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Getting to Know Christ
Philippians 3:10
"That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;"
Getting to know Christ should be the desire of every Christian. That was certainly the desire of the Apostle Paul in the verse above. More than anything else, Paul desired to know Christ. He didn't just desire to know Christ on a casual basis, but He wanted to know Christ in a personal way. As I think about the verse above and knowing Christ, several thoughts come to mind.
First, anybody can know Christ in a personal way. I am so glad that God did not reserve closeness with Him for only a certain class of people. God makes available for every Christian the opportunity to get close to Him. God says in Hebrews 4:16, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Notice again in Psalm 91:1, "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." In both verses God shows that anybody has the availability to come into His presence. Thus, anybody has the availability to get close to Christ.
Second, you will not get close to Christ without suffering. This is why most people never get close to Christ because they run from suffering. I'm not saying that you should run to suffering, simply that you should not run from it when it does come. It is when you are suffering that you have the opportunity to get close to Christ. The reason God chooses suffering as the avenue to get close to Him is because through suffering you must die to yourself. Notice in the verse above it says, "...and the power of his resurrection..." There can be no resurrection if there is no death. Christ cannot get close to you when you are filled with yourself. He can only get close to you when you have died to self and need Him.
Third, through suffering you get to know Christ on a different level. What I mean by this is that through suffering you will see Christ in a different light than you have before. You get to know people in a different way when you suffer and go through hard times together. A marital relationship grows stronger as the couple struggles through hard times together. Likewise, your relationship with Christ grows more personal as you both go through suffering together.
Last, it is through suffering that you are conformed into the image of Christ. In the verse above, God talks about being "...conformable unto his death;" In other words, when you die to yourself in your sufferings, it is then that Christ can conform you more into His image. Thus, when you are conformed into the image of Christ you get to know Him on a personal level.
How much do you really want to know Christ? The only way you will succeed in knowing Him is through suffering. You can run from suffering, or you can welcome it as an opportunity to know Christ in a more personal way.