:31.440 And I find myself just falling back in love with the book of Philippians. 00:00:31.519 --> 00:00:38.159 And this week I was thinking about our resume because Paul, in this passage, he talks a little bit about his resume. 00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:50.880 But I thought when we meet people that we we haven't met before and we start talking to them, a lot of times we go into a resume type uh conversation about what we do, what we've done, what we're passionate about, the hobbies. 00:00:51.039 --> 00:00:58.159 Uh you might go back to your high school days and say, man, in the ninth grade, I scored 12 points in a JV game. 00:00:58.240 --> 00:00:59.520 Isn't that awesome? 00:00:59.840 --> 00:01:12.319 But as you talk about what is important to you in these conversations, these resumes that we have, we all have them, internally and externally, it does point to something. 00:01:12.400 --> 00:01:14.480 It shows what we value. 00:01:14.959 --> 00:01:17.920 It shows what we're passionate about, what we love. 00:01:18.400 --> 00:01:20.159 And I think it's even interesting. 00:01:20.239 --> 00:01:25.439 Sometimes when we're talking to people, we can be proud of who we know or who we used to know. 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:35.760 I know playing a lot of music in the past, I knew some obscure artists in Nashville that had some songs on television shows on the WB network. 00:01:36.000 --> 00:01:45.280 It was like, yeah, I know this guy, and he's he's got this one song on this uh Three Hill Country TV show that no one's ever heard of. 00:01:45.519 --> 00:01:48.480 But it was just like I had pride in it. 00:01:48.560 --> 00:01:52.079 It was like, I know someone who had knows that has done something. 00:01:52.719 --> 00:02:03.519 Well, as we think about our resumes, uh we can look at the Apostle Paul, and he had one of the most amazing ancient resumes in those days and times. 00:02:03.680 --> 00:02:08.560 And what's interesting as he starts talking about it, he doesn't want to add to his resume. 00:02:09.039 --> 00:02:12.240 He actually takes his resume and he tears it up. 00:02:12.400 --> 00:02:19.919 Not because his resume is bad, but because he had found someone who is so far superior to his resume. 00:02:20.400 --> 00:02:32.000 And in that someone, he found his identity, he found who he knew, he found his dignity and worth, and he found his passion for life. 00:02:32.240 --> 00:02:33.599 And it changed everything. 00:02:33.840 --> 00:02:34.719 A resume is bad? 00:02:34.879 --> 00:02:35.039 No. 00:02:35.199 --> 00:02:37.120 Accomplishment's good, yeah. 00:02:37.360 --> 00:02:44.800 But if we place all of our confidence on those things, it is going to lead us down a path that isn't good. 00:02:45.599 --> 00:02:53.199 So in Philippians 3, after he tears up his resume, he talks about what is better. 00:02:53.439 --> 00:02:56.879 And so with that in mind, I invite you to stand, if you wish, for the reading of God's word. 00:02:57.039 --> 00:03:02.240 We're looking at Philippians 3, verses 1 through 11. 00:03:07.520 --> 00:03:15.759 And I'd invite you to listen to the comparisons he makes as well in this passage. 00:03:16.159 --> 00:03:23.120 So Paul writes this in addition, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. 00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:28.000 To write to you again about this is no trouble for me and is a safeguard for you. 00:03:28.319 --> 00:03:43.199 Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh, for we are the circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not put confidence in the flesh. 00:03:43.439 --> 00:03:46.639 Although I have reasons for confidence in the flesh. 00:03:46.879 --> 00:03:51.520 If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more. 00:03:52.080 --> 00:04:09.280 Circumcise the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews, regarding the law, a Pharisee, regarding zeal, persecuting the church, regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless. 00:04:10.159 --> 00:04:15.199 But everything that was gained to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 00:04:15.439 --> 00:04:23.519 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in the view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. 00:04:23.839 --> 00:04:42.720 Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things, and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ, and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. 00:04:43.199 --> 00:04:55.040 My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. 00:04:55.360 --> 00:04:57.279 This is the word of the Lord. 00:04:57.680 --> 00:04:58.800 You may be seated. 