Title: The Highest Knowledge (Phil 21)
Contents
Title: The Highest Knowledge (Explanation of Philippians 21)
(September 23, 2007 Sunday worship, text: Philippians 3:7-11)
The same is true of Paul who appears in today's text. He was near-perfect in all respects of ancestry, status, education, and abilities. He lost everything that had been useful to him, regarded as excrement and harm.
How the heck could this happen? Paul confesses this reason in verses 7-8. “Nevertheless, whatever was useful to me, I count not only as loss for Christ’s sake, but also as loss for the sake of Christ, because the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord is the noblest, because for his sake I lose everything and count it as waste, gain Christ.”
When I discover and realize the best, I can give up the good that I had. Both Paul and Dr. Lee Lee realized that the knowledge of Jesus Christ was the noblest, so they were able to throw away everything that was useful in the past.
Then, what exactly is the knowledge of Jesus Christ? What is it that has changed and changed the lives of Paul, Dr. Lee, and countless others?
See why Paul found the knowledge of Jesus Christ the noblest. Verse 9. “In order to be found in him, which I have not righteousness from the law, but through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.”
Why did Paul confess that the knowledge of Jesus Christ is the noblest? Because you can find me in Christ.
Why is a person deeply interested in religion, philosophy, literature, etc.? It's because they want to know me. ‘What is a human being? Who am I? Because I want answers to the question ‘What is the purpose of life?’ People try to answer with their own thoughts and doctrines. ‘Man is an evolved being. Humans are made up only of matter. All human beings are gods.’ But perhaps this can be compared to this. Baby fish asks mother fish. “Mom, what does the sea look like?” My mom replied, "Well, I've heard of something like that, but I'm not sure." We humans have never seen the sea while living in the sea. So I'm talking about myself.
A young man was fixing his car by the roadside. An old man who was passing by gave a warning to the young man. “Hey young man, do this part here, and the car will start.” But the young man does not listen to the old man. I thought about what the elderly would know about cars. But no matter how much I try and do that, the car won't start. In the end, I did what the old man told me. But what is this? Doesn't the car start well? The young man asks the old man. “Teacher, who the hell do you know about cars so well?” "Yeah, I'm the Ford who designed and built this car"
How, then, can we realize this noblest knowledge, Jesus Christ? How do you know him?
The text is verses 10-11. “I want to know Christ, the power of his resurrection, and his participation in his sufferings, imitating him in his death, so that I may somehow attain to the resurrection from the dead.” To experience the cross and resurrection, that is, to experience the power of resurrection through suffering. You can know Christ through experience.
During World War II, Nazi Germany murdered more than 6 million Jews. There are people who risked their lives to protect the Jews at this time. The movie "Schindler's List" dealt with that. Among them was the Boom family, who were Dutch.
This is to share in suffering and to share in the power of resurrection. As we participate in suffering and resurrection in this way, we come to know Jesus Christ not only intellectually but also experientially.
How is your life today? Are you in trouble? If so, use that suffering as an opportunity to experience the power of resurrection. Then we will get to know Jesus Christ deeply and experientially. Job, the richest man in Asia at the time, lost all his 10 children, all his wealth, and his health. And after going through hardship and experiencing God's recovery and grace, I confess this. “I have heard of you with the ear, but now my eye sees you” (Job 42:5). This is the experience of the power of resurrection through suffering. How will we use the hardships that have come to us today as opportunities?