The Place to Be #51

 

Philippians 3:1  Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you. 2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh—

When a preacher says "finally", that means he's about half-way through his message.  The end of chapter 2 did sound like he was wrapping things up, as he talked about his hoping to see them soon, sending Timothy even sooner, then saying he would be sending Epaphroditus even sooner than that with this letter. What he is doing is shifting gears, giving warnings and exhortations, applications for what he has said. First, and foremost, he would rather be safe than sorry, and warns them to beware false teachers. There were various groups of them the early church had to beware.  There was, and still is a tendency for two major errors: syncretizing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our old beliefs, religions, and lifestyles, or going back, at least partially, into trusting our old "saviors."  In more than one of the churches to which Paul wrote, there were some who wanted to go back to Jewish ceremonies and laws as a requirement for salvation and/or sanctification.  For others, there was difficulty "letting go" of old sinful lifestyles or idols. Both boiled down to "Christ and...", but the Gospel demands "Christ alone" as God's means of salvation, as well as spiritual growth and fellowship with God.  Anything else is depending on ourselves instead of Him.