00:05:04.480 --> 00:05:15.040 As we've been going through Philippians, we've been doing a little summary at the beginning as well, and I want to summarize it a little bit differently than we have, because there's many ways and angles you can look at it. 00:05:15.199 --> 00:05:19.759 But in chapter one, we see that Christ is at the center of circumstances. 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:26.399 The circumstances can be up, they can be down, but Christ as the center, he is the anchor in the midst of all of those. 00:05:26.720 --> 00:05:46.000 In chapter two, that Christ is the center of relationships between us, between us and God, and that have this mind in you, the same mind of Christ, who humbled himself as a servant, and that this is the foundation of our relationships. 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:53.199 And in chapter three, we're seeing Christ is the center of our identity, of everything we are. 00:05:54.160 --> 00:05:57.680 And so that leads us to our outline today that's in your bulletin. 00:05:57.759 --> 00:06:00.639 And the first point is to beware of every false confidence. 00:06:00.720 --> 00:06:03.519 And as we talk about this today, I want us to think about this. 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:05.439 What is our confidence? 00:06:05.759 --> 00:06:10.480 What are we putting our ultimate confidence in within life? 00:06:10.879 --> 00:06:20.160 And just as, and we'll talk a little bit about Galatians in a few moments too, but what are we putting our confidence in to say, this is why I'm okay? 00:06:20.319 --> 00:06:24.639 This is why I'm okay before God, this is what I am confident in. 00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:28.160 I was even thinking about it coming up to preach today. 00:06:28.240 --> 00:06:31.199 It's like, what do I place my confidence in as I preach? 00:06:31.360 --> 00:06:33.519 I've preached a lot in my life. 00:06:33.920 --> 00:06:36.639 And I was thinking, well, there's a lot of things. 00:06:36.720 --> 00:06:44.959 And it's easy to not make Christ the greatest confidence and to keep the message the greatest confidence. 00:06:45.199 --> 00:06:49.680 Because it's like, will I be funny enough if I need to tell a joke? 00:06:49.920 --> 00:06:50.800 I don't know. 00:06:51.040 --> 00:06:55.680 If my confidence is that, you can see how that's going to be a little up and down. 00:06:56.319 --> 00:07:00.079 And I could go on, but beware of every false confidence. 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:09.839 And I love what Paul does here because in verses one through three he says, rejoice, have joy, be glad in grace, but beware. 00:07:10.079 --> 00:07:12.079 It's like, okay, what's going on here? 00:07:12.240 --> 00:07:15.519 Because verse 1, rejoice, verse 2, beware. 00:07:15.839 --> 00:07:18.079 So rejoice, be glad in the Lord. 00:07:18.399 --> 00:07:26.879 Have gladness in the grace that's been given to you, but beware of these false teachers. 00:07:27.600 --> 00:07:28.560 And why? 00:07:29.759 --> 00:07:33.199 Well, because false teaching always attacks joy. 00:07:34.319 --> 00:07:35.920 The joy of the Lord is our strength. 00:07:36.000 --> 00:07:39.920 When our joy gets attacked, our strength can be depleted. 00:07:40.720 --> 00:07:42.959 Legalism steals joy. 00:07:43.279 --> 00:07:45.519 Performance will steal your joy. 00:07:45.839 --> 00:07:47.680 Comparison will steal your joy. 00:07:47.920 --> 00:07:50.000 Works righteousness will steal your joy. 00:07:50.160 --> 00:07:51.680 You can go keep going down the list. 00:07:51.839 --> 00:08:05.920 These things rob us of our joy because the joy that is given by the fruit of the Spirit is from seeing Christ for who he is, for seeing what Christ has done for us. 00:08:06.079 --> 00:08:08.720 It's not based on what we can work up. 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:15.600 And then he writes this: Paul says, To write to you again, this is the same story. 00:08:15.759 --> 00:08:20.240 To write to you again about this is no trouble for me and is a safeguard for you. 00:08:20.399 --> 00:08:22.639 And I thought about saying that to you today. 00:08:22.800 --> 00:08:25.920 For me to preach about this again is not a trouble for me. 00:08:26.079 --> 00:08:29.680 And it is a safeguard for you and for me. 00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:32.240 And I think that's pretty witty. 00:08:32.720 --> 00:08:38.879 See, my confidence isn't in the jokes because it's in the gospel today. 00:08:39.919 --> 00:08:42.159 But what is Paul warning them about? 00:08:42.480 --> 00:08:51.679 He's warning them again, just like he did the Galatian church, just as he's been doing through his whole ministry, that false messages will hook the human heart. 