Standing Firm in the Lord
(Philippians 3: 12 -21)
1) Pressing on towards the goal
My call is to receive the glory of God, to attain my portion of the glory – that is the biggest prize. “I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Pressing on means you have the faith that you will reach the end of the race. You are not prepared to give up. You have the courage to go on. You do not fear the path you need to go through. No matter what comes you just press on.
“For God did not give us the spirit of timidity but a spirit of power, love and self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1: 7). If you want to know Jesus you need to remember that the Spirit you have is powerful and not faint-hearted. You press on because you have the love for what you are doing. You press on because you have the passion for what you are doing and nothing is going to stand on your way. Jesus is love. If you love him you would not allow anything to stand on your way to get to him.
Self-discipline is an important element when you press on. You ensure that you avoid things that will distract you from reaching your goal. There will be challenges along the way to distract you but you need to have the discipline to overcome the challenges. “Blessed is the man who preservers under trial, because he has stood the test, he will receive the Crown of life that God has promised to those who love him,” (James 1:12). Press on (persevere) even when you face trials.
2) Forget the Past
“Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do is forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,” (Philippians 3:13). Paul knows very well that he was persecuting the people of God but he never allowed his past to haunt him. He forgot about his past and pressed on.
Sometimes we allow our past mistakes, failures and backgrounds to hold us back. We forget that our faith in Jesus Christ has made us a new creation and the past is gone. Jesus Christ has qualified us to inherit God’s glory. We are born again – rooted and built up in him. Therefore the past has nothing to do with us. We need to forget the past and press on.
3) Mature
“All of us who are mature should take such view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have attained,” (Philippians 3: 15 -16).
Forgetting what is behind and pressing on requires one to look at things from a mature stand point. Those who are matured are those who are led by the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God has the power to reveal or clarify what may not be clear.
Paul says let us live up to what we have already attained. Being led by the Holy Spirit is a gift for the matured. “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God that we may understand what God has freely given us,” (1 Corinthians 3:12).
The Spirit teaches us everything and reminds us everything that Jesus said whilst he was on his mission here on earth. Therefore we should live up to the Spirit so that we may know who Jesus is. If we live up to the Spirit we will forget the past and remember what Jesus taught us. We will press on to what God has promised us through Jesus Christ.
4) Fellowship
“I will extol the Lord with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly,” (Psalm 111:1).
The Psalmist demonstrates the importance of praising God, not just on your own but with other people. He talks about praising the Lord in the company of people that live according to God’s will (council of the upright and in the assembly).
Paul also encouraged us to worship the Lord with others. Because Paul knew he was righteous and living according to the will of God, he encourages us to follow his example as we join others in our quest to know Jesus. Joining with others comes with a caution: “take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.”
This means that we should be careful of the people we associate with when worshipping God, are they led by the Spirit of God? This basically cautions us to discern the nature of the spirit leading the people we worship with “for sinful nature (spirit of the world) desires what is contrary to the Spirit and the Spirit what is contrary to sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want to do,” (Galatians 5:17).
This warning guard us against losing track of our goal, i.e. losing the Spirit that teaches us God’s way. Take note of those who live according to the pattern that was given to us so that we “do not put out the Spirit’s fire.” (1 Thessalonians 5:19)
5) Set your mind in heaven
Our citizenship is not here on earth but in heaven. This is where Jesus is seated on the right hand of God. Our focus therefore should be where Jesus is – heaven. If we focus on earthly things then our destiny is destruction.
Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and here thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be,” (Matthew 6:20-21).
We can have everything on earth but these things are temporary and we may lose them anytime. The things of this world may defer us from our quest for the truth (Jesus said “I am the way, the truth and the life).
Paul says, “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,” (Philippians 3:8).
In order to know Christ you do not have to spend time thinking about earthly riches, but think about Christ. We have to be like-minded with him because we have the mind of Christ.
Conclusion
When all has been done, ran a good race, we get a better understanding and knowledge of Jesus and he will crown us. He will transform us from our earthly bodies and we will be like him (glorious bodies). “That is how you should stand firm in the Lord,” (Philippians 4:1).
Showing posts with label Knowing Christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Knowing Christ. Show all posts
Friday, May 14, 2010
The Worth of Knowing Christ - Part 1
“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 (Philippians 3:10)
a) I want to know Christ
Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for his sins, he sat at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”
Knowing Christ is equivalent to knowing God and the knowledge of the Holy One means understanding. Jesus is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact representation of God.
I want to know Christ.
I want to make a relationship with Christ.
I forget about everything else and I yearn for the glory of Christ.
I want to be sustained by the powerful word of Christ.
I want to know Christ.
