Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents

3:4-6 Paul's opposition to the Judaizers was not because he himself in any way lacked a Jewish "pedigree." When it came to the things of the flesh--the whole system of life that held sway before the coming of Christ and the giving of the Spirit--Paul had perfect credentials. He was circumcised on the eighth day in accord with OT law (Lev. 12:3). He was an ethnic Israelite and knew the tribe from which he came. Hebrew of Hebrews probably indicates his descent from Jewish ancestors, and many think it also means that he spoke Aramaic (the national language of Israel in his day), even though he came from Greek-speaking Tarsus. He was from the strictest religious sect--the Pharisees (Acts 26:5). His zeal was such that he had even been a persecutor of the church. He probably had thought of himself as following in the footsteps of Phinehas (Num. 25:11) and Elijah (1 Kings 19:10, 14) in his zeal. If anyone could be said to be blameless in following the law, it was Paul. But before God it was no righteousness at all, for though Paul thought he was pleasing God, in persecuting the church he had shown himself to be the "foremost" of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15).

3:7-8 gain . . . loss. Paul's accounting, however, has now changed completely: what formerly went into the gain column--his power, prestige, and "obedience"--now goes into the loss column. Likewise, the crucified Messiah, whom he had assumed must be a "loss," is now seen as the ultimate "gain." The language of loss and gain probably alludes to Jesus' teaching (see Matt. 16:25-26).

3:9 Found in him means being spiritually united to Christ and therefore found not guilty before God as divine judge. Paul had trusted in a righteousness of my own based on obedience to the law rather than the right standing before God that comes through faith in Christ. God "imputes" Christ's lifelong record of perfect obedience to the person who trusts in him for salvation; that is, he thinks of Christ's obedience as belonging to that person, and therefore that person stands before God not as "guilty" but as "righteous." This is the basis on which justification by faith alone is considered "fair" in God's sight. As explained in Rom. 10:1-8, righteousness cannot come by the law because all human beings sin, and therefore right standing before God as the divine judge is possible only through faith in Jesus Christ, who is the believer's righteousness before God. See note on Gal. 2:16.

3:10-11 The goal of trusting in Christ is to know him, that is, to know Christ in a personal relationship, and also to know the power of his resurrection--namely, the power Christ exerts now from the right hand of God. But this power is made known as the believer shares the same kind of sufferings Jesus faced--the sufferings that attend faithful witness in a fallen world. The good news is that those who suffer with and for Christ will attain the resurrection from the dead, even as he did.