The joy of the Lord
is your strength! Joy In Believing
The Priceless value in knowing Christ Philippians 3:1-11
"Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice
in
the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I
do it
to safeguard your faith.
Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators
who say you must be circumcised to be saved. For we who worship
by the Spirit
of God are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what
Christ Jesus has
done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, though I could
have confidence in
my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for
confidence in their own efforts,
I have even more!
I was circumcised when
I was eight days old. I am a pure blooded citizen of Israel
and a member of the title of Benjamin -- a real Hebrew if ever
there was one! I was a
member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to
the Jewish law. I was
so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness,
I obeyed the
law without fault.
I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider
them worthless because of
what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared
with the infinite value of
knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything
else, counting it all
as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him.
I no longer count on my own
righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I became righteous
through faith in Christ. For
God's way of making us right with himself depends on faith. I
want to know Christ and experience
the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer
with him, sharing in his death, so
that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from
the dead!"
Joy in our Lord Jesus Christ; sets our spirits free to focus absolutely
on Jesus's ways of
righteous praise and worship.
Is there a great deal of joy in worshiping the sovereign Lord
Jesus Christ?
Yes! Absolutely! Sincere worship is joyful. For in Christ-like
fashion we are absolutely drawn into
a much deeper understanding of Christ Jesus's ways of righteousness
for us as Christians.
The absolute joy of the Lord, blesses us with infinite godly wisdom;
leading humble and sincere
Christians in Father God's absolute righteousness, and into a
more intimate relationship with Him.
In Jesus's infinitely matchless name!
