“More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ…….My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this also to you.” Philippians 3:8, 10-15 CSB https://bible.com/bible/1713/php.3.8-15.CS

Few Christians would argue against Paul being the greatest example of the most committed Christian. Yet here, he states that he hopes to be considered among those whom God raises to eternal life with Him. To ensure such a destiny, Paul made every effort to please and serve God, losing all prestige and wealth among men to build prestige in God’s sight and the wealth that comes from storing eternal treasure, the salvation, and discipleship of the souls of men. Are we similarly committed to knowing Christ and making Christ known in the world? Should we be? Are we striving, making every effort, toward a clear goal of maturity in Christ while helping others become the same? I fear our culture reflects our passivity and disinterest in truly being like Christ and helping others come to know Christ so they can live forever with Christ. What is the consequence of our inertia and indifference? God commands us to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. He will measure this love by our actions, not our emotions, even as He so loved the world and took action to send His Son to die as the sacrifice for sins. God bankrupted heaven to save humanity. Are we giving our best to knowing Jesus and helping others know Him too? Should there be a bit of doubt in our lives that we will not be found fully committed to Christ upon that day, He pierces our souls and spirits to weigh us by His standard of commitment? Let us make every effort to prove to God and men that Christ is our all, and we are working as hard as possible to see all love God and obey His commands so that there is no doubt when we see Jesus that we are His faithful servants.