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"I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus..."

Text: Philippians 3:8

THE KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST

The apostle Paul trained under Gamaliel, one of the more esteemed scholars in Jerusalem. Thus he cultivated a deep love for knowledge as a scholar in his own right. Many things drew Paul to the Lord Jesus Christ. One of them was knowledge of the Person of the Lord Jesus.

“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 3:8

1. “Yet indeed”

a) This word is the same contrastive conjunction Paul used in Philippians 3:7 (“alla”).

b) The translators used the word “yet indeed” to express how Paul felt.

c) It is an effective way of expressing the contrastive conjunction.

d) The use of this conjunction is best understood as the link between Verses 7 and 8.

2. “I also count all things loss… and count them as rubbish”

a) The two thoughts are closely linked to each other.

b) They are best read together.

i) Loss

ii) Rubbish

c) Paul did not think much of all that he was supposed to have gained.

d) His so-called “gains” were deemed “rubbish”.

3. “The excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord”

a) The appropriate descriptive word was correctly rendered “excellence”.

b) How did Paul see Jesus of Nazareth?

i) As the Christ (The Messiah)

ii) As his Lord

4. “That I may gain Christ”

a) This phrase is best read as expressing “purpose”.

b) Paul’s purpose was to “gain” Christ.

c) To know Christ was “true gain”.

d) Not to gain Christ would be a total loss.