The Power of His Resurrection
God’s grace and peace be yours today, and may God make His presence known in your life as you live out your day.
Last week we heard Paul speak of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord. He even says that everything he was and accomplished before he knew Jesus was mere rubbish. Hear again his words, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them mere rubbish, so that I may gain Christ . . .
Today we continue this same text with additional thoughts from Paul, . . . and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 11 if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:9-11
Paul makes some huge statements in this portion of our text! Listen to what he desires!
He wants to be found in Him!
He wants to have righteousness not from the Law but through faith in Christ!
Paul wants to know Him and the power of His resurrection!
He ends by stating he wants his life in this world to be a reflection of Jesus’ sacrifice for us, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
We would have no issue writing a whole book on these four statements of Paul! As we take a brief look at each one of these statements, I believe you will see we are just scratching the surface.
What does it mean to be “in” Christ? It was Paul who wrote, “I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me, and the life I now live I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.” To be in Christ is to have been given new life which we call being born again! In this new birth we die to self and live for Jesus in all that we do. Our earthly life with its desire and goals for success is replaced by Christ’s desire and Christ’s goals. This is why it is so easy for Paul to speak of his former life, before Christ, being garbage compared to what it means to live for Christ today.
When Paul says he wants a righteousness not from the Law but through faith in Christ, he is declaring his own inability to keep the Law and receive any righteousness through it. He lived all his life seeking to keep the Law and in his heart he new he had failed to obtain any righteousness, except self-righteousness. But through simple faith, which is coming to God empty handed and taking ahold of Jesus, Paul was given the righteousness of Christ and through this, full acceptance by the Father. Paul had grown to understand the futility of seeking righteousness in any way apart from simple faith in the shed blood of Jesus upon the cross.
Paul then declared boldly that he wants to know Him and the power of His resurrection! To experience the power of Christ’s resurrection first means that a person must die! There is no resurrection without prior death! Jesus is the only One who has the power to make resurrection possible. He alone faced death and defeated it! Every other resurrection seen in Scripture was God demonstrating His power over death, but in the resurrection of Jesus, death was itself defeated. We see this in the fact that every person raised to life in the Bible had to face death a second time. Jesus rose, defeating death, and He lives forevermore offering eternal life to all who believe.
Along with the reality of dying is the obvious fact that Paul intends on dying a believer in Jesus as Savior. Death comes to all but eternal life in the presence of God is only given to those who die in the faith. This is Paul’s intent! He will live the remainder of his life trusting in Christ and he will pass from this world as one who had faith in Jesus. It is his confidence that because of this, death will give way to life when judgment day comes, and Jesus calls all the saints to share in His resurrection glory.
Finally, Paul speaks of this life from that particular moment as he wrote these words to the very end when his life ended as a Roman soldier lifted the axe. He speaks of living his life for the purpose of Jesus, even if it meant suffering and hardship. He states he desires to know the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
What would this have to do with attaining the resurrection from the dead? He has already stated his confidence in the power of Christ’s resurrection, why does he seemingly put a condition on it now? The truth is that when the chips are down and hardship ensue, many turn away. For many Christians, life is good and eternal life is wanted until suffering is demanded. When we face the heartache of suffering and loss because of Christ, many find the price to high to pay.
History is filled with individuals who named Jesus as their Lord but who, in the moment of trial, denied Him and walked away. Paul is declaring he will not be one of these! He will endure hardship, trials, suffering, and even death as one who believes and confesses Jesus as his Savior. He is committed to the bitter end; he will not relent or turn back. His course is set – Life, Death, and then Glory!
This is Paul’s great statement of his personal faith! May his boldness be an encouragement for all of us!
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
Last week we heard Paul speak of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord. He even says that everything he was and accomplished before he knew Jesus was mere rubbish. Hear again his words, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them mere rubbish, so that I may gain Christ . . .
Today we continue this same text with additional thoughts from Paul, . . . and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 11 if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:9-11
Paul makes some huge statements in this portion of our text! Listen to what he desires!
He wants to be found in Him!
He wants to have righteousness not from the Law but through faith in Christ!
Paul wants to know Him and the power of His resurrection!
He ends by stating he wants his life in this world to be a reflection of Jesus’ sacrifice for us, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
We would have no issue writing a whole book on these four statements of Paul! As we take a brief look at each one of these statements, I believe you will see we are just scratching the surface.
What does it mean to be “in” Christ? It was Paul who wrote, “I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me, and the life I now live I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.” To be in Christ is to have been given new life which we call being born again! In this new birth we die to self and live for Jesus in all that we do. Our earthly life with its desire and goals for success is replaced by Christ’s desire and Christ’s goals. This is why it is so easy for Paul to speak of his former life, before Christ, being garbage compared to what it means to live for Christ today.
When Paul says he wants a righteousness not from the Law but through faith in Christ, he is declaring his own inability to keep the Law and receive any righteousness through it. He lived all his life seeking to keep the Law and in his heart he new he had failed to obtain any righteousness, except self-righteousness. But through simple faith, which is coming to God empty handed and taking ahold of Jesus, Paul was given the righteousness of Christ and through this, full acceptance by the Father. Paul had grown to understand the futility of seeking righteousness in any way apart from simple faith in the shed blood of Jesus upon the cross.
Paul then declared boldly that he wants to know Him and the power of His resurrection! To experience the power of Christ’s resurrection first means that a person must die! There is no resurrection without prior death! Jesus is the only One who has the power to make resurrection possible. He alone faced death and defeated it! Every other resurrection seen in Scripture was God demonstrating His power over death, but in the resurrection of Jesus, death was itself defeated. We see this in the fact that every person raised to life in the Bible had to face death a second time. Jesus rose, defeating death, and He lives forevermore offering eternal life to all who believe.
Along with the reality of dying is the obvious fact that Paul intends on dying a believer in Jesus as Savior. Death comes to all but eternal life in the presence of God is only given to those who die in the faith. This is Paul’s intent! He will live the remainder of his life trusting in Christ and he will pass from this world as one who had faith in Jesus. It is his confidence that because of this, death will give way to life when judgment day comes, and Jesus calls all the saints to share in His resurrection glory.
Finally, Paul speaks of this life from that particular moment as he wrote these words to the very end when his life ended as a Roman soldier lifted the axe. He speaks of living his life for the purpose of Jesus, even if it meant suffering and hardship. He states he desires to know the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
What would this have to do with attaining the resurrection from the dead? He has already stated his confidence in the power of Christ’s resurrection, why does he seemingly put a condition on it now? The truth is that when the chips are down and hardship ensue, many turn away. For many Christians, life is good and eternal life is wanted until suffering is demanded. When we face the heartache of suffering and loss because of Christ, many find the price to high to pay.
History is filled with individuals who named Jesus as their Lord but who, in the moment of trial, denied Him and walked away. Paul is declaring he will not be one of these! He will endure hardship, trials, suffering, and even death as one who believes and confesses Jesus as his Savior. He is committed to the bitter end; he will not relent or turn back. His course is set – Life, Death, and then Glory!
This is Paul’s great statement of his personal faith! May his boldness be an encouragement for all of us!
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
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