Scripture:
Philippians 3:7-11 NKJV
[7] But what things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. [8] Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ [9] and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; [10] that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, [11] if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Observation:
Paul was a very educated man at the very top of his class. He sat under a highly sought-after Jewish rabbi and excelled in his education far beyond all who were in the same class. But that day on the road to Damascus, his life was changed. Everything he held valuable was rearranged and honestly took on new meaning. Here in Philippines chapter 3, he starts to explain how much a relationship with Jesus Christ is worth in comparison to the knowledge and life that he once had. You see, the way he was taught was completely different than the truth that he got through the revelation of knowledge given through the encounter with Jesus. So he counted the wisdom he had as worthless. A complete loss. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that Paul saw his life as wasted, but he saw how what he was taught was not how GOD’S plan was meant to work and therefore what he was taught was wrong and GOD’S way was right. The education the time spent in the classroom room and walking with the rabbi the attempts to be righteous… all rubbish all loss all worthless, having no value. He finally saw that there was no way to obtain righteousness in and of himself it had to come from Christ. Through faith in HIM and that faith was given by GOD, there is no other way. Now verses 10 and 11 can get a little muddy if we are not careful so in going to rely heavily on the Holy Spirit to explain them. They talk about the power of HIS resurrection and the suffering of HIS death. Romans chapter 6 and verse 4 and second Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 17 can shed a lot of light on these verses. I believe what Paul is saying is… he dies to the desires of his flesh and lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. Not doing the things he wants to do therefore denying his flesh… but doing the things the Holy Spirit guides him to do therefore living inside the resurrection power of Jesus Christ.
Application:
I used to hold value in my past life. I chased after things that were of this world. Now all I can think about is…. man I am so glad I don’t have to live like that anymore. An encounter with Jesus Christ changed my life. My past life is no longer the life I want. The more I draw near to GOD the more I just want to be consumed by HIM. I want to know more about HIM. To be made more like HIS son. To live a life that is in step with the Holy Spirit. A life with resurrection power. You see knowing that the same Spirit that rose Christ from the dead lives inside of me gives life a whole new meaning. The old ways no longer have power over my decisions and actions. The life I used to brag about is all rubbish. The only value it has is to show how much work Jesus Christ has done in my life. 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 7 talk about how our lives are just clay pots and the treasure inside of us is our relationship with Jesus Christ. We can not do anything without first knowing HIM as our LORD and SAVIOR. That’s where any righteousness comes from we can not earn it and we do not do it. It’s all him. Now that being said. Once we know that, we are freed from the power of sin and the sanctification process can begin. That simply means we renew our mind which in turn renews the way we live. Paul knew that he could not earn his righteousness. That was a gift. All our attempts are but filthy rags. Dying to our flesh daily is living in resurrection power. Doing the things that HE wants rather than the things our flesh wants. I could go on and on with example after example. But the bottom line is this. Who you were in the past doesn’t matter. Who you are in Christ does. Your value does not come from your past or the things you have done it comes from HIM and what HE has done for you. That in and of itself is enough and should give us a new purpose. To live is Christ and to die is gain.
Prayer:
Father, we know that who we were is not who we are. Our past life and who we used to be are all worthless without the transformation that came through a life-changing encounter with you. What we knew and who we were is all lost in comparison to the life that you have given us and honestly, all we can say is thank you. Our prayers this morning are that we will live inside the resurrection power that you have provided you have made us new. You have taken the old covenant of earning our way and given us the new covenant of salvation through Christ Jesus therefore setting us free from sin and its power which is guilt shame and fear. We ask you this morning to fill us with your Holy Spirit so that we can stay in step with HIM. Living according to how HE guides us. It’s in the mighty name of Jesus I pray amen.