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.