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The main revelation in the New Testament, especially in Paul’s Epistles, is the very Christ, whom God in His economy has prepared for us to be our experience. We have looked at this matter in a concise way in the previous lesson. Now let us see, in the book of Philippians, its conclusion, which is to take Christ as everything.
1) “For to me to live is Christ” (Phil. 1:21).
This word reveals to us that Paul, who experienced Christ richly and abundantly, took Christ as his living. In Philippians 1 he said that he lived Christ.
1) “As always, even now Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether through life or through death” (Phil. 1:20).
This word shows us that Paul, who was rich in the experience of Christ, took Christ also as his expression. All his life and work were not for expressing himself or for displaying his knowledge, his ability, or his other merits and strong points. What he was and what he did were for expressing Christ, even for magnifying Christ, that Christ would be not only expressed through him but even magnified in him.
1) “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5).
This verse means that we need to take Christ’s mind as our mind. Paul not only took Christ as his living and expression without, but he also took the mind of Christ as his mind within. According to the text which follows, the thinking in the mind of Christ in this verse was that of One who changed from the form of God into the likeness of man to become a man, even emptying Himself to take the form of a slave and to humble Himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of a cross.
1) “And be found in Him, not having my own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God based on faith” (Phil. 3:9).
In experiencing Christ, Paul was found by others to be a man in Christ, not having a righteousness which was from his own keeping of the law, but having the righteousness from God through his faith in Christ, which is just Christ Himself lived out from him to be expressed as his righteousness. In such a way, Paul took Christ as the righteousness which he lived out.
1) “...on account of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, on account of whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them refuse that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:8).
Paul, who was rich in the experience of Christ, undoubtedly considered Christ to be the most excellent One. Thus, he shows us in one of the verses following Philippians 3:8 that he pursued the knowledge of Christ. His pursuit indicates his consideration of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. Because of the Christ whom he knew, he forsook all things, that is, he suffered the loss of all things and counted them refuse, that he might gain Christ.
1) “One thing — forgetting the things which are behind and stretching forward to the things which are before, I pursue toward the goal for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13-14).
Paul, who pursued the knowledge of Christ in order to experience Him more deeply, considered his pursuit of Christ to be his only task. Thus, he pursued by forgetting the things which were behind and stretching forward to the things which were before. His pursuit was toward one aim, one goal, and that goal was Christ. He took Christ as his goal, pursuing to obtain the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. This prize is also Christ, that is, Christ as the enjoyment of His pursuers. Paul pursued upward, toward the heavens, to gain Christ, whom he took as the goal and prize.
1) “Brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is righteous, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is well-spoken of, if there is any virtue and if any praise, take account of these things” (Phil. 4:8).
Truthfulness, honor, righteousness, purity, loveliness, and that which is well-spoken of are six praiseworthy virtues. These virtues are the expressions of God’s attributes lived out from within the pursuers of Christ, who is the embodiment of God. Paul, who pursued to experience Christ, charged the brothers to consider these things, that is, to live out these virtues and express all the attributes of God in Christ. Since he charged the brothers in this manner, he himself must obviously have been expressing God’s attributes by taking Christ as his virtues.
1) “I can do all things in Him who empowers me” (Phil. 4:13).
Paul, who experienced Christ, was empowered by Christ; hence, he was able to do all things in Christ, which is mainly to live out the various kinds of virtues which express God’s attributes mentioned in verse 8 preceding this word. This shows us that Paul experienced Christ by taking Christ as power to live out Christ as his magnificent living.
1) “I have learned, in whatever circumstances I am, to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound; in everything and in all things I have learned the secret both to be filled and to hunger, both to abound and to be in want” (Phil. 4:11-12).
In any environment and in any matter, Paul, who experienced Christ richly and abundantly, learned the secret to be content and to rejoice always. According to his speaking throughout the book of Philippians, the secret he learned was just Christ. Thus, he took Christ as the secret to experience Christ, being content and rejoicing always in any situation and in any matter.
1) “For our citizenship is in the heavens, from which also we eagerly await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transfigure the body of our humiliation, conforming it to the body of His glory, according to the operation of Him who is able even to subject all things to Himself” (Phil. 3:20-21).
The life which Paul lived in the experience of Christ was one that awaited the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who would come from the heavens to transfigure his body of humiliation, conforming it to the body of His glory. Thus, he took the Christ whom he experienced as his expectation.
