Count All Things Loss

J.J. Stark

March 2016

Week 10

IGNITE Class 10

Inductive Bible Study – (IBS)

Count All Things Loss

“Yet indeed I 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.” – Philippians 3:8 (NKJV)

This world is one of credentials.  Anymore it seems like everything requires some form of validation or qualification for anyone to do anything or go anywhere…sometimes I get the feeling I have to have a degree to even do simple things like grocery shopping!  The mindset has almost become a god of some kind – conveying a message that says a person has to prove himself, can’t live a normal life without credentials.  Now I know I just said that I often get the feeling of needing to be able to identify myself in this world, but on the flip side of that I also am guilty of encouraging and even “enforcing” these ideals as well.  Thinking about what Paul is saying in this verse, “Yet indeed I count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus My Lord,” this really is a powerful statement.  To count all things as loss for Christ, takes total commitment and truly setting king over my life.  In the few short years I have lived on this earth, I have been very blessed with an excellent family who loves and cares for me, as well as also being blessed with many awards that I very well could count as being worthwhile.  A national shooting title, manager and employee positions, and several other competitive honors have been granted to me in my 19 years of life only through God’s amazing grace, for which I am extremely grateful, as I am very undeserving of any of these.  However, each of these things are also items that I very often cling to and occasionally flaunt, forgetting that it was nothing of my doing that got me that trophy or belt buckle or whatever it may be.  I am grateful to God that He continues to remind and reshape my heart to set Him as my reward, letting go of all these things “and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ.”  Recently I have been taking a view of these things similar to that of Joshua – as memorials - because several awards are landmarks of tremendous growth in my walk with Christ.  Joshua 4:5-7 says, “5…and Joshua said to them: ‘“Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of your take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, 6that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘“‘What do these stones mean to you?’”’ 7Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, that waters of the Jordan were cut off.  And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.”  

Application:  Today I will write down all of my world credentials, and then write down and compare what gain(s) I have by living in Christ.