The Judaizers

3:18-19 For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.

That the men being referred to here are Judaizers cannot be known for sure, but there are good indications that this is the case. Paul doesn’t give much detail about who he is talking about, so it must have been someone that the Philippians were very aware of, someone that Paul had warned them about many times. In fact, this is exactly what Paul says in v.18: "of whom I often told you." Who is this group that Paul had spoken about often with the Philippians? I think 3:1b-2 answers the question:

"To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you: Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision..."

Here Paul specifies who this group is that he has warned them about repeatedly and is now warning them about again to safeguard the Philippians. We saw when we studied 3:2 that Paul is there talking about the Judaizers, which is made clear by his reference to them as "the false circumcision" which really is a take-off on the word circumcision, meaning something like "mutilators."

If the people Paul is referring to in v.18-19 are Judaizers, then what is the meaning of the following descriptions in these verses?

1- enemies of the cross of Christ

2- whose end is destruction

3- whose god is their appetite

4- whose glory is in their shame

5- who set their minds on earthly things

Let’s review who the Judaizers were. They were Jews who believed Christ was the Messiah but who believed the Messiah was only for the Jews, and therefore the only way for a Gentile to be saved was to first become a Jew (through circumcision and placing oneself under the other OT ceremonial laws). They wanted to Judaize Christianity (i.e. make Christianity Jewish). The Judaizers were largely "converted" Pharisees who tried to bring their Pharisaism into the Christian church.

The fact that a distinquishing feature is that they were enemies of the cross is a further indication that we have come to the right conclusion. The Judaizers, in teaching the necessity of obeying the Jewish ceremonial law, were undermining the cross of Christ, which alone is the basis of man’s salvation, works having no part in it (cf. Gal.6:11-14).

By saying their "end is destruction" Paul is clearly telling us that these people, though they claim the name of Christ, are nonetheless on their way to hell, which is consistent with what Paul says elsewhere about the Judaizers (cf. Gal.1:8-9; 2Cor.11:15).

The next two statements are more difficult. Paul says their "god is their appetite" and their "glory is in their shame." The first is probably a reference to the fact that these Pharisaical "Christians" were motivated not by Christ but by their own appetite for praise and other forms of pride fuel (cf. Rom.16:17-18). The statement, "whose glory is in their shame" probably means that the thing they presently glory in is the very thing they should be ashamed of, that is, their allegiance to and affection for the fleshly regulations that fly in the face of true Christianity.

Paul’s final description, "who set their minds on earthly things," refers to the fact that the Judaizers are fixated on these fleshly, earthly regulations and have lost sight of the heavenly nature of genuine Christianity, which teaches that true salvation is of God, not of man.

Lord-willing, we’ll apply these things in the days to come...

Heavenly Father, thank You for Paul’s wisdom and courage to protect the church against wolves. And thank You that the Judaizers no longer plague Your church. And yet, Lord, I know that You inspired these words through Paul not just for the Philippians, but for us. And though it sometimes requires hard work and deep thought, help me and help Your people to learn these things, to pay close attention to these words, that we might gain insight into their instruction and power for our lives today. Help me not to be lazy in my faith, Lord.