The Pulpit Commentary — Philippians — Section 121

s?'uccly ~n~ w_,,rds to express its e~cellency. Compared with this, all other things sink mt0 rnsigmfica1_1ce;. what was gam beco,me_s loss; ~hat was glory becomes shame. F,,r tills knowkdge ~mphes the prcsenee_of Ch_nst, "(:bnst in yon, t.h~ Hope of glory." (3) 'l.'hns the Clmst1an who knows Chnst, wms Chnst to be his own his own most l01·ing S:wiour, hi~ own most gracious Friend; his very life, for "ho th;t hath the Son hath life:" And (4) h~ is found in Christ, incorpo~atcd into him, a living member of Ins mystical body, a frmtful branch of the true Vine. 2. The ri,ghf.eousness which is fhro11,gh thefait/1 of Christ. They that are found in Christ have his riahteousness. "Of him arc .,•c in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness and sanctificr,tion, and redemption" (1 Cor. i. 30). They have none of their own (that is, through their own works), for the righteousness which is in the Law is no true ri<>ht• oonsne~s, and cannot endure the all-seeing eye of God. "All our righteousnesses•a~as fil:hy rags." This righteousness is of God, not ours; and yet in some sense it is ours for it is given to us, given in the gift of Christ. "He that spared not his own Son, .. '. how· shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" This righteousness is through faith; obtained (tha.t is) through faith as the means or instrument; and it is by (or rather, upon) faith, given (that is) on condition of faith. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, a.nd thou shalt be saved," was the message delivered by St. Paul in this very Philippi. "Only believe." Faith is spiritual sight; by faith the saints in all ages have endured, "a.s se,ei,ng him who is invisible." 1"a.ith is the spiritual vision of Christ; by faith we see him dying for us upon the cross; we see Christ crucified, and recognize him as our own Saviour and Redeemer. Again, faith .is the" substance [' the assurance,' Revised Version] of things hoped for;" it is trustfulness-trustfulness, in the love and promises of Christ. It involves distrust of self, and trust only in Christ. E,er less of self, ever more of Christ, is the law of spiritual progress. Faith is the condition of right:eousnes!I. I IL THE RESULT OF THIS BELF--BE?ItrNCIATION. The eve,•-deepening knowledge of <Jhrist. St. Paul prays to be found in Christ, that he may know him. This knowledge, which he seeks so earnestly, is a.n experimental knowledge; it is an ever-increasing acquaint• a.nee with Christ, a realization of the life of Christ in his sufferings and in his exalta• tion. We need to know: I. The power of his resurrection. The resurrection of Christ is a spiritual power; it hath a power to lift ns up into the resurrection-life, the new life that is bid with Christ in God. The soul that was raised with Christ seeks those things which are above, and that through the power of the Lord's resurrection realized in the heart. His resurrection, too, is the pledge and earnest of our own resurrection, and so kindles and stimulates self-denying Christian effort. 2. To know the power of his resurrection we must know the fellowship of his sufferings. The Christian life, has joys of its own; it has also sufferings of its own. For: (1) Besides the:deep sorrow of contrition, the Christian sorrows for the griefs of others, for the sins of others, for the oppression and affiictions of the Church. And these sufferings are the sufferings of Christ; he suffers in and with his members. Hence the apostle says (Col. i. 24), "I fill up that wLich is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is tLe Church." (2) We have fellowship with Christ's sufferings when we sym- pathize with his agony, with his cross; whenJ by the energy of faith we realize the 8:i.viour's sufferings, and, knowing that our Blllll added to hie burden of woe, feel with him and for him. (3) We share his sufferings when, suffering ourselves, we offer our sufferingi; to God by an act of faith; when, fixing our hearts upon the sufferings of Christ, we unite our sufferings with hie by faith and prayer, casting all our care on him. Thus he bears our griefs and canies our so1Tows; he suffers with us and we with him. (4) 'l'hue we become, little by little, conformed unto his death. The intense contemplation of the suffering Lord gradually impresses the likeness of his death upon the belie\'ing soul. 'l'hat likeness is not outward and transient, but inward, deep, rt:al. It is formed gradually; it varies in degree in different individuals or in the differeot stages of tiie Christian life; but in all true Christians it is rea.l. It is a morti- fyiug, a crucifixion of the old man; like the Saviour's death upon the cross, slow and 1,a.iwul. But at last the believing soul struggles itself free from the body of sin and uea·h intc, the n.ew life, the life which is hid with Christ in God. IV. TaE BLESSED END. I. The resurre,;tion of the lwly dead. That resurrection is the <=uCl of all our labours here; the end for which the Christian is content to count nil OIi, ut, 1-21.) 'l'!rn EPIS'l'LE TO THE PIIILr PPIANS. 119