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[0:00] Consideration this evening as we seek the Lord's guidance is in Philippians and chapter 3, the epistle of Paul to the Philippians, chapter 3 and verses 7 to 11 particularly.

[0:18] Philippians 3 beginning at verse 7. But whatever gain I had I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

[0:33] For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him. Not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law but that which comes through faith in Christ.

[0:48] Righteousness from God that depends on faith. That I may know him and the power of his resurrection and may share his sufferings becoming like him in his death.

[1:00] That by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Imagine that you are at a question meeting.

[1:13] You know what a question meeting is. We still have those at times of communion particularly where text is given out and where certain people are asked then to speak to that text or that passage as it bears upon their own Christian experience.

[1:29] Except you are in a prison as you are actually at this question meeting. And there is only one person going to speak. He is going to open the question, explain it, apply his own experience to it and then close it.

[1:46] And that man is the Apostle Paul. Because he wrote this letter to the Philippians from prison. He was shut up, incarcerated for his faithfulness to Christ.

[2:01] And as he wrote this epistle to the Philippians, so here in this chapter he is effectively giving his testimony. He is talking about his experience of an encounter with Christ.

[2:13] Now as you know we have been looking at encounters with Christ from the Gospels so far. There is people who had that sort of meeting with Christ that changed their lives in whatever way is described for good.

[2:27] Changed them either spiritually or usually physically as well where miracles took place. And we have seen something of how these encounters have so much of a spiritual meaning for us.

[2:41] And so much to teach us in regard to our own relationship to Jesus. And here is Paul giving his testimony which is effectively his own recollection of that encounter with Jesus that we read of as that's described in Acts chapter 9.

[2:58] That was his encounter with Jesus. That's when he met Jesus for himself. That's when his life took a huge change for the better. That's when he was called to be an Apostle.

[3:11] So that's really what set him on the road to be the kind of person he became as one of the great disciples of Jesus Christ. He didn't deal in this with his call to be an Apostle.

[3:26] Sometimes you find that in his epistles that he sets out to describe something of the way God called him to be an Apostle. And the purpose for which God called him which was of course to preach the gospel to witness to Christ in the way that we find described in various places.

[3:43] And especially in his own epistles. Well it wasn't his call to the gospel that he actually set out here in this passage but his conversion. His encounter with Christ and what that did for him.

[3:54] The change that that brought into his life and how as he looks back on it he is here saying this is really my great gain.

[4:05] Because what he's doing is as we'll see he's setting out that experience or that reflection of his encounter with Jesus by way of loss versus gain.

[4:16] Or by way of profit and loss you might say. He's really using language that's often used to describe account books or stocks and shares. So that there's comings and goings, ups and downs, losses and gains.

[4:30] He's using that sort of language so that spiritually he's really saying to us this is how I used to live and I thought that was my great gain.

[4:40] I thought that's when and how I would really have acceptance with God that that was how to be righteous in the eyes of God. But when Jesus met him that all changed.

[4:52] And we'll see how that was. So I want to look at it under two headings. First of all the old life which really you could say is summarized here in verse 4.

[5:06] Which is where he's talking about confidence in the flesh from verse 3 onwards. Though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh I have more.

[5:20] And then he describes his own pedigree or background. And in fact something of what he himself was up to. What his life was about up to the moment that he met Jesus.

[5:31] So confidence in the flesh you could say. We'll see something of what that means by the verses that are around it. But that phrase confidence in the flesh you could say really summarizes what Paul's life had been up to that moment that he met Christ.

[5:45] And so the old life confidence in the flesh equals loss. Then he moves on to the new life. Which you could say is summarized by being complete in Jesus Christ equals gain.

[6:03] He's putting the two side by side. And he's saying this is now the way things have fallen out. What I once thought was my gain I now count but loss. And I do it because I've discovered something much better.

[6:17] God has brought me to know Jesus Christ. And that's my great gain. And everything I once counted as my gain I now count but loss. I can see that they were of no use to me whatsoever for righteousness.

