“Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith. Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved. For we who worship by the Spirit of God are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort,”
Philippians 3:1-3 NLT
Paul had no confidence in the flesh. This didn’t mean that he hated himself by western standards. It means that he had a proper understanding of what the flesh could be reasonably expected to accomplish. He understood what its needs and limitations were. In conjunction, he also understood the nature of the flesh as it worked in tandem with the spirit. This allowed him to understand the proper economy and order of how it worked. It is a simple understanding, yet without it, there is grave consequences. Paul knew that flesh based efforts led to earthly outcomes. This was his prime crime. His fleshly path was paved with good intentions and it led to his murderous nature flourishing. He outlines a simple truth by which to avoid this: rejoice in the Lord. Those in the flesh tend to be resentful of this. There is rarely a sense of accomplishment, peace, and hope to their works. This is because they are not sanctified works. We must remember that when we are sanctified, we are being transformed into what we are already given credit for by our faith in Christ’s death. Those who seek to earn credit for their work are not accepting the power of Christ’s death. Their every confidence is in their flesh. It is a fine but necessary line.
JOSH McGARY. COM 