That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death. Philippians 3:10
Before I became a pastor, I used to teach high school classes. It always made me laugh when I would hear one of the guys in the high school referring to a professional sports team (usually basketball) as “we.” He’d come into school and say, “Yeah, it was really close, but ‘we’ won last night.” I always say, “Really? You played with them?” They always come back with, “You know what I mean. That’s my team and ‘they’ won last night.” The truth is, not only do they not play on the team, they don’t even know the players. They may know everything there is to know about their statistics and their game, but they have never even seen them in person let alone hung out at their house or talked with them. They know about them, but they don’t know them.
Sadly, many Christians are that way with Christ. They have been in church most of their lives and have sat through hundreds of sermons. They can talk about Christ and can give you many verses that they have memorized from the Bible. They know how to act right, and they can blend in with the best Christians. But they only know of Christ; they don’t really know Him.
Paul’s goal was to truly know Christ – to be a part of His suffering, to know what it is like to be a real follower of Jesus Christ. To be a real follower of Jesus Christ and to have real fellowship with Him requires one to have self-denial. It is a sacrifice most are not willing to make. That is why the majority of Christians will spend their lives wallowing in the knowledge of who Christ is and what He can do, but never attaining for themselves the knowledge of what Christ has done in their lives.
Most of the guys in high school would jump at the chance to meet an NBA player if they could. They realize it is most likely impossible, so they settle for watching from a distance and following statistics merely as a fan of the game. Not so with Jesus Christ. We have an opportunity to not only meet Him, but also to truly know Him, to become a part of who He is, and to partake of His power in our lives. He is only waiting for us to seize the opportunity. Don’t let it pass you by and only be a fan of Jesus Christ. Embrace the opportunity to truly get to know Him.
Read also: Philippians 3:7-13
Quote of the day: “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” – Corrie Ten Boom