Philippians 3:15-21 Footprints

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. 16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained. 17 Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. 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. 19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.  20 But our citizenship is in heaven.  And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 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.

 Paul warned the Philippians about those robe-dressed, ritual-observing, glory-seeking guys whose destiny is destruction.  He told the church how to spot the difference... "take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you".   Take a look around (v17)  ... watch long enough and you'll spot the 'real deal'....follow their lead and mine'.

When my husband worked a night shift in the Winter, I'd often walk in the snow with the kids to a local convenience store for some kind of 'treat', to get out of the house and break the monotony (ok and maybe to get me some Haagendaz).  The snow was often too deep for Tricia so I would tell her to 'walk in my footprints' ... ya know, the holes I made where I had already walked, so it would be easier for her.   We need to find people whose footprints we can walk in and 'follow their example'.

Look closely... Are they devoted to the 'body' of Christ?  Do they honor God when times are rough?  Do they complain or get offended easily? Are they 'real' or do they always seem like they're trying to be 'on'? Find someone who doesn't think 'they have attained' but is pressing toward the goal. The givers... the doers...the encouragers.. the ones who hold His word in higher regard than worldly philosophies or TV preachers. They set the bar. They establish the pattern.

They likely won't look like you or be in your age bracket. Don't know where to start? Join a Bible study... a small group, or sign up to serve in ministry somewhere.... that's where you'll find them... gathered around God's word with His people.    And Read. The. Book. ... where you'll find the "pattern" Paul gave us to live by.

Find good footprints to follow.... like Timothy... like Epaphroditus... like Paul .... like Christ. Put yourself in the places where you'll find a 'big sister' who can pray for you, and walk you through mountains and valleys that they have already navigated. It's life changing. When the waters of life get rough, these sisters have been like 'swimmies' that kept me afloat.

 And today, let's make sure we are leaving good footprints for others to follow as we 'eagerly await our Savior' and our citizenship in heaven to be realized.  (I get excited thinking about it!)

And if that's not enough to inspire you.... v21 says we will have a glorious body when He comes..... okay, probably not like hers... but way  better than the one we have ;)

Philippians 3:1-11 That Resume of Yours, Put It In The Garbage

Philippians 3:1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. 

2 Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. 

3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh-- 4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. 7 But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 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 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. 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, 11 and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Rejoice.... again and again.... in prison, in persecution, in deep concern for the churches... there is his joy in the midst of difficulties.

Then Paul warns the Philippians about these 'dogs', mutilators of the flesh.   He's referring to circumcision.  Circumcision was a Jewish covenant, a blood covenant even, that was a sign of the relationship with God.  But if all you did was lose some skin, and did not have a changed heart, you missed the point. Like baptism, it was to be an outward sign, intended to show an inward change. (Romans 2:28-29)

Paul says, 'you wanna brag about our own accomplishments?... I got a list a mile long'.   Raised on the 'right side of the tracks', a godly family lineage, trained by Gamaliel, circumcised the 8th day, had all the rules and scripture memorized. Saul of Tarsus had an outward obedience to the law that would make their heads spin. 

Paul knew all the things he prided himself in meant nothing.... garbage.... some translations say 'dung'.  Compared to Christ's sacrifice, all our good deeds are like filthy rags to Him (Isaiah 64:6).  Gross.

Don't be a Pharisee, cuz
they're not fair ya see

There's only one thing we offer Christ in the relationship for salvation... our sin.   He gets covered in our sin and punished for it, and we get covered in His righteousness and blessed because of it.  We can look really holy on the outside, but God sees through to the heart (ouch).  Good works should follow as we become servants to the One who set us free, but they don't come before nor do they contribute one bit to what He did. Paul says stay away from those religious-looking, box-checking, skin-snipping guys. #somanyhyphens

As my husband always says "you don't get extra credit for doing good, because you're supposed to do good".  This is what Jesus meant by 'blessed are the poor in spirit'.  Spiritually broke... that's us.  There was no way we could reach heaven, so He came down to meet us where we live.  Christ took our place on the cross and said 'it is finished'.  Nothing we can 'do', it has already been 'done', completely, and so we are left humbled by a forgiveness we could never deserve and never, ever repay.

That is Grace... and man, is it ever AMAZING!

"So I stood outside the gates and trembled, in my rags of unworthiness

Afraid to even stand at a distance in the presence of holiness

But just as I turned to go, the gates swung open wide

And the King and His only Son, they invited me inside"

Verse 2  The Invitation by Steven Curtis Chapman

Philippians 2:25-30 Silent Heroes

Philippians 2:25 But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. 26 For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. 

28 Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. 29 Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, 30 because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.

Silent heroes.... don'tcha love these guys?   I have this great fondness for these saints who are so briefly mentioned in Scripture that we usually miss them.  

Paul is in prison in Rome at the time of this writing, and the Philippians, dealing with their own persecution, sent Epaphroditus to care for Paul's needs. The selfless care their mentor modeled, they now demonstrate.   I'm not sure, but I'll betcha 2 gelatos that this guy wasn't hopping on a flight with Delta to get there.   I'm looking at the map and shaking my head.... 800 miles if you walked directly west and crossed the Adriatic Sea in between.  *Heavy sigh.  

If my husband parks far away, I joke: "That's ok, I can take a cab from here". If I leave town without GPS on my phone, you won't see me for days.  But this guy?... no car, no phone, no Chick-Fil-A ... even when he's sick. 

Epaphroditus gets there and he is almost to the point of death.  I am sure that a trek like that would involve some serious physical sacrifice just to minister to Paul's needs and bring the gift from the Philippians.  Instead of taking care of himself, he is worried about Paul. Ugh... I feel this need to make him a pot of Pasta Fagioli, except I'm a few hundred years too late. I wish I could ask him about it.. maybe one day.

   

I've had the honor of knowing some silent heroes like this... living with devastating loss, shattered dreams, thinking they'd be relaxing at this stage of life and instead raising their grandkids, and some carrying burdens that would snap me in two.  Yet they pour out anything that's left to care for others... mind-boggling and inspiring... it is so clearly Christ on display. I wanna be like that when I 'grow up'.  Silent heroes.  Right there in our midst and we don't even know it.  We judge by the outside and don't make time to know what's inside, and so we miss God's glory on display in them.

We see it again - the best leaders are those who are willing to humbly minister to the needs of others, even while struggling themselves. Paul, Timothy and Epaphroditus were either sharing the gospel or pouring into others in the body of Christ.  

"Epaphroditus".... his name shows up twice in all of Scripture and only in the book of Philippians.... the words are few, but the lesson is profound.   #goalsgoalsgoals