Philippians — Chapter 3

What does it mean to be a Christian? People who have been in church for any length of time may believe this question is something that doesn’t need to be addressed. But even Paul writes about this, saying that it is good for Christians to be reminded of the core truths of the gospel. In this sermon on Philippians 3:3 titled “The True Christian,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones reviews one of the most central parts of Scripture—what it means to be a follower of Christ. First, to be a Christian, one must believe in God. This, too, can seem like an obvious statement, yet according to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, it must be said. One can worship religion without worshipping God. True worship is worship in the Spirit. Second, the true Christian has no confidence in human effort, experience, or heritage in order to find justification before God. In and of themselves, they are hopeless to earn their way to a right relationship with God. All are entirely dependent on God’s free gift of salvation to be made right with God. Third, the true Christian rejoices. Dr. Lloyd-Jones presses the urgency that no one rejoice in Christ unless they believe in the Scriptural account of Jesus and trust His salvation.

Becoming a Christian always involves change. There can be no new life without a putting to death of the old life. There can be no new way of living without a stopping of the old way of living. In this sermon on Philippians 3:7 titled “Gain to Me…,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones discusses the conversion of Paul and particular hindrances that were present for Paul, and can still hinder people from coming to the Lord. He shows that Paul could have boasted in his birth as a Jew, his ability and knowledge as a Pharisee, and his zeal and sincerity as a persecutor of the church. However, none of these things are sufficient to save anyone. Dr. Lloyd-Jones points out that many think that to be Christian is to be sincere, knowledgeable, and zealous about God and good things. However, none of these address their relationship with God or their sin. In fact, Paul counts all of these things as trash in comparison with knowing Christ. Furthermore, no one can seek out God by the strength of their own mind. If anyone is to know God it will be through God’s self-revelation through His word. Dr. Lloyd-Jones also discusses true fruit of a converted Christian and implores his listeners to examine themselves.

How can Christians say that all loss is gain in Christ? This seems like an odd statement. Why is it good to lose things? In this sermon from Philippians 3:7–8 titled “The Loss of All Things,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones teaches about the new life that comes by believing in Jesus Christ. He says that Christians must count all worldly greatness as nothing because now they have Christ who is infinitely better than everything else. All those who are now in Christ undergo a radical change that reorients their whole life. Believers have new desires and motives; they now love God and His ways. Christianity is not a mere addition to a person’s natural life, but it totally transforms them. It is a new way of living that calls Christians to new standards and values. It is a life of peace because all believers can truly know that they have been saved and are at peace with God in Jesus Christ. This is the most important message that any can hear because it tells that they can be saved and made new. It tells that Jesus offers new life to all who believe in Him. There is peace in the blood of Jesus.

In this sermon on Philippians 3:12 titled “How One Becomes a Christian,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones continues his series on core truths of Christianity. Perhaps one does not know Jesus Christ, but they are being convicted of their need to be forgiven of sin. Perhaps they are asking how to become a Christian. In this sermon, Dr. Lloyd-Jones preaches on this and addresses related topics to help understand what one must do to be saved. To start, Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains why all are in need of a savior. The answer is because everyone’s life is going the wrong direction. From the Apostle Paul’s example, he shows what else must happen to be saved. First, they must be arrested by Christ—that is, He must catch their attention and they must realize the eternal danger they are in without Him. Second, they must be convicted about personal sin and feel the weight of sins that have separated them from God. Third, they must be convicted of the truth that the charges Scriptures levels against them, and surrender to them—not fighting them or making excuses. In this way, they hand themselves over to Christ, and as Dr. Lloyd-Jones says, this is essentially what happens when people realize their need for Christ and come to Him.

What lessons can finance teach about salvation? In this sermon on Philippians 3:7 titled “An Honest Audit,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones tackles this question and provides helpful insight into the steps that one must take in order to analyze the standing of their relationship to God. Paul writes that what he had previously counted as gain, he now counts as loss. Someone who receives Christ realizes that in the past they had deceived themselves, refusing to face the facts about how they were separated from God. Scriptures calls all to think carefully about eternal matters, and to adjust their lives accordingly. Dr. Lloyd-Jones draws a comparison between this and a financial audit. Just as companies are to take extreme measures to examine the state of their financial health, so Christians are called by God to take stock of where they are spiritually. All believers must take a spiritual audit. There are many reasons why people are hesitant to audit themselves, but Dr. Lloyd-Jones helps them understand why they must not let this fear keep them from the truth of such an important matter. Listen as he teaches from Philippians about the importance of a spiritual audit and how Christians can conduct one for their lives.

Christianity is to be central to one’s life and completely captivate thoughts, actions, and the way one lives. Unlike many other worldviews and religions, it is very experiential. Christians are called not only to know more about Christ, but they are called to experience the fullness of life that He provides. The gospel was intended to be woven into every aspect of the Christian’s being. In this sermon on Philippians 3:8 titled “An Experience of Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones points to the Apostle Paul, reminding of what this looks like when played out in reality. He gave up everything and suffered persecution because of the gospel. When one becomes a Christian, the whole person is involved. Christ takes over all of one’s being when they submit to Him. Another way that salvation changes the Christian is that it is always increasing in value. How is this seen in Scripture? Paul was very honest in saying that Christ had made everything else in the world seem like trash in comparison. When the treasures of this world are compared to the excellencies of Christ, they are shown to be ultimately worthless. Dr. Lloyd-Jones concludes by providing examples of these excellencies of Christ and what they mean for the life of believers.

