Concluding Thoughts

"Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him - not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith." Philippians 3:8-9

The period of Lent is a time of self examination for most. It often involves the Spirit of God making us quite aware of our own brokenness and complete need for God. It is a time when we stop for a moment and think to ourselves - wow, being a Christian is tough sledding...it's a constant struggle between sin and obedience.

Of interest to me in this passage is the word "rubbish." Paul says that in comparison to knowing God and having a relationship with Him, everything else in his life (his best accomplishments, good works, his money, his power, his fame, his legacy...everything) is rubbish. Paul is making a strong statement here and you might not even realize how strong, for in the Greek in which it was originally written, the great theologian of the church dishes out some uncharacteristically salty language. The greek word translated "rubbish" is skubalon. Skubalon is only used one time in the whole of the Bible, and it literally means #$^@*$! (or human dung if you will).

Paul is shouting in as loud a voice as possible that everything else in his life is #$^@*$! compared to knowing Jesus. In other words, all that matters in life is ones relationship with Jesus.

As we begin our entrance into Holy Week with Palm Sunday tomorrow, let me ask you to reflect on this...

What matters most to you in your life? How does that manifest itself in the way that you live it?

**thanks again for journeying with me through Lent - this will be my last post for the season. I look forward very much to celebrating Easter week with you - either here in the Bay in person, or in the Spirit of unity wherever it is that God has placed you.

Be God's, Scott