Why is the title of this blog All Things, Lost?
It corresponds to my favorite chapter in the Bible: Philippians 3. Verses 3 to 9 says:
(3) For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— (4) though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: (5) circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; (6) as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.
(7) But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. (8) What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ (9) and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.
It reminded me of myself. There are times when I feel so confident, because of my many accomplishments. I feel unstoppable. I was the top student in every class, and the leader in all the group projects, and doing so many enviable extracurriculars that sometimes I think-- I was the best person in all the world.
When I read this verse, I felt so... humbled. Why would Paul deny all that, all the good parts of himself, to follow Christ? This man was so incredible that he would just give it up, and "consider them garbage"! Truly, Jesus did say that it was harder for a rich man to reach heaven than it is for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.
Being that allegorical rich man, I felt hopeless. Jesus once told another rich man to give up everything he had and follow him. Needless to say, the guy didn't. So how could I? How could I give up all my talents and abilities and skills, pursuing that one thing-- "forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead"-- Christ Jesus?
Here, is the root of my conundrum. That question-- how could I-- or rather, "WHY?" is a central point of the Bible, and through my journey, I have held that question and answered it to myself. So, All Things, Lost is precisely that-- all things lost for Christ, replaced by Christ. It's part of what I want to cover in this blog.
