Well, this evening, as the Lord
may help us, we'll meditate on verses 8, 9, and 10 on this third
chapter in the Epistle of Paul to the Philippians. So, chapter
3, verses 8, 9, and 10, which we'll read, where the apostle
says, yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss, for the
excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom
I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but
done that I may win Christ and be found in him not having mine
own righteousness which is of the law but that which is through
the faith of Christ the righteousness which is of God by faith that
I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship
of his sufferings be made conformable unto his death. As we concluded last week with
the seventh verse, which reads, but what things were gained to
me, those I counted lost for Christ. He therefore continues
with these words, yea doubtless. There was in his heart and mind
there was no doubt about the value of the knowledge of Christ
and therefore he speaks and says and I count all things and that
is a comprehensive statement isn't it? He doesn't say well
I count some things but he was brought to that condition and
position by the wonderful grace of God toward him to be able
to say, I count. And when we come to a word like
this, it really means that what he'd done, he sat down and he
thought of the things of time and the things of eternity and
the things with regards to his glorious and blessed savior.
and was able to therefore give this good expression, and I count
all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord. We see very clearly, don't we,
that in the apostle's life, after that time when he was graciously
and gloriously converted, on that Damascus road, he was turned
from a mere religion that followed the law, a mere religion of works,
with which he was very content, to adore the glorious work of
grace of the Saviour toward him, and to understand in some measure
the glorious excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my
Lord. You see, the Saviour was not
to the Apostle Paul just a name. He was his Lord. He was his Master. He was the one who he desired
to serve, and how gloriously he did serve him, and what benefit
there was through that serving, and how the Apostle's ministry
was greatly used as he declared the excellency of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus, my Lord. How easy it is, always has been
and is today, to look on the mere things of this
world and the knowledge of the things of this world and put
a value on them, whereas the Apostle tells us so clearly,
doesn't he, Yea, doubtless, I count all things but loss for the excellency
of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord." Well, it's a good thing
tonight if the knowledge of Christ to us is so excellent, is so
valuable, is so important, and indeed is so necessary, and that
we so rejoice in the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord. It's wonderful when we can lay
claim to that condition and situation, like the Apostle does, my Lord. Well, to come and to be able
to say, my Lord and my God. Not something passing, not something
irrelevant, something very important. And then he goes on to to say
about his condition, as I've often said, the Apostle Paul
was an honest man, and we should take what he says as coming from
his heart, and there is not pride in it, there is a humbleness
about it, as he desires to glorify his God, his Lord, for what he's
been enabled to do. And so he says, for whom? The Lord Jesus Christ, for whom
I have suffered the loss of all things. He's already said he
counted all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus and so he goes on to say now I have suffered
the loss of all things. Well Paul was that important
to you? Was it a great loss to lose these things, the things
of time? He says I have suffered the loss
of all things and how did he value them? He tells us, and
do count them but done, because that I may win Christ. What a very clear position he
was in. What a very clear word he's able
to write to the Philippians. And there's no doubt about it,
is there? There he was, counting all the
things of time, but done. virtually of no value, and he
was happy to part with them if they separated him from his Saviour,
the Lord Jesus Christ. How he did indeed put first things
first. What a good thing this is, if
we in our little lives put first things first, the things of God
have the priority The things of this poor, sinful, fading
world take second place and really have little relevance in comparison
with the great and glorious knowledge of our Lord, the Saviour. And
then he said that I may win Christ. That was his great desire. He knew Christ, of course, and
he wanted to know Him more. And therefore he was very happy
to give up everything else and count them of no value but that
he might win Christ and then he says and be found in him well
how important it is that we are found in Christ that we have
union with Christ we have fellowship with Christ and be found in him
and not only that But he then leads on to this very important
consideration, not having mine own righteousness, which is of
the law. Now the apostle was very familiar
with what he was saying, because those days before that conversion
on the Damascus road, he was very proud of his righteousness. And that's really what he tells
us in the earlier verses in this chapter he says though I might
have confidence in the flesh if any other man thinketh that
he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh I more circumcise
