One Religious Guy

If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless. 

        Philippians 3:4b-6

Paul is not bragging. He’s not trying to make us look toward him in a favorable light. He’s not at all attempting to prop himself up, spiritually speaking. Quite the opposite. This is Paul’s testimony. And in order for us to completely appreciate the saving power of God, even in the life of an extremely religious person, we have to, first, understand who Paul was before his conversion, before he met the Person of Jesus Christ for the first time. And what better way to hear about someone’s former life, before Christ, than firsthand, from the man himself. 

Paul begins his testimony with a brief explanation of his climb to the top off Judaism. Paul was formerly known as Saul the Pharisee and when he says that he had far more of a mind to put confidence in his religion and in his adherence to such, he wasn’t kidding. When it comes to Judaism, Paul had reached the pinnacle. If this were a scout troop, we could say that there were no more badges for Paul to acquire. He did it all. He had achieved it all. He had acquired it all. But as he unpacks his former life as a Pharisee, we should take note of what he had done versus that of what his parents did. Consider the following:

“Circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin…”

Why is this important? These are all things that happened as a matter of his birth. In other words, being “circumcised on the eighth day,” was not something that Paul had anything to do with. As an eight day old baby, Paul would not only have not remembered this event but would not have had any say in the decision at all. This was 100% a decision that his parents made based on their understanding of the religious requirements under the old covenant. 

Important Point #1: Your Parents Cannot Save You

No one that enters into the kingdom of heaven does so because of their linage. Certainly, you may have been blessed to have been raised in a Christian home, taken to church in your early years, and exposed to the gospel. But nothing that your parents are, were, or have done, has any saving effect in your life. Salvation is a personal decision that every man, woman, and child must make on their own. Under the old covenant, Jewish parents were to have their male children circumcised on the eighth day. But there is no equivalent to this under the new covenant in Christ. When parents decide to dedicate their child to the Lord in front of a watching, Christian congregation, they are doing just that…dedicating them. But this parental decision has no saving effect on the child. The parents may falter in their raising of the child to love the Lord. The child may grow up to be a prodigal and reject everything that their parents tried to teach them. The scenarios are endless but the truth remains the same. Your parents can’t save you. Your parents cannot bring you into the kingdom of God and Christ. The church for centuries has adopted doctrines and teachings that are, lovingly and respectfully, unbiblical. Babies are not baptized. They can be dedicated but not baptized. New covenant baptism is by immersion, as demonstrated to us by God Himself (Matthew 3:13-17), and always comes after an authentic conversion to Christ. We have no examples in new testament scripture in which a new believer undergoes baptism prior to their being born again, including Paul. It simply does not happen. Baptism comes after one is born again and is the first act of obedience that the new Christian makes by proclaiming, to the world, their new life in Christ. As we go beneath the waters of baptism, this symbolizes the death of our former lives apart from Christ and when we emerge from the water, this symbolizes our new life in Christ. Our parents can have all of the good intentions in the world, based on their understanding of religious things but our parents can’t save us. That is something that we must experience in our own lives whether we had Christian parents or not. 

So, Paul is explaining why he had all the confidence in the world in his religious performance and the first thing that he mentions, was an action take by his parents. But consider the second part of his statement:

“Circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin…”

When he mentions the nation of Israel and the specific tribe in which he was born, the tribe of Benjamin, again he refers to his bloodline. Nothing here points to anything that he personally achieved, he just begins with the facts about the family to which he was born.

Important Point #2: The Are No Second Generation Christians

The term “second generation” doesn’t mean that Christian parents can’t see their children also grow up to be God-loving, Spirit-filled, Christ followers. We certainly hope that this is the reality in our families. What it means is that no one enters the kingdom of God because their parents or grandparents were saved. Just like our parent’s inability to save us is the reality that none of us are Christians because dad was a pastor or grand pappy was an evangelist. Praise God, if we have people in our families that are serving God with their whole heart, but the actions and faith of those individuals doesn’t confer to us saving faith or eternal life. Again, salvation comes into our lives through prayer and comes to those who, in humility and a recognition of their own desperate, spiritual condition, cry out to God for salvation, solely based on what Christ has already done for us on the cross (Romans 10:13). Then, obedience to follow Christ in believer’s baptism becomes the first step in our new life in Christ, having been spiritually transformed and moved from spiritual death to spiritual life (Colossians 1:13-14). Nothing that we find in the New Testament indicates that actions taken on the part of our parents or our bloodline have anything to do with our salvation and with receiving eternal life. These ideas are simply manufactured and are completely contrary to the truth of God’s Word (The Bible). 

