Make a Life's Resolution (2015)
Philippians 3:10
It’s been three or four years since we have done this, but we need to hear this again. I need to hear this again, so that means God wants you to hear it again.
Did you know that New Year’s resolutions go back over 3,000 years to the ancient Babylonian culture? For 3,000 years people have been saying. “This year I am going to stop smoking and lose some weight.” 3,000 years of that and 3,000 years of failures for New Year’s resolutions. We are headed to Philippians Chapter 3.
I want to talk about a resolution today, but not a “New Year’s resolution” because quite frankly they just don’t work. Instead what I want to talk to you about today is making a “Life’s Resolution,” a final, complete life’s resolution.
You know that God has accomplished all that we need. He has accomplished everything on our behalf for our salvation, for our sanctification (that’s our life with Christ here on this earth), and for our glorification (that’s our life with God in heaven.) God has accomplished all of that on our behalf without us, quite frankly. In fact, it was when we were his enemy and set against him.
And not only has God accomplished all we need for our salvation, our sanctification and our glorification but he has also provided all that we need to live Christ filled, spirit empowered, transformed lives today. He has provided all of that. He has provided all we need to live in his grace, in his power and his peace, all that we need to be a witness for him and all that we need to live victoriously in this life. God has all we need spiritually, and in righteousness for us to be with him and him to be in us, he has provided all we need in his life and his power and the Holy Spirit to live today.
And yet, there is an equal our part “part.” Our part is a resolution. Our part is a life’s resolution. Though God has done it all, though God has provided it all, there is an equal our part “part.” It is called, for today, a life’s resolution.
Again, the our part “part” of victory in Christ is a resolution to live in what God has accomplished for us. It is a commitment to live in what God has already accomplished for us and what God has already provided for us. I notice it’s really nice when listening to other teachers to talk about all that God has done and all that God has provided. And that is well accepted by people. But what I say is “Yeah but what are we supposed to do about it? What are we supposed to do? I know, I hear those verses, but what are we supposed to do?”
And I am here to tell you today we need a resolution. Not a New Year’s resolution, not a cyclical resolution, not a bi-polar resolution. Do you know any bi-polar Christians? Christians on Sunday and not on Monday. Christians around other Christians and not at work. Don’t be that Christian. Be in Jesus Christ. We don’t want a bi-polar resolution, on today and off tomorrow. We want a once and for all, final, absolute, complete life’s resolution – no turning back.
So what does it mean? What does the word resolution even mean? “Resolution” means “determination, decidedness, purposefulness.” I am afraid this resolution part of our salvation kind of method in our culture is left out far too often. And you know I feel this way, I lean towards this to help people because I’ve been around long enough to see so many people raise their hand, say “the prayer” and then never ever change. So that either means, number one, they were perfect before they got saved, or number two, there was something missing in their salvation. And so you know, if you know me, this is a big deal to me and it seems clear to me in our culture that we lack a little bit of this.
Again, we love that God has accomplished it, and he has. Has God accomplished all we need? He has accomplished all we need in spite of us. In our place, on our behalf. And he has provided all we need. All we need for every circumstance, in every situation, in every season of life and preparing to move into our permanent life, God has provided it all, and we love to hear that. But we have a role, we have a part, and we have to accept our part. And so in this resolution “season” I think it’s a great time to say we have to have a life’s resolution to balance out, to appropriate, to finish (if you will) in our lives the work that God has accomplished.
The truth is that the only commitment option that Christ offers is an “all-in” option. The only option Jesus Christ offers is an all in, no turning back, no holds barred, forever, life commitment. That’s the only one Jesus ever offered. He never offered the free ticket punch to get into heaven or the just repeat these words; you can live however you want. That stuff just doesn’t exist in the Bible. He says, “Follow me. Follow me.” And if you do, you have to turn your back on everything else. And if you don’t, it’s okay. But if you do, this is how it looks – it’s an “all-in,” sold-out resolution. A determined, a decided, a purposeful life.
Did the Apostles live it out? Yes, All twelve of them. If you’ve ever heard the history, it’s not Biblical because of course the Bible was mostly finished before it occurred. But all twelve of the Apostles in one way or another were martyred for their faith. Even John, though he died a natural death. All twelve were martyred for their faith and they never backed down. They never changed their story, they never let up, they never slowed down.
But, God in his wisdom gave us the details of one of the Apostle’s life’s resolution. It is the great Apostle Paul. He wrote his personal resolution in Philippians Chapter 3 and that is where we see what it means to make a life’s resolution for Jesus Christ. This chapter has probably impacted my life personally, I would have to say, more than any chapter in the Bible. It has had an impact on my life. My life’s verse is in here and I love to teach it. So if you’ve heard me teach it before, it’s okay. Hear it again.
Paul actually had a good life. Don’t so many of us say, “Man, my life before Christ – oh man!” Don’t ever glorify that. But sometimes we talk about how really ugly our lives were before Christ. Paul – not so. He was cleaned up. He was all “right,” meaning everything in his life was right. So in Philippians Chapter 3 he explains his all right life, all the things that he was doing that was good.
Philippians 3:4 (NLT)
4 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!
And then Paul lists in verses 5 and 6 the things that were all right in his life, like the stuff he had going on.
Philippians 3:5–6 (NLT)
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old (legitimate Jewish birth). I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin — a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law.
6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church (the highest level of loyalty to Judaism). And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
Paul had it going on. In appearance he didn’t seem to have any great need. His life’s resolution didn’t come like the Prodigal Son that we looked at some messages ago. His life’s resolution didn’t come because he found himself in the mire of the world, in the pit and said “Jesus help me” like so many of us have. And if that’s you, then praise God. But listen, all you cleaned up, got it going on, moral, right people, you’re more like the Apostle Paul.
Paul never says he was better off, in fact he recognized the more and more he knew Christ he recognized he was the chief of all sinners. But on the outside he was cleaned up and looking good, at least right until that crucial moment when he took a walk on the road to Damascus and he met Jesus Christ. He had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. It’s in Acts Chapter 9; write that in your margin. Really put yourself in this place with Paul as he was walking on the road to Damascus and encountered Christ. Not because he was seeking him. (Although in a sense he was seeking him, as he was seeking to kill and imprison people who followed Christ.)
But instead, Christ was seeking him, just like Christ is seeking you. And in Paul’s encounter with Jesus Christ he found himself face down in the dirt. That is the right way to respond to Christ. That’s the right way. Not the “Yeah, I want all of that! I want all that good stuff Jesus is offering” but instead face down in repentance in the dirt. That is where Paul started his life with the Lord and that is where Paul made his all-in commitment to make Jesus Christ the Lord of his life.
And so, before we talk about our life’s resolution, I have to ask you – have you done that? Have you done that? Is there a time in your life where you found yourself face down in the dirt (as it were) before the Lord of Glory and saying “Lord, I repent. You are the Son of God. You are who you say you are and I surrender my life to you.”
If you have not done that, please understand it is the only hope in this world. It is the only hope that surpasses this world and this world is a fleeting and about to vaporize place. Have you made that commitment? (If you haven’t – make it. I’ll be sure and give you a chance. You could make it right now, you don’t have to repeat a prayer after me, just cry out to God!) But if you have made it, did you follow it with a resolution? Did you follow it with a “now my life has to look like this? From this point forward my life has to change.” Or did you get suckered into that cultural lie that says “Yeah, I repeated the words, I’m good to go. I can still be my own lord, I can still live for the world, I can still feed my flesh, and I know I’m going to get into heaven because the preacher told me so.”
The Bible makes it really clear that Jesus Christ, the creator of all that has been created, the One that holds everything that is held together, he holds it together by the power of his Word, when that great creator lives inside of you, it affects you. It affects you. It changes you if you’ll allow it to.
So the question is did you follow your commitment to Christ with a resolution? Did you follow it with the idea that this is serious and your life will never be the same? Your life will never be the same. My life will never be the same. I lived for rock and roll when I got saved, and even chose it over my wife who was my girlfriend at the time, and had been forever. The lure of Hollywood and the rock and roll world and man, I love it. So I got saved about 10 o’clock on a Sunday morning April 29, 1979 and I went home. I picked up the phone and called the recording studio, where I was living, and I said “I’m never coming back. I’m never coming back to Hollywood, you can keep my stuff, you can do whatever you want, but I’m never stepping foot back in that sin-filled, sick town.”
No one told me to do that. It’s the grace of God. And it just got more and more radical from that point forward. I’m not holding myself up as an example. I’ve stumbled and fallen and made a zillion mistakes since then. But there was something I knew, that the life I was living and the life in Christ were radically different. And there was this huge transformation that had to take place for me to leave the old life and to follow the new life.
So, if you’ve had a rocky start, or you know someone who has had a rocky start with the Lord – yeah, they prayed but I’m still waiting for them to “get it,” like start the “walk.” Or if maybe you’ve done the cyclical “bi-polar” thing where you really follow the Lord on Sunday but by Wednesday it’s getting a little rough, and by Friday you’re fallen and then on Sunday you are really walking for the Lord again. If you’ve experienced that too, can I tell you it’s not because God hasn’t accomplished something on your behalf. It’s not because God hasn’t provided anything or everything you need. He has provided everything you need. The problem is a resolution problem. The problem is with you, not with God.
We want to blame somebody. How can we blame God after all he has accomplished and all he has provided if we don’t have the resolution in our life, the determination, the decidedness, the purposefulness to serve him, how can we shake a finger at him and say it’s somehow something that he hasn’t done. It’s a resolution problem. It’s on our part. It’s not on God’s part.
So here’s what we see. We see two types of people. We see a person who makes a life’s resolution like, “Okay, that’s it, I’m all in. I’m going for it. I’m not turning back, I’m not messing around, I’m going from darkness to light.”
And then we see another person who is saying, “Hey, that’s cool, I’m going to heaven. That was easy.” And they kind of go on about their own lives. So one person, the person who makes the life’s resolution, their lives radically change and they get on fire and you see Christ in them, and they bring glory to his name. And the other person – not. Not at all. The difference is the resolution that is made and whether it is cyclical or time or life, a life’s resolution.
So, Paul obviously made a life’s resolution. If you know Paul at all, it is a shocking life’s resolution. You’re going to see it as we continue in Chapter 3. When Paul realized his desperate need for Christ, when he realized the worthlessness of what he was trusting in his life, he writes this in Philippians 3:7.
Philippians 3:7 (NLT)
7 I once thought these things were valuable (previous list), but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.
So I used to think this is what I am holding onto, this is my trust, this is my hope. But now that I understand Christ, I consider that stuff worthless. It’s actually contrary to having worth. It contradicts worth, it’s not just zero, it is negative worth. I consider them all worthless because of what Christ has done. That is the realization that Paul had here.
And then in verse 8 he clarifies it. It’s not just his religious accomplishments that are worthless when compared with Christ. Look what he does in Philippians 3:8. He says, it’s not just that. It’s not just all my religious effort. He says:
Philippians 3:8(a) (NLT)
8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord . . .
Wait a minute, it’s not just the things that I thought I put my trust in, or that I had confidence in. I actually understand from a personal encounter with Christ that everything else is worthless when compared to the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
Have you heard of “values clarification?” I don’t know if it’s still big because the schools seem to be always changing their influence on the kids. But for awhile it was values clarification. You know you put four people in a life raft that only holds three and the seven year old has to decide who to throw out of the life raft. Things like that. This is values clarification. Paul says everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
When he came to that realization, he understood that nothing in this world ultimately can compare to knowing Christ. And once you get to that point you can start making decisions based on that clarification, right? They call it a “moment of clarity” for those of you who have been through recovery programs. It’s like you wake up at one moment and say, “Wait a minute, wait a minute. This life I’m living is actually worthless. It has negative worth. And then when I compare it to Christ there is no comparison.” And so you start to make decisions accordingly.
Look how Paul did it, continuing in verse 8.
Philippians 3:8(b)-9(a) (NLT)
. . . For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him.
Do you see the life decision made there because he understood the values clarification that nothing in this world compares to the infinite value of knowing Christ? The word there for “discarded” means to “throw overboard, to purposefully throw something out of your life.” Because of this revelation, this values clarification realization that nothing compares to Christ, here’s my choice. I’m going to throw out the drugs, I’m going to throw out the alcohol, I’m going to throw out the porn, I’m going to throw out the inappropriate relationships, because nothing in this world compares to the infinite value of knowing Christ. Nothing! But listen if you say that but then you still go serve everything for your flesh and in this world then you know, maybe you are still struggling with making the decision. Because if it is really true, it will show. It will show in some action and it is a determined commitment to purposefully lose anything that is keeping you from knowing Christ and becoming one with him.
If you’re reading King James, this is a great place to have a King James Bible. King James says right here “dung.” Dung. I’ve discarded everything else counting it as dung. Big pile of poop. That’s what it is. And so because it is, I’m not going to embrace it. I’m not going to hug it to my chest and sleep with it because it is dung. It is garbage. How many Christians do we see saying the right words but still cuddling up with the dung? Because the life’s resolution has not reached that level. It’s genuine. Jesus calls us all in or not at all. And he is so gracious to give us the choice. But it is all in or not at all.
