More Than Doing Things for God · Day 7
A Lifetime of Knowing Christ
By Wolisson Nascimento Santos
“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 · King James Version (KJV)
After presenting his credentials and speaking of the righteousness he receives through faith, Paul says what he desires: to know Christ. Even after all he has lived through with him, he still wants to know him.
We began this week by looking at the exhaustion of having to prove our worth. We made room to talk to God, examine our convictions, and notice where we place our trust. We encountered the grace of being accepted in Christ and the Father’s care for what nobody sees.
Now those steps can find a place in your routine. As you read, seek to know the person of Jesus more deeply. In prayer, speak honestly. As you serve someone, practice what you have been learning from him. When you fail, return.
Knowing Christ is a relationship that continues beyond the last page. Life with him includes both joy and difficult days; in the same verse Paul speaks of resurrection and suffering.
Choose a time next week to continue that encounter. The invitation remains open today, exactly as you are.
The context
Philippians 3:10 is the target of everything that came before. Paul drops the résumé in verse 7, explains in verse 8 that he dropped it because of a person, says in verse 9 what he wants to be wearing when he is found — and in verse 10 he says why: “that I may know him”.
And look at what comes with the knowing: the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings. Truly knowing someone means walking in both.
Did you know?
The verb Paul uses here is the same one in the hardest sentence in the Gospels — “I never knew you” (Matthew 7:23) — and the same one in the definition of eternal life that Jesus gives: “that they might know thee the only true God” (John 17:3). It is the same word in both. What separates those two sentences is not anyone's effort. It is the bond.
A line to keep
Knowing Christ is a lifelong journey.
Today’s challenge
Open your phone’s calendar right now and put a time with God in this week: day, hour, place and an alarm. The way you would with someone you want to see.
In the Antioquia app, each devotional also has a narrated story, questions about the text and guided prayer — one a day, with your progress saved.