[6:31] For acceptance with God. So these are the two things briefly as we'll see him here reflecting on and recollecting his encounter with Jesus. The old life confidence in the flesh equals loss.

[6:47] So from verse 4 he's talking about this reason that he had for confidence in the flesh. Now you've probably heard about in books about the great stock market crash of 1929.

[7:04] Which really led to the great depression in America particularly which lasted for a decade. From 1929 through to 1939. And in a very strange way it was really the breakout of the second world war that brought the American industry back into some sort of production whereby things picked up again.

[7:26] Anyway that's by the way. But that huge stock market crash of 1929 left many people with stocks that were really worthless. They used to be worth a lot of money.

[7:38] And after the crash they really just plummeted in value and were left pretty worthless. That in a sense is how Paulus was saying is looking at the stocks of his spiritual stock if you like before and after he came to know Jesus.

[7:56] He goes over his pedigree. He says of himself this is the reason I had for confidence in the flesh. I was circumcised the eighth day. I was of the people of Israel.

[8:06] Of course that's the covenant people of God. I belong to the tribe of Benjamin. I'm a Hebrew of the Hebrews. As to the law I was a Pharisee. As to zeal a persecutor of the church.

[8:19] As to righteousness under the law blameless. That's the summary of his confidence in the flesh. That's what he was like before he came to know Jesus. And you see he's saying here if anyone else has confidence.

[8:31] The reason for confidence in the flesh. I more. You could say that this man really amongst all the other people in the world of the time that certainly knew him.

[8:43] He was known as somebody who was absolutely scrupulous in regards to the law of God. In the way that he sought to please God. And of course it went as far as he acknowledges here.

[8:56] Thinking that he was doing God's will of persecuting the church. That's how committed he was in the way that he saw things then to serving God. To have a righteousness in God's sight.

[9:09] That's how he describes his confidence in the flesh. From his background. From his being a child of Israel. From the work that he was doing. From everything he was involved in.

[9:20] His stock was really high. You could say that he had a five star portfolio. As he looked then upon his own life. In relation to God. He had that confidence. This is my stock.

[9:32] And look how high it's riding. It's really of huge value. I'm doing all of this. That God requires of me. And therefore I'm bound to be righteous. I'm bound to be acceptable to him.

[9:42] Whoever else is or isn't. I'm certainly surely acceptable to God. How could it be otherwise. When I'm doing all of this. In seeking to please God.

[9:53] And then he met Jesus. And his stock crashed. He realized. That the things he was putting his confidence in.

[10:05] His trust in. In order for him to have acceptance with God. Were valueless to that end. That's why he says. I now count these things. But loss whatever gain I had.

[10:17] I count it as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed. I count everything as loss. For the surpassing worth of knowing. Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake. I have suffered the loss of all things.

[10:29] And count them as rubbish. In order that I might gain crash. That I might gain Christ. He crashed. His stock crashed. And he realized.

[10:40] That he was actually. Morally. And spiritually. And spiritually. Bankrupt. There was no value. To his endeavors. After righteousness.

[10:51] By putting confidence. In his own ability. In the flesh. He was a bankrupt. He came to realize. That. These things actually were rubbish.

[11:02] Now he's not. Denouncing. Being a Jew. He's not denouncing. His background. Not describing. His. His pedigree. Or his race. There. When he says.

[11:13] I count them as rubbish. The word rubbish. Is. Well it's quite difficult to translate. It's in different translations. But it means. Something like. What was. Left over.

[11:24] And was thrown out to the dogs. Valueless. Valueless. As far as. Using it for food. Was concerned. So. It was thrown out to the dogs. I count. He says. What I was doing then.

[11:35] For righteousness. In those sort of terms. I count it as. Something you should throw to the dogs. It was no use to me whatsoever. Although I once thought. It was the way to live.

[11:49] It was in other words. His self. Righteousness. The thing he once saw. Was really. Full of meaning. And full.

[12:00] Of. Achievement. And the way to righteousness. I know count. But rubbish. To be thrown to the dogs.

[12:14] You see. It's interesting isn't it. That he says. I counted. And I count. When he says. I counted. But loss.

