Burn Like a Fire in Me The Greatest Fire

Burn Like a Fire in Me

The Greatest Fire 

The apostle Paul said his greatest

passion was to know Christ Jesus.

This is life’s greatest accomplishment.

When you think of passionate people in the Bible

one name in the New Testament stands out.

The apostle Paul, before his conversion

to Christ, was a passionate man.

Paul was passionate about

building spiritual achievements.

His focus was how great he could become.

His confidence was in his fleshly ability…

“If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more:  

 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin,

 a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal,

persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.”

For most of us, life is measured by our accomplishments.

As a child, we strive to get a sticker or a badge.

It is a great thing when parents, teachers, boys and girls clubs

teach the young to be productive and set goals in our lives.

As we get older, college achievements and

military rank are all great achievements.

Paul realized that all his achievements, even the ones

that made him more righteous than others, lacked greatly

and fell short of what was important in life to achieve.

“But whatever was to my profit I now

consider loss for the sake of Christ.”

Paul discovered out of all his accomplishment

none of them measured up to anything.

His accomplishments, his abilities

meant nothing on the true scales of life.

He could not save himself no matter how zealous

he was or how many achievement he had accomplished.

So if a person cannot save themselves, all achievements

end at the grave, what is worthwhile in life?

Should we forget personal achievement and live a life of

eating and drinking and making merry for tomorrow we die?

Solomon also realized all the things we chase

after in life are like chasing after the wind,

vanity emptiness (vexation) of our spirit.

Paul gives us the answer…

    

“What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to

the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord,

for whose sake I have lost all things.

I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ”

What was it Paul was so zealous for?

What burned within him?

A zeal for “knowing Christ Jesus”.

Nothing was more important to Paul than “knowing Christ Jesus”.

It was this desire to know Christ that caused him to look at

his life accomplishment as rubbish, a loss of time and energy.

Paul burned with passion to know Christ so he could be like him.

Like Him in such a way that whatever he did he gave credit to Christ.

He was on Christ’s team and when he scored it was

not his point, but the winning trophy went to Christ.

Life is for Christ’s glory.

In the end, there will be a team banquet and

Christ will reward the players on His team.

“For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 

7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me,but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:6-8

What passion is burning in us?

What is burning in us?

Is all our fuels, energy, burning to know Christ Jesus?

Will you leave your crowns on earth or will you give it

all for Christ so you receive the true Crown of Life?

Scripture Reading

Philippians 3:1-16 NIV

3 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.

2 Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. 3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence.

If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.

7 But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ — the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

15 All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. 16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained.