Quoting "Who I Am in Christ"

Philippians 3:2-4,7-11 ESV

“Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also.”

“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, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.”

The Dogs

Who were the dogs being referred to here? They were false teachers who were teaching a false gospel, which was not the gospel that Jesus taught and that his New Testament apostles taught. This reference to “dogs” was also usually symbolic of those who were spiritually and morally unclean. In this case they were adding on works of the flesh to their salvation, but today we primarily have those who are removing God’s requirements for salvation from sin, and they are making up their own version of “the gospel.”

Either way what is being taught is a man-created gospel which is loosely or partially based in the true gospel, but usually it is a distorted and altered version of the true gospel of Christ. For it is man-created to appeal to human flesh, either in a sense of pride for having accomplished certain things in the flesh, or as an “out” from having to obey the Lord’s commandments under the New Covenant, which is required of us for salvation from sin and for eternal life with God, according to the New Testament Scriptures.

So, when this says that we are the circumcision, who worship God by the Spirit, and who put no confidence in the flesh, what this is saying is that our faith in Jesus Christ is what is taught in the Scriptures, it is authored and perfected by Jesus Christ, so it originates with God, it is gifted to us by God, it is persuaded by God, and it is not of our own doing. It is not of our flesh. We cannot make up what this faith looks like from our own way of thinking, either, but this faith has to be biblical faith which is persuaded by God.

[Jn 1:12-13; Jn 6:44; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Eph 2:8-10; 1 Peter 2:24; 2 Pet 1:1; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 12:1-2]

Biblical Faith

So, what is biblical faith? How do the Scriptures define and describe what this faith looks like? Well, since the faith comes from God, it is gifted to us by God, it is not of our own doing, but it is divinely persuaded, then this faith will align with the word of God and with the teachings of Christ and of his NT apostles. And it will align with God’s will and purpose for our lives. And it will agree with what the Scriptures teach regarding the kind of faith that saves. For it requires that we forsake our sins and obey our Lord.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

So, when Paul stated that whatever gain he had in the flesh, he counted as loss for the sake of Christ, in order that he may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of his own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith, he was not saying that our faith in Jesus Christ excludes obedience to our Lord and to his commands (New Covenant). For our faith in Christ includes the forsaking of our sins and obedience to our Lord.

What he was talking about was the Judaizers who were trying to convince the Gentile Christians that they had to be circumcised and that they had to obey some of the old liturgical, ceremonial, and dietary laws and restrictions of the Old Covenant, which they did not. But Paul made it very clear in his writings that our faith has to involve us walking in obedience to the Lord and no longer in sin, or we don’t have genuine faith, we are not saved, and we do not have eternal life with God (see Scripture references above).

So, the real point of what he was saying here is that we can’t make up our own version of faith or of Christianity. We can’t alter the gospel of Christ to make it fit our own lifestyles. We don’t get to redesign God’s Word and his will and his purposes for our lives to fit the way we want to live. But this is what many are doing today. And they are conforming “the gospel” to fit the sinful lifestyles of those who want to keep their sins but who want to be promised forgiveness of all sins and heaven as their eternal destiny.

In Christ

Therefore, quoting "Who I am in Christ" does not make you "in Christ," nor does it mean that is truly who you are. For we are not what we profess we are, but we are what we do. For if some people are habitual liars, they can profess with their lips all they want that they are truth tellers and that doesn't make them truth tellers. And if they are adulterers, they can profess with their lips all they want that they are faithful and morally pure, and that doesn't make them faithful and morally pure. 

So, we need to go by what the Scriptures teach, for they teach us that the righteous in God's sight are those who are making righteousness their practice, and the ungodly are those who are living ungodly lives, not just those who make no profession of faith in Christ. So the ungodly and the wicked can include some or many people who profess Christ as Savior and Lord with their lips but who are still making sin their practice.

So, first off we need to know that we are not "in Christ" just by a mere verbal confession of Christ as Lord and Savior. The Scriptures are clear that those who are "in Christ" are those who have died with Christ to sin and who are living to God and to his righteousness, not necessarily in absolute sinless perfection, but as those who make righteousness, godliness, honesty, moral purity, and obedience to their Lord their practice, their way of life, and for whom sin is not their practice.

I Will Lift My Eyes  

An Original Work / December 12, 2012

Based off Psalms 121-125

I will lift my eyes to my Lord Most High.

My help comes from Him, who saved me from sin.

He will not let your foot slip, and He who watches will not sleep.

Our Lord watches over you, and your life He will keep.

I will lift my eyes to my Lord Most High.

My help comes from Him, who saved me from sin.

I give thanks to Him.

I will lift my eyes to my God in heav’n.

I look to the Lord. My sins, He’s forgiv’n. 

Because of His great love for us, He made us alive with Christ.

Through the kindness of our Savior, He gave us new life.

I will lift my eyes to my God in heav’n.

I look to the Lord. My sins, He’s forgiv’n; 

My home, now in heav’n. 

Praise be to the Lord, who is on our side.

Our help found in Him. He gives peace within.

Those who trust will ne’er be shaken. God will supply all we need.

Our Lord has done great things for us. He’s our friend, indeed!

Praise be to the Lord, who is on our side.

Our help found in Him. He gives peace within.

I can count on Him.

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