Paul is talking about the things we put our trust and confidence in over Christ. He is not saying that all of us have to go home and sell every material thing that we own. He is not saying all of us have to live like paupers. You might have to, if the Holy Spirit is saying that to you, then go do it, but it is not a blanket statement. He is not saying that we have to go home and discard every relationship that we have. For those of you who think you can discard your spouse in order to know Christ better, know that is the enemy talking. You don’t get to discard your spouse in order to know Christ better. Stop thinking like that. It doesn’t work like that.
But what Paul is saying is consider, do the math. What is keeping you from knowing Christ? What in this world do you have confidence in or you are putting your trust in that is keeping you from the infinite value of knowing Christ? What that is – be willing to discard it purposefully, willingly, proactively, discard it so that you can know Christ. It is a determined, decided, purposeful resolution that encompasses your whole life. So, if you’re trusting in something other than Christ, if you’re holding on to something in this life other than Christ then my prayer is that the Holy Spirit is screaming at you that it is dung, that it is garbage, that it is worthless compared to the infinite value of knowing Christ and knowing him as Paul is leading up to.
In verse 9 Paul makes it clear that what it was he was counting in is the opposite of the truth.
Philippians 3:9(b) (NLT)
9 . . . I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.
Paul’s “trust in” list, this is what I trust in, is shattered at this point. What I was living for, what I was fighting for, what I was working towards it’s now dung, it’s garbage, it is shattered. My only hope is in Christ. My only hope is in Christ. And for Paul, having the true righteousness that comes from Christ as opposed to the self-righteousness that he had as a Pharisee.
And so finally, he encapsulates his whole life’s resolution in my life’s verse. (He didn’t ask me if he could use my life’s verse to summarize his life’s resolution, but I would have allowed him if he would have asked.) I tried to remember when did I make this my life’s verse and I can’t remember. But it’s the only life’s verse I have had. This was the first text I ever preached on a Sunday back in 1999 or so. It’s been my life’s verse for longer than that.
Philippians 3:10, the first five words from the literal ESV or NKJ it says,
Philippians 3:10 (ESV)
10 that I may know Him . . .
That I may know him. That I may really, really know him. That I may personally know him. That I may experientially know him. That I may know Christ. The Greek word here for “know” is one of the more unique ones. There are all types of variations of the Greek words that we translate as “to know.” This one is GINOSKO. The word GINOSKO means “an ever increasing, relational, experiential knowledge.” It’s always growing, it’s relational – which God has made us relational – and it is experiential which means you just say “Hi, Lord. I feel you, I sense you. I’m following you, I hear you.” It’s an experience. It’s ever increasing, it’s relational and it’s experiential.
And Paul says whatever it was I was holding on to before, I am throwing it overboard and I am making a life’s resolution to have an ever increasing, relational, experiential knowledge of Jesus, that I may know him. This is taking full inventory from a guy who had a lot; we might say he had everything if we understood Paul’s position in the social strata. This is a guy who had everything and he said, “I’m throwing it all away so that I can know Christ.”
What happened to Paul was serious; he lost everything in order to know Christ. In order to gain this ever increasing, relational, experiential knowledge of Christ. That is a life’s resolution. And I’m not saying that you need my life’s resolution. I am saying you need a life’s resolution. This wasn’t written just for me. It was written for all Christians who are willing to know Christ in an eternally intimate way. An ever increasing relational, experiential way.
The rest of verse 10 elaborates on it.
Philippians 3:10 (NLT)
10 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,
It’s shocking how many people I have read that water that down. They say oh well, that means something spiritual, or superficial. It doesn’t. It means what it says. I want to experience Christ in every way. It’s a life’s resolution that includes every circumstance, every situation, every joy, every pain, every victory, every defeat, every sorrow – all of it. I want to know Christ in every way, in every area. I want this ever increasing, experiential relationship with Christ in every circumstance of life. I want to experience the mighty power that raised Christ from the dead, and I want to experience the fellowship of his sufferings.
Why? Because it is not about my circumstances, it’s about knowing him. And I want to know him in the full gamut. From the power of the resurrection to the fellowship of his sufferings I want to know him. It is an absolute determination to know Christ in every circumstance in every situation, in every day of your life. It’s a life’s resolution. No matter what. No matter what I want to know him at both ends of the scale. I want to know him more. I want to be closer to him. I want to have a deeper and deeper relationship with him. I want to experience him in all situations and circumstances in life. I want to suffer with him, even sharing in his death.
It’s extreme. It’s shocking. It drives your life. If you say, “Well, yeah, listen, I want church to be a little compartment of my life. I want the kids to go to Sunday School, I want to stop by every once in a while, if I have a clean shirt. I think there is a heaven and I want to go there,” you need to know that is not how the Apostle Paul wrote Philippians Chapter 3. And you might say, “Well, that’s not for everybody.”
But you can’t really find the “easy road” in the Bible. You just can’t. Jesus says “Come ‘all-in’ man, the water is fine. Come buy and drink. Come to the fountain of living water. Come and all who believe out of their innermost being will gush rivers of living water.” It’s an all-in, but it’s an all victorious, all joyful result.
Look at verse 11 of Philippians 3. He just goes from shocking to shocking. He says I want to experience the mighty power that raised Christ from the dead, even sharing in his death. And then verse 11 says,
Philippians 3:11 (NLT)
11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!
Some people think, “Wow does Paul think he might not make it? Is Paul implying that he might not make it there?” No, he is not questioning his own resurrection. The NLT handles this translation really well. He is saying “At all costs. No matter what. One way or another, it doesn’t matter how I get there.” He is saying “The path my life is on, the circumstances I face, the situations that come up in front of me are secondary. They don’t matter. All that matters is that I know Christ now and I am going to be with him later.”
That’s it. Everything else is secondary. Meaning our circumstances are secondary. The situations we face are secondary. They are secondary. Christ is primary. And knowing him is primary. And everything else is secondary.
And so whether we are living in the power of his resurrection or whether we are living in the fellowship of his suffering as long as I am becoming one with Christ, and as long as I know that this path is ultimately leading me to being with him for eternity, it’s all good. It’s okay!
Haven’t you ever wondered how people can suffer for Christ for years, and years, and years and never give up? And their joy never diminishes and they never turn back. It’s because the circumstances aren’t driving them, their relationship with Christ is driving them. Their intimate, experiential, daily relationship with Christ is driving them. And as Paul says in Philippians 4, that’s what matters. That’s why I can do all things, because of who Christ is in me and who I am in Christ.
