‘That I May Know Him’

‘That I May Know Him’

‘…that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death…’

Philippians 3:10

Have you ever met someone casually, perhaps at work, or at some social gathering and thought, ‘I want to get to know that person better?’ To that end, you may arrange to have coffee with them or to meet with them in some other context which will serve your purpose. Christ is the Person, Who above all other people, we should get to know. For the Apostle Paul, knowing Christ became a lifelong passion and pursuit. His writing reflects that in the context of our text for today. It was in the pursuit of knowing Christ that Paul had discounted all his pedigree, social status, educational advantage, and cultural standing. Paul’s great goal in life was to know Christ as thoroughly and intimately as possible. What is interesting, for our edification, is that Paul was clearly certain that such a deep knowledge of Christ was, indeed, possible. So what of us? There is almost an entire year ahead of us full of possible Christ encounters. If we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. Whatever other hopes or desires we have for the year which lies before us, let us hold fast this hope and desire above all the others, that we will come to know Christ. If we desire Him, He will not reject us. With His Word before us, and His promises to us, let us seek Christ today with the purpose, ‘that we may know Him.’

Our most Gracious and Loving Christ,
we rejoice that You draw our hearts out after You.
We know You now and ever desire to know You more;
so, fulfill our every desire.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning