“But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.”
~ Philippians 3: 7-8
One person whose life reflects genuine love and sacrificial living in the New Testament is Apostle Paul. In Philippians 3:4, he made it clear that he was an achiever who could humanly speaking decide to glory in both his qualifications and accomplishments spiritually, academically and all that, but he considered all these unimportant, compared to having a good relationship with Christ. His willingness to give up everything for the sake of the One who called him is quite impressive, considering that he was indeed up there at the time he had an encounter with Jesus.
There is a song I consider one of the finest, yet it’s not just about the lyrics of the song but what it connotes. The song says ” Take everything Lord, I don’t want it , I don’t need it, I just want you.” As beautiful as this song is, the meaning is so deep, it goes beyond merely singing those words. It is a song of reflection. It draws our attention to how much we are willing or unwilling to let go of for the sake of Christ and His kingdom.
It is quite easy for anyone to say ” I am willing to give up anything for God” but when He comes asking for whatever we consider so dear to our hearts, we respond by saying ” Not this one Lord.” Funny how we think we can outsmart Him with our lip service and partial surrender. He is All- knowing, yet He tends to prove us in order to reveal our deceptive nature to us. When we get to that point where we are unable to give up this or that for Him, we tend to give Him options of what we consider convenient to give up or let go of. Sadly, it does not work that way in the Kingdom.
As far as God is concerned, it is either what He wants or nothing else. Maybe we should ask ourselves how good we will feel about being the owner or inventor of a thing and not being able to use it how we choose to and for whatsoever we deem it fit for. God is not an unjust or wicked God who will take a sacrificial thing from anyone for no just cause. When He requests for a move, a thing, an action, a substance, commitment or whatever it is from anyone, it is usually in the best interest of such a person.
Jeremiah 29:11
When He called Abraham to move from his nation to an unknown place, it was so that He could be the God of Abraham and so as to bless His generation yet unborn. Several times in the Scriptures He requested a move from one place to another from our fathers of faith and it ends up been for the revealing of a greater glory that was ahead of them. Romans 8:28
When Hannah gave Samuel to God, considering that he was her only child at the time and the fact that she had waited for so long to have him, a lot of people who do not understand the ways of God would have considered God wicked and inconsiderate to have accepted the child. They would have acted like they love Hannah more than God did by demanding that she spends more time cuddling and loving on her baby boy instead of letting him go for the sake of God’s service. The truth however is that God is neither wicked nor inconsiderate. He is more considerate than what our human minds can understand. Hannah was a wise investor who gave up all she had for the sake of the Giver of that one thing that mattered most to her. She got 5 more in return and became the mother of one of the greatest prophets in history. What better investment can anyone make? Oh! How I love to know that there is nothing I give up for His sake that He is not worth much more. 1 Samuel 2:21
Abraham understood this very well and was willing to gIve up the son he treasured so much, knowing that the return on investment was definitely going to be worth it. God however, decided to look the other way and provide Himself a sacrifice while He acknowledged Abraham’s heart of obedience and willingness to surrender something special for God’s sake by pronouncing a generational and irrevocable blessing on His dear friend (Abraham). Genesis 22:16-18
Whenever God places a demand on anyone, such a person should be glad, and consider it a priviledge to give to the Giver of all things- including life, the best of spiritual and physical gifts, possessions, achievements, territories, positions, ETC, knowing that He blesses our every act of sacrifice and gives much more than what was given in return.
Truth be told, looking through the pages of the Bible, no on walks with God without having to give up one thing or another, what distinguishes each giver is what God requests for. For some it is their time or supposed comfort, while for some others, it is their most valuable possession, present location or life. Whatever He requests for, you can be sure He already settled your questions and doubts from the onset when He willingly gave up His only begotten Son for the sake of mankind. He gave up what mattered most to Him- His precious Son (Jesus Christ ). John 3:16
If He could give up His best for the sake of an undeserving you and me, what is it that should be considered too hard to give up for His sake? When you say ” Take everything, except this or that”, what you are simply saying is that your love for Him is conditional. God is however looking for genuine and sacrificial lovers who are not just willing to give up somethings but all things.
Contrary to what a lot of people think, walking with Christ always come with a cost. It is a sacrificial walk. It is not without cost, but it will definitely be worth it. Believing otherwise will mean believing a lie. From Abraham to other fathers of faith, there was the giving up of one thing or the other to enable them get into His perfect will and plan for their lives. The more you hold on to everything, including what He will have you let go, the more you delay walking in His perfect will. What have you given up for His sake? What are you willing to let go of for His sake?
#NoLossNoGain.
Shalom.
Author Profile
- Temitope is the founder of thesoulmeal.com, an online platform that she shares with her God-given spiritual family and friends. She is a speaker, teacher and youth counselor. She is passionate about inspiring people to find their identity in Christ. Catch her interviewing inspiring leaders on Tongue of the Learned Podcast
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Hmmmnn! So touching, so deep, so inspiring.
The truth is that, nothing can be too much to give up for Christ sake. Afterall, whatever we have today was gotten through Him (there is nothing we have today that we haven’t received from God) . If we so much value anything (including our lives) above our value for God and His only begotten son- Jesus, then we are at the point of loosing that thing.
Well said Sis. Great job