Know Him!

Know Him!

that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Philippians 3:10‭-‬11 KJV

Context and Charge:

Any good of ourselves that we may lay claim on is not the righteousness of God in Christ. No man can come to God and plead self-righteousness. Sin has rubbished whatever good standing I had, and now, all who will be accepted by God must come by the prescribed way, which is Christ Jesus. Paul had walked the path of self-righteousness, and after listing all his achievements, his summary was that they were all dung when compared with the excellency of knowing Christ. That has to be the summary of a life that will make impact: it cannot rest on human metrics, thrive on human applause or be controlled by human approval. Am I striving for acceptance by God through labour? Am I seeking God because of what I can get or because I really want to know Him?

The knowledge of Christ is the highest form of knowledge. Check out the complete package: the power of His resurrection, the fellowship of His sufferings, partaking in his death and attaining unto the promised resurrection. I do not get to pick and choose the one that I am comfortable with; Christ came to give me a full life, and only by identifying with him in all respects can I access all that He is. This is not a one-off process, and it is not something you completely achieve on this side of eternity. Paul lays it out as a continuous process, something that takes the whole of a person's life until death or rapture changes the atmosphere. Even in heaven, this is where we get to experience God even more closely, and to know him even more. 

Conviction and Conclusion:

Like Paul, can this be my prayer? Is the knowledge of God my absolute focus, or is there room for other viable alternatives? Can God hold my heart and its pursuits and priorities, so that all that my life produces line up with the nature of God and his desire for me? I must keep at the front of my mind the fact that eternal life is the end of all life. Where I get to spend mine is a reflection of the things that held my heart down here. Christ is the end of all things, and a day comes soon when every knee, whether by choice or compulsion, will bow before him at the judgment seat, and then eternal life is permanently settled. I had better bow the knee now willingly, and be assured of resurrection when Christ returns. God's time of favour is here.