00:08:52.080 --> 00:08:54.879 They will hook our hearts every day. 00:08:55.600 --> 00:09:02.159 And the application for every point, I'll say it multiple times a day, is to preach the gospel to yourself daily. 00:09:03.440 --> 00:09:06.080 Every day, throughout the day. 00:09:06.399 --> 00:09:10.480 Preach the gospel to yourself because those messages will hook us. 00:09:11.120 --> 00:09:14.399 And he uses this strong language in verse 2. 00:09:14.480 --> 00:09:20.879 He says, watch out for dogs, watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh. 00:09:21.120 --> 00:09:33.759 And it all goes back to these Judaizers who 12, 15 years ago, when he was writing the book of Galatians, they were saying, in order for you to be saved, it's not Jesus plus nothing, it's Jesus plus the works of the law. 00:09:33.919 --> 00:09:37.840 So you have to do this, you have to obey this, you have to physically be circumcised. 00:09:38.080 --> 00:09:41.600 And Paul and the apostles, they say, no, no, no, no, no. 00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:45.679 All of that was old stuff pointing to the new reality. 00:09:46.000 --> 00:09:50.799 We're not adding works to what Jesus has already done because it's finished. 00:09:51.840 --> 00:10:02.080 And when you think about him saying, like such strong language about dogs, dogs in the ancient world were not like dogs we have today. 00:10:02.879 --> 00:10:06.320 He wasn't talking about cockpoos and golden doodles. 00:10:06.960 --> 00:10:11.360 There's a biblical basis for dogs being scavengers unclean. 00:10:11.440 --> 00:10:16.000 In 1 Kings 14, dogs were eating the corpses of the wicked. 00:10:16.159 --> 00:10:17.519 That's very unclean. 00:10:17.679 --> 00:10:22.639 In Psalm 22, David in this psalm says, Dogs surround me. 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:28.799 This is the same psalm that Jesus quotes parts of while he's on the cross. 00:10:29.440 --> 00:10:32.720 Proverbs 26, a dog returns to his vomit. 00:10:32.960 --> 00:10:35.279 Matthew 7, don't give dogs what is holy. 00:10:35.440 --> 00:10:42.480 So the idea here when he says these dogs, it's a separation, it's an exclusion, it's an uncleanness. 00:10:42.960 --> 00:10:47.519 Because he's saying, these guys are teaching you lies. 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:52.559 And lies lead to devastation because they take you from the truth. 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:56.159 Don't follow their lies. 00:10:58.320 --> 00:11:05.679 Don't put your confidence in yourself, in your own flesh, because it will lead you all the ways that we've talked about many times. 00:11:05.759 --> 00:11:08.799 It will lead you to self-righteousness because you think you're doing great. 00:11:08.879 --> 00:11:11.440 It's like, look at me compared to this, this, and this. 00:11:11.600 --> 00:11:13.679 There's no humility in that. 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:22.240 And it's a distortion of the truth and the reality because you cannot work your way anywhere. 00:11:22.480 --> 00:11:27.919 So it leads you to self-righteousness, or it'll lead you to despair to say, I just can't keep up. 00:11:28.320 --> 00:11:32.399 I know my own human heart, therefore I can't be accepted. 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:39.840 But Paul comes in and he says, They're not part of the true circumcision. 00:11:40.000 --> 00:11:43.919 He says, You're part of the true circumcision, and I am. 00:11:44.320 --> 00:11:47.200 And what does he use for descriptions for this? 00:11:47.360 --> 00:11:48.399 Well, it's in verse 3. 00:11:48.559 --> 00:12:00.639 He says, For we are the circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, number one, who boast in Christ Jesus, number two, and three, this is big. 00:12:00.879 --> 00:12:03.440 We do not put confidence in the flesh. 00:12:04.559 --> 00:12:06.799 So to hear that again, this is the truth. 00:12:07.039 --> 00:12:18.080 We worship by the Spirit, we glory in Christ, we boast in Him, who He is, what He's done, and what He promises to do. 00:12:18.559 --> 00:12:21.759 And we don't put confidence in our own good works. 00:12:23.679 --> 00:12:28.799 And we go backwards again to Galatians, and where he's saying, be careful because you're going to drift. 00:12:29.039 --> 00:12:33.200 The human heart will be hooked, you'll find yourself drifting, but to return back. 00:12:33.679 --> 00:12:35.759 When you drift a little bit, come back. 00:12:36.000 --> 00:12:37.360 Drift a little bit, come back. 00:12:37.519 --> 00:12:42.559 Don't drift and keep drifting like the prodigal son, where you end up in a foreign land. 00:12:42.960 --> 00:12:46.960 But even if you find yourself in the place of the prodigal son today, what happens? 