January 10, 2018

To Know Christ

"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, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead."  Phil. 3:10-11

Paul writes in Philippians about his goal and desire to know Christ in an explicit way: to know the power of Christ’s resurrection and to know the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings, by being conformed to Christ’s death; so as to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Beloved, what we empty ourselves of at the cross allows for spiritual room inside us to receive resurrection power.  The more we lose our lives, the more our lives will be preserved, according to the gospels.  God will preserve our lives through Christ Jesus, who resides within us and operates within us by the Holy Spirit.  We often express it as, “less of me, more of you, God.”  As Eph. 1:19-20 states, “and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power…”   This is a matter of the cross – what happened at the cross and the power of what occurred at the cross.  The issue of the cross is discussed in 1 Cor. 1:18-25, so let’s take a look at that passage.

The cross was where lies were replaced by truth; death was replaced by life, hatred replaced by forgiveness. At the cross violence was replaced by peace, retaliation replaced by reconciliation, condemnation replaced by God’s righteousness. The cross was the place and shall always be the place of the greater gain. Jesus would not retaliate. He spoke a few words, and after his death, the earth shook, the veil was rent, and the graves opened.  Though it didn't look it, life had triumphed over death.

My heart’s desire is to know Christ, to gain Christ, and to be found in Him.