Welcome to Hank’s Place —
Today I’d like to share some awesomeness of God with you. It’s found in Philippians chapter 3.
In verses 7 and 8 Paul says all of the accomplishments he once took credit for, he has forsaken, regarding them as NOTHING compared to the delight of Experiencing, Experiencing, Jesus Christ as his Lord! Truly knowing Jesus resulted in letting go of everything from his past and throwing all his boasting onto the garbage heap.
Everything else in life is like a pile of manure to him now, he says, all so that he could be enriched in the reality of knowing Jesus Christ, embracing Him as Lord in all of His greatness.
What the world calls “precious,” Paul calls “trash.” Having encountered the right-side up kingdom of God, he rejected the crooked, counterfeit values of this fallen world. And this is an ongoing act of rejection, for the latter part of verse 8 can be translated, “I count as liabilities all those things that get in the way of knowing Christ.” The verb “count” here is in the present tense, meaning Paul is continuing to count anything getting the way of knowing Jesus as a liability – every single day.
In verse 10 Pauls says he constantly longs to know the wonders of Jesus and to experience the overflowing power of His resurrection – working in him. The value of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord is worth more than all things, and Paul wants nothing to get in his way in this!
Many people know about Christ, but knowing Christ Jesus as Lord means trusting Him, leaning on Him, and abiding in Him. It means to know His mind, to sense and be guided by His Spirit, and hear His voice, to receive His love, to feel His presence —My friend, isn’t this the highest point of human existence?
Imagine, deeply KNOWING Christ— walking in fellowship with our Creator, reveling in His love, sharing His life with others – what JOY! It’s what Paul was striving for and the life WE can enjoy here and now.
How do we come to know Christ more, you ask? Spend some time in the gospels and epistles for they reveal the good news about Jesus our Savior. Let’s remind ourselves daily of how good God is and how Jesus reigns as Lord over whatever situation we are facing.
Ask Jesus that you might know Him better. And I would suggest praying often that prayer Paul prayed for the Ephesians, found in Ephesians 3:14 thru 21.
Make it your own prayer to God — you’ll COME ALIVE!
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