See the previous articles in this series:
“Press on Toward the Goal”
“Why Did Paul Press On?”
“Forget What Lies Behind”
“Keep Your Eyes on the Prize”
We all imitate someone. The question is: who are you imitating? A famous athlete? Your favorite actor? A political leader?In Philippians 3:17, the apostle Paul encourages the Philippians to imitate godly believers who are pursuing Jesus with a single-minded focus. He starts by saying “Brothers, join in imitating me.” As Paul has been talking about pressing on towards the goal of Christlikeness, he is telling them to use him as a pattern.
Is it Prideful to Say, “Imitate Me?”
Is that prideful of him to say that? No, he says this in another letter: “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Cor 11:1). The only reason that Paul is saying to follow him is because he’s following Christ. He’s basically saying, “Let’s walk together in our shared pursuit.” I’m walking behind Jesus and you can walk behind me. Let me be the model or standard because Jesus is my model or standard. He also adds other mature godly role models to that list, saying “and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.” Paul may have been thinking of Timothy and Epaphroditus, as he mentions them elsewhere in this book. We all need to have godly role models in our lives. Of course, nobody is perfect. However, it’s not the perfection of their life, but the direction of their life that is important.
If you have kids, you probably have an example of what it looks like to have someone imitate you. One thing you learn early on in your journey as a parent is that your children are always watching you. You need to be careful with how you speak and act, because your kids will start imitating you at a young age. They will use words or phrases that you use. They will act out things that you do when they’re playing.
Who Are You Imitating?
So who are you imitating? Are you imitating godly, mature Christians who will help you press on in your faith? Or are you imitating immature, worldly people who will distract you in your pursuit of being more like Jesus? In contrast to the godly examples Paul was just talking about, he turns his focus to another group that we should not imitate: enemies of the cross of Christ. In verse 18 he says, “For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.”
The word for ”enemies” speaks of more than just opposition. It speaks of enmity or hatred. Paul says many people fall into this category and it breaks his heart. He is talking about them with tears in his eyes. These were false teachers who were leading people astray. This could be the false teachers who were saying that salvation required keeping the Mosaic Law. However, it is likely referring to false teachers who were advocating for an early form of Gnosticism. The Gnostics taught that the body is made of matter, which is inherently evil, so it doesn’t really matter what you do with your body. They said Christians could sin and it was acceptable because it didn’t involve their spirit. This was gross heresy that Paul wanted to warn the Philippians about.
Do not imitate these people who are trying to influence you! Why? Because: “Their end is destruction.” Paul says their “end” or their final state is destruction. The word “destruction” can be translated as “final ruin,” “loss,” “perdition,” “perishing,” “damnation,” or being “cut off.” This is talking about spending an eternity in punishment for rejecting Christ. Those who are enemies of the cross are those who have not put their faith in Jesus. Yes, this includes false teachers, but many more people fall into this category. Really anyone who is relying on their own self-righteousness to earn favor with God or anyone who has placed their trust in anything besides Jesus falls into this category. It is not just people who are outwardly hostile to Jesus. This is hard to hear, so it’s not a popular message, but it’s true. If you haven’t placed your faith in Jesus, I implore you to turn from your sins and trust in Him for your salvation. Don’t be an enemy of the cross.
Enemies of the Cross
Paul goes on in describing these enemies of the cross: “their god is their belly.” Paul is using “belly” to represent fleshly appetites. Their god is their desires. They live to serve their desires like a worshipper lives to serve their god. They have a single-minded focus on fulfilling their sinful desires. He continues saying “they glory in their shame” meaning they take pride in what is disgraceful or dishonorable. Rather than feeling ashamed for pursuing these evil desires, they are proud of their sin. Paul goes on: “with minds set on earthly things.” These people are single-mindedly focused as well. However, they’re not focused on pursuing Christ. They’re focused on pursuing earthly things. Now, when Paul is talking about the earth, he’s not talking about planet earth or nature. He’s using that to speak of the sinful things of the world. The apostle John describes the things of the world this way:
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lusts of the flesh and the lusts of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15-17)
The use of “earthly things” or “worldly things” really represents the lust for sensual pleasures, materialism, and prestige or power. That, in a nutshell, is a summary of what the unsaved people of the world value and seek after. That is their single-minded pursuit and Christians can fall into that mindset if they are not careful. As followers of Christ, we must ensure that we are imitating godly, mature Christians who are pursuing Jesus and not those who are pursuing their own destruction.