How does being a Christian change one’s life? In his sermon on Philippians 3:8–9 titled “Living in the Light of Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that it changes everything about the Christian as it totally reorients and directs them to Christ. Before one sees Christ, they are lost in darkness and alienated from God and His love. They live according to the principle of sin and evil. But when the Holy Spirit gives the gift of salvation, the person is moved out of this kingdom of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of God. Christians now are to leave the world and its sinful desires behind and pursue Christ and His kingdom. How does one know that they are a Christian? They are to test themselves and see if they are in the faith and truly believers. All Christians ought to know that they are truly saved and live knowing that they are loved by God because Christ has made Himself known. God gave His word in the Old and New Testaments and in these Scriptures is found God’s will for His people and the way that Christians are to live. But most importantly they find the gospel of grace that frees them from sin and reveals the God of all love and peace.

In this sermon on Philippians 3:10-11 titled “A Man in Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches on the biblical view of Christianity—one that fills people with joy. More than just knowing facts about Jesus, Christianity is about personally knowing Jesus Himself. Part of the way this is seen is through the Holy Spirit, the helper God sent to live inside of believers to help them as they live in a world hostile to Jesus. The Holy Spirit helps to live and handle everything life throws, spiritually and otherwise. What does it mean to follow Christ in the midst of these struggles? Dr. Lloyd-Jones elaborates on the riches of the blessings that come along with pursuing Christ and choosing to follow Him instead of the fleeting pleasures of the world. Echoing the words of the Apostle Paul, he reminds that Christians are to count everything else as rubbish when compared to the glory of Christ. This, however, is not the joyless walk that some imagine it to be—rather, those who follow Christ like this are filled with the utmost joy because they are satisfied in Christ, the only one who can truly satisfy their longings.

What sets the Christian apart from everyone else? In this sermon on Philippians 3:12–17 titled “Apprehended by Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones shares that it is the Christian’s knowledge and pursuit of Christ that separates them from all others. Christianity is not about external actions, nor is it about passionless religiosity, but Christianity is about Christ Jesus. It was the Apostle Paul who came to know Christ when Jesus appeared to him and transformed him. This was an immediate interaction with the risen Christ who called Paul to a life of service and suffering as a Christian. Jesus calls all believers to forsake their pride and arrogance, and to trust in Him. This sermon asks: “do you have a knowledge of Christ that transforms you? Are you trusting in Jesus or yourself?” In its fallen state, the world trusts in itself to solve all its problems, but the Christian is totally different. The Christian flees all vain worldly wisdom and trusts in God. Only Christianity shows all how they ought to live; only Christianity can provide true answers to life’s deepest questions. This is because only Christianity offers the true hope of the gospel and salvation from all sin and evil.

In this sermon on Philippians 3:18–19 titled “Enemies of the Cross,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones addresses two common lies: works are all that matter or that works don’t matter at all. Furthermore, he discusses the traits that an enemy of the cross possesses. These are excellent tests to apply while listening to this sermon and examining the soul: “is my mind set on earthly things? Am I interested in spiritual realities? Does my appetite for food, sex, or material goods rule what I do? Am I proud of things that Scripture says are shameful?” Paul describes enemies of the cross in these ways and says that their end is destruction. Dr. Lloyd-Jones points out that the enemies of Christ are short sighted; they think about temporary things. They are given to temporary and fleeting desires, and don't have enough foresight to see that these things will come to an end in wrath and destruction. In contrast, the Christian is concerned with eternal realities and pleasing God rather than their fleshly desires. Moreover, their end is not destruction but vindication and fulfillment from Almighty God.

Many people believe that through education and government the world will become progressively better. War will cease, and poverty will have ended according to these optimists. However, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones argues from Philippians 3:20-21 that this misplaced confidence in human goodness and progress is misguided and contradicted by God’s Word. For in Scripture we see that men are perpetually sinful. This is because all men are in the flesh and under sin and the judgment of God. Sadly, many Christians have fallen into a similar error when they say that the goal of Christianity is to make the world a better place by moralism and social programs. They say that by working to make society a better place we will bring the Kingdom of God to earth. Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that this is a distortion of the purpose of the church, for the church is not just another institution of social reform, but it has been entrusted to take the Gospel to all the nations. This Gospel is the only means of true transformations because it alone has the power to renew the hearts of men and give them new natures. It alone has the power to overcome sin, the flesh, and the devil.

In this passage from Philippians, Paul reminds the congregation that their citizenship is within heaven and that they no longer belong to this world. In this sermon on Philippians 3:21 titled “The Christian Message,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones declares that this message is just as important for Christians today as it was for Christians back then. When a person is saved, that individual does not undergo merely a slight change. That person is a new creation, bought by the redeeming blood of Jesus Christ. Being a Christian is more than adding church or Bible reading to one’s life. After a person is saved, he or she enters the kingdom of God. They no longer need to be concerned with the things of this world, as so many people are. Money, power, and property only matter in this life. While these things may provide security within their time, Dr. Lloyd-Jones reminds that they do not provide the eternal safety like the gospel. Only the good news can save and satisfy. However, unlike the citizenship of the world, entering the kingdom of God is free. Dr. Lloyd-Jones invites those who have yet to trust in God to do so, for Christ will not refuse anyone.