[12:24] Verse 7. Whatever gain I had. I counted as loss. That's going right back. To his experience. To his encounter. With Jesus. From the moment. That Jesus met him.

[12:35] From the moment. He began to understand. Then. How you come to be accepted. With God. How righteousness. Is applied. To a human life. From that moment. He says. I count. Counted as loss.

[12:47] Those things. For the sake of Christ. But he's also saying. As he's writing this. From prison. As he's giving this testimony. Indeed. I count. I am counting. And you can see.

[12:58] From all the years. That have elapsed. From the moment. He met Christ. And at least 20 years. Or so. Have elapsed. From then. Till his writing. Of Philippians. He's still counting.

[13:09] That as loss. He's not changed his mind. And you can see. From what he's saying there. I have no regrets. About this. I don't actually see it.

[13:19] As something. By which I lost anything. Of meaning. Of value. I actually gained. That's one of Satan's ploys.

[13:30] Isn't it? And he tells you. That to be fully committed. To Jesus Christ. To be fully committed. As a disciple. Though that is something. That is in your heart.

[13:41] To do. Satan will try. To persuade you. You'll really regret that. You know. You're going to lose. So much. You're not going to have to give up so much.

[13:54] So much. That you. Value. Just now. That you'll have to. Forgo. If you really commit your life. To Jesus. To Christ. To serving him. To being his disciple.

[14:05] Well just listen to what Paul is saying. I counted. As loss. For the sake of Christ. Indeed. I count everything. As loss. Because. Of the surpassing worth. Of knowing Christ. My Lord.

[14:16] In other words. He's saying. The value. That I put. On knowing Christ. Far. Far. Exceeds. The value. That I put. On self-righteousness. On the life.

[14:26] I once had. The old life. Is valueless. It's worth nothing. To him. Because he now has Christ. He now has Jesus. He now has righteousness.

[14:38] He now has something. Really worth. So much. Where does that leave. Myself. Where does it leave yourself. Tonight. Is the old life.

[14:51] Gone. Is the old life. Still the life. You're living. Doesn't have to be. A dramatic change. In the same terms. In the same manner.

[15:01] In which Paul's life. Was changed. We speak about that. Don't we. As a. Damascus road experience. Not many people have. A Damascus road experience. Not many people have. Such a dramatic experience.

[15:13] As Paul had. When he was on the way. To Damascus. And he met Jesus. Or Jesus met him. And stopped him. And actually. Brought him up. Short. And abruptly. And told him. You're persecuting me.

[15:25] And from then on. Everything changed. I'm not saying at all. That your life. Has to show. That kind of. Dramatic change. Or dramatic experience. But change.

[15:35] Yes. Change from the old. Change from. Somehow. Being of the mind. That what you do yourself. Is going to be sufficient. With a bit of help. From God.

[15:47] Paul is saying. No. Put that away from you. That self-righteousness. And self-righteousness. Is condemning. God disapproves of it. It's not just that he doesn't approve of it. He disapproves of it.

[16:00] Because it's contrary. To what he himself. Has provided for us. And in actual fact. It's sinful. And it's just our sin. Working itself out. In our trying to please God.

[16:12] So there's the old life. Confidence. In the flesh. Confidence. In seeking. To please God. By keeping his law himself. Confidence.

[16:23] In. Actually meeting the terms of God. As expressed in his law. No. He says. Now. Since then I've counted. And I'm counting. All of that.

[16:34] But loss. There's no gain in it. So that. I might gain Christ instead. That takes us. To look at the new life. Whatever gain I had.

[16:46] I counted loss. For the sake of Christ. Indeed. I count everything as loss. Because of the surpassing worth. Or. In the older style. Translation.

[16:57] The excellency of the knowledge. Of Christ Jesus my Lord. And it's really. Translated there pretty well as well. The surpassing worth. Of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. And the first thing that strikes you there surely.

[17:09] Is that he's talking about a personal relationship. He's talking about a personal relationship with this Jesus. Where knowing this Jesus. Is at the heart of.

