An Exegesis of Philippians 3:7-16

-John Dunfee

Part 1 Outline:
Paul in verse 1-6 talks about the law and how it can get to people. Watch people of false circumcision. We should put no confidence in the flesh. He also references his persecuting days of the church and how he was held up on the law. A Pharisee of the law and that righteousness’ was through the law. We should not put are confidence in just the flesh even if we have good reasons.
Verse 7- All the things he has gained; he has lost when he came to Christ.
Verse 8-  All the things Paul has lost were nothing compared to the knowledge of Christ.
Verse 9-  We do not get righteousness through the law, but from Faith alone in Jesus Christ. Righteousness comes from the basis of faith in God.
Verse 10- He wants to know the power of his resurrection from his sufferings.
Verse 11- Somehow having a glimpse of the power of the resurrection of the dead.
Verse 12- He has attained this and reached a goal, but he presses on to keep hold of what has hold on me of which Christ had hold of me.
Verse 13- Paul doesn’t consider that he has made it on his. He however does consider that he has left the past behind and is moving towards the future.
Verse 14- Paul wishes to press toward the Goal and prize of God in Christ Jesus.
Verse 15- Let those of us who are mature keep in our thinking this way. Those who differ in thinking will be made clear by God.
Verse 16- Let us live to what we have attained.
The overall argument is that the things that we use to have were nothing compared to the things that we will have in Christ. We attain this through Faith and not according to the Law. We must stay according to this to have future knowledge of the power that raised Jesus from the dead. We must forget about the past and stay with Christ through faith to obtain righteousness. Those who have different thinking will get clearance from God. We must live this way for now on.
Difference in wording through the translations, but not enough to effect the message. With three different translations you get the overall message of the passage. NIV and ESV are easier to understand, but the NASB is probably more accurate. Overall, three translations help get the overall message of the passage.
 
Rewritten:
Verse 7- The things that I’ve owned were lost for the sake of Christ.
Verse 8- All things are trash and should be loss compared to knowing Jesus Christ, I have suffered the loss of all my things, but are rubbish compared to the gain of Christ.
Verse 9- I am found in him, but do not have righteousness from the law. Only in Faith through Jesus Christ. The basis for righteousness is Faith in God.
Verse 10- The I may know his power from the resurrection and his suffering and becoming like him from his death.
Verse 11- to attain from the resurrection from the dead.
Verse 12- Not that I have already attained this or am perfect, but that I main remain with him sense he made me one of his.
Verse 13- Brothers, I have not made it on my own, but that I forget about the past and remain on the future.
Verse 14- I keep on the goal and prize and call of God in Jesus Christ.
Verse 15- Let us as we have matured keep this attitude; if any of you have a different attitude, then God will help clear it up.
Verse 16- Let keep the same standard we have attained and live by it.
 
Part 2: Inside the Passage
Key pieces of the passage
The things of which we lose to be with Christ is nothing compared to the knowledge of knowing Christ. Paul was high priest and rich and his righteousness came from the Law. He came to Christ on the way to Damascus and didn’t get the riches of this world. He got beaten and eventually killed for his conversion. He lost everything, but confesses in this passage that it is trash compared to being in union of Christ. He then talks about how righteousness is not obtained from the Law, but through faith. Faith is God in Christ Jesus from the evidence of the resurrection of the Dead Christ. Faith comes from knowing that Christ was raised from the Dead from the Power of God. Through Faith we will come to know this power in Jesus Christ. Attaining to the resurrection of the Dead is based on the power of God. 1st Corinthians 15 talks about how the resurrection is important to the Christian Faith. If the resurrection didn’t occur, then our faith would be useless. When we become truly Christian through the maturing of our old ways then we must look forward to the future as Christians. We must leave the past behind because it doesn’t apply to us anymore. We ourselves could not save ourselves or manage our spiritual lives. We must keep to the future of our Christian Life. God has his prize and goal in mind for us and must go forward with that in mind. We have been matured by God though our Faith in Jesus Christ. If we have doubts or different thinking, then God will help clear it up. We must stay in his word to get his wisdom as Christians. As Christians we must retain this new Christ like attitude as we progress in the future as Christ followers.
 
Faith- Trust based on Evidence for the Biblical definition. God raised Christ from the dead, so that’s why we should put our trust in him.
Law- The way that the Pharisees tried to live by, but in al reality our still not good by works. Righteousness comes through faith in God through Jesus Christ.
Resurrection- Christ being raised from the dead from his suffering on the Cross for the Atonement.
God- Creator of the Heaven and the Earth
Paul- Saul who persecuted the Christians as a Pharisee, but converted when he saw the resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus.
 
Resources- NASB Bible, ESV translation, NIV Bible, and The international critical commentary of Philippians and Philemon.
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