“CHRISTLIKENESS: REAL TREASURE”

“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.”

Philippians 3:7

Titles. Accomplishments. Recognitions. Certifications. Numbers. Most people spend their lives pursuing these things. To them, to be acknowledged in a given field is a life-long quest. 

As early as childhood, the world emphasizes personal achievements: from nursery to university, and ultimately, in professional life. “Successful” individuals and their families take pride in their accomplishments. Some families in the Philippines even have a tradition of posting the names of their members and their respective professions in front of their houses.

To an extent, these personal achievements add to people’s credibility. But when things wrap up, do they matter? When we meet God face to face on Judgment Day, will He let us go to heaven because of our earthly triumphs? No.

Paul knew it better. In this section of his letter to the believers in Philippi, the Apostle warns them about the influence of false teachers, mainly those who add legalism on top of the Gospel. The false teachers prided themselves in their so-called credentials (verse 3). To point out the futility of human achievement, Paul details his impressive Jewish feats. His critics and challengers pale in comparison to his status as a Jewish religious leader. If there is someone who has reasons to have religious self-confidence, it would have to be Paul.

He does not mean to boast about himself; on the contrary, he argues that everything he has accomplished before knowing Christ is unimportant and he even considers them garbage (verse 8).

The word “counted” comes from the Greek “hegeomai”, which means “to deem” or “to lead.” Paul is using business accounting terms to figuratively describe the spiritual transaction that happened when Christ redeemed him. To Paul, all of his Jewish credentials may seem impressive by human standards, but they were actually meaningless and even damning. Therefore, he puts them in his loss column in comparison to having a personal relationship with Christ. His achievements only gave him personal glory, but God was out of the picture. Such glories Paul finds selfish and of no eternal value. Paul considers his life-changing encounter with the Lord Jesus on the Damascus Road as a turning point from having confidence in himself to confidence in Christ alone.

Paul’s life is worth imitating not because of his achievements but because he counted Christ as his greatest treasure. If a man of Paul’s caliber counted personal accomplishments rubbish, why would we spend our time chasing them? May we come to a point where we are willing to trade our recognition for more time with the Lord in prayer, worship, fellowship, and discipleship.

A life spent for Christ is a real treasure.

Pursue the Saviour today!