It is important for saved people to understand that our hope is in the Lord. He will never let us down. The true child of God has his confidence in the Lord, and thus they will come around to be like minded. That is what Paul wrote in Philippians 2. Unity comes when true saints submit to the Word and Will of God.
The false teachers are troublers. They add nothing of value to salvation or the Christian life. They look to destroy confidence and peace. Paul warned that they are under God’s judgment. It does not matter how much money they have or what position they hold, God holds each false teacher or false professor guilty before His holy Word. No one will get away with twisting God’s Word and trying to lead people astray.
In verse 11 Paul reminded the saints that if he preached circumcision, why was he then being persecuted. The devil does not fight against his own. If Paul would have simply agreed with the Judaizers, they would not have bothered him. However, as a born again Christian, he could not agree with them. They were wrong and they were evil. Their lies needed to be exposed. The saints needed to understand that a true child of God cannot entertain false teaching. A true child of God cannot accept false teaching. God’s way is called “the narrow way” because it is only God who saves through the blood of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul stated that if he preached circumcision, the offence of the cross would end. Lost people take offence to the message of the cross. Many lost people like to wear a cross as a piece of jewellery. They do not mind that. However, when they are told what the cross is really all about, they are offended. They do not want to be told they are lost sinners.
I was told just recently there are certain things that you need to say to a 6 year old that you cannot say to a twelve year old. The twelve year old does not want to be reminded to wash his hands or to say please and thank you. In fact many 6 year olds do not like to be told that either.
If a twelve year old does not want to take care of practical things they need to be reminded. It is pride that interferes with learning. It is pride that interferes with doing right. Whether a person is 6 or twelve or 40 or 80, they all need to reminded of the importance of true Biblical salvation. Those who are saved do not speak in a condescending manner. They speak with a heart of love. They desire to see others know God’s peace.
In verse 12 Paul wished that the Judaizers were gone. He wished they were not alive any longer. He was not going to kill them. He was not going to call on the Roman soldiers to arrest them. He wished that God would remove them. However, God knew better and He was and is longsuffering. He does not want any to perish. He wants the Judaizers and other false teachers to be saved.
Thus, while Paul understood the harm the Judaizers were doing, he also understood the need for patience. He did not understand that as well as God did, but he was not going to interfere with God’s plan.
This world is not a perfect world. Heaven is the place where only truth will exist. There will be no false teachers in heaven. There will be no wolves in sheep’s clothing in heaven. Only truth will be in heaven. Everything will revolve around God and the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the place every true child of God is looking forward to. That is the goal that every true child of God has. Their lives on this earth are governed by that goal.
In verse 13 Paul reminded the saints that they were called unto liberty. The Christian life is the only life that brings liberty. Lost people often think they are liberated and the saved person is under bondage. They look at the multitude of sins they are involved in and they think that true saints are missing out. They do not see what they are doing as sin. They think it is the normal way of living. They complain that Christians cannot have any fun. They do not know what true joy is.
Moses understood that Pharaoh’s court offered many things. He could see the seeming fun that Pharaoh and his servants had. He knew that the pleasures of sin only last for a season. He chose to identify with the nation of Israel, even though they were being treated poorly at that time. He knew that God had something much better in store for them than that which Pharaoh and his host had.
Paul reminded the saints that they should not use their liberty as an occasion to the flesh which is sin. The born again child is motivated by the love of God. When that love is in place, the saints will serve one another. True Christians cannot be selfish. They need to think of the good of others. They need to guard against being a stumblingblock to another saint. They want to build up the body of Christ and they also want to be a good testimony to the lost.
In I Corinthians 8, Paul stated that he would not eat meat if he knew it would offend a weaker brother. Paul did not say eating meat was sin. He did not say he would become a vegetarian. He would forgo eating meat in the presence of a saint who had recently been saved out of idolatry. He would teach that saint that an idol is nothing and when that new saint understood that, eating meat with thanksgiving to the Lord would not be offensive to him. That is just one example of Paul’s teaching here.
God wants His children to keep the well-being of other saints in mind.
In verse 14 Paul reminded the saints of the important commandment to keep in mind. This is not law keeping. It is the nature of the true child of God. We need to love one another. In verse 15 we see that we cannot bite and devour one another. Christians do not accept sin in another brother. They work to bring that brother along in the love of God. If a professing saint insists on sinning, and wants to attack those who are true saints, there will never be unity or harmony. The disobedient child of God needs to be rebuked and corrected. If he or she insists on having it their way, they cannot be part of the true body of believers. They need to be rejected. The truth must dominate in the house of God and among God’s people. Lost people can attend, but they cannot interrupt and try to turn things to their benefit. Those who fight against the truth will discover that their fight will consume them. They will miss out on God’s blessings because they are preoccupied with their own selfish agenda.
True saints will submit to God’s Word. They will need to be taught the truth and they will desire to know the truth. They will grow and learn because they are true saints. False professors will argue and fight even when they are wrong. The Bible is not their final authority. They believe they are wiser than God. Of course they are fools, but in their minds, they have arrived at a higher level and others need to catch up to them.
True saints stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made them free.
Pastor Bartel