Paul makes it clear it’s never over. Our commitment, our resolution to know Christ never ends until this life ends. Look at Philippians 3:12. Our resolution is meant to always drive us, always be the motivating factor, the driving force, no matter what. No matter how long or how short we get to live, we are chasing after Christ every day.
Philippians 3:12 (NLT)
12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.
Paul says I don’t mean to say I have already achieved it. I haven’t arrived. It’s not a one time commitment. It is one time a moment, commitment. One time each moment. I haven’t arrived. I’m not already, perfected or have already reached perfection.
Look at the end of verse 12. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me
New King James says to lay hold of. The word means to have a stranglehold on something. To be able to lock on to something and not let go. Listen, Jesus has laid hold of you. I don’t know what you think about your relationship with Christ, if you think “Yeah I was a pretty god catch, okay Jesus, if you want me you can have me.” No! Forget about it!
Jesus loved you that when you were a wretched sinner, which quite frankly without Christ you still are, when you were a wretched sinner he laid hold of you. He laid hold of you for an eternal purpose, for a good purpose, for his glory and for your good. And Paul says I’m going to press on so that I can lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has already laid hold of me.
Lord, what have you laid hold of me for? Because that’s what I want to lay hold of. And in this circumstance, in this situation and on this path, that is my resolution – to lay hold of that for which you first have laid hold of me. That is your role. It’s to lay hold of what Christ has laid hold of you for. To not give up, to not be taken out by the enemy, to not be sidelined, to fight the good fight, to keep fighting the good fight, no not be discouraged, to not be run down but to know that Christ has laid hold of you and that your role is to lay hold of that for which he has laid hold of you. Pressing on to the end. Pressing on to the end. Pressing on to finish the race. To receive the heavenly prize of the upward call of God in Christ.
Look at verses 13 and 14. This is the summary of Paul’s life’s resolution.
Philippians 3:13–14 (NLT)
13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward (straining) to what lies ahead,
14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
That’s it. That is the race. That’s the resolution. I am not trying to get God to fix my circumstances, I’m not trying to get God to have something to happen in this world, I’m pressing on to run the race, to receive the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. The heavenly prize for which God, through Christ, is calling me. That is it.
And so what happens is your circumstances become secondary, your resolution becomes primary. Lord I’m seeking you. I’m striving for you. I want to know you in this situation, I want to know you today. I want to experience you today. I want to feel the power of your resurrection and the fellowship of your suffering. And I want to just get to where you are no matter what the road, no matter what the path. Amen?
Listen, it doesn’t matter to you because you have to come to this yourself, but I am sharing with you today what drives my life. This is a personal deal. And you’ve got to get there, you’ve got to get there, because Christ requires it all. But he is a good Lord. He is a good Lord. His inheritance is great and he desires to share it with you. But you’ve got to have a resolution to run the race and fight the fight and know what you are after, and what you’re after is to know Christ better. To experience him more, to be led by him, to be used by him. To bring him glory. What else are you going to do between now and when you show up face to face with him? What else has more value? Nothing! It’s all “embracing dung” compared to the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord.
So, my encouragement to you today is press on. Know Christ better. Know him better. Closer and closer in every circumstance, in every situation. It is a great way to live. It is a great purpose. A great reason to get up in the morning, to know Christ better every morning.
So, right now, I’m going to ask you, would you do that? Would you consider right now saying, you know what? I need to go all-in. Maybe I don’t need to be as aggressive or intense as Dave, I mean, you can be peaceful. There are peaceful Christians. But I need to go all-in. I need to go all-in. I need to stop playing a game, stop walking the line, stop living the love the world / love God, try to get both.
God doesn’t offer it. If you would go all-in right now, I just want to stop right now and have you pray.
Lord Jesus, please move on our hearts. Give us divine revelation of all that is worthless, and all that has infinite value and draw us Lord. Draw us to yourself by your Spirit.
If that is you right now, if you need to make that commitment, I just want you to make it, right now. Just say Lord, that’s me. You feel it, you feel the Holy Spirit pressing on you. Surrender, man. All that dung you’re clinging to is starting to smell. Go all-in. And be willing to discard the things that are keeping you from Christ. You don’t have to repeat after me, but you can pray something like this.
Lord Jesus, I give you my life. Truly, completely, all of it. I give you my life. Every area. I surrender it to you. And I say Lord, that anything else I would chase after is dung compared to knowing you. Lord Jesus, I want to know you. I want to know the power of your resurrection. I want to know the fellowship of your suffering. Even your death. And Lord I want to walk this life no matter what the path is before me, I want to walk this life knowing you better, clinging to you tighter, and anxiously looking forward to the day I will be with you. I surrender my life to you Lord. And today I make a resolution, final and complete resolution to put you as the highest priority in my life. To seek to know you in every circumstance. Please fill me with your Spirit, overwhelm me with your presence, drive the darkness out of my life and make me a shining example of a transformed disciple. Give me your power and your Holy Spirit to do it, Lord. I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.
If that is you, because of already some things I’ve said, I need to tell you that making a life’s resolution certainly isn’t a prayer at the end of a service on a tired Christmas weekend. Making a life’s resolution takes a “life.” And so there are two things I want to share with you about a life’s resolution.
Number one, you have to learn how to do it daily. You have to learn how to follow Jesus daily. You don’t just by nature know how to follow Jesus daily. What you know by nature is how to follow your flesh, and how to follow the world. That’s what you know by nature. So you have to learn how to follow Jesus daily. The way you learn how to follow Jesus daily is what the Bible calls discipleship. Discipleship just means learning to follow Jesus. You have to set yourself to this. You have to set yourself to it. You can’t follow Jesus daily until you learn how to follow Jesus daily. That process is what we call discipleship. You have to take the initiative to really do this. You need to learn to follow Jesus every day. We have people in the back at the connection center to take your name and number and we will call you and follow up with you. We will ask if you are using the daily devotion journal, and are you reading? We have a stack of those one year Bibles, it is called The Daily Walk Bible, and it is a very cool daily Bible. You can also find them on Amazon. We will work with you individually to find a discipleship group to be in.
If you would say I need to follow Jesus every day and I need to understand this discipleship process, then we can connect you. I would encourage you to study TWO of our series, “The Fundamentals” and “The Abide” series. You can find these online at wordbymail.com.
God loves you enough to send his Son to die in your place and then to send you his Holy Spirit to be his life in you, for the power to live for him every day. God has accomplished it all. God has provided all you need. Your part is to make a life’s resolution to know him in every circumstance in life and to lay hold of that for which he has laid hold of you.
