Philippians 3:4-14.      Jesus Christ the most valuable                        17/3/13

 If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: {5} circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; {6} as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. {7} But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. {8} What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ {9} and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. {10} I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, {11} and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. {12} Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. {13} Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, {14} I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

In my time as pastor I have been told many things. Some of it has gone along similar lines to this: that was a good sermon pastor: you work so hard – you have helped me in …..you this, that, or the other. And yes thankfully most it has been good.

 Well here I would like to join Paul and say what a load of rubbish! ‘The good that I do’– what a load of garbage. Yes sure I like to hear it all. It does the ego good, but it is a load of rubbish. In fact it is harmful and dangerous. What I have done is nothing. It is nothing in comparison to our Lord Jesus and what he has done for us - for you and me. He and what he has done is what is all important. He is the one who has saved us and is at work in our lives every day in a big way. He is the one who has given us forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.

 But this, of course, is not what our world likes hear today. At the present time all the emphasis goes on us and what we do. The focus is on me. The church scene is full of this rubbish today, where we are pandering to the same lies that Satan gave to Adam and Eve; ‘If you do – you will be like God.” Now also, we are tempted to put all the emphasis on what we do: We need a good pastor who will do this, that and the other: or, I have made my decision for Christ; or I have my faith so I don’t need to come to church all the time: or, we need to have the latest ‘up beat’ music, and orders of service if we are to grow the church: and I could go on and on.

 Time and time again these days, I hear that to be a Christian is to live a good life – it is about having good morals and the like. Many a person today claims be a Christian, and yet rarely sets foot in a church, or even acknowledges Jesus, but claim that they live by the ten commandments and are basically good people – and this is what makes them Christian. And that is what they have been told by the so-called Christian church today. So what I see and hear is, I – we – me – my, and Jesus has to take second place once again, and in many cases he becomes non-essential for us and our faith. Our trust has turned in on ourselves, or placed on the Holy Spirit or something else other than Jesus Christ and his death on the cross.

 That being the case, we really have faith in ourselves and what we have done and are to do, instead of in our Lord and Saviour. So we are no longer Christian at all – yes we still like to use the word, Christian: we still like to claim that we are one. But in fact we are the opposite – we are anti-Christian. For that which leads us to take our focus off of Christ is nothing but evil. And sadly therefore, there are many, many people who fall into this category.

 So this focus on self, and what we do, is a load of rubbish - it is garbage. Even when our works are good, and are done in good faith and from a Christian point of view, we need to be like Paul and consider them as rubbish from own perspective, so that we do not lose sight of what Jesus has done for us. And that is so easily done when the focus is on what we do. We only need to look at the wider church scene to see that: with the emphasis on what we must do, we are playing with danger – a danger that has eternal consequences.

 That being the case we need to be like Paul here in this reading, who placed knowing the Lord Jesus Christ as the most important thing in life. Let us hear again what he says. “What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ  and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.  I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

Yes, the Lord Jesus Christ is the only one who has done so much for us – the only hope that we have that is certain – the only one who has and can save us, forgive us, and assure us of eternal life in heaven. And we know how much it cost him – his awful death on the cross - being totally forsaken by his Father in heaven: all just for us and for our salvation. It is he alone who has rescued us from sin and an eternity in Hell, and made it possible for us to share eternity with himself. It is he alone who rose from death so as to break its power over us, and gives us that assurance of life beyond death as a guarantee.

 So surely, for these reasons alone, we can now see the reality of the fact that he is central to the whole of life: he is the one who is all important. Without him we are sunk – we are in big trouble. He alone has and is everything that is of any importance in life. So surely he alone will be central in our thinking and our living.

 So when it comes to my sermons or anything that I do, surely it is not me who is important; it is the Lord Jesus Christ. He gives the words; the power; the good that is there in every sermon. His Spirit is there helping me to speak it and you to hear it. When it is less than what it should be – that then is me and my fault; not God’s – so any focus on me is rubbish. The same goes for my living; my work; my whatever: It is he who produces the good: his Spirit leading and guiding to do that which is right.

 So also when it comes to our decision for Jesus and our acceptance of him into our hearts. Surely it not my decision that is important: he has decided he is for me: he died for me: he forgives my sins: he accepts me as his very own – not because of anything good in me, but simply because of Jesus Christ and his love for me. In my baptism he has personally signed over his acceptance, and all I simply do is trust that he knows what he is doing. Any decision on my part can only be done by him at work in me and with his help: motivated by what he has done for me and in me. If it is from me, I could never be sure and I am in danger of placing my trust in me and what I have done, or of despairing because I am not sure of my decision.

 Again for me to be so arrogant as to suggest that I have faith, therefore, I don’t need to be regular in my church attendance and all the rest, is just that, pure arrogance. My life is nothing without Jesus Christ and his help: I daily need his forgiveness, help and guidance: and I trust that when he says regular worship and all the rest is important, I listen and are guided by him; Because I know that he has all the answers and knows what is good for me - not myself. I need him and his help, instead of trust in my own faith, knowledge or whatever.

 So yes, in all things the Lord Jesus Christ is the one who is all important. Every other focus for confidence and hope is rubbish – pure garbage as Paul says. Sure we now need to live the good life and follow the Lord Jesus, and do many things; but it is always from and by his Spirit and done in thankful praise and as a loving response to him who is all important: it is motivated by him and it is focussed on him. It is for his benefit; for he alone is our Lord and Saviour – the God of all gods and the Lord of all lords.

 So let us here, consider that what the world around us looks to as important and profitable, as loss, for the sake of Jesus Christ. Let us not look where the world out there looks because it takes our focus off of the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord. Let us press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus. For to him alone belongs all glory and honour now and always.   AMEN.

 Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish