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Paul Changes Ambitions
Philippians 3:10-11 "That I may know Him" 1.
Knowing Christ is personal. v. 10
Know whom? Him!
Christianity is not an 'it,' it's a HIM! This is the difference
between us and the world of religion. They
are about rules and we are about a relationship. This proves a most
scary point: It's very
possible to know ABOUT Christ and not know Christ.
Many know about a historical Jesus, but they do not know the
personal Jesus. ill.--How many of you
were saved later in life?
You probably knew about Jesus before you were born again...but now you
know Him for real! ill.--Do you know
Barack Obama? Would you like
to? You probably know about
him, like simple facts:
Where he was born. [hold on]
What he does. [wait a
minute] This isn't working
as an illustration! You know
about him, but unless you meet him, you don't know him personally. Sadly, most of our
nation knows about Jesus, but doesn't know Jesus. Do you have a personal
relationship with God, or do you just know things about Him? A second point to
ponder: You can know Christ
personally, but not know Him intimately. This is where Paul
stands out. This is a prison
epistle. Paul wrote this
from jail in "More, more about
Jesus!" 2 Peter 3:18 We get to know Him
better thru His Word and prayer, and from choosing to walk this life
with Him hand in hand. I've been privileged
to know Him for 38 years now, but it's in sorrow, loss, and suffering,
that I have come to know Him best as my Comforter.
In times of need I've
found out He's my provider. In persecution I have
learned He's a friend that sticks closer than a brother.
In times of attack
I've come to appreciate that He is my defender.
In times of distress
I've seen that He is my deliverer! And I feel I've only
touched the hem of the garment of what it means to know Him intimately! 1.
Knowing Christ is personal.... 2.
Knowing Christ is powerful. v. 10
'power of his resurrection' Power = Greek
dunamis
dunamis = dynamite! After we are born
again we begin the process of learning how weak we are and how powerful
God is. We find out that we
cannot overcome temptation in our own strength / deal with the stresses
of life by ourselves. We live in an age of
great power in technology, and we are pretty proud of ourselves. ill.--NASA rockets
have millions of pounds of thrust - and the amazing crawlers that get
them to the launch pad, which get just 35 feet per gallon.
Each of our submarines which
carry hundreds of times more nuclear firepower than was dropped on
And yet compared
to the power of God a NASA rocket is a paper airplane and a nuclear
missile is a BB gun! What kind of power?
Resurrection power! We think of God's
power at creation, to just speak it all into existence.
With all our scientific
knowledge, we can't even study our own sun well enough to know the
extent of its power, and yet it's just one of trillions of suns that all
came to be in orbits and planes with planets and moons in perfect
balance in an instant! We read about God's
power in judgment as He stood toe to toe against the false gods of We have heard about
the power of the virgin birth, for a perfect Son to be brought into the
world without the need of an earthly dad. But Paul didn't say,
That I may know His power of judgment or the power of the virgin birth
or the power of creation...but the power of His resurrection! It is the greatest
display of God's power that there ever was...trumping even the creation
of the universe, for resurrection power is power over sin and death,
which are the strongest foes which have ever existed in His creation. "Up from the grave He
arose...with a mighty triumph o'er His foes!" Paul said, I need
access to that kind of power. I
need to plug in to that power source.
Why?
Because Paul knew that man can control an entire ship with just a
small rudder, but man cannot control his own tongue!
Today, we can
guide a rover to Mars and cruise around on the surface, but we can't
guide our own families in our own houses without the power of God!
We have learned
how to cure a lot of diseases, but we can't keep our own mind from lust.
We need help.
We need God's power! Medical science has
revealed that the electrical power in the human body [nervous system] is
about .1 watt. How foolish it is
to rely on the power of our human flesh when we can avail ourselves of
God's resurrection power!
We work,
struggle, and strive in our own power - and for what?
Failure!
Let's tap into God's resurrection power! ill.--imagine I walk
into a deacon's meeting, and the room is dark.
