The first step is to recognize that going to church and listening to sermons is not enough. You need a desire and commitment to begin letting God’s Word shape your mind, emotions, and will. Think of an area of need, interest, or struggle in your life. Now find a passage in the Bible that addresses that situation. For example, if someone has hurt you, find verses about forgiveness. If you don’t know where to look, check a concordance or the back of your Bible for a subject list.

As you read the passage, look for God’s instructions, and begin doing what He says. Then observe the results. What has the Lord done in your life? What did you learn about Him and His ways? Once you’ve experienced the blessing of obedience in that area, you’ll be ready to apply what the Lord reveals about other aspects of your life. One of the best ways to plant these truths firmly in your heart is to write them down and review them regularly.

One benefit of building truth into your life is freedom. Areas of sin or feelings of insecurity and inadequacy hamper us in so many ways. But when we believe Scripture and act on its truth rather than our emotions or desires, we’ll discover that the Lord can overpower whatever holds us captive.

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But be sure to fear the LORD and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you.

Samuel reminded the people to take time to consider what great things God had done for them. Taking time for reflection allows us to focus our attention upon God’s goodness and strengthens our faith. Sometimes we are so progress- and future-oriented that we fail to take time to recall all that God has already done. Remember what God has done for you so that you may continue your life accompanied with gratitude.

Paul has a way of playing your game, winning, and then saying the game is bunk. He does it, for example, in 2 Corinthians 11:21-12:11 where he lists his “superior” achievements and then says, “I have been a fool! You forced me to it” (2 Corinthians 12:11). In other words, I can play your game of measuring myself by your standards, win, and then call it all worthless. It is fool’s play.

He does it again here in Philippians 3. He warns the church to watch out for the evildoing dogs who mutilate the flesh (people who insist on circumcision as a way of getting right with God). The problem with these people is that they “put confidence in the flesh”-that is, they bank on their works for justification (vv. 2-3, cf. v. 9).

So Paul says, OK let’s play that game for a moment. And then he lists his works of the flesh and knocks his opponents out of the ring with legal achievements. “If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more.” Indeed he does.

Then come three of the best verses in all the Bible. In essence: the victory I just won in the contest of the flesh is a pile of garbage (the Greek is sku,bala, v. 8). And the reason he uses such a strong word (refuse!) is that the alternative is Christ. Compared to Christ being the greatest Pharisee of his time was foul garbage.

But that is too vague. He is not vague. He does not say simply that compared to Christ legal achievements are garbage; he is more specific. He says that what is superior to moral and religious achievements is 1) knowing Christ, 2) gaining Christ, and 3) being found in Christ.

1. Knowing Christ. ”Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (v. 8). “Knowing” here is not just knowing the fact that Jesus is Lord. It is the kind of knowing that prompts the phrase, “my Lord”! He knows the supreme Lord of the universe (see 2:9-11) as his Lord. So there are two aspects to Paul’s passion for Christ here. One is the rational and relational knowledge of the greatest person in the universe. Paul’s mind and heart are full of Christ. The other is that he belongs to Christ as subject to the all-ruling, all-protecting Lord. This is better than being at the top of any human heap.

2. Gaining Christ. ”For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (v. 8). “Gain” means get all that Christ is for us in heaven, not just on earth. Paul has already said, “To live is Christ and to die is gain” (v. 21), because “to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (1:23). And he is about to say, “I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own” (3:12). So it is clear that part of what makes human achievement a pile of garbage compared to Christ is that soon (and very soon!) he is going to meet the king-in a way far more full and intimate and stunning and satisfying than anything he has known here. And he has known so much of Christ here that the garbage verdict has been rendered on that alone.

3. Being found in Christ. ”. . . and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith” (v. 9). Paul was overwhelmed by the fact that “in Christ”-that is, united to Christ by faith alone-he possessed a righteousness that was infinitely better than all his legal achievements could ever be. Paul knew he needed a righteous life in order to be accepted by God and in order to enjoy all the glories of Christ forever. He did not have such a righteousness in himself. He needed the free gift of righteousness from God himself. God gave it to him in Christ.

Therefore Jesus Christ was both the treasure he cherished and the one who provided the right to have the treasure. In Christ alone Paul had a right to know and gain Christ. And that is all he wanted. That is the gospel. This is what we mean by treasuring Christ together. Christ alone is the ground of our acceptance with God and the goal of our heart’s desire. He is our righteousness and our reward. Compared to him (knowing him, gaining him, being found in him) all else is garbage.

We remember, O Jesus, Thine eternal love when Thou didst become our Surety, and espouse us as Thy betrothed. We remember the love which suggested the sacrifice of Thyself, the love which, until the fulness of time, mused over that sacrifice, and long for the hour whereof in the volume of the book it was written of Thee, “Lo, I come.” We remember Thy love, O Jesus as it was manifest to us in Thy holy life, from the manger of Bethlehem to the garden of Gethsemane. We track Thee from the cradle to the grave—for every word and deed of Thine was love–and we rejoice in Thy love, which death did not exhaust; Thy love which shone resplendent in Thy resurrection. We remember that burning fire of love which will never let Thee hold Thy peace until Thy chosen ones be all safely housed, until Zion be glorified, and Jerusalem settled on her everlasting foundations of light and love in heaven.

When all turns out well, especially if we think we have done something good, we have no trouble believing that God is near. However, when we have done something terrible, we feel God is far away from us. 

The truth is, God is always close. It is us who are building a wall that causes us to think otherwise. We need to break that wall. What is that wall? Is that some form of shame, or guilt, sin, bitterness, past traumas? Let God help you release them. God longs fellowship with His child. 

You see, God is closer than a heartbeat. God is with you wherever you go, in whatever mood you are in. He would not have given His life for you if you were not worth it. You are valuable in God’s eyes. Like the father of the prodigal son, God awaits your return. He longs to hear your voice, a prayer or two.

Be careful when you drift away, you may forget about God and remain calloused in sin. 1 Corinthians 10:12 says, ”if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” 

Feeling bad and sorry is a good sign of repentance and remorse. Immediately, go back and run to God, not away from Him. 

Believe that God is near you. Believe that God loves you. Believe that God has great plans for you. God can do so many things beyond what you can ever think of, but you must believe. 

Start believing that God is for you. ♥

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John chapter 13. I’ll begin reading at verse 2. We’re going to read an episode from the life of the most secure man who ever lived; a man who had nothing to prove – the ultimate man, Jesus Christ. “The evening meal was being served,” scripture says, “and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power and that He had come from God and was returning to God; so He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.”

Now, here is the most complete man that ever lived, and He is demonstrating His sense of manhood and identity in a very graphic way, in a surprising way. He knows who He is. He’s coming from God; He’s going to God. He’s got it together, and He demonstrates that as it says in verse 5, “He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.”

The only Son of God is not too good to do the lowliest job in the house. Well, the real man is man enough to choose to be a servant; to pitch in on the dirty work; to be as manly doing the laundry as he is lifting some heavy furniture; to be as macho changing a diaper as he is changing spark plugs.

Not too long ago there was an interesting comment from the wife of a friend of ours who had just come back from a great tour of speaking…kind of the conquistador, you know, and they loved him where he was. He came in and he wanted to tell all his war stories of how much they loved him, and his wife said, “Honey, you know you always come home like a spoiled king.” Huh… and you know what? He had to admit, she was right. “I want the world to revolve around me.”

Well, I’ll tell you there’s nothing very manly about coming home like a spoiled king. It’s small; it’s selfish. Jesus was just coming off Palm Sunday with the cheers of the crowd still ringing in His ears, and yet He went and washed the disciples’ feet. How many  men make their wives feel totally insignificant by implying that what she does all day long is too unimportant for us to touch?

See, the sign of a real man is that he makes a woman feel important. And he does that when he arrives in her world like the Cavalry arriving just in time. He demonstrates his manhood when he serves his wife. Not because he’s a wimp, but because he’s secure and strong enough to love her in the ways that really mean something.

You demonstrate your dignity, not by how many people do things for you, but how many people you do things for. That’s manhood! Jesus, the ultimate model of manhood – a muscular carpenter – can be a foot washer. The mighty Son of God can be a servant. That’s the kind of real man that a woman loves to love.

We are drowning in a sea of impurity. Everywhere we look we find temptation to lead impure lives. The psalmist asked a question that troubles us all: How do we stay pure in a filthy environment? We cannot do this on our own, but must have counsel and strength more dynamic than the tempting influences around us. Where can we find that strength and wisdom? By reading God’s Word and doing what it says.