I find it interesting that Paul begins this potion of his letter with the word, “Finally.” If you look at the letter and its layout, there is nothing “final” about what Paul says here! He’s halfway through. That being said, “Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord,” is a good focal statement for us here.
How so? Let’s look at the rest of the chapter and tie this together.
Paul continues by warning the Philippians to “look out for the dogs, look out for evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh.” One of the biggest pressures Paul dealt with was from people who taught that in order to be a Christian you had to keep the Jewish traditions, and most significant of those was circumcision. They taught that a person could not be saved if they weren’t circumcised and didn’t follow the dietary laws and other traditions that the Pharisees had put on top of God’s Law.
Paul, as a Pharisee and Jew, had cherished all these things and excelled in them to the point that he could boast about his zeal and heritage. Now he says he counts those things as loss. Indeed, he calls his circumcision and all the things he had once put his confidence in skubala – rubbish is how most English Bibles translate this word. It means dung or garbage, things that go into the dung heap to rot.
What made the change in Paul? He had experienced the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus, experiencing His love and following Him. He learned what it meant to have a righteousness that didn’t come from things he had to do, but had been given to him through faith in Jesus. He had gotten a taste of God’s power in salvation and longed for more: the power of Jesus’ resurrection, the privilege of sharing in Jesus’ suffering, becoming like him in His death, and eventually rising from the dead.
Today there are many things that people cherish that in the end are dung – things that will end up on the eternal dung heap. Homes, vacations, pleasures – none of which are bad in and of themselves! – can quickly become a person’s focus and foundation for pleasure. I had an interesting talk with a man who wondered if his care for his motorcycle didn’t border on idolatry. It was a profound insight. What are the things that you get so wrapped up in that nothing else seems to matter? (I get this way with stories and have trouble walking away from books or movies when I really should be doing other more important things – like playing with my children.) And notice that I haven’t even touched on things like alcohol, drugs and pornography that latch onto people and destroy their lives. Even good things, when they become more central to our lives than Jesus is, can be spiritually ruinous. We all must learn to hold onto the things of this world more loosely and be willing to entrust them all into God’s hands.
So in the end – FINALLY – we are called to rejoice in the Lord. Of all things His Word is the only one that will last forever. Of all people he is the only one who will love us eternally. Of all hopes His is the only one that lasts beyond this world. Rejoice in Him, and then the other things that are good can be enjoyed for what they are, gifts from Him to his beloved Children, and the evil things can be shunned.
Father, help me rejoice in Jesus, and enjoy your other gifts in light of Jesus’ salvation. Amen.
How so? Let’s look at the rest of the chapter and tie this together.
Paul continues by warning the Philippians to “look out for the dogs, look out for evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh.” One of the biggest pressures Paul dealt with was from people who taught that in order to be a Christian you had to keep the Jewish traditions, and most significant of those was circumcision. They taught that a person could not be saved if they weren’t circumcised and didn’t follow the dietary laws and other traditions that the Pharisees had put on top of God’s Law.
Paul, as a Pharisee and Jew, had cherished all these things and excelled in them to the point that he could boast about his zeal and heritage. Now he says he counts those things as loss. Indeed, he calls his circumcision and all the things he had once put his confidence in skubala – rubbish is how most English Bibles translate this word. It means dung or garbage, things that go into the dung heap to rot.
What made the change in Paul? He had experienced the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus, experiencing His love and following Him. He learned what it meant to have a righteousness that didn’t come from things he had to do, but had been given to him through faith in Jesus. He had gotten a taste of God’s power in salvation and longed for more: the power of Jesus’ resurrection, the privilege of sharing in Jesus’ suffering, becoming like him in His death, and eventually rising from the dead.
Today there are many things that people cherish that in the end are dung – things that will end up on the eternal dung heap. Homes, vacations, pleasures – none of which are bad in and of themselves! – can quickly become a person’s focus and foundation for pleasure. I had an interesting talk with a man who wondered if his care for his motorcycle didn’t border on idolatry. It was a profound insight. What are the things that you get so wrapped up in that nothing else seems to matter? (I get this way with stories and have trouble walking away from books or movies when I really should be doing other more important things – like playing with my children.) And notice that I haven’t even touched on things like alcohol, drugs and pornography that latch onto people and destroy their lives. Even good things, when they become more central to our lives than Jesus is, can be spiritually ruinous. We all must learn to hold onto the things of this world more loosely and be willing to entrust them all into God’s hands.
So in the end – FINALLY – we are called to rejoice in the Lord. Of all things His Word is the only one that will last forever. Of all people he is the only one who will love us eternally. Of all hopes His is the only one that lasts beyond this world. Rejoice in Him, and then the other things that are good can be enjoyed for what they are, gifts from Him to his beloved Children, and the evil things can be shunned.
Father, help me rejoice in Jesus, and enjoy your other gifts in light of Jesus’ salvation. Amen.
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