the eighth day of the stock of Israel for the tribe of Benjamin
and Hebrew of the Hebrews as touching the law of Pharisee
concerning zeal persecuting the church touching the righteousness
which is in the law blameless. This was his pre-converted belief
and condition. But now, what a change there
is. What a glorious change. And how
important it is for all of us not to ever be found counting
the things that we do of any real spiritual value, but indeed
desiring that we may not have, we may not be depending on our
own righteousness, which is of the law, but, again, another
important but, but that which is through the faith of Christ,
the righteousness which is of God by faith. He sets before us here very clearly,
doesn't he? The faith of Christ, the righteousness
which is of God by faith, the righteousness of his Saviour,
the Lord Jesus Christ. How valuable it was to the Apostle,
how important it was, and may it be so to us today in our little
lives, to know that we are in Christ, that we possess the knowledge
of Christ and that we are wonderfully blessed with not our own righteousness,
again which all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags, but to be
clothed with Christ's spot this robe of righteousness, that robe,
that righteousness with Christ gives to his church. It's placed upon them, it's imputed
to them. It's a wonderful blessing to
think that we as unworthy sinners of the earth, the Lord Jesus
looks upon and in love to our souls, gives us His righteousness,
which was worked out upon the cross at Calvary. Oh, rejoice
in it and rejoice if the Lord has given us living faith to
believe in this great and important and vital truth. We all need
the righteousness of Christ. We all need to have it imputed
to us And we must have it before we pass out of time into eternity. And so he says, and be found
in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, however
good that may appear, however good it may seem, it's of no
true spiritual value. Because we are foreign creatures
and we cannot keep the law. And therefore the righteousness
which of the law can never be perfect, but that which is through
the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith. But again, praise and bless God
tonight if he has given us, and it is his gift, faith to believe. And so the apostle moves on,
that I may know him Paul, I thought you knew the Lord. Of course
he did. But what's he saying? He wanted
to know the Saviour more. He wanted to love Him more. He wanted to serve Him more. He wanted to be found living
closer to Him. And that's why he says, that
I may know Him and the power of his resurrection. That resurrection
power which had given him spiritual life. That resurrection power
which gives us today resurrection life, spiritual life. Because
without spiritual life we are forever dead. And the only thing
that can raise us from that Dead state spiritually is resurrection
power. And oh, praise God again, if
we have the evidence of it in our poor hearts, to think that
Almighty God has looked upon us in our lost and ruined condition,
in our sinful state, in our far-offness from God, and has come to us
where we are. He's met with us. What a mercy
that I may know him and the power of his resurrection. It is power,
isn't it? It was power in our lives. The
Lord has blessed us with this wonderful knowledge. And then
he goes on and says, and the fellowship of his suffering,
something that perhaps we might cringe from and turn away from,
fellowship with his sufferings is not necessary in a physical
way. It is sometimes when the Lord
graciously allows us to perhaps endure opposition, spiritual
opposition. The Lord Jesus had much opposition
in his life. The Apostle Paul had much opposition
in his life and the Church of God had much opposition and do
have much opposition in our lives today. And so as we contemplate
a word like this, to have some realisation that as we may endure
sufferings for Christ's sake, perhaps when we're ridiculed,
perhaps when we're spoken against, because people don't understand,
and they won't understand, unless they have also been spiritually
blessed. So we can understand here what
the Apostle says, and what does it bring? It brings fellowship
with Christ. This is so important, isn't it?
For us today, as we pass through this life to know something of
fellowship with Christ. And I'm sure the greatest blessing
in fellowship with Christ is in his sufferings because it
leads us into the great truths of the gospel. It demonstrates
to us in some measure the cost of our salvation, the value of
our salvation. and therefore can we not praise
and bless God for it? And so he says, and the fellowship
of his sufferings being made conformable unto his death. The work of the spirit of God
being made. You and I cannot make ourselves. You and I cannot produce spiritual
life in ourselves. We need to be made. by the blessed
work of the Holy Spirit, being made conformable unto his death,
to be made conformable in his likeness, to understand what
he endured and to praise our God for it. Well, these verses
and indeed most of this chapter is, I believe, a very blessed
account, a very wonderful statement of something of the reality of
true religion. It tests whether our religion
is God-given or whether it's of the flesh. And what a mercy
therefore if we can lay our little testimony alongside the words
of the Apostle and can thank our God and praise him for his
goodness and mercy toward us so unworthy and yet the evidence
of divine life and the evidence that one day by his grace we
shall be with him in glory. Amen.