[17:20] And the crux of that relationship. This is what has been. This is what has replaced. What once he saw as the way to righteousness. The way to pleasing God. The way to being accepted of God.

[17:31] Now he says. Knowing Christ. Is my treasure. It's not just saying. Christ himself is his treasure. Of course that's true. But the way he's putting it is. The surpassing worth of knowing him.

[17:43] It's the knowledge that he has of Christ. The knowledge that God has given him. That's really he's saying. What I now find. So. So. Inestimably valuable. And that's why.

[17:55] My life is now the way it is. And he's giving this Jesus. His full title. Isn't he here? Knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

[18:06] Christ Jesus the Lord. The full title given to. The Lord Jesus Christ. Christ. But. Look at how intimate. And how much it takes you into the personal knowledge.

[18:18] That he has of Jesus. Where that word my. Where that possessive pronoun. Makes all the difference. Christ Jesus. My Lord. What Jesus did.

[18:29] On the way to Damascus. As he met with. With Saul of Tarsus. As he then was. And took him. To know himself. And actually took him into the custody. Of his grace. You might say.

[18:40] You look at the rest of chapter 3. Of Philippians. As Paul goes on. And he says that. Jesus has apprehended him. He's laid hands on him. He's taken hold of his life. Why has he taken hold of his life?

[18:51] So that I would know himself. So that he would be my savior. My Lord. When he says Christ Jesus. The Lord. He means the Lord. He means the Lord.

[19:02] Who is the governor. Who rules everything. Who is at the right hand of God on high. Who is exalted. Whose will governs. Everything that takes place in the world.

[19:13] Whether people acknowledge it or not. That's when going back to chapter 2. You can see there. Where he is there talking about Jesus. And describing Jesus.

[19:25] In that amazing passage. Where he says. Therefore. Verse 9. God has highly exalted him. And bestowed on him. The name that is above every name. So that at the name of Jesus.

[19:37] Every knee should bow. In heaven. And on earth. And under the earth. And every tongue confess. That Jesus Christ is Lord. To the glory of God the Father.

[19:47] When you take in. As far as we are able to take in. The dimensions of that lordship. And then you take in this little word. My. What a remarkable thing that is.

[19:59] That he can say of. The immensity of that lordship. Actually he's mine. I possess him. Through faith. I know him personally.

[20:11] He lives with me. I speak to him every day. He guides my life. I look forward to meeting him. My eternity is all about being with him.

[20:23] Christ. Jesus. My lord. Isn't that what you. Are aware of yourself. Or are you.

[20:34] Can you say. Tonight. Can I say tonight. I know this lord. As my lord. I know this Christ. As mine. And I have a warrant.

[20:47] To know him. And to express it in those terms. Because he. Has changed my life. He's turned my life around. He's given me a living hope. Christ Jesus.

[21:00] My lord. Open your own portfolio. As it were. Look at your life. In terms of profit. And loss. Look at where your spiritual stock is.

[21:13] On what is it based? What's its value? Where will it take you? Is it going to be sufficient. To bring you through death.

[21:24] And meet God's judgment. And pass the test. And end up in eternity with him. If Christ is yours. Then yes. That's where your stock is.

[21:37] If not. Then you're still having confidence in the flesh. And when you come. To that judgment.

[21:47] And I hope none of us comes. To that day of judgment. When God examines our portfolio. I hope none of us comes. To the point where we then. Hear God saying.

[21:58] This is absolutely worthless. It's just about yourself. And instead. That we will have. What Paul says here. That I may gain Christ.

[22:09] So there's that personal. Relationship. But secondly. This new life. Where he's complete. In Jesus Christ. He talks about the purpose. That's behind this great change.

[22:20] And he's talking about it. Not just from the point of view. Of Christ's purpose. In saving him. In changing him. He's talking about. The purpose he himself had. As Christ gave him.

[22:30] To receive himself. As by the grace of God. He took Christ as his savior. Well he says here. In order that. You notice these words. That he mentions here.

[22:43] In order that. This is why I've suffered. The loss of all things. And count them as rubbish. In order that. Near the end of verse 8. In order that. I may gain Christ.