But beyond Paul’s family and bloodline came his own achievements in Judaism, things in which he did have a direct hand. Consider his words:

“As to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.” 

Three things in which we should pay close attention. First, “As to the Law, a Pharisee.” We need to appreciate what it meant in that day for a man to become a Pharisee. This wasn’t your everyday, run-of-the-mill, Jewish man. He studied, he labored, he achieved. A Pharisee was the most respected in the Jewish community, not just for their religious status but for their knowledge. They were experts in the Jewish Law. These are the men that wold have received dinner invitations from people as a show of respect. They were men that, in that world, you would have gone to in order to get spiritual counseling and guidance. The more we learn about Pharisees, the more we can appreciate the reaction that Jesus (God incarnate) received from them when He came on the scene. Paul was a Pharisee; learned, skilled, and respected by all. 

Secondly, consider this, “As to zeal, a persecutor of the church.” Paul wasn’t all talk, quite the contrary. He walked the walk. He was action-oriented. Not only did he view the Christian faith, and those who began to follow Christ, as heresy, he knew how dangerous these “new” teachings were to the religious system that had already been established. 

Important Point #3: The Religious Are Often Threatened When Confronted With Truth

A quick look at the history of the Christian church will yield some startling facts. For centuries the church was used as a political, social mechanism. What God did for us in Christ is sometimes stripped away from the unsuspecting, those brought up in a religious system that teaches unbiblical principles, sometimes demanding strict adherence to the proper protocol. Some of this hypocrisy was addressed during the Reformation, yet what was intended to challenge the corrupt religious system of the day can easily morph into even more religious systems, just taking on different names. But a brief look into the scripture, something that some religious systems don’t want their parishioners to do, will yield the truth regarding what it means to be a Spirit-filled, Christian, enjoying salvation, forgiveness, and spiritual freedom, something that only comes to those who have been born again (John 3:3). 

Paul was threatened by these Christ followers and he took action. Often traveling from place to place with the sole intention of having believers in Jesus beaten, jailed, or even killed. Paul was zealous for his faith and his position in Judaism and he was ready to take action. 

Important Point #4: The Truth Is Known When We Receive The Holy Spirit

Paul believed everything that he was doing against the early church was in accordance with what God would want. This is what dead religion does. It takes the dynamic, powerful Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit of God and reduces it to a set of religious obligations and rules. Paul thought he was doing what was right but he was wrong. And what was the turning point for Paul thinking he knew the truth to actually discovering it? It was the day that he met Jesus for the first time (Acts 9). He didn’t meet physical Jesus, as the disciples knew Him, but make no mistake about it, he met Jesus that day. And this is an important point, a truth that can be the difference between spiritual death and spiritual life, eternal separation from God and being heaven-bound. Religious motion based on well established religious systems, based on teaching contrary to the Word of God, will not save us. Paul didn’t know that but after meeting Jesus, he did. The same is true for you and me. We will not know the truth until we meet the Person of Jesus Christ. And just like Paul, we probably won’t meet Him as physical Jesus, but when we are saved, we, in the truest sense of the word, “meet” Jesus. And when He comes into our lives, all of the minutia and confusion surrounding religion and religious systems becomes crystal clear. And after salvation, as Christians, we have two irreplaceable resources that guide us and keep us from falling for religious ideas and philosophies that simply are not of God. Those two resources are the Spirit of God, living within our hearts, and the Word of God, the Bible. And it is the presence of God living with us, working in tandem with this living and active, God-breathed book, that shines the light of truth into our minds, hearts, and souls (Hebrews 4:12, 2 Timothy 3:16). Walking with Christ everyday is not mundane, anything but. It is not boring, dead, as some religious beliefs are, nor is it misleading. Walking with Jesus everyday, filled with the Spirit of God, and spending time with Him in His Word, will yield a life that is superior to all other human existence (John 10:10). Those alive in Christ will hunger for the Word while the religious will not, often avoiding it altogether. Paul went from religious Pharisee to Spirit-filled Christian the day that he met Jesus!

