"Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ."
Philippians 3:8
The Apostle Paul had a tremendous pedigree. You can read it for yourself in Philippians 3:4-6. As far as his credentials were concerned he had everything that a Hebrew man could possibly hope for. Some have even said that he might possibly be in the running for “high priest of Israel” in the future. The only problem with all his titles and accolades was that these things couldn’t “win Christ” for him. By his own testimony he was extremely religious, but he did not know Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. He was on the path to religious greatness in the eyes of men, but He had no standing, no relationship, with God. Paul believed that doing these things made him acceptable in God’s eyes. In his thinking it was all about what he could do to make himself presentable to God, but he missed the point.
Paul would later write, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast,” (Ephesians 2:8-9). If you are “working for” your salvation, you will never find it, for you can never pay the impossible debt of your own sin. Only Jesus Christ could do that for us. For Paul to gain “the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus,” he had to count all of his effort, works, titles, and accomplishments as nothing. He willingly gave these up for a personal relationship with God!
For a relationship with Christ Paul said, “for whom I have suffered the loss of all things.” He said, “I have suffered the loss of them all.”1 These things that he had labored so long and hard to get, in the end, he said these things have no value to me. He said they were worse than refuse, something to throw away. “By losing all that the world calls excellent, he gained Christ, and endless salvation through him,” (Adam Clarke).2
How about you? Is there anything in your hand that you think will impress God enough to let you into His heaven? It will never work. The only work that impresses God for salvation, is the work that His Son Jesus accomplished on the cross. Like Paul did, discard anything that the world says you need to impress God. Trust only in the merits of Jesus Christs’ death, burial, and resurrection for your sin. This is the only way to “gain Christ.”
1. Jamison-Fausset-and Brown Commentary, electronic version, in eSword.
2. Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, electronic version, in eSword.