The Infinite Value of Jesus Christ!

“Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.” – Philippians 3:8-9 NLT

If we have committed our lives to God—we ought to do everything in Jesus Christ’s name for the glory (1 Corinthians 10:31; Colossians 3:4) and the kingdom of God (Matthew 7:21) with thankfulness. (Colossians 3:17) This is because “we know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one.” (1 John 5:19) The reason why we are children of God is that we believe and have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. (John 1:12-13) This means that we must discard everything else that do not relate to the will of God. Thus, the word of God declares:

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. (1 John 2:15-17)

Furthermore, if we consider ourselves that we are children of God—we are considered to be chosen out of this world (John 15:19), for we have a new destiny at our hand. This is because Apostle Paul states:

For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. (Philippians 3:18-21)

This means that we have to forget about our own righteousness that comes through the law, and we ought to become righteousness of God that comes through faith instead. This is because the word of God declares, “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:56-57) In addition, that “victory,” which is stated in 1 Corinthians 15:57 is by faith in Jesus Christ. This is because 1 John 5:4 says, “… this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”  For this reason, the word of God proclaims, “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Therefore, in order to earn eternal life—we must repent (Matthew 3:2) and live our lives by faith in Jesus Christ (Galatians 2:19-21) until the end of the age with concentration on the kingdom of heaven (Colossians 3:1-4, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Romans 14:17), even though it is going to be hard. (Matthew 16:24-27) This is because if we produce our faith, then it leads to godly life which could be worked by the power of the Spirit, and then godly life leads into everlasting life. (2 Peter 1:3-11) Hence, the word of God declares, “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” (1 Timothy 6:12)

Moreover, at the end of the age, we can confidently proclaim,

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 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 4:7-8)

Just like these verses state, everything else that do not relate to the will of God is worthless in comparison of infinite value of knowing Jesus Christ. This is because Jesus Christ is eternal life. This means when we are pursuing Him, we are getting closer to the kingdom of heaven in spiritual sense. (John 17:3) For this reason, I believe that I threw everything away that does not relate to the will of God for fear that I might get addicted to wordly things again that I would not concentrate on the will of God. Moreover, when I write my devotionals, the Bible keeps on reminding me the specific verses. Thus, I think this is one of the ways that I get to know Jesus Christ more as I search the verses that I would like to conjoin with my writing. Because of this, I know why Richard Aguilar told me that my devotionals are changing me. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) Thus, the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit amazes me sometimes, and I am so thankful that the Holy Spirit keeps telling me what to write!