Did you know that New Year’s resolutions go back over 3,000 years to the ancient Babylonian culture? For 3,000 years people have been saying. “This year I am going to stop smoking and lose some weight.” 3,000 years of that and 3,000 years of failures for New Year’s resolutions. We are headed to Philippians Chapter 3.
I want to talk about a resolution today, but not a “New Year’s resolution” because quite frankly they just don’t work. Instead what I want to talk to you about today is making a “Life’s Resolution,” a final, complete life’s resolution.
You know that God has accomplished all that we need. He has accomplished everything on our behalf for our salvation, for our sanctification (that’s our life with Christ here on this earth), and for our glorification (that’s our life with God in heaven.) God has accomplished all of that on our behalf without us, quite frankly. In fact, it was when we were his enemy and set against him.
And not only has God accomplished all we need for our salvation, our sanctification and our glorification but he has also provided all that we need to live Christ filled, spirit empowered, transformed lives today. He has provided all of that. He has provided all we need to live in his grace, in his power and his peace, all that we need to be a witness for him and all that we need to live victoriously in this life. God has all we need spiritually, and in righteousness for us to be with him and him to be in us, he has provided all we need in his life and his power and the Holy Spirit to live today.
And yet, there is an equal our part “part.” Our part is a resolution. Our part is a life’s resolution. Though God has done it all, though God has provided it all, there is an equal our part “part.” It is called, for today, a life’s resolution.
Again, the our part “part” of victory in Christ is a resolution to live in what God has accomplished for us. It is a commitment to live in what God has already accomplished for us and what God has already provided for us. I notice it’s really nice when listening to other teachers to talk about all that God has done and all that God has provided. And that is well accepted by people. But what I say is “Yeah but what are we supposed to do about it? What are we supposed to do? I know, I hear those verses, but what are we supposed to do?”
And I am here to tell you today we need a resolution. Not a New Year’s resolution, not a cyclical resolution, not a bi-polar resolution. Do you know any bi-polar Christians? Christians on Sunday and not on Monday. Christians around other Christians and not at work. Don’t be that Christian. Be in Jesus Christ. We don’t want a bi-polar resolution, on today and off tomorrow. We want a once and for all, final, absolute, complete life’s resolution – no turning back.
So what does it mean? What does the word resolution even mean? “Resolution” means “determination, decidedness, purposefulness.” I am afraid this resolution part of our salvation kind of method in our culture is left out far too often. And you know I feel this way, I lean towards this to help people because I’ve been around long enough to see so many people raise their hand, say “the prayer” and then never ever change. So that either means, number one, they were perfect before they got saved, or number two, there was something missing in their salvation. And so you know, if you know me, this is a big deal to me and it seems clear to me in our culture that we lack a little bit of this.
Again, we love that God has accomplished it, and he has. Has God accomplished all we need? He has accomplished all we need in spite of us. In our place, on our behalf. And he has provided all we need. All we need for every circumstance, in every situation, in every season of life and preparing to move into our permanent life, God has provided it all, and we love to hear that. But we have a role, we have a part, and we have to accept our part. And so in this resolution “season” I think it’s a great time to say we have to have a life’s resolution to balance out, to appropriate, to finish (if you will) in our lives the work that God has accomplished.
The truth is that the only commitment option that Christ offers is an “all-in” option. The only option Jesus Christ offers is an all in, no turning back, no holds barred, forever, life commitment. That’s the only one Jesus ever offered. He never offered the free ticket punch to get into heaven or the just repeat these words; you can live however you want. That stuff just doesn’t exist in the Bible. He says, “Follow me. Follow me.” And if you do, you have to turn your back on everything else. And if you don’t, it’s okay. But if you do, this is how it looks – it’s an “all-in,” sold-out resolution. A determined, a decided, a purposeful life.
Did the Apostles live it out? Yes, All twelve of them. If you’ve ever heard the history, it’s not Biblical because of course the Bible was mostly finished before it occurred. But all twelve of the Apostles in one way or another were martyred for their faith. Even John, though he died a natural death. All twelve were martyred for their faith and they never backed down. They never changed their story, they never let up, they never slowed down.
But, God in his wisdom gave us the details of one of the Apostle’s life’s resolution. It is the great Apostle Paul. He wrote his personal resolution in Philippians Chapter 3 and that is where we see what it means to make a life’s resolution for Jesus Christ. This chapter has probably impacted my life personally, I would have to say, more than any chapter in the Bible. It has had an impact on my life. My life’s verse is in here and I love to teach it. So if you’ve heard me teach it before, it’s okay. Hear it again.
Paul actually had a good life. Don’t so many of us say, “Man, my life before Christ – oh man!” Don’t ever glorify that. But sometimes we talk about how really ugly our lives were before Christ. Paul – not so. He was cleaned up. He was all “right,” meaning everything in his life was right. So in Philippians Chapter 3 he explains his all right life, all the things that he was doing that was good.
Philippians 3:4 (NLT)
4 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!
And then Paul lists in verses 5 and 6 the things that were all right in his life, like the stuff he had going on.
Philippians 3:5–6 (NLT)
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old (legitimate Jewish birth). I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin — a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law.
6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church (the highest level of loyalty to Judaism). And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
Paul had it going on. In appearance he didn’t seem to have any great need. His life’s resolution didn’t come like the Prodigal Son that we looked at some messages ago. His life’s resolution didn’t come because he found himself in the mire of the world, in the pit and said “Jesus help me” like so many of us have. And if that’s you, then praise God. But listen, all you cleaned up, got it going on, moral, right people, you’re more like the Apostle Paul.
Paul never says he was better off, in fact he recognized the more and more he knew Christ he recognized he was the chief of all sinners. But on the outside he was cleaned up and looking good, at least right until that crucial moment when he took a walk on the road to Damascus and he met Jesus Christ. He had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. It’s in Acts Chapter 9; write that in your margin. Really put yourself in this place with Paul as he was walking on the road to Damascus and encountered Christ. Not because he was seeking him. (Although in a sense he was seeking him, as he was seeking to kill and imprison people who followed Christ.)
But instead, Christ was seeking him, just like Christ is seeking you. And in Paul’s encounter with Jesus Christ he found himself face down in the dirt. That is the right way to respond to Christ. That’s the right way. Not the “Yeah, I want all of that! I want all that good stuff Jesus is offering” but instead face down in repentance in the dirt. That is where Paul started his life with the Lord and that is where Paul made his all-in commitment to make Jesus Christ the Lord of his life.