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:48.240 Come home. 00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:54.720 The Father's arms are open wide, and he will run after you and embrace you and welcome you home. 00:12:57.440 --> 00:13:06.879 But the less space and time between the drift and coming back, the less damage that has done to our own soul and to relationships. 00:13:10.960 --> 00:13:19.840 Again, it's the human heart, and we want to continue to come to it, this message that I want to be able to say, this is why God should accept me. 00:13:21.919 --> 00:13:25.360 And most of us aren't talking about circumcision with that. 00:13:25.440 --> 00:13:33.039 I've never been in a conversation with anyone in Kentucky, and they say, Why should I say you're super spiritual? 00:13:33.200 --> 00:13:34.639 I'm circumcised. 00:13:34.879 --> 00:13:37.840 It's like, all right, very good, very good. 00:13:38.960 --> 00:13:41.200 But it could be like this for you. 00:13:42.240 --> 00:13:46.240 You might find your confidence in your church attendance. 00:13:46.399 --> 00:13:49.840 You might find your confidence in your political ideology. 00:13:50.240 --> 00:13:53.120 You might find your confidence in ministry success. 00:13:53.919 --> 00:13:57.519 This is a big one in the stream that I've been a part of. 00:13:57.679 --> 00:13:58.639 This next one. 00:13:58.879 --> 00:14:02.480 You might find your confidence in your theological precision. 00:14:03.519 --> 00:14:05.759 And is theological precision good? 00:14:05.919 --> 00:14:06.879 I like it. 00:14:07.200 --> 00:14:08.480 I'm a fan. 00:14:08.799 --> 00:14:11.279 But my confidence cannot be in that. 00:14:11.919 --> 00:14:13.840 Not my ultimate confidence. 00:14:14.080 --> 00:14:17.600 What about your moral performance, your parenting, your financial stewardship? 00:14:17.759 --> 00:14:19.279 The list could go on and on. 00:14:19.440 --> 00:14:25.440 That we put our confidence in those things, and we we kind of set the gospel off to the side. 00:14:27.120 --> 00:14:30.720 So Paul's saying, don't do it. 00:14:30.960 --> 00:14:32.879 Don't put confidence in the flesh. 00:14:32.960 --> 00:14:35.039 And I was thinking about the implications of this. 00:14:35.279 --> 00:14:35.919 Why? 00:14:36.879 --> 00:14:39.919 Well, it counteracts the gospel message. 00:14:40.960 --> 00:14:50.799 For the first, the two different groups I put here, for one group, putting confidence in the flesh can actually keep you from embracing salvation. 00:14:51.440 --> 00:14:58.399 Because if someone comes in and says, I go to church and that's why I've done more good than evil, this is why I'm going to get to go to heaven. 00:14:58.480 --> 00:15:00.960 And it's like, no, you don't understand the gospel. 00:15:01.519 --> 00:15:05.360 It's not about good deeds versus bad deeds. 00:15:05.519 --> 00:15:10.480 It's about you needing a savior to pay for your sins. 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:18.240 Because we are all separated from God, apart from the work of Christ Jesus. 00:15:19.360 --> 00:15:20.879 And now here's another group. 00:15:21.039 --> 00:15:28.320 You may be a Christian, you've trusted in Jesus, but you're drifting and you're starting to put confidence in the flesh. 00:15:28.480 --> 00:15:30.240 What happens with that? 00:15:31.519 --> 00:15:36.320 Well, it's going to show up in so many different ways. 00:15:36.480 --> 00:15:37.919 It's going to show up in relationships. 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:42.720 It's going to show up because basically, I was thinking about it like this. 00:15:42.879 --> 00:16:00.399 In Philippians 2, when we see this picture of Jesus and we behold Christ, how humble he was, and how he releases his rights of being part of the Godhead, to come be born a helpless babe, and to grow up in a fallen world and to march to the cross. 00:16:01.360 --> 00:16:12.960 To have humility like that, we cannot have humility like that unless we are embracing the gospel message, unless we are being reminded who we are apart from Christ. 00:16:13.360 --> 00:16:19.200 Because if I'm in this state of going, like, well, at least I'm not like this guy, look at that guy. 00:16:20.320 --> 00:16:24.320 How can I even have love or compassion or humility? 00:16:25.120 --> 00:16:32.879 If I'm putting confidence in myself compared to others, it's like, wow, at least I'm not saying that knuckle-headed thing. 00:16:32.960 --> 00:16:34.399 I'm doing pretty good. 00:16:35.360 --> 00:16:37.600 Put my confidence somewhere else. 00:16:39.679 --> 00:16:48.639 We have to continue to come back to preach the gospel to ourselves daily that we are in need, that we're saved by grace alone. 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:52.320 That apart from grace we would be destitute. 00:16:53.200 --> 00:16:54.320 Destitute. 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:59.840 And even worse than many of the people you are judging. 00:17:00.720 --> 00:17:04.319 And you'll find yourself not forgiving others and bitterness growing. 00:17:05.279 --> 00:17:12.000 If you see yourself on this moral platitude and above other people. 00:17:13.440 --> 00:17:25.200 And the good news is we get to preach the gospel to ourselves and be reminded that we're far more sinful than we could dream, but we're far more loved than we can imagine. 00:17:29.039 --> 00:17:36.559 So as we preach the gospel to ourselves daily, application for point one, same application for point two and point three, alright? 00:17:36.960 --> 00:17:38.640 You got the application down. 00:17:38.880 --> 00:17:43.759 So point two, count every lesser story as lost. 00:17:44.160 --> 00:17:53.680 In verses four through eight, Paul jumps into his resume to show, like, hey, if anyone could put confidence in the flesh, I'd be at the top of the list. 00:17:53.759 --> 00:17:54.880 And listen to what he does. 00:17:54.960 --> 00:18:01.759 He says, I'm circumcised, I'm an Israelite from the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew. 00:18:02.079 --> 00:18:03.920 I am a Pharisee. 00:18:04.160 --> 00:18:13.359 So he was one of the religious elite, and he was under just great teachers, and he had a trajectory set. 00:18:13.680 --> 00:18:14.319 We don't know. 00:18:14.400 --> 00:18:17.920 He could have been ruling Israel as a religious leader one day. 00:18:18.160 --> 00:18:25.920 But he says he was zealous in persecuting the church, and he was blameless. 00:18:26.160 --> 00:18:27.920 What does he mean by blameless there? 00:18:28.079 --> 00:18:34.160 Blameless according to the external version of the law that the Pharisees were seeking to obey. 00:18:35.599 --> 00:18:40.160 So outwardly you look at his life and you say, He's got it. 00:18:41.119 --> 00:18:41.920 He's got it. 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:43.759 And what is his response to this? 00:18:44.000 --> 00:18:55.839 He says, I counted all of that loss, all of it loss compared to knowing Christ. 00:18:57.440 --> 00:19:02.240 Let's read it again in verse 8 and following because he gets even more explicit. 00:19:02.400 --> 00:19:12.319 He says, more than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in the view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. 00:19:14.240 --> 00:19:21.519 Thinking about this, the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. 00:19:21.839 --> 00:19:27.839 Because of him, I have suffered the loss of all things, and consider them as dung. 00:19:29.039 --> 00:19:30.960 Some translations say refuse. 00:19:31.279 --> 00:19:33.039 It really is, it's dung. 00:19:34.880 --> 00:19:47.440 And he once again is not saying worldly accomplishments are bad, but he's saying Christ is so beautiful, he is so true, he is so good, he is so powerful, he's so loving. 00:19:48.160 --> 00:19:56.799 That compared to knowing him and experiencing that, everything else is as dumb because that is so amazing. 00:19:58.799 --> 00:20:00.640 It's so amazing. 00:20:02.160 --> 00:20:18.640 If you want to take a journey through Paul's prayers, you can see again and again he's saying, I pray that you may know, that you may grow in knowing, that you may comprehend the incomprehensible, the height, the width, the depth, the love of the love of God that's in Christ Jesus. 00:20:18.880 --> 00:20:21.119 I just pray that you would know him. 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:24.400 And this knowing is not just an intellectual ascent. 00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:25.759 This is important. 00:20:26.799 --> 00:20:31.039 We do want good doctrine, we want the scriptures to saturate us. 00:20:31.200 --> 00:20:33.119 We want to know the story of God. 00:20:33.279 --> 00:20:40.160 But it is not just to stay in our head, it is to sink down into our hearts and into our hands and our whole being. 00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:48.880 That this is an experiential knowing that I am called to love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, that it's everything. 00:20:49.680 --> 00:20:54.880 And that means I have to be in his presence, because then his presence is where I'm transformed. 00:20:57.680 --> 00:21:05.599 Truly knowing this amazing Christ, everything else in comparison, is dumb. 00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:16.000 So we find ourselves in the story again and hitting a similar motif as earlier. 