By Rick Blumenberg /
Paul wrote in
Philippians 3 about living in the joy of God’s reality. Those aren’t Paul’s
words, but my description of what he wrote. After you read this I hope you also
read Philippians 3 thru 4:2.
Paul urges us to
“rejoice in the Lord” then departs temporarily from this theme to talk about a
way of living that steals our joy and fills us with deep anxiety. His thoughts
and writings recalled his past efforts to attain salvation by what he thought
were “good works”.
There’s nothing wrong
with good works. The problem is if we try to use good works as our method of
salvation. Paul now knew without doubt it was gained only by faith in Christ—not
by any good works he had done. Some, he now realized, not only brought no
salvation, they were not really good. They were instead, very bad works. In his
zeal he had actually persecuted the same church he was now trying to build. Paul
knew others who had tried that same futile road to heaven and he knew such
behavior would only steal their joy. He didn’t want others to walk that same dead
end road when such behavior would not gain salvation and could even find them
fighting against God instead of serving him.
Paul knew God had a
better idea. In verse seven he wrote, “…whatever was to my profit I now
consider loss…compared to…knowing Christ….” He even considered them “rubbish”.
Paul did many good
things. But call them “rubbish”?
Because such good
works only bring despair if we depend on them for salvation. They produce joy only
when done in response to loving God and loving humanity. We are all God’s
people by creation. Because of Christ’s death and resurrection, we are all forgiven.
Paul’s former life
had been lived with a wrathful view of God. Paul’s life reflected the wrath he assumed
was the nature of God. When Paul met Jesus, he met God’s grace and mercy. Realizing
that grace and mercy was for everyone brought Paul an indescribable joy. He had
moved into the awesome light of God’s reality and found it amazing.
God’s reality is that
we all are forgiven. Christ died for our sin, but too many people still
live in the defeat of hopeless guilt. Mentally, even Paul hadn’t fully attained
it (v. 12). Paul knew the truth of forgiveness, but he still struggled to fully
grasp the limitless grace of God. Nor the fact it was for him, Paul, a
middle-eastern terrorist, who had been saved from his own terror and from the
terror he had dumped on the church. He now realized this forgiveness had been
granted both to him and to all humanity!
Most do not grasp that
God loves everyone. Paul knew his own mind still hadn’t caught up with the
reality of God’s grace. In verse 16 he urged “let us live up to what we have
already attained”. We are spiritual siblings of the Lord Jesus Christ because
God loved us and sent Jesus to bring us all to God.
God opened the door
for you to live a life of joy. That door is Jesus! An antidote for past sin, Jesus
also offers faith as immunity from future sin and a welcome into God’s amazing
grace.
Open yourself to the
Joy-giver, Jesus. Give him past failures and claim what is already yours; a
loving relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. Then God’s Holy Spirit can
help you claim with heart and mind what Jesus attained for you through his
death and resurrection. You too can begin to live in the joy of God’s reality.
I’m
Rick Blumenberg and that’s My View from Tanner Creek.