[22:55] And it goes on then. Verse 10. In order that. I may know him. And the power of his resurrection. Then verse 11. You could say. Is following on. In order that. By any means possible.

[23:06] I may attain the resurrection. Of the dead. Now we're going to summarize that. Because it's interesting. That you can really see that. In terms of. In order that I may be justified. That's what you find.

[23:17] In verses 8 to 9. In order that I may be sanctified. Glorified. That's what you find in verse 10. In order that I may be glorified. What you find in verse 11.

[23:29] These three. Hugely important factors. In our salvation. And really. What Paul is saying here. Is. The purpose. Why. He is pleased now.

[23:40] To forego all that he once saw as gain. Now that he has Christ as his gain. This is now. What his stock consists of. I count all but loss. In order that I might gain Christ.

[23:54] That I might gain Christ. That I might have Christ himself. But then. He doesn't leave it at that. And be found in him. Not having a righteousness.

[24:05] Which is of the law. But that which comes through faith in Christ. The righteousness. From God that depends on faith. In other words. He's taking us into. Our justification.

[24:16] How do we come to be established. Established. Righteous. In the presence of God. Righteous means. Meeting all the terms. Of God's own law. God's own requirement.

[24:27] God's own standard. As to what a human life should be. That's in a. In a formal. Legal sense. Before we go on to look at it. In terms of our own. Personal.

[24:39] Life. Righteousness. Or sanctification. Or holiness. There is this other side of it. Which. Paul. Paul. More than anybody else in the Bible. Deals with. That's our justification.

[24:52] We are. Accounted. Righteous. By God. We are placed. In his. Book. If you like. As. Righteous. We are declared. Righteous.

[25:03] That's his verdict. Over us. How do you come. To be righteous. Well. Paul is saying. Not by having. Confidence in the flesh. That's what I tried. And I know now. That was a failure. But I now.

[25:15] Count all these things. But loss. That I might gain Christ. And be found in him. Not having a righteousness. Of my own. That comes from the law. That's the confidence in the flesh. He was talking about earlier.

[25:26] I know now. He's saying. How wrong that was. How much of a failure that is. Now he says. I'm righteous. With the righteousness. That comes from God.

[25:38] That I have through faith in Christ. That's why he's saying. That I might. Gain Christ. And be found in him. That's an amazing thing.

[25:50] Because. Spiritually. When you come to be. What Paul calls. In Christ. Through faith. By the grace of God. You come to stand. Where he's standing.

[26:02] In relation to God. And where you find. Jesus. As. Perfectly. Righteous. Having lived the life. He did. In this. He lived in this world. Having died.

[26:12] The death. That is really. God's provision. Against our sin. And making an atonement. For our sin. Well. Now. The. That righteousness.

[26:23] Of Jesus. Becomes ours. It's imputed. To a record. God. Actually. Has that. Written. In his own record.

[26:34] About us. And it's. Not just. As if. We'd never. Sinned. Before. Is that. To it. That's in. Terms of. Not guilty. But there's more.

[26:44] Than not guilty. In our justification. There is a positive. Emphasis. Of. Righteousness. Somebody. Somebody. Can be. In a court.

[26:55] Of law. And accused. Of something. And then actually. Found. Not guilty. That person. Is free. To go. The accusation. Is gone. They can leave. That place. And declared. Not guilty.

[27:06] Or innocent. But that's not to say. That he's declared. Righteous. That everything. About him. Or how. Is positively. Righteous. Without flaw. But that's.

[27:17] What it is. Without justification. That I might have. This righteousness. That comes. From God. The righteousness. From God. That depends on. Or is through.

[27:28] Faith. So there's. Our justification. As he. Speaks about it. There you see. How different. That is. To confidence. In the flesh. To self-righteousness. Then secondly.

[27:39] There's sanctification. To verse 10. We're going through this. Very quickly. I want to cover. The three points. That I may know him. And the power. Of his resurrection. Now bear in mind.

