When you hear Christians give "testimonies," they're most often based upon "how I stopped doing bad things and started doing good things."While there's nothing wrong with being happy about positive changes in our lives, on our latest Growing in Grace program, Mike Kapler and I talk about the Apostle Paul's "testimony" in Philippians 3 that isn't based at all upon any change from bad behavior to good behavior.
In fact his testimony was that he once strove to be the best of the best of the righteous people, but he chucked it all aside and counted it all as loss so that he would be found in Christ and Christ alone!
I really enjoyed this one, Joel. I love how you made the point that it wasn't sin, addiction and whatnot that Paul counted as loss. Like you mentioned it's not bad to cut those things out of your life, but that is not what the Scripture is saying. Reading that in it's context, I have no idea how people can take the good news Paul is preaching and pull out nothing but "gall and wormwood" as Charles Spurgeon said. There are numerous Scriptures people have completely taken out of context in order to build their religion.
ReplyDeleteYep, I don't know how many times I've heard that scripture from Philippians quoted, but almost every time it's out of context. I think that the first time I realized what Paul was really saying there, that's when so many lights went on in my head about the law and grace. It's so amazingly simple, and yet profound.
ReplyDeleteto be found in Christ...
ReplyDeletethere is a lot in those few words.
Tru dat, Nancy. It's worth taking a lot of time with those words.
ReplyDelete