Spiritual fidelity — Faves of Dave - Bible Study

Phil. 3:17 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Phil. 4:1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.

It would be so easy to read the first half of verse 17 and think, “Wow! Paul sure thinks highly of himself.” The only problem is that we would be wrong. Why am I so certain of that? The first reason is that Paul has already told us about his past credentials that he used to his benefit prior to his conversion experience with the Lord. He had authority and “the stage,” to use a contemporary expression, as a means by which to command attention to himself and gain a following. But he threw it all away upon coming to Christ. He knew that none of those credentials put him in a right-standing position with God. Only relying on the righteousness of Christ was sufficient.

The second reason is that Paul preempts his readers' understanding that he has arrived at sinless perfection. He makes it very clear that he hasn’t and it will not happen until he receives a glorified body in the resurrection. Paul has been attempting to minimize any elevated thoughts the Philippians might have toward him. So, he is not backtracking on that now.

The third reason is that Paul is incarcerated and suffering persecution for his faith. In exhorting these believers to “imitate me” (v. 17), Paul encourages them to be strong in their faith, even if it leads to persecution. There is no ego in Paul’s exhortation. In fact, the words that follow “imitate me” expand the point that they are to follow the model of anyone who has walked in the same way.

Paul then quickly juxtaposes those who walk in a way modeled for them with spiritual impostors, and the Philippian believers should be able to identify them. In verse 19, he says of these others, “their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.” Paul says that those people are on a path to destruction. He is telling the Philippians, “Don’t act like that because nothing good will come from it.” (My paraphrase) The manner in which Paul and others who live in a similar way are thinking about eternity and ultimate presence with the Lord.

Those who stand firm in their faith in Jesus Christ have a “citizenship in heaven,” and we look forward to Christ’s return, when we will receive a different, eternal body designed for eternity with him.

In our culture and age, image is everything. Gaining attention and a following is a popular trend in our society. It could be through a YouTube channel, TikTok, or some other social media platform. People spend a lot of money attempting to live a little longer and look a little younger at the same time. But they cannot escape the fact that the end of that is death and destruction. The material things and the attention we often seek in this life are all fragile and limited. We all need Jesus to give us hope for what lies ahead in eternity with God.

4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

I could probably write a blog post for every verse in this section. But I just couldn’t bring myself to split it up. This is a powerful message that resonates with a theme that began in the Garden of Eden. Look at the indictment that begins this section.

“You adulterous people!” (v. 4) Who is he talking to? He is writing to Christians. We often use the word adultery for someone who is unfaithful to their spouse. But James uses it to accuse the recipients of this letter of being unfaithful to God. Isn’t that what Adam and Eve did when they disobeyed the LORD’s command not to eat the fruit of one tree? The LORD had given them instruction to enjoy as much as they wanted from every other tree except for that one. However, the serpent sought to first deceive Eve and then provoke her pride; “You will be like God.” (Gen. 3:5) She already was “like God” in as much as she had been made in God’s image. However, the serpent convinced her she could be more if she only ignored God’s command and warning. The LORD had been more than faithful to her. But she chose to compromise her fidelity to the LORD.

The theme of spiritual adultery against the LORD continues throughout the Old Testament and is especially highlighted as the Israelites repeatedly fail to obey the LORD during the departure from Egypt and later after the time of Joshua and throughout the divided kingdom after Solomon’s death. Time and again, we see the LORD graciously redeeming His people and showing them mercy and love, but people doing “what is right in their own eyes.” (See Judges 21:25) They are unfaithful to the LORD.

James says there are two kinds of people; friends of God and friends of the world. As a person who sees strong consistency between Paul and James rather than a contrast, this teaching reminds me of Paul’s argument in Romans 5 where he describes our natural state as an enemy of God. Yet he writes that God’s love for us is so great that Christ died to make his enemies his friends. That is love and fidelity beyond imagination and where I think James takes us in verses 5-6. How tragic it is that people who’ve accepted God’s love, mercy, and grace and have experienced that divine faithfulness choose to disregard that and become adulterous and act in ways consistent with our natural, fallen condition. That is the indictment James is leveling against these believers.

Notice after the harsh indictment of verse 4, James’ tone turns toward a redemptive call to these same people. “Do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? This reference to Scripture is not a direct quotation of any particular passage I could find, and scholars seem to be stymied by this as well. What is clear is that James understands the “Scriptures” ( What we call the Old Testament) to communicate the idea, at the very least, that God wants our devotion to being directed toward Him. Why would this be? It’s because He wants what is best for us. James follows this with “But He gives more grace . . . (v. 6a)

Do you see this? James says to these Christians to whom he is writing, “You are being unfaithful to God. But God will not be unfaithful to you.” (My interpretation) What does Paul say about this notion? “What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? 4 By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar” . . . (Rom. 3:3-4a) James and Paul both extol God’s grace as a means to woo his unfaithful followers back to Him.

The path to getting back where the LORD wants us requires humility in contrast to the kind of pride evoked within Adam and Eve. In verse 6, James says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble,” and in verse 10, he says, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.”

Verses 7-10 offer a number of actions we are to do as we decide we want to follow the Lord and seek His ways over our own. We must “submit to God” and “resist the devil.” (v. 7) I believe the key to all of this is found in the first part of verse 8, “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” (v. 8a) Have you ever experienced a significant betrayal by someone close. If so, you understand the difficulty in wanting to draw near to them even if they apologize and want to make amends. Our tendency is to avoid setting ourselves up to be hurt again. Yet, God is ready to draw near to us when we will draw near to him.

I am going to leave you with that thought and this prayer.

Lord, thank you for being faithful to me even when I’ve not been faithful to you. Help me draw near to you and to remember you are with me. You are a faithful and loving God.

Episode 338 "Stand Firm in Your Faith" - Philippians 3:17-4:1

Episode 159 "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you" James 4:4-10