[27:49] That comes again. From. These words. In order that. Why do I suffer. The loss of all things. It's in order. That I may be righteous. Through faith in Christ. Why do I suffer. The loss of all things.

[28:01] It's in order. That I may know him. And the power. Of his resurrection. Because. Sin needs to be dealt with. Not just on our record. But in our persons. And where God deals.

[28:12] With our sin. On his records. He also deals. With our sin. In our person. Because. As we are justified. So also. By the same rebirth. We come to pursue holiness.

[28:25] We come to be sanctified. Sanctified in the sense of. Being made increasingly holy. By the spirit of God. Where sin. Is dealt with.

[28:36] In our own experience. In our own fight against it. In our own seeking to be clean. In our lifestyle. As well as on God's record.

[28:47] That's what he says here. In verse 10. What do we need. In order to be able. To confront sin. To take on sin. If you like. To overcome sin. Or in the words of Romans.

[28:59] To mortify sin. To put sin to death. What do we need for that. What sort of power do we need. Well Paul is saying. My own power. Was obviously not enough. Though I once thought it was.

[29:10] I need the power of Christ's resurrection. I need the power that overcame death. I need nothing less than. The power that burst the grave apart.

[29:24] That's what he's got. See that's what comes from being. In Christ. He isn't just simply justified. That's accompanied by being sanctified. That I may know him.

[29:36] And the power of his resurrection. And may share in his sufferings. Becoming like him in his death. Now there's a mystery. In a sense in that. Paul speaks about. Christ dying.

[29:46] Wants to sin. In Romans chapter 6. A chapter that deals. So much with. Sanctification. When you're going to touch on it. It's rather complex.

[29:58] Chapter 6 of Romans. In verse 10. After having said. A number of things. Related to that. He then says. For the death. Jesus died. He died to sin. Once for all.

[30:09] But the life he lives. He lives to God. So also. You must consider yourselves. Dead to sin. And alive to God. In Christ Jesus. In other words.

[30:19] He's saying. As Jesus died. And that was an end of sin. As far as he was concerned. He was bearing sin. And paying the price of sin. Up to that point. But from that moment onwards.

[30:30] That was it. He overcame. And. In his conflict with sin. That's it. He put sin behind him. His resurrection from the dead.

[30:41] Was. The final part of. Sin. Having any. More. Place in his. His life. Never became. Of course himself. Sinful in behavior. But it's just.

[30:52] The way God imputed. Our sin to him. And paid the price of it. And so he's saying. There's a link between that. And principle. And the way that God brings us.

[31:04] To know of a. A very definite. Break with sin. And the power of sin. Because when God. Deals with. Our sin and justification.

[31:15] And wipes our record clean. And attributes righteousness to us. That's always accompanied by. The beginning of sanctification. Dealing with sin in us.

[31:25] Dealing with sin by us. And the power of sin. Working in our lives. Is ended. It's no longer in dominion over us.

[31:37] Even though its presence is still there. That's sanctification. Where Paul is here saying. This is where. Knowing Christ has brought me to.

[31:48] That I may know him. And the power of his resurrection. And may share his sufferings. Becoming like him in his death. Sanctification. Involves pain. When you're wrestling with sin.

[32:01] In your life. Even as you depend on God. And on the spirit of God. It's not an easy matter. It's not something that you regard. As just. Well just a little bit of effort. Here and there.

[32:12] It's a wrestling. It's a fight. It's a conflict. To the death indeed. And that's what Paul is aware of. That's why he's saying in Romans. It has to be. A mortification.

[32:22] A putting to death of sin. Where does the power for that come from? It comes from. Jesus himself. It comes from the power. Of his resurrection. That's the second thing then.

[32:34] In order that I might be sanctified. And finally it's in order that he might be glorified. In verse 11. That by any means possible. Or by any means I might attain.

[32:46] The resurrection. Of the dead. That's. That's the ultimate. Gain. As far as he's concerned. Although Christ you could say.

[32:58] Is the ultimate gain. Because everything really is attached to. And comes with him. Paul is complete in Christ. And as Paul sees himself. In Christ.

