Post on 02-Dec-2014
description
The Knowledge of GodPengenalan Akan Allah
Stephanus Elia
Filipi 3:7-8
7 Tetapi apa yang dahulu merupakan keuntungan bagiku, sekarang kuanggap rugi
karena Kristus.8 Malahan segala sesuatu kuanggap rugi, karena pengenalan akan Kristus Yesus, Tuhanku, lebih mulia dari pada semuanya. Oleh karena Dialah aku
telah melepaskan semuanya itu dan menganggapnya sampah, supaya aku
memperoleh Kristus
Philippians 3:7-8 (NKJV)
7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 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 (MSG)
7-9The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I'm tearing up and
throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so
important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my
Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I've
dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him.
The Excellence Knowledge of Christ
What does it mean?AMP: • progressively becoming more deeply and intimately
acquainted with Him • perceiving and recognizing and understanding Him more
fully and clearlyWebster: to be acquainted or familiar with; to have
experience ofIt’s different between knowing about God and knowing
God.Christianity: religious duty or dynamic relationship w/ God
Why is it important?
• Hosea 4:6a My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge.
• Destroyed = perished• Remember John 3:16? • My people = Christians, the church, we are• Lack of knowledge => an ignorant
Reject knowledge => stiff neck or bebal• Without knowledge of God, Christians perish! • Knowledge of God obtained thru close relationship
with Him.
The Excellence Knowledge of Christ
• Phil 3:7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 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
• Things = may not be sins. Paul would identify sins.• Things = different for different people.
The Excellence Knowledge of Christ
What are the things the were gain to you?
• Money, wealth, Intelligent, Wisdom, Credentials, Degrees, Title, Achievements, Good reputation, success, popularity. Your career, your material belonging (car, house, condo, brand name stuff, etc), your business, your boyfriend/girlfriend, etc.
• Things = may be God’s blessings and provisions• Blessings can become curses when they compete
with Christ for the throne in your heart!
The Excellence Knowledge of Christ
• Story of Abraham and Ishak (Gen. 22)
• Display of faith and obedience
• 1st time God recognized as Jehovah Gireh
• Christians favorite Name during prayer for needs
• Abraham santified the provisionm by placing it in the altar and present it as sacrifice of worship.
• God’s provision/blessings is to be used for worship.
• Don’t worship the provision, worship the Provider
What do we do?
• Throw away all God’s blessings into the trash can?
• God wants you to have the provisions & blessings but none of them should competing for that #1 spot in your heart.
• Our desire to know God is much higher than our desires for other things, high enough to consider valuable things as rubbish.
What do we do?
Connect the dot:
• People became Christian so that not perish
• Christian can perish cause lack of knowledge of God
• Knowledge of God can only be obtained when we consider other things rubbish
• Story of Job: God let devil took away all but his skin
Job 42:5 I admit I once lived by rumors of you; now I have it all firsthand—from my own eyes and ears!
The Excellence Knowledge of Christ
The signs of Christians who have knowledge and close relationship with God:
1. Run from evil, temptations and sins
Yes 11:9 Tidak ada yang akan berbuat jahat atau yang berlaku busuk di seluruh gunung-Ku yang kudus, sebab seluruh bumi penuh dengan pengenalan akan TUHAN, seperti air laut yang menutupi dasarnya.
The Excellence Knowledge of Christ
The signs of Christians who have knowledge and close relationship with God:
2. Reach out to the lost2 Kor 2: 14 Tetapi syukur bagi Allah, yang
dalam Kristus selalu membawa kami di jalan kemenangan-Nya. Dengan perantaraan kami Ia menyebarkan keharuman pengenalan akan Dia di mana-mana.