worldview, or a new social cause. He met Jesus, the Son of God, who sits at the right hand of God and is coming back for us. This explains why when he wrote the book of Philippians near the end of his life, he stressed what he was pressing to do: “That I might intimately know him and the power of his resurrection, the sharing in his sufferings—that is to enter into his death, and so, somehow, to arrive at the resurrection of the dead.” Philippians 3:10 Paul was not doubtful about his eternal destiny. He knew that one day he would see Jesus again face to face, but in prison in Rome he’s still motivated to experience all the closeness with Jesus he can have in the daily joy and pain of this life. This intimacy with Christ is far more than a worldview. It’s a dynamic, real, authentic relationship with Jesus, and his Spirit lives in our hearts to give us the power to keep pressing forward toward greater closeness with our Savior. At the conclusion of the Super Bowl, Joe Namath was the last NFL Hall of Famer to carry the Vince Lombardi trophy to give to the Patriots. His knees were so banged up that he could hardly walk. As Julian Edelman held the trophy high, his legs were strong and powerful, but one day, he will shuffle just like Namath. That’s why I’m pressing forward today to get even closer to the only One who can give me new legs that will be strong and powerful forever, and we will be able to walk together. Let’s press on in 2019 to know Him.
credentials. It opened doors of privilege for me, but Paul was right. It’s foolish to press the importance of your name, even if it’s a good name. My dad, the founder of Word of Life, has now been Home with the Lord for 24 years, and when we called to register our family to spend a few days at the Word of Life Lodge last August, my wife had to spell out “Wyrtzen.” Paul also boasts that he was a Pharisee, trained under Gamaliel, the leading rabbi of his day (Acts 22:3). The Lord gave me the opportunity at Dallas Seminary to study with Dr. Bruce Waltke, one of the foremost Hebrew scholars in the world. In our first doctoral class, he warned us, “I’m afraid for each of you. We’re going to stretch and challenge your minds. We’re going to give you knowledge, but knowledge puffs up. Remember, it’s not about academic prowess. It’s all about intimate closeness with our Savior.” "...IT’S NOT ABOUT ACADEMIC PROWESS. IT’S Some of the most brilliant scholars I’ve known are now no longer able to teach. Their aging mind doesn’t remember like it used to, and it doesn’t have the razor sharp ability to critique, analyze, and synthesize like it used to. Paul was right. We can’t just press to gain more and more knowledge, even if it’s knowledge of God’s Holy Word. Paul not only exposed the fallacy of living for bloodlines and recognition by our peers in academics or other careers. He also exposed the foolishness of pressing hard as a zealot in a cause where we will even use force to get others to submit to our views. Paul got the right legal papers, gathered together a gang of warriors, and then after persecuting the Jews in Jerusalem who had believed in Jesus, he headed north to Damascus. But on the road that day he didn’t encounter a new philosophy, a new ALL ABOUT INTIMATE CLOSENESS WITH OUR SAVIOR."
Dave Wyrtzen, BS, ThM, ThD, has filled roles of Founding Pastor, Teacher, Author, and Adjunct Professor at locations including: • Southern Bible Institute • Dallas Theological Seminary • Truth Encounter • Word of Life Bible Institute • Midlothian Bible Church Dave + Mary Wyrtzen
Connect with Dave by visiting: TRUTHENCOUNTER.COM Dave Wyrtzen with his father, Jack Wyrtzen
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