7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ. (Philippians 3:7 ESV)
What is the one thing you would not ever like to have to give up in this life? What just popped into your mind? Maybe a relationship, your children, or something that you place a lot of material value in?
We know that the right scriptural answer is Christ. We may even feel that to an extent. But far too often we put extreme value on the things of this earth. The first thing that may come to mind is our children or our spouse. I know most of us put an extreme value on our family, as we should. I go back to the story of Abraham and Isaac and ask myself if I would have had such faith.
This is where we must take a really hard look at our faith and consider what is of eternal life and what is of this life. I hope Christ returns before Christians are forced to make such hard choices. But in some countries they are having to make these choices already. We may be prepared for a lot, but are we prepared to answer the hardest questions?
