SUNDAY September 22, 2024
All Things Gained Counted Loss for Christ
But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.
Philippians 3:7-8
Paul thought he had it all––his heritage, his education, and all he had gained in life––but he counted all these things a loss for Christ! Do you see how beautiful that is? The word loss means “worthless.” All he had gained was counted as rubbish. All his attainments and everything he thought was of great value in his life were now counted worthless because he had gained Christ. The word gain means “to win.” He had won Christ.
Listen, when you talk about your past life, was it really that good? Nothing is to be compared to what is ahead of you in Christ. Look what you have gained in Him––a brand new life! When you were in the world, you were lost––without God and without hope. Never forget that! Yet when you became a Christian, you gained the knowledge of God’s Word and received eternal riches. You have the mind of Christ! Remember, life is short, and the only thing that counts in eternity is what you do for Christ.
Jim Elliot had the right perspective in life. As a missionary, he desired to share the Gospel with the Auca Indians in the jungles of Ecuador. On January 8, 1956, his family lost contact with him. Jim and his friends thought they had an opportunity to successfully communicate with the Indians, so they landed their plane and planned to speak with them.
As Jim and his companions tried to share the Gospel, they were killed. They were all very young, fresh out of college. Two weeks before Jim was speared to death, he said, “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.” This was right in line with what Paul had said. What about you? Have you counted all things a loss for the sake of Christ?
Hold everything earthly with a loose hand, but grasp eternal things with a death-like grip.
~C. H Spurgeon~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