But thirdly, consider these words: “As to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.” Paul viewed his life as a Pharisee as a life lived “by the Law.” Under Jewish Law, Paul’s own testimony of his performance is described in one word, “blameless.” 

Important Point #5: Good Works Will Not Save Us

For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.

  Romans 3:28

Do you know who wrote the words in the above passage? That’s right! Paul did. The guy who believed himself to have achieved the greatest pinnacle of status in Judaism, even describing his former life as “blameless,” is now proclaiming the truth…that none of us are saved by good works rather by faith in what Christ did for us on the cross. Don’t forget what caused this man’s 180 degree turn from religion to salvation. The day Paul met Jesus, everything changed. The same is true today. This world has changed and continues to do so. But God hasn’t changed and neither has the gospel. There is only one way that a human being is saved, through faith in Jesus Christ. There are no “good people” in the eyes of God. There are no people that are going to buy their way to heaven through pious living or good works. When we receive the Holy Spirit at our conversion, we are saved. All others, apart from Christ, are lost and without spiritual life, being void of the Holy Spirit. In his former life, Paul was devout. But his dedication was rooted in everything that was wrong. In fact, his understanding was founded on everything that God had established under the old covenant. But Paul needed to make the jump from the old covenant to the new covenant in Jesus. 

Important Point #6: Some Religious Systems Have Elements Of The Old Covenant

When we receive salvation in Jesus, moving from spiritual death to spiritual life, being filled with the Spirit, we move into salvation through the new covenant. This covenant will remain until the return of Christ. But until then, this is how people are saved. When religious systems base some of their practices on old covenant leanings, they display a lack of understanding of the new covenant. We are no longer promoting life by the “letter of the Law” rather we are proclaiming life by the power of God’s Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:6). 

Baptizing infants, (similar to circumcision under the old covenant), going to the clergy to access God, or participating in religious actions as a way of keeping, maintaining, or preserving salvation for another week, month, or year, are all examples of borrowing from the old covenant. But contrast that to life under the new covenant. 

(1) We baptize believers, those who have already come to saving faith in Jesus Christ, having been born again. Salvation comes first, then, we follow through in believer’s baptism. As we read about the first century church, we notice that people came to saving faith first, then they were brought to be baptized. This is consistent throughout all of the New Testament. 

(2) We have no need to have a human being be our mediator to God. As Christians, we have direct access to God. We enjoy fellowship with the Father and can have open conversations with Him, anytime and anywhere. The veil has been torn and Jesus is now our Mediator between God and ourselves (Matthew 27:51, 1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 4:14-16). 

(3) And we have no need to keep, maintain, or preserve our salvation from week to week, month to month, or year to year. When we belong to Christ, having been born again, we are secure in the finished work of the cross. Our eternity security is with us the moment we surrender our lives to Christ (John 10:27-30). 

So, do we, as Christians, study and meditate on the Old Testament? Of course we do! All of God’s Word, from Genesis to Revelation, is God-breathed and useful for our spiritual growth and development. But as we study the Old Testament, we do so without putting ourselves under the old covenant. This is an important distinction that we need to make when teaching and preaching out of the Old Testament (something that I love doing!). We value the old covenant while enjoying salvation under the new and making sure that we are living by faith in Jesus and in the power of the Spirit of God (John 3:18, Ephesians 3:16). 

Paul is not bragging. He is not wanting for us to be impressed with his ascension into Judaism. Paul is setting the proper background of his former life so that he can begin the most powerful part of his testimony…what Jesus did for him! He is going to illustrate just how that encounter with Christ changed his life forever and altered, for all of eternity, his perspective on what it truly means to know God and serve Him!