Obsessions

“I [just] want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”                                                                                            Philippians 3:10-11

There are a lot of things people obsess over; looks, relationships, the latest electronic gadget, hobbies, recreation activities, sports, money, job performance, cars, the list is endless. This is nothing new. The Bible is full of examples of people’s obsessions: King Solomon wrote about his obsession with finding peace, meaning, and happiness in life (see Ecclesiastes). A rich man in Jesus’ story obsessed over the storage of his windfall harvest (Luke 12:18).

Many of these obsessions ended up being detrimental, because those involved were caught up in obsessing over temporary things of this life that were designed to be used as tools to get through daily chores. When the person obsessed over getting, or displaying, or hoarding these earthly things, they ended up losing the important things in life – the very things they thought they were being good stewards of (supporting their families, building healthy relationships, saving up for future needs, personal fulfillment, etc.).

But obsessing is not always considered a bad thing. In His famous sermon, Jesus instructed His disciples not to obsess over the wrong things (food, clothing, shelter for example) because God knows our needs and is working on our behalf to supply them – when needed (Matthew 6:25-32). Yet He does instruct us to obsess over the right things: God and His righteousness and His kingdom (Matthew 6:33-34). Through Jeremiah, God entreats His people to obsess over knowing Him; His true nature and attributes (9:23-24). God’s people are commanded to obsess over learning, practicing, and teaching His principles (Deuteronomy 6). And through Micah, we’re charged to obsess over acting justly and to loving mercy and to walking humbly with God (6:8).

My favorite passage on obsessing over good things was written by the Apostle Paul – from a prison cell no less. He wasn’t obsessed with his unjust treatment, or the horrible conditions of prison life, or even with demanding that God tell him why he had to suffer as he did. No, he says that he really had just one obsession in life. All he wanted was to know (through personal, intimate experience) two things (Philippians 3:10):

(1) Christ. He was obsessed with understanding, comprehending, and imitating God’s version of love (agape); a love that caused Jesus to obsess over seeking and saving “chief” sinners such as he used to be.

(2) The power [dynamite] of Jesus’ resurrection. He was obsessed with His ultimate reward of being in Christ – renewed life; an endless life free from the obstacles, troubles, frustrations, and annoyances this life is full of.

I get the impression from Paul’s words that he couldn’t wait for his turn to go on this awesome ride of resurrection. He knew that God would empower him to get through the rest of his physical life come what may. But, in the back of his mind, you can tell he was obsessed with moving on and being with God free from the troubles and frustrations caused by sin.

As we embark on a new year, let’s commit to being obsessed with knowing Christ and the power of His resurrection the same way Paul was. Let’s work at being less distracted with this life and more obsessed with being like Christ (Hebrews 12:2); let’s strive to undo the distortions Satan has tricked us into believing and understanding His truth more clearly every day; let’s endeavor to use the strength of God’s Spirit to overcome the discouragements and disappointments that come from not having what we feel entitled to and building our courage to imitate Christ in the remaining days we’ve been graciously given (Romans 12:1-2).

Remember: there are many around us every day that are searching. There are many who need to see and hear about the hope that is within us. There are many who desire to know what we can help them to understand about God and their being with Him forever. So let’s use this next year to obsess over knowing Christ and the power of His resurrection so we can help them complete the journey that their souls are obsessed with.

Doug