Do You Know Christ

What is the difference between knowing and knowing

As I was studying for this week’s sermon a lot went through my mind. It is not an easy task of writing sermons. There is a lot to do when preparing a sermon. There is a lot of prayer. I mean, a lot. Then there is listening, perhaps, even more listening. Listening to what God has to say in various ways. then, there is more praying. And of course, studying the Bible in there as well. I say all that to bring up today’s sermon, and that is do you know Christ? What is the difference between knowing Him, and knowing Him? Now at this point, you may think, “pastor, those are the same words, have you gone out of it?” Perhaps, but I want to know if you truly know Christ. We just sang a song called “More about Jesus” and I wonder, did we pay attention to the words that we sang. I especially like the first verse that went “More about Jesus would I know, More of His grace to others show; more of His saving fullness see, Mor of His love who died for me.” So you all should know by now that I enjoy looking up the definition of things, and this week is no different. I looked up the word know on dictionary.com and it did not disappoint. There are actually two definitions. 1. be aware through observation, inquiry, or information. 2. have developed a relationship with (someone) through meeting and spending time with them be familiar or friendly with.

That brings us to our scripture today. We are going to be looking at Philippians 3:7-11

Philippians 3:7–11 NKJV

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 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

When looking at this passage, we se so much that we can learn from, but first a little history. This was written by Paul. Now, if we remember Paul, we know that he was persecuting the Christians. He would seek out Christians to put them in prison. He was not a nice person, and we could even say that we would be enemies of him if we were around him at that time. But we know that something wonderful had happened to Paul while on the road to Damascus. We can see that information in chapter 9 of Acts

Acts 9 NKJV

Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and to him the Lord said in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” So the Lord said to him, “Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.” Then Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized. So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God. Then all who heard were amazed, and said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ. Now after many days were past, the Jews plotted to kill him. But their plot became known to Saul. And they watched the gates day and night, to kill him. Then the disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall in a large basket. And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out. And he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they attempted to kill him. When the brethren found out, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him out to Tarsus. Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied. Now it came to pass, as Peter went through all parts of the country, that he also came down to the saints who dwelt in Lydda. There he found a certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years and was paralyzed. And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you. Arise and make your bed.” Then he arose immediately. So all who dwelt at Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did. But it happened in those days that she became sick and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. And since Lydda was near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming to them. Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them. But Peter put them all out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. Then he gave her his hand and lifted her up; and when he had called the saints and widows, he presented her alive. And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed on the Lord. So it was that he stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner.

From that moment on, Paul was changed. He no longer persecuted Christians, but loved them. He no longer spoke against Jesus, but spoke boldly for Him. His life goal had changed.

But back to our scripture today, we see in verse 7 he says, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.” in verse 10 he says “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,”

Verse 14 he tells us, “I press toward the goal for the price of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul went from persecuting Christians to being zealous for Jesus.

Now, we could leave it at that and call it good, but is this all that we should see from looking in the book of Philippians? Of course not. Do you not think we should be expressing the same thoughts? Haven’t we also been saved by Jesus? Do we have the same life goal that Paul has? Now, you might think that Paul was special because Jesus appeared to him in person and that is why he responded like that and we can’t possibly be like Paul. But see, these things were written not just to describe Paul’s goal in life, but also to teach us what our goal in life should be. Check out verse 15

Philippians 3:15 NKJV

Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.

Also, verse 16

Philippians 3:16 NKJV

Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.

The things that Paul said here about his goal in life are also meant to be applied to us. We need to put them into practice in order to live meaningfully and purposefully. But how do we do this?

One of the first things we should do is perceive all worldly gains as losses for Christ

When looking at what people live for today, we realize that most people have been misled into thinking that they have accumulated much with valuable goods, when all they have really obtained are empty assests and worthless investments. None of these can be kept for eternity.

Now, does this mean we need to go and get rid of everything we own? Of course not. God blesses us with many good things to enjoy in life and to use for His glory because He loves you. We should be thankful for them. But it happens. We sometimes allow thos things to become more important than God, we allow them to become idols. We become so attached to them that we start regarding them as our gains. This is where the danger begins. You have them in your hands and refuse to let go of them. If God wants you to let go of them, you think that He is being rather mean and unfair to you.

If you consider Jesus to be of infinite worht and value to you, then you would not mind allowing God to take them away or to leave them with you, as He pleases. Whatever things in your life God allows you to keep, must now be used for His glory. And whatever things in your life God does not want you to keep, must be removed and disposed of before they begin to hinder your walk with HIm and commitment to Him.

This is what it means to perceive all your worldly gains as losses for Christ. But if you remember, when we started this sermon, taht I asked about knowing Christ. See, that is another purpose for us, to know Christ fully.

Let’s look at verse 10 again.

Philippians 3:10 NKJV

that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,

I love what Charles Spurgeon says about knowing Christ; “I may know all the doctrines of the Bible, but unless I know Christ, there is not one of them that can save me.”

I love this verse though, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection. Is this your heart’s desire? To know Jesus Christ? It should be. We were not saved from sin just to fill up a vacancy in heaven or to secure a place for yourself in God’s kingdom. You were saved and given eternal life so that you may know God and live with Him in a personal relationship through Jesus Christ!

John 17:3 NKJV

And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

This was said by Jesus, Himself. We can’t say that we want to be saved but not want a relationship with God. They are linked together. You were made by God to know Him. You are saved by God, to know Him. How well do you know God? How well do you know Jesus? I’m not asking if you know a lot about God. You know there have been books written about God by authors who never even knew Him at all? What do the scriptures mean by talking about knowing God?

Knowing the Lord means communicating with Him. God speaks to you through His word. As you read the Bible he tells you about Himself. He also tells you about yourself. He tells you what He has done for you. And you respond by speaking to Him in prayer. You express thanks, you express trust. You ask Him to help you do what He wants you to do. Then He speaks to you through His word again and give you the assurance you need, and more instructions. It’s a two-way exchange processs. This is what communication is about. You cannot have a relationship with God without communicating with Him.

Knowing the Lord means communing with Him. Spend time alone with God because you love to be with Him. This involves not only your mind, but your heart as well.

Knowing the Lord means commitment to Him. Commitment is the main essential product of any deep and lasting relationship. It means having full agreement with God’s desires and God’s will. It means rendering voluntary submission and loving obedience to God.

These are waht knowing the Lord is all about. Without them, your relationship with Him will remain superficial and distant. The deeper our relationship with Him grows, the more we will become like Him, conformed to His image.

So I want to end this with the question we had at the beginning, do you know Christ or do you know Christ?