00:21:16.240 --> 00:21:19.599 What resume do you carry and put your confidence in? 00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:26.400 I'm a good parent, I'm successful, I'm respected, I know theology, I've served the church. 00:21:27.839 --> 00:21:31.440 And we know that desires are a good thing, right? 00:21:31.519 --> 00:21:37.839 But we we've talked about when desires become demands, I have to have it, it can easily lead into idolatry. 00:21:38.880 --> 00:21:59.759 And when our confidence, the things we have confidence in, become our ultimate confidence, it leads us to a devastating road because we are putting our confidence in ourselves and we lose sight of the bigger story, and we become insular and we get into this lesser story, and we're not going to live. 00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:02.000 Live flourishing lives. 00:22:03.279 --> 00:22:05.599 So Paul gives the solution again. 00:22:05.839 --> 00:22:07.920 Preach the gospel to yourself. 00:22:09.119 --> 00:22:11.119 And now we hit point three. 00:22:11.440 --> 00:22:14.000 To gain Christ above everything else. 00:22:14.240 --> 00:22:15.519 And so notice the shift. 00:22:15.680 --> 00:22:20.400 Paul doesn't merely lose something or throw some things to the side. 00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:27.119 What he's doing is he's gaining something, and it's not just something, it's someone, and it's Jesus. 00:22:27.359 --> 00:22:30.000 In verse 9, he says, this is a beautiful progression. 00:22:30.160 --> 00:22:33.359 The goal isn't self-denial, the goal is Christ. 00:22:33.680 --> 00:22:37.920 Being found in him, in Jesus. 00:22:39.039 --> 00:22:45.119 Not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ. 00:22:45.519 --> 00:22:49.119 The righteousness from God based on faith. 00:22:51.279 --> 00:22:56.960 Paul's deepest hope and desire isn't heaven. 00:22:58.400 --> 00:22:59.440 It is Jesus. 00:22:59.519 --> 00:23:02.480 And heaven is heaven because Jesus is there. 00:23:02.880 --> 00:23:05.440 The new heavens and new earth will be amazing. 00:23:06.640 --> 00:23:08.240 But what is the main attraction? 00:23:08.400 --> 00:23:10.240 It's to be with Jesus. 00:23:13.119 --> 00:23:21.279 He says, My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death. 00:23:23.839 --> 00:23:35.519 So to find ourselves in the story, you can see this movement, Paul's own movement from false confidence, and then he's awakened on the road to Damascus as Jesus appears to him. 00:23:35.680 --> 00:23:43.519 He renounces false confidence, and then he finds new confidence, his true confidence in Christ. 00:23:45.039 --> 00:23:48.240 And so I wanted to put up the cross chart again this week. 00:23:48.559 --> 00:23:59.359 We pull this out, and I will say it like this like to show you the cross chart again. 00:23:59.680 --> 00:24:03.200 This is no trouble for me, and it is a safeguard for you. 00:24:03.680 --> 00:24:06.000 I'm back to that verse one joke again. 00:24:09.039 --> 00:24:11.519 This is beautiful. 00:24:11.759 --> 00:24:14.240 And I want to stay here for just a few minutes. 00:24:14.480 --> 00:24:17.920 And I know we've looked at it before, but this is the point of conversion. 00:24:18.160 --> 00:24:20.960 You might move it over just a little bit. 00:24:21.680 --> 00:24:29.359 But what you have to do to be saved is you have to see that God is holy, He's above, He's perfect. 00:24:30.079 --> 00:24:34.480 And we have to see that we are sinners in need of salvation. 00:24:35.279 --> 00:24:39.839 And the only thing that can bridge that gap, there's nothing we can do to bridge that gap. 00:24:39.920 --> 00:24:41.519 It's just the cross. 00:24:42.640 --> 00:24:55.920 Now, as we go through life, we are in the Word, and we're studying and we're seeing, and we see as we grow by God's grace, we see God's more holy than I thought. 00:24:56.240 --> 00:25:00.799 Wow, He is more perfect and beautiful and lovely. 00:25:00.960 --> 00:25:10.160 And I am worse than I thought because I'm starting to see my own heart, my own motives, and it's kind of scary. 00:25:10.960 --> 00:25:16.640 But what happens is we see the cross grows bigger because he's bridging the gap. 00:25:16.799 --> 00:25:19.839 The cross is bigger than any of us could dream or imagine. 00:25:20.559 --> 00:25:26.480 Because as we continue to grow, however far we get in this life, God is holier than we can imagine. 00:25:26.640 --> 00:25:28.480 We are more sinful than we can imagine. 00:25:28.640 --> 00:25:36.640 But the cross bridges the gap, and God looks at us with joy and delight because he sees us positionally as we are in Christ. 