One of the most dominate people in the New Testament is Paul the apostle,it is in that lovely book of Philippians chapter 3, that has this title over it,'No confidence in the flesh' Paul is warning his readers against being taken in by by people he calls dogs,evildoers,and mutilators,not very complimentary. William Barclay says' that wherever Paul taught, the Jews followed him,and tried to undo his teaching',They tried to draw the Christians back into a religion of works, so Paul uses very strong words and clear teaching as to the folly of that,and he uses his own experience to refute them.The challenge he brought to them can be summed up in the following words ,are they going to put their confidence in religious works,including being born an Israelite ,to be saved,or are they to going to put their faith in Christ alone and His finished work to save them. Pual writes out of his own background, he was an Israelite of the tribe of Benjamin,that tribe stood with Judah (1 Kings 12 v21)and after the exile formed the nucleus of the nation reborn (Ezra 4 v1) . He was circumcised and was a Hebrew of the Hebrews a true Israelite.,and he was a Phariisee a separated one,a strict keeper of the law.If a Jew had that sort of background he would be very proud of it.But Paul did not think like that ,for when he met Christ he realised that the righteousness he professed counted for nothing,so he cast it all aside as rubbish,or dung,now he declared ,to be in found in the righteousness of Christ was everything .
' Christ's Righteousness Alone'
'Not the labour of my hands can fulfil Thy law's demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone,Thou must save and Thou alone.
' A.M.Toplady'
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