THE K I NG ' S BUS I NESS fully expressive pronoun, “MY”— “ MY LORD.” There is here an implied and tremendous suggestion of the Deity of Christ Jesus. Then Paul adds in pass ing and with not a shadow of regret or complaint, nay, rather with a tone of exultation, that on account of Him he was counting all things to be losses, he actually had “ suffered the loss of all things,” and so he had very literally. And then he adds, “ I do count them but refuse (something only fit to cast' to dogs) that I may gain Christ.” All other “ gains” were “ loss” ; if they stood in the way of the one great gain, he gladly sacrificed them all for it, the gain of Christ (Matt. 13:44-46). There are many today who hesitate to take Christ because they think of how much they will have to give up if they take Him, but Paul, who perhaps gave up more for Christ than any other man who ever lived, said, “What I gave up in comparison with Him X gained is but as refuse fit only for dogs.” And what did Paul gain? CHRIST. Not merely the pardon and life, etc., that are in Christ, but Christ Himself and all that there is in Him. When we take Christ we get not merely pardon and sonship, etc., we get Christ, the glorious person Himself (cf. Col. 1:19). Christ Him self is infinitely more than anything that there is in Him. TUESDAY, Oct. 15th. Phil. 3 :9 ........... As a result of gaining Christ Paul (and we) would be “ found in Him,” i. e., in living union with Him, incor porated in Him and identified with Him for acceptance before God, identified with Him in His death, resurrection and ascension, identified with Him in all God’s dealings with Him. Being “ found in Him,” he would be found (and we also are so found) “ not having a right eousness of his own (i. e., a righteous ness which he had wrought out for him self by keeping the law of God). Such a righteousness no man has before God (cf. Rom. 3:19, 20; Gal. 2:16; 3:10), but that (righteousness) which is through faith in Christ (i. e., the righteousness which is put to our account regardless of what we have b^en or done, on the one condition that we believe in Jesus)” (cf. Rom. 3:23, 24, 26; 4:5, 6). This righteousness which is “ through faith in Christ” is a'- very real and sufficient righteousness: it is “ the righteousness which is of (rather, out of) God by (rather, upon, i. e., upon the basis of) faith.”
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WEDNESDAY, Oct. 16tli. Phil. 3:10. Paul tells us in vs. 10, 11 the rea son why he wished to be found in Christ not having a righteousness of his own, even that which was of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ. That reason was : (1) that he might “ know Him,” i. e., Christ. Only the man who is justified by faith can truly and fully know Christ. (2) That he might “ know the power of His resurrection.” What is the power of Christ’s resurrection that Paul desired to know and did know? It is manifold. First of all, the resurrection of Christ has power to give us assurance that God has accepted the propitiation that Christ made in His death and that therefore we are justified (cf. Rom. 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:14, 17, 18). Second, it is the Risen Christ who by His resur rection life brings spiritual life to us and saves us from the dominion of sin, and it is by union with this Risen Christ in His resurrection life that we bring forth fruit unto God (cf. Rom. 5:10; 6:4-11; 7:4; 2 Cor. 4:10; Eph. 2:6; Col. 3:1-4). Third, there is power in the resurrection of Christ to give assurance of our own resurrection (cf. 1. Thess. 4:14; 1 Cor. 15:20; 2 Cor. 4:-14). Fourth, there is power in Christ’s resurrection to raise us from the dead -and transform the bodies of our humiliation into the likeness of the body of His glory (Rom. 8:11; Phil. 3:20, 21; Eph. 1:18-20). To “ know the power of His resurrection” involves all these things. The power of His resurrection is then something we may know today and which we Shall know in ever increasing measure till He comes and we are made by the power of His resurrection life just like Him, spirit, soul and body (1 John 3 :2). In order that we may know, the power of His resurrection we must first ' be “ found in Him not having a righteous ness of our own but the righteousness which is through’ faith in Christ.” Jus tification must precede sanctification and glorification. But there was some thing else that Paul desired to know but which many todayshrink from know ing, “ the fellowship of His sufferings.” Christ had suffered, Paul desired to suffer with Him. Christ had reached the throne by the way of the cross (cf. 2: 6-11): Paul desired to reach it . in no other way. And there is no other way. We must suffer with Christ if we would be glorified with Him (Rom. 8:17; 2 Tim. 2:12; 2 Cor. 4:11; 12:9, 10; 1
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