Paul Had It All But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ (Phil.3:7). It can get really easy to get caught up in the way in which the world and society evaluates things. Things like how you look, what clothes do you wear, or how much money do you have are just a part of the criteria. I am sure if you think about it for a while, you can think of a few more... The apostle Paul, as Saul, must have certainly experienced these too. We read about the miraculous event of his meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus in the third chapter of the Book of Acts. Perhaps it is easy for us to think that his impending decision to follow Jesus was an easy one for him to make. When we really look at it, that is not the case. Paul (Saul) gave up a lot, actually his whole life, to follow Jesus. In his day, he was hot stuff... A Jewish rock star... I can imagine him walking down the street to the whispers of the people... Hey, look, there goes Paul. Wow! He studies with Gamaliel, the best Rabbi. Hes one righteous dude, did you hear what he did to those Christians? I sure dont want to get on his bad side. He had it all in his world... He had power... He had the prestige.... He had the right religion, and even the right sect of the right religion... He had all of this, and then he met Jesus. When he met Jesus, he left all the things that his society held in high esteem in the dust to follow the Lord. Here comes the really cool part... As we read todays verse, he didnt even miss them, as they became a far away image in the rear view mirror of his life. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him (Vs.8-9). As we look at our lives in Christ, do we see these same wonderful things? I hope the life that society deems to be the one we ought to live, is just a dimming image in our rear view mirror. I hope that we have looked at what we have gained... As Christians, we have a personal relationship with Jesus, and a pathway to eternal life with the Lord. Paul had it all and gained more.... So have we... Have a great start to your week... Begin it with a RAK or two... Love mark Phil.4:11
Posted on: Tue, 26 Nov 2013 02:25:05 +0000