00:25:37.279 --> 00:25:43.680 He is the prodigal fathers, he's the prodigal's father, and he embraces us and says, I did this for you. 00:25:44.400 --> 00:25:52.559 For the joy set before him, he endured the cross and all of its shame to win back a people who are you and me. 00:25:54.640 --> 00:26:01.839 Now, for all of us, there's a temptation to not let the cross get as big as it can be. 00:26:02.559 --> 00:26:07.359 And this next slide shows us what we do quite often. 00:26:08.240 --> 00:26:19.440 If we consider the holiness of God, and if our vision of the cross stays small, what happens is we we feel like we have to fill in the gap. 00:26:19.680 --> 00:26:25.359 So we can fill it in with religion, moralism, self-justification, legalism, pride. 00:26:25.519 --> 00:26:30.880 It's like the cross just can't get me there, so I gotta add to it. 00:26:31.920 --> 00:26:36.480 And then we can see our own sinfulness, and it's like, well, the cross can't reach down. 00:26:36.960 --> 00:26:40.880 If people knew how awful I was. 00:26:42.480 --> 00:26:47.200 So we live with guilt, fear, shame, and insecurity, despair. 00:26:48.960 --> 00:26:59.359 And God is gently saying to us as a people, and he's saying, My child, I've bridged the gap. 00:27:00.880 --> 00:27:07.920 You may carry some of these things through your life, but they are not your ultimate reality. 00:27:10.400 --> 00:27:18.640 You can try that stuff real hard, but I'm gonna let you get tired while you try it because it's never meant to bring life. 00:27:19.440 --> 00:27:21.839 Can we flip back to the other one, Canon? 00:27:24.000 --> 00:27:26.079 The cross bridges the gap. 00:27:28.079 --> 00:27:31.519 All Jesus, none of me. 00:27:32.720 --> 00:27:35.519 It is by grace that you're safe through faith. 00:27:36.160 --> 00:27:37.839 Not your own works. 00:27:38.400 --> 00:27:39.839 You can't boast in it. 00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:41.599 I can't boast in it. 00:27:43.599 --> 00:27:48.160 I can leave today and think, man, I had a pretty good sermon today. 00:27:48.720 --> 00:27:50.720 I'll help out with us two tonight. 00:27:51.440 --> 00:27:52.880 I'm a good pastor. 00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:57.920 Is that what I'm putting my confidence in? 00:27:58.240 --> 00:27:58.559 No. 00:27:59.200 --> 00:28:00.160 I hope not. 00:28:00.400 --> 00:28:02.240 Maybe y'all can call it, text me later. 00:28:02.400 --> 00:28:04.480 What are you putting your confidence in, Chad? 00:28:06.079 --> 00:28:11.440 Or if I feel rocky about my sermon and I'm like, I didn't make that clear enough. 00:28:11.519 --> 00:28:14.480 I stumbled on these points, and then tonight I'm like real present. 00:28:14.720 --> 00:28:15.519 I'm like, ah. 00:28:17.839 --> 00:28:22.559 Either way, the cross is huge. 00:28:25.200 --> 00:28:27.519 And this is where words seem to fall short. 00:28:27.599 --> 00:28:34.160 It's like, my people, can we glory in the cross? 00:28:34.319 --> 00:28:36.400 Preach the gospel to yourself. 00:28:38.240 --> 00:28:44.799 When you're having awful thoughts and temptations come up, don't be surprised. 00:28:44.880 --> 00:28:46.480 It's part of your flesh. 00:28:47.680 --> 00:28:49.599 But come to the cross. 00:28:52.640 --> 00:28:55.119 If he is for you, who can be against you? 00:28:55.279 --> 00:28:56.880 The answer is nobody. 00:28:57.599 --> 00:29:01.200 Who can separate you from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus? 00:29:02.160 --> 00:29:02.799 Nada. 00:29:05.920 --> 00:29:09.359 You can look at the list in Romans 8. 00:29:09.519 --> 00:29:10.720 I've done it before, I've told you. 00:29:10.799 --> 00:29:13.359 I started listening out the things that cannot separate you. 00:29:13.519 --> 00:29:17.200 And then if the list isn't long enough, by the time he says, nothing in all creation. 00:29:17.359 --> 00:29:18.960 What's everything in all creation? 00:29:19.200 --> 00:29:21.519 Everything but our triune God. 00:29:22.559 --> 00:29:26.240 Nothing can separate you from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus. 00:29:26.960 --> 00:29:28.240 You're safe. 00:29:29.200 --> 00:29:30.799 You're sealed. 00:29:32.160 --> 00:29:35.680 You're precious in his sight. 00:29:37.759 --> 00:29:44.319 As we wrap up in chapter 2, Paul says, have this mind, the same mind that's in Christ Jesus. 00:29:45.440 --> 00:29:54.720 And then in three, chapter 3, he says, Whatever gain I had, I'm setting it to the side because I've gained Christ Jesus. 00:29:56.000 --> 00:29:58.720 And here's your sentence to carry for the week. 00:30:00.720 --> 00:30:10.000 The gospel invites us to let go of confidence in ourselves so that we may find our confidence and joy in Christ alone. 