Philippians 3: 7 – 11 * Midweek Lent 3, 2010 * Pastor H.J. Hagedorn

Greetings in Christ Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,

We preach Christ Crucified, a stumbling block to some and foolishness to others. But Christ crucified presents the fullness of God for us, the promises of Christmas fulfilled. And so we have considered during these Lenten meditations the foolish wisdom of the cross and how through the cross of Christ we are justified by grace alone through faith alone.

All of these great truths are conditioned by the wonder that Christ is risen. Without the resurrection Christ Crucified means nothing more than that Jesus is just another religious martyr. Christ’s resurrection guarantees that his crucifixion paid the price for sin in full.

Apart from his resurrection, which act of Christ is the most glorious thing he did? If you did not just now review some of his gracious words as He walked this earth, or some of his mighty works, then this Lenten season would be a good time to read and ponder one or more of the Gospel accounts.

Though all of Jesus’ acts brought his Father glory, Jesus’ suffering for our eternal debt of sin is the crowning glory. In fact, shortly before Jesus’ suffering began, he said, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds” (Jn 12:23,24).

In an astounding public conversation with his heavenly Father, Jesus prayed, “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it’” (Jn 12:27,28). That was the Father’s way of saying that Jesus’ being born of a woman, born under the law, his blameless life, his spotless ministry—in all these things, Jesus’ desire for our salvation was stronger than life.

But the Father did not stop with Jesus’ holy life. He continued, “and [I] will glorify [my name] again” (Jn 12:28). The Father would ultimately be glorified when Jesus would love us to the point of death and long for our salvation more than life itself.

What thoughts of heart and mind did you have during the reading of the Passion History, specifically about the agony in Gethsemane? I’m sure I’m not the only one in the room that has felt agony over sin of my own—the misspoken word, ill conceived action, illicit thought? Or carried the burden of the agony or sin of another. But in Gethsemane the innocent Son of God bore the guilt of all.

Who can fathom the agony for Jesus? And yet, in the face of crucifixion, able to walk away, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”(Lk 22:42)

Christ crucified. Because of his great love for you, Jesus treasured your life more than his own. When suffering and the cross came his way, Jesus embraced it and, in so doing, embraced you! If there is one thing we learn from pondering the passion, it is that your eternal life with Jesus was more precious to him than his life itself.

This love of Christ had a profound impact on Paul the Apostle. This to the extent that nothing was more important for him. ⁷But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸What 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 ⁹and 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. ¹⁰I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

It was not always like that for Paul, who had been known as Saul. He vehemently opposed Christ Crucified. You can bet he would have been crying, “Crucify him!” at the cross of our Savior, had he been there. Since he could not get his hands on our risen and ascended Savior, he did the next best thing: he arrested and put to death men, women, and children who were followers of Jesus.

How did Saul hope to get to heaven without Jesus? He tells us in his own words: “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” (Php 3:4-6). Saul trusted that he didn’t need a Savior. He had himself.

But the Lord God loved Saul aka Paul as he loves all. The Lord Christ that Saul sought to persecute and torment confronted Saul, struck him blind and helpless and converted him. Jesus applied to the tormentor the fruits of the agony of Gethsemane and the torment of crucifixion as the perfect Substitute for sinners.

Saul, as are all, is confronted with the harsh reality: “You are not able to save yourself because the standard is that you must be perfect.” Convicted and converted by the working of the Holy Spirit, Saul could exclaim: ⁷But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸What 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 ⁹and 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.

Marveling that Christ Crucified valued him more than life itself, Paul’s life overflowed with works of service. The love of God in Christ compelled him to serve and sacrifice. Paul’s list of suffering for his dear Savior is long and compelling reading in the Book of Acts and the Epistles. As he exclaims elsewhere in this Letter to the Philippians, one of the so-called “prison letters,” “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”(1:21) Christ Crucified was more precious than life itself to Paul.

Paul had not yet given up his life, but we might say that God was asking him to give up life bit by bit. For missionary work was what Paul lived for! Does he become depressed? despondent? Did Paul question God, “Why did you set my heart on fire to serve you, only to confine me to these four walls?”

Not at all! Paul sees this as his participation in Christ’s cross—not in the sense that he was sharing Jesus’ redeeming work for his soul. Rather, now that Christ alone had fully paid the price to bring his soul to heaven, the apostle saw his sufferings as a continuation of Jesus’ suffering for the sake of the gospel. Paul sees his house arrest as the pulpit that God, in his infinite wisdom and love, chose for him.

The timeless letter to the Philippian Christians is but one proof that God’s answer to Paul’s prayer was being unfolded even before the prayer departed from his lips: “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, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

What about for us? What does this mean? Christ Crucified for us is more precious than anything, than life itself. Because the righteousness that Christ gained for sinners through his crucifixion makes us right with our heavenly Father it is more precious than anything. Christ Crucified is more precious than our efforts. The resurrection proves the truth of what Jesus declared on the cross: “It is Finished.”

Christ Crucified and its precious value is delivered to us through our baptism: “…all of us that were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death. We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Ro 6:3&4)

Since we enter life through the cross, death is not strange to us. We have learned to die every day . . . and many times each day . . . to self, to all the unholy allies of the flesh in this world and beyond. We experience this death to self when we repent of our sins and turn to the glory of Jesus’ cross both for forgiveness and for the power to live for God.

Each day we say with the apostle, “Whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 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.” Jesus’ cross is more precious than life! Jesus’ death—and our death into Jesus—leads us to be willing to give up all, even life on earth, rather than be apart from Jesus.

Honor and proclaim Christ Crucified by living Christ. Trust him, learn him, know him, live in him, proclaim him as his witnesses, and it will be known that We Preach Christ Crucified, More Precious than Life. Amen.