SHARING BREAD
8 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 9 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.
Phil 3:8-9
(NIV)
Paul’s passionate pursuit was to know the Lord Jesus, further
still. Risking everything for this, he
lived according to this world view and considered all things a loss compared to
the greatness of this holy endeavor. God
honors those who abandon themselves to Him, who live their lives with open
hands. He treasures those who fan into
flame this great desire for Him, refusing to allow it to be quenched by the
world’s naysayers, the flesh’s laziness or the urgent circumstances constantly
abounding – the cumulative voices of which can be relentless. It boils down to a matter of priority. He must remain at the top of our list even at
the expense of other worthy goals. We
are to clear the clutter of our minds and be still before Him and wait patiently
for Him. He can take care of all that
concerns us and He can get our list done but He must be first. This is not to neglect our God given responsibilities;
rather it is putting them in the right priority. He
shows Himself to those whose eyes remain focused upon Him. This is the true path of wisdom and many miss
it. Wisdom is acquired by those who love
it and seek it. Jesus is Wisdom as He is
the Truth and He is the Life. Remember
as well, one can never out-give God:
Those who
honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. 1 Sam 2:30 (NIV)
17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me find
me. 18 With
me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity. 19 My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield
surpasses choice silver. 20 I
walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, 21 bestowing wealth on those who love me and making their
treasuries full. Prov 8:17-21 (NIV)
The Prophet Jeremiah writes similar words when stating what
God expects from His people:
23 This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man
boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man
boast of his riches, 24 but let
him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am
the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in
these I delight,” declares the LORD.
Jer 9:23-24 (NIV)
“Faith,
as Paul saw it, was a living, flaming thing leading to surrender and obedience
to the commandments of Christ.” A.W. Tozer
For Paul, worldly honors and things not only paled in
comparison to knowing the Lord Jesus, he considered them as mere refuse. Paul’s heart was set on Christ, having full knowledge
that his righteousness was found in the Lord Jesus and through faith in
Him. The apostle was fully aware that
apart from the righteousness of Christ, all remain ruined before God. No amount of outward observances of the law
or good deeds will ever justify sinful flesh.
19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to
those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole
world held accountable to God. 20 Therefore
no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather,
through the law we become conscious of sin. Romans
3:19-20 (NIV)
Yet thankfully, when a believing sinner respond’s in faith
to the Spirit’s work in his heart, he is clothed with the righteousness of
Christ. The believer is “accepted in the
Beloved” – robed in His righteousness. The
sinner stands complete in Christ. God
takes what is beyond us and places it within us. Praise Him!
“Faith is the ordained means of sharing in the saving
benefits of what has been purchased by Christ’s blood.” Matthew
Henry
1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and
certain of what we do not see. Heb 11:1
(NIV)
“Faith raises the soul above the difficulty, straight to God Himself, and enables one to stand still. We gain nothing by our restless and anxious efforts….It are therefore true wisdom, in all times of difficulty and perplexity, to stand still – to wait only upon God, and He will assuredly open a way for us.” C.H. Mackintosh
What I glean from this:
·
I am
called to passionately pursue knowing the Lord Jesus. This is a lifetime endeavor as the depth of
the knowledge of the Savior is limitless.
·
God
honors those who honor Him.
·
Jesus is
to be my first priority.
