From the Pastor’s Desk

Sunday, June 9, 2019

“That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” Philippians 3:10

When I was training to be a pastor, I remember my mentor use to say more times than I can remember; “Growing in Him, is knowing Him.” This passage sums up Paul’s primary pursuit in life; to know Christ Jesus. From a prison cell in Rome, Paul pens this personal letter in which he comes to terms with an accomplished past and a confining present. After his past as a persecutor of God’s people and through his “superior” religious activities as a Pharisee, Paul came to the liberating conclusion that all is rubbish compared to knowing the Lord!

His freedom from the stagnation of yesterday’s victories and the emotional paralysis of yesterday’s mistakes; Paul knew that the only thing that ultimately counted was knowing the Lord and being obedient to His will. Not only was his past subsumed by this singular passion, his present imprisonment could not snatch from him the joy of knowing Christ. Prison chains could not keep him from pursuing God, nor dull his effectiveness in ministry.

Paul’s desire to know Christ sprang from none other motive but to enjoy Him. He wanted Christ for Christ’s sake, not his own. He was a lover of God, not a user of God. And whether he moved in Christ’s resurrection power or was stretched to his last ounce of endurance, it mattered little. For Paul, it was all a part of the most fulfilling journey of all: truly knowing God.

You are loved, Pastor Don