5 July, 2022
💎 “But whatever things were gain to me, these I have considered as loss for the sake of the Messiah. More than that, I consider all things to be loss in comparison to the surpassing value of the knowledge of Messiah Yeshua my Lord. Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things; and I consider them garbage in order that I might gain Messiah.” (Phl 3:7-8)
We all understand what it is like to give up in order to gain. For example, we need to give up our free time, extra money, food or sleep to gain quality time with our family or friends, to provide acts of service for the needy or to reach good results in our studies and careers. In our faith journey, we also need to give up all confidence in the flesh in order to gain Messiah.
The word “gain” (κέρδος, kerdos) is plural in Greek, namely, “gains”, and the word “loss” (ζημία, zemia) is singular. That is, the various gains are all counted as one loss for the Messiah. It is not that all the gains are a loss by their very character or all these things were worthless in themselves, but we have to choose to regard them as a loss in comparison to the surpassing value of the knowledge of Messiah Yeshua. Many Christians operate with “cheap grace” and want to have Messiah together with all our “gains”. To give up is to take up our cross and die to ourselves daily, in order to gain Messiah and live for Him. Yeshua also teaches us the same attitude in the parable of the pearl of great price in Matthew 13:45-46. Like the treasure hidden in a field, knowing Yeshua is worth selling everything to get.
Having a personal relationship with Yeshua is the very centre of a Christian’s life. Our gain is in Yeshua HaMashiach and our confidence is in a living relationship with Him. Everything in life is excrement, human waste compared to the high privilege of knowing Messiah. Let us discover Messiah, our King, as a treasure of holy joy. To gain Messiah is to win the greatest treasure in the universe!
Let us worship Him! Knowing You Jesus.
🙏 Dear Father, thank You for what you have done in our lives through the practice of prayer and fasting in June. It is time for us to go deeper and dump all the insignificant things in the trash, so that we may embrace Messiah and be embraced by Him. We look forward to seeing Yeshua face to face and establish a loving and intimate relation with Him. In the Name of Yeshua we pray and bless You, Amen.