[33:09] Not only does that brought justification. Sanctification. But it will bring. Eventually. Glorification. He's looking forward to that day. When.

[33:19] After the resurrection. Particularly. His very body. Will be glorified. And be in the likeness of Jesus. As well as his soul. And you can see that. In verse 21.

[33:30] What he's saying. In verse 20. Our citizenship. Is in heaven. From it. We await a savior. The Lord Jesus Christ. Who will transform. Our lowly body.

[33:40] That's the body we now have. To be like his glorious body. By the power. That enables him. Even to subject all things. To himself.

[33:51] That's what he's looking forward to. He's looking forward to being with Christ. As he says in chapter 1. As he leaves this world. To be with Christ. Is far better. He's no doubts about that.

[34:03] But he's looking beyond that. And he's looking beyond. The resurrection that will take place. At Christ's coming. And he says. That's the ultimate gain. When he will bring us.

[34:14] To be like himself. Even in terms of our body as well. Like his glorious body. And that's the ultimate gain. For any human being.

[34:26] And indeed. It takes you back to. The way that we were. When God created us. Let us make man. In our image.

[34:38] So he created man. In his own image. Male and female. He made them. In his likeness. No other creature.

[34:49] Has that pedigree. Has that privilege. But as human beings. You and I have. And that image became defaced.

[35:01] Spoiled. And that image. And that image. And that image. And that image. And that image. And that image. When we sinned against God. And Adam. God restores it. But he restores it. In a way that will never again.

[35:12] Be defaced. When we are in Christ. When we come to know him. And the power of his resurrection. When we look forward.

[35:23] To being glorified. As we are now being sanctified. And are justified. That's where Paul's portfolio. Will mature.

[35:35] That's his investment. For the future. That's what God has given him. As he measures the old life. Against the new. What things were gained to me.

[35:49] These I now count but lost. For the surpassing worth. Value. Of knowing Christ Jesus. My Lord. Friends.

[36:00] Do you know him? Can you say yourself tonight. I know this Jesus. And if you can't say it with certainty.

[36:12] Surely you at least are able to say. I'm sure there's nobody here. Who cannot say. I do want to know him. I really want to be in him. I want to be in him.

[36:23] With all that that means. Because to be in him means. I have that standing. In the presence of God. I am righteous. As he is righteous. I will be sinless.

[36:38] Ultimately. As he is sinless. And I have a power in my life now. That empowers me against sin. And enables me to live.

[36:49] For his glory. Christ Jesus. My Lord. Is he. Your Lord. Also. May God bless these words.

[37:02] To us. We'll conclude by singing. To God's praise from Psalm number 32. Singing in the same Psalms. Version Psalm 32. That's on page 38.

[37:14] Singing verses 7 to 11. And the tune is Arlington. You are my hiding place. O Lord. My true security. You keep me safe.

[37:26] In troubled days. You circle me. With joyful praise. When you have set me free. Through to the end of the Psalm. The wicked. Wicked's woes. Will much increase. But those who trust the Lord.

[37:37] His covenant. Mercy will surround. You righteous. Let your joy abound. And praise. The Lord. Your God. So these four stanzas.

[37:49] From verse 7. You are my hiding place. O Lord. You are my hiding place.

[38:04] O Lord. My true security. You give me safe. You give me safe.

[38:17] And power of days. You circle me. With joyful praise.

[38:30] When you have set me free. I will instruct you by my word.

[38:45] And guide you in my way. My counsel I will give to you.

[39:01] My guide will keep your past in view. And what you do.

[39:11] And what you did by me. Do not feel like the horse on you.

[39:25] Which shall not understand. They must be gone. And kept in check.

[39:40] And fit and pride. The Lord. And will turn their head. To go where you command.

[39:55] The wicked souls will march in peace. But who to trust the Lord.

[40:11] His love and mercy will surround. Your righteous Savior died upon.

[40:27] And praise the Lord. Your Lord. I'll go to the side door here to my left.

[40:38] After the benediction. Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. The love of God the Father. And the communion of the Holy Spirit. Be with you now and evermore. Amen.