"Whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ - the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead." (verses 7-11)
Paul freely chose Christ, considered all things that got in the way of knowing Christ as "rubbish" - this was Paul's passion in life.
Is that my passion in life? Is my passion the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I will lose all things? Do I consider all things rubbish that keep me from gaining Christ and to be found in Him?
Instead, don't I live having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, that which is through faith in myself? It is true. I believe in my own powers most of the time. Is it lack of faith that separates Paul's passion and my lukewarm attitude? Is it lack of perseverance at the feet of Jesus? What makes Paul's conviction so passionate and my life passionless for Christ? Why am I not fired up for Christ? Have I not forfeited "my profit" and have not considered all things rubbish?
Food for thought today.
e
4 comments:
Thanks for your post Esther :-)
Despite how busy, difficult, chaotic my life may be and the list can go on and on......it doesn't excuse me frm my personal relationship with Jesus. Paul reminds me again and again how important it is for me to live for Christ more than anything or anyone else. Especially having the same desire as Paul for my own son, I know I have to be an example for him.
May I be able to spend quality time with God each day no matter how busy or exhausted I may be. I don't want to keep neglecting this time.
thanks for your heartfelt reflection, esther. these are some of the most wonderful verses in the whole Bible. i can't think of a more moving and personal testimony of the christian faith in all the world than this one.
paul "considers everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ, for whose sake [he] has lost all things". the one who can really say this is the one who knows Christ. to know Him is to truly to love Him and see His surpassing greatness and value above all things.
paul also states that he does not want to have a righteousness of his own that comes from the law but that which is found through FAITH in Christ. "the righteousness that comes from the law" is to be found in every system of religion in the whole world--judaism, islam, buddhism, hinduism, humanism ... you feverishly spend your life doing good works hoping that they will be good enough to ensure salvation. with christianity, we know that our good works will NEVER be enough to save us or to make up for the sins we have committed. we trust in Christ for His forgiveness through His death on the cross and HIS good works get attributed to us through our unity with Him.
these precious verses help us to recognize, along with paul, the "surpassing greatness" of the christian faith over every other system. it is truly a faith worth living for AND dying for.
Hello ladies,
Once again, thanks for sharing your reflections on today's passage. I too was struck by v7. Until now, I have only saw this verse in terms of sacrifice. That for the sake of knowing Christ, Paul was willing to loose and sacrifice all that he could have gained in this world. I realized today that this is only part of the picture. It dawned on me that to Paul, all the worldly profit he could have gained is like getting the burnt end of a stick and knowing Christ is like getting the perfectly toasted marshmallow at the other end. He truly knew and believed in the supreme value of knowing Christ and thus considered everything else "rubbish".
I know too 'know' this- that knowing Jesus is to be of supreme importance and value in my life and so forth. But, I must confess that the way I live is so different from the way Paul lived. Perhaps my problem is not the temptation towards worldly ambition but the lack of ambition in knowing and growing in Christ. I really am so easily satisfied in this life that whatever Biblical ambition I have, it is more fueled by I ought to do as a Christian rather than by the desire to share in Christ's ministry on this earth. My desire to have genuine love for Christ and fellow believers is so weak and thus so easily distracted with fulfilling my own meager, fleshly desires.
The discipline I need for my Spiritual growth will indeed take some sacrifice and I cringe at the struggle I will have to face everyday in having my quiet time with Christ over doing other things even though I KNOW everything else is rubbish and I must choose Christ. It’s a struggle that I can’t rationalize. It’s just there. Yet, the thing that compels me to "press on" is also knowing that no matter how sweet it is at the moment to have and to do with my time and belongings as I will, in the end all will be lost at the grave. And, if at that time I don't have Christ at my side, then my whole life will indeed be counted as rubbish. And the years, days and hours I’ve already put into waste…well, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Thank you, Esther!
I know this is a little late, but there's no time like the present to catch up.
After reading the passage, it reminded me of how much we love this world and care so much about all that we gain and loose. Paul's words rebukes my heart in telling me that I can't be satisfied loving and living for this world but I'll find it in living for Christ. I have to admit that it's just really hard to live for Christ, but I know it'll be worth it in the end.
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