Submitted
by Kerry Patton
7 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, 9and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ…” Philippians 3:7-9a
7 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, 9and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ…” Philippians 3:7-9a
Ralph Waldo Emerson is famously quoted as having said: “Life is a journey, not a destination.” To which my friend and brother in Christ,
Bennett Creed replied: “Life is a journey
and not a destination eh? Tell that to a man about to fall over a cliff…Don’t
worry about it…it’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey!”
Well, let’s explore this a bit.
Life
is a Destination
In reading Philippians chapter 3 above, we get a sense that
the Apostle Paul has his eyes on the prize, don’t we. No matter the cost, no matter what he must go
through, his destination is to know Christ Jesus. In fact, he considers all other things to be
essentially garbage to reach this goal.
And he is not incorrect to take that position. He is energized, it seems, by the
consideration that one day soon, he “may be found” in Jesus “not having a
righteousness” of his own, but having fully manifested the righteousness of God
in Christ, through Christ. Life is about
the destination, and the destination is to be like Jesus…to love like
Jesus. Nothing else matters. Or does it? Or to clarify…is it only the
destination that matters?
Life
is a Journey
1 Corinthians 1:1-3 displays destinations of sort: Attaining the ability to speak in the tongues
of men and angels, attaining the ability to prophecy, attaining all wisdom and
knowledge of all mysteries, proving my selflessness by giving the poor all I
have, attaining such great faith that I can speak to mountains and they are
removed… And if each of these could be viewed as destinations, then could we
not also speak of love as the journey?
Love is that which I do and am to do…all along the way. Love is not a destination. Love is a journey. The passage makes it clear that without love,
nothing else matters. No matter what I
have, no matter what I achieve, no matter to what I attain, without love…it is
all in vain. I think there is wisdom in
the consideration that without the journey, the destination is equally empty.
So, it isn’t “either or”. It is really “Both/And” isn’t
it. Life is both a Destination AND a
Journey. As we continue in Philippians
chapter 3 we read:
12Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may
lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13Brethren, I do
not regard myself as having laid hold of it
yet; but one thing I do:
forgetting what lies behind and
reaching forward to what lies
ahead, 14I press on
toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15Let us therefore, as many as are
perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude,
God will reveal that also to you; 16however,
let us keep living by that same standard
to which we have attained.
Here we see the Apostle’s insight into Christian maturity
as journey and destination…effectively hand-in-hand. Yes, his eyes are on the prize, but he is ON
the journey toward Christ-likeness.
Years ago, I was speaking with my friend Mr. Shirley
Leech. Mr. Leech was a retired school
teacher who had grown up in and spent his life teaching school and driver’s
education in Parker County. At the time
of our conversation, Shirley was celebrating his 90th birthday. I inquired of his own journey: “Shirley, here you are having lived 90
years. Candidly, I am your pastor…but
you have been a man of God longer than I have even been alive. I make no pretense that I am ahead of you in
Christian maturity. Let me ask you
this. Is there that point in your
live…can you put your finger on that year or time when you can now look back
and say: “It was at this point that I attained maturity in the faith?”” Mr. Leech laughed out loud and replied: “No.
In my experience, you don’t ever reach that point.” I asked him to clarify. Was he saying that Christian maturity is a
myth?? “Christian maturity is a journey, not a destination.” He said. “My
prejudices are not the same as they were when I was 25. I am not tempted by the same things I was
even 25 years ago. Life changes. You change.” He added: “Christian
maturity seems to be how we grow, learn, and adapt as life and times
change. Life deals you the cards it
deals you, and Christianity maturity is playing those cards to the best of your
ability in that way which you can best understand and display the person and
Gospel of Christ.”
So, live is both journey AND destination. And for us, Christian life is not only
learning everything we can about the faith in life, but living those things we
learn, and touching lives in the Name of Christ to the best of our ability all
through life.
Prayer
Father God, by
your grace and power, keep our eyes on the prize. But also keep them open every step of the
way…all through our journey. Help us to
watch for and appreciate the beauty and
wisdom of each day. And let us not waste
one while anticipating the next, but live them all for you. Every moment. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