And so, before we talk about our life’s resolution, I have to ask you – have you done that? Have you done that? Is there a time in your life where you found yourself face down in the dirt (as it were) before the Lord of Glory and saying “Lord, I repent. You are the Son of God. You are who you say you are and I surrender my life to you.”
If you have not done that, please understand it is the only hope in this world. It is the only hope that surpasses this world and this world is a fleeting and about to vaporize place. Have you made that commitment? (If you haven’t – make it. I’ll be sure and give you a chance. You could make it right now, you don’t have to repeat a prayer after me, just cry out to God!) But if you have made it, did you follow it with a resolution? Did you follow it with a “now my life has to look like this? From this point forward my life has to change.” Or did you get suckered into that cultural lie that says “Yeah, I repeated the words, I’m good to go. I can still be my own lord, I can still live for the world, I can still feed my flesh, and I know I’m going to get into heaven because the preacher told me so.”
The Bible makes it really clear that Jesus Christ, the creator of all that has been created, the One that holds everything that is held together, he holds it together by the power of his Word, when that great creator lives inside of you, it affects you. It affects you. It changes you if you’ll allow it to.
So the question is did you follow your commitment to Christ with a resolution? Did you follow it with the idea that this is serious and your life will never be the same? Your life will never be the same. My life will never be the same. I lived for rock and roll when I got saved, and even chose it over my wife who was my girlfriend at the time, and had been forever. The lure of Hollywood and the rock and roll world and man, I love it. So I got saved about 10 o’clock on a Sunday morning April 29, 1979 and I went home. I picked up the phone and called the recording studio, where I was living, and I said “I’m never coming back. I’m never coming back to Hollywood, you can keep my stuff, you can do whatever you want, but I’m never stepping foot back in that sin-filled, sick town.”
No one told me to do that. It’s the grace of God. And it just got more and more radical from that point forward. I’m not holding myself up as an example. I’ve stumbled and fallen and made a zillion mistakes since then. But there was something I knew, that the life I was living and the life in Christ were radically different. And there was this huge transformation that had to take place for me to leave the old life and to follow the new life.
So, if you’ve had a rocky start, or you know someone who has had a rocky start with the Lord – yeah, they prayed but I’m still waiting for them to “get it,” like start the “walk.” Or if maybe you’ve done the cyclical “bi-polar” thing where you really follow the Lord on Sunday but by Wednesday it’s getting a little rough, and by Friday you’re fallen and then on Sunday you are really walking for the Lord again. If you’ve experienced that too, can I tell you it’s not because God hasn’t accomplished something on your behalf. It’s not because God hasn’t provided anything or everything you need. He has provided everything you need. The problem is a resolution problem. The problem is with you, not with God.
We want to blame somebody. How can we blame God after all he has accomplished and all he has provided if we don’t have the resolution in our life, the determination, the decidedness, the purposefulness to serve him, how can we shake a finger at him and say it’s somehow something that he hasn’t done. It’s a resolution problem. It’s on our part. It’s not on God’s part.
So here’s what we see. We see two types of people. We see a person who makes a life’s resolution like, “Okay, that’s it, I’m all in. I’m going for it. I’m not turning back, I’m not messing around, I’m going from darkness to light.”
And then we see another person who is saying, “Hey, that’s cool, I’m going to heaven. That was easy.” And they kind of go on about their own lives. So one person, the person who makes the life’s resolution, their lives radically change and they get on fire and you see Christ in them, and they bring glory to his name. And the other person – not. Not at all. The difference is the resolution that is made and whether it is cyclical or time or life, a life’s resolution.
So, Paul obviously made a life’s resolution. If you know Paul at all, it is a shocking life’s resolution. You’re going to see it as we continue in Chapter 3. When Paul realized his desperate need for Christ, when he realized the worthlessness of what he was trusting in his life, he writes this in Philippians 3:7.
Philippians 3:7 (NLT)
7 I once thought these things were valuable (previous list), but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.
So I used to think this is what I am holding onto, this is my trust, this is my hope. But now that I understand Christ, I consider that stuff worthless. It’s actually contrary to having worth. It contradicts worth, it’s not just zero, it is negative worth. I consider them all worthless because of what Christ has done. That is the realization that Paul had here.
And then in verse 8 he clarifies it. It’s not just his religious accomplishments that are worthless when compared with Christ. Look what he does in Philippians 3:8. He says, it’s not just that. It’s not just all my religious effort. He says:
Philippians 3:8(a) (NLT)
8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord . . .
Wait a minute, it’s not just the things that I thought I put my trust in, or that I had confidence in. I actually understand from a personal encounter with Christ that everything else is worthless when compared to the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
Have you heard of “values clarification?” I don’t know if it’s still big because the schools seem to be always changing their influence on the kids. But for awhile it was values clarification. You know you put four people in a life raft that only holds three and the seven year old has to decide who to throw out of the life raft. Things like that. This is values clarification. Paul says everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
When he came to that realization, he understood that nothing in this world ultimately can compare to knowing Christ. And once you get to that point you can start making decisions based on that clarification, right? They call it a “moment of clarity” for those of you who have been through recovery programs. It’s like you wake up at one moment and say, “Wait a minute, wait a minute. This life I’m living is actually worthless. It has negative worth. And then when I compare it to Christ there is no comparison.” And so you start to make decisions accordingly.
Look how Paul did it, continuing in verse 8.
Philippians 3:8(b)-9(a) (NLT)
. . . For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him.
Do you see the life decision made there because he understood the values clarification that nothing in this world compares to the infinite value of knowing Christ? The word there for “discarded” means to “throw overboard, to purposefully throw something out of your life.” Because of this revelation, this values clarification realization that nothing compares to Christ, here’s my choice. I’m going to throw out the drugs, I’m going to throw out the alcohol, I’m going to throw out the porn, I’m going to throw out the inappropriate relationships, because nothing in this world compares to the infinite value of knowing Christ. Nothing! But listen if you say that but then you still go serve everything for your flesh and in this world then you know, maybe you are still struggling with making the decision. Because if it is really true, it will show. It will show in some action and it is a determined commitment to purposefully lose anything that is keeping you from knowing Christ and becoming one with him.
If you’re reading King James, this is a great place to have a King James Bible. King James says right here “dung.” Dung. I’ve discarded everything else counting it as dung. Big pile of poop. That’s what it is. And so because it is, I’m not going to embrace it. I’m not going to hug it to my chest and sleep with it because it is dung. It is garbage. How many Christians do we see saying the right words but still cuddling up with the dung? Because the life’s resolution has not reached that level. It’s genuine. Jesus calls us all in or not at all. And he is so gracious to give us the choice. But it is all in or not at all.