I have a burning desire to know him better
I want a deeper understanding of his glory
Meeting Christ is not enough, you have to have a mutual relationship with him. To grow as a Christian you have to have a better understanding of who he is.
b) I want to know the power of his resurrection
“Since you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God,” (Colossians 3:1). Knowing the power of his resurrection means focusing where he is. He was raised and he went to sit at the right hand of God.
He conquered the world and hence he is the Lord of Glory. Therefore we should set our hearts where is, on the things above, were our treasure is. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal,” (2 Corinthians 4: 18).
The power of his resurrection is that we were raised with him. “When you were dead in your sins and in the circumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,” (Colossians 2:3).
The power of his resurrection made us to be alive. The power of his resurrection is a fulfillment of the promise that if we believe in him we shall have eternal life. We are born again because we were dead in our sins. The only way to know the power of his resurrection is focusing on the things above.
c) I want to know the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings
Knowing Jesus means building a relationship/friendship with him. A true friend is one who shares even in his suffering, the pains of his friend. “Now, if we are children then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. If indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” (Romans 8: 17).
In the consequent verse Paul says: I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. “But rejoice that you participate in the suffering of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you… However, if you suffer as a Christian do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name… So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good,” (1 Peter 4: 13-14, 16, 19).
As a Christian you should not fear when you suffer because Christ also suffered but endured until the end. Fellowship in his sharing in his suffering means staying strong by doing the following:
i) Rejoice
ii) Praise God
iii) Commit to the faithful Creator
iv) Continue to do good
d) Becoming like him in his death
The humility of Jesus Christ was outstanding even in his death such that the people who watched testified that surely he is the son of God. He suffered like any human being but he humbled himself even though he was in the very nature of God.
That is the attitude we need to develop. Even though we may be co-heirs with him that should not be something we boast about and exalt ourselves. Pride should not overrule the way we handle ourselves. “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: …and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:5, 8).
Conclusion
I WANT TO KNOW CHRIST JESUS AND THE POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION, AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SHARING IN HIS SUFFERINGS, BECOMING LIKE HIM IN HIS DEATH
[Know who he is, focus on where he is, appreciate how he felt, and do what he did when he died]
a) I want to know Christ
Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for his sins, he sat at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”
Knowing Christ is equivalent to knowing God and the knowledge of the Holy One means understanding. Jesus is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact representation of God.
I want to know Christ.
I want to make a relationship with Christ.
I forget about everything else and I yearn for the glory of Christ.
I want to be sustained by the powerful word of Christ.
I want to know Christ.
I have a burning desire to know him better
I want a deeper understanding of his glory
Meeting Christ is not enough, you have to have a mutual relationship with him. To grow as a Christian you have to have a better understanding of who he is.
b) I want to know the power of his resurrection
“Since you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God,” (Colossians 3:1). Knowing the power of his resurrection means focusing where he is. He was raised and he went to sit at the right hand of God.
He conquered the world and hence he is the Lord of Glory. Therefore we should set our hearts where is, on the things above, were our treasure is. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal,” (2 Corinthians 4: 18).
The power of his resurrection is that we were raised with him. “When you were dead in your sins and in the circumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,” (Colossians 2:3).
The power of his resurrection made us to be alive. The power of his resurrection is a fulfillment of the promise that if we believe in him we shall have eternal life. We are born again because we were dead in our sins. The only way to know the power of his resurrection is focusing on the things above.
c) I want to know the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings
Knowing Jesus means building a relationship/friendship with him. A true friend is one who shares even in his suffering, the pains of his friend. “Now, if we are children then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. If indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” (Romans 8: 17).
In the consequent verse Paul says: I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. “But rejoice that you participate in the suffering of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you… However, if you suffer as a Christian do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name… So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good,” (1 Peter 4: 13-14, 16, 19).
As a Christian you should not fear when you suffer because Christ also suffered but endured until the end. Fellowship in his sharing in his suffering means staying strong by doing the following:
i) Rejoice
ii) Praise God
iii) Commit to the faithful Creator
iv) Continue to do good
d) Becoming like him in his death
The humility of Jesus Christ was outstanding even in his death such that the people who watched testified that surely he is the son of God. He suffered like any human being but he humbled himself even though he was in the very nature of God.
That is the attitude we need to develop. Even though we may be co-heirs with him that should not be something we boast about and exalt ourselves. Pride should not overrule the way we handle ourselves. “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: …and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:5, 8).
Conclusion
I WANT TO KNOW CHRIST JESUS AND THE POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION, AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SHARING IN HIS SUFFERINGS, BECOMING LIKE HIM IN HIS DEATH
[Know who he is, focus on where he is, appreciate how he felt, and do what he did when he died]
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