"I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things." Phil 3:8a
The more I read Philippians the more I am taken aback by the devotion and the resolve of Paul to live for Christ and to put him first. Paul refers to himself in many of his epistles as a bondservant or slave of Christ. This was not just a humble way of declaring himself a follower. He was literally surrendering his own will and his own wishes for the sake of Christ. His whole life was about Christ. He was able to say in chapter one that to live is Christ and to die is gain. It was gain because then he would immediately be able to be in the presence of Christ.
It reminds me again that to be a follower of Christ means that I must be willing to surrender my own will when it comes into conflict with Christ. I must be alert to selfish ambition and the tendency of the flesh to become prideful, vain or selfish. It also reminds me that i should remember that I did not deserve salvation and that it is only offered to me as a free gift and not something I can add to or take away from.
Paul seems to deal with this constantly in his letter. There were those who were seeking to add to the gospel. People were getting caught up in the simplicity of the gospel and wanting to add more things to it. In chapter 3 of Philippians, Paul calls these people who were seeking to add circumsion to the gospel as mutilators of the flesh. Again and again, Paul stresses that it is a righteousness that is by faith in Christ and his goodness and not because of what we have done or how much our good deeds we do that allow us to experience salvation.
The more I read Philippians the more I am taken aback by the devotion and the resolve of Paul to live for Christ and to put him first. Paul refers to himself in many of his epistles as a bondservant or slave of Christ. This was not just a humble way of declaring himself a follower. He was literally surrendering his own will and his own wishes for the sake of Christ. His whole life was about Christ. He was able to say in chapter one that to live is Christ and to die is gain. It was gain because then he would immediately be able to be in the presence of Christ.
It reminds me again that to be a follower of Christ means that I must be willing to surrender my own will when it comes into conflict with Christ. I must be alert to selfish ambition and the tendency of the flesh to become prideful, vain or selfish. It also reminds me that i should remember that I did not deserve salvation and that it is only offered to me as a free gift and not something I can add to or take away from.
Paul seems to deal with this constantly in his letter. There were those who were seeking to add to the gospel. People were getting caught up in the simplicity of the gospel and wanting to add more things to it. In chapter 3 of Philippians, Paul calls these people who were seeking to add circumsion to the gospel as mutilators of the flesh. Again and again, Paul stresses that it is a righteousness that is by faith in Christ and his goodness and not because of what we have done or how much our good deeds we do that allow us to experience salvation.