Paul is talking about the things we put our trust and confidence in over Christ. He is not saying that all of us have to go home and sell every material thing that we own. He is not saying all of us have to live like paupers. You might have to, if the Holy Spirit is saying that to you, then go do it, but it is not a blanket statement. He is not saying that we have to go home and discard every relationship that we have. For those of you who think you can discard your spouse in order to know Christ better, know that is the enemy talking. You don’t get to discard your spouse in order to know Christ better. Stop thinking like that. It doesn’t work like that.
But what Paul is saying is consider, do the math. What is keeping you from knowing Christ? What in this world do you have confidence in or you are putting your trust in that is keeping you from the infinite value of knowing Christ? What that is – be willing to discard it purposefully, willingly, proactively, discard it so that you can know Christ. It is a determined, decided, purposeful resolution that encompasses your whole life. So, if you’re trusting in something other than Christ, if you’re holding on to something in this life other than Christ then my prayer is that the Holy Spirit is screaming at you that it is dung, that it is garbage, that it is worthless compared to the infinite value of knowing Christ and knowing him as Paul is leading up to.
In verse 9 Paul makes it clear that what it was he was counting in is the opposite of the truth.
Philippians 3:9(b) (NLT)
9 . . . I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.
Paul’s “trust in” list, this is what I trust in, is shattered at this point. What I was living for, what I was fighting for, what I was working towards it’s now dung, it’s garbage, it is shattered. My only hope is in Christ. My only hope is in Christ. And for Paul, having the true righteousness that comes from Christ as opposed to the self-righteousness that he had as a Pharisee.
And so finally, he encapsulates his whole life’s resolution in my life’s verse. (He didn’t ask me if he could use my life’s verse to summarize his life’s resolution, but I would have allowed him if he would have asked.) I tried to remember when did I make this my life’s verse and I can’t remember. But it’s the only life’s verse I have had. This was the first text I ever preached on a Sunday back in 1999 or so. It’s been my life’s verse for longer than that.
Philippians 3:10, the first five words from the literal ESV or NKJ it says,
Philippians 3:10 (ESV)
10 that I may know Him . . .
That I may know him. That I may really, really know him. That I may personally know him. That I may experientially know him. That I may know Christ. The Greek word here for “know” is one of the more unique ones. There are all types of variations of the Greek words that we translate as “to know.” This one is GINOSKO. The word GINOSKO means “an ever increasing, relational, experiential knowledge.” It’s always growing, it’s relational – which God has made us relational – and it is experiential which means you just say “Hi, Lord. I feel you, I sense you. I’m following you, I hear you.” It’s an experience. It’s ever increasing, it’s relational and it’s experiential.
And Paul says whatever it was I was holding on to before, I am throwing it overboard and I am making a life’s resolution to have an ever increasing, relational, experiential knowledge of Jesus, that I may know him. This is taking full inventory from a guy who had a lot; we might say he had everything if we understood Paul’s position in the social strata. This is a guy who had everything and he said, “I’m throwing it all away so that I can know Christ.”
What happened to Paul was serious; he lost everything in order to know Christ. In order to gain this ever increasing, relational, experiential knowledge of Christ. That is a life’s resolution. And I’m not saying that you need my life’s resolution. I am saying you need a life’s resolution. This wasn’t written just for me. It was written for all Christians who are willing to know Christ in an eternally intimate way. An ever increasing relational, experiential way.
The rest of verse 10 elaborates on it.
Philippians 3:10 (NLT)
10 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,
It’s shocking how many people I have read that water that down. They say oh well, that means something spiritual, or superficial. It doesn’t. It means what it says. I want to experience Christ in every way. It’s a life’s resolution that includes every circumstance, every situation, every joy, every pain, every victory, every defeat, every sorrow – all of it. I want to know Christ in every way, in every area. I want this ever increasing, experiential relationship with Christ in every circumstance of life. I want to experience the mighty power that raised Christ from the dead, and I want to experience the fellowship of his sufferings.
Why? Because it is not about my circumstances, it’s about knowing him. And I want to know him in the full gamut. From the power of the resurrection to the fellowship of his sufferings I want to know him. It is an absolute determination to know Christ in every circumstance in every situation, in every day of your life. It’s a life’s resolution. No matter what. No matter what I want to know him at both ends of the scale. I want to know him more. I want to be closer to him. I want to have a deeper and deeper relationship with him. I want to experience him in all situations and circumstances in life. I want to suffer with him, even sharing in his death.
It’s extreme. It’s shocking. It drives your life. If you say, “Well, yeah, listen, I want church to be a little compartment of my life. I want the kids to go to Sunday School, I want to stop by every once in a while, if I have a clean shirt. I think there is a heaven and I want to go there,” you need to know that is not how the Apostle Paul wrote Philippians Chapter 3. And you might say, “Well, that’s not for everybody.”
But you can’t really find the “easy road” in the Bible. You just can’t. Jesus says “Come ‘all-in’ man, the water is fine. Come buy and drink. Come to the fountain of living water. Come and all who believe out of their innermost being will gush rivers of living water.” It’s an all-in, but it’s an all victorious, all joyful result.
Look at verse 11 of Philippians 3. He just goes from shocking to shocking. He says I want to experience the mighty power that raised Christ from the dead, even sharing in his death. And then verse 11 says,
Philippians 3:11 (NLT)
11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!
Some people think, “Wow does Paul think he might not make it? Is Paul implying that he might not make it there?” No, he is not questioning his own resurrection. The NLT handles this translation really well. He is saying “At all costs. No matter what. One way or another, it doesn’t matter how I get there.” He is saying “The path my life is on, the circumstances I face, the situations that come up in front of me are secondary. They don’t matter. All that matters is that I know Christ now and I am going to be with him later.”
That’s it. Everything else is secondary. Meaning our circumstances are secondary. The situations we face are secondary. They are secondary. Christ is primary. And knowing him is primary. And everything else is secondary.
And so whether we are living in the power of his resurrection or whether we are living in the fellowship of his suffering as long as I am becoming one with Christ, and as long as I know that this path is ultimately leading me to being with him for eternity, it’s all good. It’s okay!
Haven’t you ever wondered how people can suffer for Christ for years, and years, and years and never give up? And their joy never diminishes and they never turn back. It’s because the circumstances aren’t driving them, their relationship with Christ is driving them. Their intimate, experiential, daily relationship with Christ is driving them. And as Paul says in Philippians 4, that’s what matters. That’s why I can do all things, because of who Christ is in me and who I am in Christ.
