The Benefit of Loss

June 11th, 2024

As we grow in Christ we become a production line of spiritual fruit and our Genesis Bible Fellowship Youth and Young Adults (Gen. B.FY) will be known by theirs as they continue to walk out their own salvation with fear and trembling. Be encouraged by God’s Word and their devotionals and please make sure to encourage them.

SCRIPTURE: “3 For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh, 4 though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: 5 circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; 6 concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. 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 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.” Philippians 3:3-16

“With just one look, everything changed, I was captivated, my life was never the same, WITH JUST ONE LOOK”. Well… sons and daughters of the true and living God, you were all correct when speaking to me in my adolescence. It takes all but one serious look (and a multitude of refocusing my gaze) at our Father that can change our hearts and minds. For me it took going through hell to realize it; lost in sex, drowned in medicinal abuse, covered in death and surrounded by darkness for me to take a serious look. I was like a zombie, craving flesh and the desires thereof. I enjoyed some of it, some of it was exhilarating, in fact in those moments I thought that nothing was better in life than the life I was living! The ground fell through and with God catching me I was faced with the questions, “To what value does this hold? Was it really worth the losses? How will I ever reach glory without these things to define me?”

Losing is a good thing if the cost of losing is outweighed by the return. In other words, losing is a good thing if the positive outcomes or the return you get make the loss worthwhile. Philippians 3:8 says, “I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord”. So, what was the surpassing value for me knowing I could have a different person in my bed with me every night?( It is knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.) What about God is so great to let this self-glorifying image go? ( It is knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.) To someone else it may be, “What do I gain from letting this person slide?” [Insert what God has been convicting you about]. Church, it’s important to know that God is faithful, even when we are not faithful to Him. A cycle full of small wins, a MEGA MULTITUDE of mistakes and His abundance of grace leads to a life understanding that “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything and buys that field”(Matthew 13:44).

Ponder with me, what is the benefit of letting go of THAT sin? What’s the benefit of listening to God as he gently whispers your name right before you do wrong? To see the value of obedience, we must observe where our eyes are focused (see Philippians 3:13-"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead"), are you tunnel visioned on glory or distracted by the crowd? When faced with the choice, sin or obedience, the LORD is watching… eyes are on YOU… what will you do with the opportunity at hand? Will you fumble or make a great play? Will you land the move, or will you fall and have to try again? *In my Cockrell voice,* “Okay last point then I’m done. Y’all with me?” Verse 12-13 of our focus passage, Paul says “I do not consider myself to have apprehended it [the goal of knowing Christ and His power]”. Apprehension means to seize. Isn’t it encouraging to know that just as we share in trying to apprehend knowing Him (which ultimately means loss of some of our desires), He does/did the same for us. The proof of that goes back to the very beginning of this devotional for my story and back to some of the darkest times of your lives. His saving me and His apprehension of us speaks to the fact that we’re not the only ones looking. He is looking too! What a comforting reminder for those who seek Him. Here is His promise, “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry” Psalms 34:15.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, please enable the Holy Spirit to guide us to understand and accept the value of a relationship with You, GOD and the value of this relationship over anything this world can offer us. That simply because we are in a relationship with you, we have all we need. In the face of adversity and calamity help us to know that on the other side we will have a stronger relationship with You because we walked with You and shared in your suffering. Holy Spirit condition us to not doubt that You will bring us through. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
By Bro. Carlos Brown Jr