(2026 Philippians Summer Series #8) Having a Real Relationship with Jesus Part Three: A New Righteousness

Philippians Study: Having a Real Relationship with Jesus

Part Three: A New Righteousness

Lesson 8: Philippians 3:1–9 (ESV Bible Verses)

Read the passage carefully several times

1. Read verse 1. Why does Paul say, “Finally”? Why does he repeat that we should “rejoice in the Lord”? How does this give us a guardrail for our spiritual life in Christ?
2. What does Paul repeat in verse 2? What are these people doing, and why does Paul feel so strongly about warning the church against them? What contrast does he make in verse 3? How can this internal relationship with Christ be our personal experience?
3. In verses 4–6, Paul lists a series of “credentials” that gave him social and religious status. What are they, and why do you think he used to place such high value on them? How do these “credentials” translate into things we might have or still be pursuing today?
4. Notice how Paul repeats the language of “counting” as “gain” or “loss” (7–8). What is his new “gain,” and why is it so valuable that he calls all his previous credentials “loss”? How did this shift in value change the way he lived?
5. In verse 9 Paul says he no longer wants “a righteousness of his own,” but the one that comes from God. What’s the difference between trying to earn our standing with God and receiving it “through faith in Christ”? Why is this accessible to anyone today?
6. Looking back at these verses, how would you summarize Paul’s new foundation and confidence? How does being in a real relationship with Christ change how we “count” human gains and losses and guard us against pressures we face today?