Paul makes it clear it’s never over. Our commitment, our resolution to know Christ never ends until this life ends. Look at Philippians 3:12. Our resolution is meant to always drive us, always be the motivating factor, the driving force, no matter what. No matter how long or how short we get to live, we are chasing after Christ every day.
Philippians 3:12 (NLT)
12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.
Paul says I don’t mean to say I have already achieved it. I haven’t arrived. It’s not a one time commitment. It is one time a moment, commitment. One time each moment. I haven’t arrived. I’m not already, perfected or have already reached perfection.
Look at the end of verse 12. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me
New King James says to lay hold of. The word means to have a stranglehold on something. To be able to lock on to something and not let go. Listen, Jesus has laid hold of you. I don’t know what you think about your relationship with Christ, if you think “Yeah I was a pretty god catch, okay Jesus, if you want me you can have me.” No! Forget about it!
Jesus loved you that when you were a wretched sinner, which quite frankly without Christ you still are, when you were a wretched sinner he laid hold of you. He laid hold of you for an eternal purpose, for a good purpose, for his glory and for your good. And Paul says I’m going to press on so that I can lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has already laid hold of me.
Lord, what have you laid hold of me for? Because that’s what I want to lay hold of. And in this circumstance, in this situation and on this path, that is my resolution – to lay hold of that for which you first have laid hold of me. That is your role. It’s to lay hold of what Christ has laid hold of you for. To not give up, to not be taken out by the enemy, to not be sidelined, to fight the good fight, to keep fighting the good fight, no not be discouraged, to not be run down but to know that Christ has laid hold of you and that your role is to lay hold of that for which he has laid hold of you. Pressing on to the end. Pressing on to the end. Pressing on to finish the race. To receive the heavenly prize of the upward call of God in Christ.
Look at verses 13 and 14. This is the summary of Paul’s life’s resolution.
Philippians 3:13–14 (NLT)
13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward (straining) to what lies ahead,
14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
That’s it. That is the race. That’s the resolution. I am not trying to get God to fix my circumstances, I’m not trying to get God to have something to happen in this world, I’m pressing on to run the race, to receive the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. The heavenly prize for which God, through Christ, is calling me. That is it.
And so what happens is your circumstances become secondary, your resolution becomes primary. Lord I’m seeking you. I’m striving for you. I want to know you in this situation, I want to know you today. I want to experience you today. I want to feel the power of your resurrection and the fellowship of your suffering. And I want to just get to where you are no matter what the road, no matter what the path. Amen?
Listen, it doesn’t matter to you because you have to come to this yourself, but I am sharing with you today what drives my life. This is a personal deal. And you’ve got to get there, you’ve got to get there, because Christ requires it all. But he is a good Lord. He is a good Lord. His inheritance is great and he desires to share it with you. But you’ve got to have a resolution to run the race and fight the fight and know what you are after, and what you’re after is to know Christ better. To experience him more, to be led by him, to be used by him. To bring him glory. What else are you going to do between now and when you show up face to face with him? What else has more value? Nothing! It’s all “embracing dung” compared to the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord.
So, my encouragement to you today is press on. Know Christ better. Know him better. Closer and closer in every circumstance, in every situation. It is a great way to live. It is a great purpose. A great reason to get up in the morning, to know Christ better every morning.
So, right now, I’m going to ask you, would you do that? Would you consider right now saying, you know what? I need to go all-in. Maybe I don’t need to be as aggressive or intense as Dave, I mean, you can be peaceful. There are peaceful Christians. But I need to go all-in. I need to go all-in. I need to stop playing a game, stop walking the line, stop living the love the world / love God, try to get both.
God doesn’t offer it. If you would go all-in right now, I just want to stop right now and have you pray.
Lord Jesus, please move on our hearts. Give us divine revelation of all that is worthless, and all that has infinite value and draw us Lord. Draw us to yourself by your Spirit.
If that is you right now, if you need to make that commitment, I just want you to make it, right now. Just say Lord, that’s me. You feel it, you feel the Holy Spirit pressing on you. Surrender, man. All that dung you’re clinging to is starting to smell. Go all-in. And be willing to discard the things that are keeping you from Christ. You don’t have to repeat after me, but you can pray something like this.
Lord Jesus, I give you my life. Truly, completely, all of it. I give you my life. Every area. I surrender it to you. And I say Lord, that anything else I would chase after is dung compared to knowing you. Lord Jesus, I want to know you. I want to know the power of your resurrection. I want to know the fellowship of your suffering. Even your death. And Lord I want to walk this life no matter what the path is before me, I want to walk this life knowing you better, clinging to you tighter, and anxiously looking forward to the day I will be with you. I surrender my life to you Lord. And today I make a resolution, final and complete resolution to put you as the highest priority in my life. To seek to know you in every circumstance. Please fill me with your Spirit, overwhelm me with your presence, drive the darkness out of my life and make me a shining example of a transformed disciple. Give me your power and your Holy Spirit to do it, Lord. I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.
If that is you, because of already some things I’ve said, I need to tell you that making a life’s resolution certainly isn’t a prayer at the end of a service on a tired Christmas weekend. Making a life’s resolution takes a “life.” And so there are two things I want to share with you about a life’s resolution.
Number one, you have to learn how to do it daily. You have to learn how to follow Jesus daily. You don’t just by nature know how to follow Jesus daily. What you know by nature is how to follow your flesh, and how to follow the world. That’s what you know by nature. So you have to learn how to follow Jesus daily. The way you learn how to follow Jesus daily is what the Bible calls discipleship. Discipleship just means learning to follow Jesus. You have to set yourself to this. You have to set yourself to it. You can’t follow Jesus daily until you learn how to follow Jesus daily. That process is what we call discipleship. You have to take the initiative to really do this. You need to learn to follow Jesus every day. We have people in the back at the connection center to take your name and number and we will call you and follow up with you. We will ask if you are using the daily devotion journal, and are you reading? We have a stack of those one year Bibles, it is called The Daily Walk Bible, and it is a very cool daily Bible. You can also find them on Amazon. We will work with you individually to find a discipleship group to be in.
If you would say I need to follow Jesus every day and I need to understand this discipleship process, then we can connect you. I would encourage you to study TWO of our series, “The Fundamentals” and “The Abide” series. You can find these online at wordbymail.com.
God loves you enough to send his Son to die in your place and then to send you his Holy Spirit to be his life in you, for the power to live for him every day. God has accomplished it all. God has provided all you need. Your part is to make a life’s resolution to know him in every circumstance in life and to lay hold of that for which he has laid hold of you.