"Anyone here?"
"Yeah preacher.
We're ready to start!" "But it's dark." "Yes, and we're having
trouble seeing our notes." "Is the power out?" "No." "Are there good bulbs
in the sockets?" "Yes." "Is the switch
broken?" "We don't know." "Let me try it."
[it works!] "That's why you're our
leader!"
It's a
ridiculous situation...and it's the one we find ourselves in as weak
humans who don't make the simple step of deciding to flip the switch of
God's power. 1.
Knowing Christ is personal.... 2.
Knowing Christ is powerful... 3.
Knowing Christ can be painful. v. 10
'the fellowship of his sufferings' Isaiah 53:3 Jesus knew pain. Emotional pain of
rejection by His own people / those He came to save / His own disciples
who forsook Him / pain of slander as they called Him illegitimate, a
drunk, who was demon possessed.
It hurts to be
lied about...and Jesus lived His whole life under that cloud. Jesus knew physical
pain...and not just the cross. We
forget about how much worse every pain of life was for the simple fact
that He lived in a sinless body!
You see, sin has
a dulling effect on us / a desensitizing effect on our bodies.
When they drove
the crown of thorns into HIS head, it was worse, because it was a
perfect head that had never even thought of sin.
When His hands
were nailed to the cross, they had never done wrong nor handled anything
sinfully.
When His feet
were nailed, they had never gone where they should not go.
When His heart
was pierced by a spear, it was a pure heart, that had never once beat
for the devil! And Jesus knew the
worst pain of all...spiritual pain...as His own Father separated Himself
from His Son on the cross...forsaking Him because our sin was laid upon
Him. That is true
death...separation from God.
It is what hell is, in addition to literal fire, darkness and
torment...it is separation from God...a spiritual pain that can not be
comprehended! "fellowship" [of his
sufferings] = joint participation.
Paul said it was
a privilege to know some small portion of what suffering is, for the
appreciation it gave him for his Savior!
It was in Paul's
sufferings that he got to know Jesus more intimately. ill.--as we sing hymns
of Fanny Crosby, we clearly see that she knew Jesus intimately.
We can see that.
She could not see.
That blindness was thrust upon her forcefully by the wrong medicine
being put into her little eyes as a child.
And her spiritual eyes were
opened. Why?
Because of the darkness of her physical suffering.
In the furnace of affliction she
was purified as gold. It was on
the rack that God stretched her into the spiritual giant she became! 1.
Knowing Christ is personal.... 2.
Knowing Christ is powerful... 3.
Knowing Christ can be painful... 4.
Knowing Christ is purposeful. v. 10
'being made conformable unto his death' 3 great questions
plague the mind of mankind: Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?
And the world
has no answers, because they refuse the answers in the Word of God. This is the reason
that people today are so empty and lonely, and the suicide rate is so
high, and those who don't take their own lives meander about like the
walking dead, because they have no purpose for living! But this verse makes
it clear what is our purpose:
Death!
It's talking
about death to self. When we die to our own
ambitions and live for something greater than ourselves - THEN we begin
living! You want resurrection
power? Then there has to be
a death! Paul said to live is
Christ and to die is gain! 1 Corinthians 13:12 v. 11
Christ's initial purpose for our lives is our death to self.
But His ultimate purpose for us
is our resurrection!
Then we will
know Him as He is...intimately! Do you know about
Christ, or do you know Him personally? If
you know Him personally, do you know Him intimately? Are you willing to
experience the fellowship of His sufferings if that's what it takes to
know the power of His resurrection? You can find your
purpose for living!
Please help keep this ministry free by honoring our system...
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Grace Notes Sermon Ministry:
NOTICE! Our sermons are free to download, copy and paste, edit and use as you see fit...but only our free subscribers get the newest messages, featured sermons, and some free gifts we shower on them from time to time! Help keep this service free by recommending it using the links above the sermon
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