Citizenship of Heaven (Philippians 3:20-21)

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. All Christians know that their real home is not on this earth. We are strangers

The Shared Vision of All Christians (Philippians 3:15-16)

15 All of us, then, 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. Paul has finished telling his own story and now asks the Philippians to apply it to themselves.

The Goal of Christians (Philippians 3:12-14)

12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward

What Paul Discovered on the Road to Damascus (Philippians 3:7-11)

7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a

Saul the Pharisee (Philippians 3:3-6)

3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people

A Warning (Philippians 3:2)

2 Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.  There is no denying there is a sharp change of tone here. Remember Paul dictated his letters and probably a new idea occurred to him so he suddenly introduced it. He may also have dictated his letters over several sessions and thought of a

A Break in the Letter or a New Letter? (Philippians 3:1)

Further, my brothers and sisters, 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.  This is the most challenging verse in the letter but not for theological reasons. The Greek is very difficult to understand and has provoked much scholarly