00:30:11.920 --> 00:30:20.880 The gospel invites us to let go of confidence in ourselves so that we may find our confidence and joy in Christ alone. 00:30:23.200 --> 00:30:24.960 That's our hope. 00:30:26.000 --> 00:30:27.519 That's our dream. 00:30:29.839 --> 00:30:33.279 And so the application, what's the application for point three? 00:30:34.160 --> 00:30:35.759 It's the same as point two and one. 00:30:36.079 --> 00:30:38.160 You're gonna have to give it to me. 00:30:40.720 --> 00:30:41.599 Somebody. 00:30:42.000 --> 00:30:43.519 I'm getting ready for BBS. 00:30:43.599 --> 00:30:46.559 I'll have interactive time with it. 00:30:46.720 --> 00:30:55.119 Let's preach the gospel to yourself every day. 00:30:57.119 --> 00:31:01.519 See, now I'm gonna have no confidence in the sermon because y'all can repeat that back to me. 00:31:01.759 --> 00:31:04.640 I'll have to go back to the cross chart and look at it. 00:31:05.359 --> 00:31:07.359 Preach the gospel to yourself daily. 00:31:07.519 --> 00:31:08.720 Yep, okay, I'm good again. 00:31:08.880 --> 00:31:09.759 I'm good again. 00:31:10.079 --> 00:31:12.559 Preach the gospel to yourself daily. 00:31:13.599 --> 00:31:16.400 If you need it, look at the end of Philippians. 00:31:16.559 --> 00:31:19.599 I love going to Ephesians chapter 2. 00:31:19.920 --> 00:31:23.759 Man, the first verses are gonna tell you the gospel. 00:31:24.319 --> 00:31:27.119 Who you were and who you are. 00:31:28.000 --> 00:31:33.200 It's such a stark contrast, and it is grace, grace, grace, grace. 00:31:34.000 --> 00:31:37.519 Because it was his desire and his love to do so. 00:31:37.920 --> 00:31:44.319 And every week we come to this table that this is another way we preach the gospel to ourselves and each other. 00:31:44.720 --> 00:32:01.599 Because by taking the bread and taking the juice, we're doing the sacred symbol that's been done for the last 2,000 years that Jesus set up in the upper room when he redefined Passover for his followers, pointing back to that escape from Egypt where the firstborn were slain. 00:32:03.440 --> 00:32:07.279 And here, the Son of God is slain for us. 00:32:07.839 --> 00:32:13.599 And if you're a Christian here, I'd invite you in a moment after I pray to come take some bread and juice back to your seat. 00:32:13.839 --> 00:32:18.720 You can hold it there, and I'll lead us to take communion all together. 00:32:19.200 --> 00:32:23.200 But as you come, preach the gospel to yourself. 00:32:24.799 --> 00:32:28.079 In a non-shaming way, ask, what am I putting my confidence in? 00:32:28.240 --> 00:32:29.599 Where have I drifted? 00:32:29.920 --> 00:32:31.839 Say, Lord, help me come back. 00:32:33.119 --> 00:32:34.559 And know that He is there. 00:32:34.640 --> 00:32:40.240 The posture of the Father is this: open arms, saying, Come, come. 00:32:40.720 --> 00:32:44.319 Jesus saying, Come to me, all you who are weary and worn out. 00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:47.039 I will give you rest. 00:32:50.960 --> 00:32:53.599 So we come today and preach the gospel. 00:32:53.680 --> 00:32:55.279 Let's pray together. 00:32:57.200 --> 00:33:10.160 Father, we thank you so much for this passage and for Paul's life that Paul could have easily lived in shame because of what he did before he was a Christian. 00:33:10.319 --> 00:33:15.519 Lord, by persecuting the church and by arresting people and seeing people put to death. 00:33:16.480 --> 00:33:19.680 Lord, just hurting families left and right. 00:33:20.240 --> 00:33:27.440 He could have had so much shame, and I'm sure he dealt with so much of that, Lord, but he didn't stay stuck there. 00:33:28.000 --> 00:33:32.880 He had so many accomplishments, but he didn't put his confidence in those accomplishments. 00:33:33.279 --> 00:33:36.400 Lord, his confidence was in you because you were greater. 00:33:37.519 --> 00:33:49.920 And for each of us, no matter how many gifts we have, no matter how much we've done or haven't done, the cross is the same, Lord. 00:33:50.160 --> 00:33:53.279 It covers the gap and you delight in us. 00:33:53.440 --> 00:34:01.359 And so in your mercy, help us to grow, to have confidence in you in the cross. 00:34:02.559 --> 00:34:23.519 And as we partake in this sacred meal, and we we just are reminded again that Jesus, you were crushed for us, you bled for us, you died for us, but that you rose again and you sent the Holy Spirit and you promised to come again one day, that all of this is your story, your bigger story. 00:34:23.760 --> 00:34:29.280 Help us to see this bigger story and embrace it and live in it this very day. 00:34:29.440 --> 00:34:31.360 And we ask this in Christ's name. 00:34:31.679 --> 00:34:32.320 Amen.