Among those who make a profession of religion there have always been, and there will continue to be, carnal debates as to who are the true church and people of God. The Baptist, the Roman Catholics, the Campbellites, and many others profess to be the true church, the true people of God. Such people make the external observations of religion the basis of their claim. Like the Pharisees, they pride themselves in their outward and strict adherence to the ceremonies of religion. And they exclude everyone from the body of Christ who do not conform to their particular standards of religion. But those who are God's true children can never be satisfied with the mere outward form of religion. They delight in the privileges of public worship; but they must have more. They feel the necessity of that vital power, life, and heart of Christianity. In Philippians 3:3, the apostle Paul gives us a threefold description of those "who are the true people of God". "For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh."
1. They Worship God in the Spirit.
True worship is the exercise of faith, love, and praise toward God, through the merits and mediation of Christ. It is spiritual. God's people worship him in their hearts by the power of the Holy Spirit. Our outward acts of devotion are only a reflection of our inner life in Christ.
2. They Rejoice in Christ Jesus.
Those who have a true apprehension of themselves, realize that there is nothing in them to boast of or rejoice in. We make Christ alone our glory and boast. We rejoice in Christ's wisdom, his righteousness, his redemption, his strength, and the riches of his grace. To them that believe Christ is all. "He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord."
3. They Have No Confidence in the Flesh.
The true people of God place no confidence in themselves, nor in anything they have done, either moral or religious. Christ alone is the confidence of the true believer before God. We trust him for our justification our sanctification, and our eternal glory. He alone is our hope in life, in death, and in the judgment.
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