How Far

“Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?”—2 Corinthians 11:23-29

How far are you willing to go to follow Christ? What price are you willing to pay? What pain are you willing to endure? What persecution are you willing to face? How far are you willing to go? Are you willing to sell everything to follow Christ? Are you willing to suffer gross injustice and unimaginable loss? Are you ready to be severed from family and friends alike? Paul was.

Consider for a moment Paul’s background and what he was willing to give up in his service for Christ. Born into a Jewish family in a Roman town enabled him to have unparalleled opportunities and privileges in the ancient world. His heritage made him a Jew, but it was his intellectual ability and education that afforded him the opportunity to reach the level of a Pharisee, being educated by one of the greatest teachers of the day, Gamaliel. However, what made Paul stand out was his zeal. When Christianity was in its infant stages, Paul was one of its chief opponents overseeing executions and going from house to house dragging off men and women and having them put in prison (Acts 7:58-8:2; 9:1-2).

However, after his conversion he was transformed, which enabled him to write,

“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 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, the 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, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead”—Philippians 3:8-11.

If that weren’t enough, Paul went even further. Not only did he give up everything to follow Jesus, he was willing to do anything to make His name known. Think about it. He was whipped on five separate occasions with 39 lashes—the most severe form of punishment allowable by Jewish law that was reserved for cases of false teaching, blasphemy and serious breaches in the law (Deuteronomy 25:1-3). Three times he was beaten with roads. Once he was stoned. Three times he was shipwrecked and once he was adrift at sea. Travelling all the time meant he was in constant danger wherever he went. It didn’t matter if he was on land or sea, in the country or in the city, with Jews or Gentiles; he had to always be on guard. Robbers lurked in wait on the roads, as did false brothers in churches—desirous to sabotage his work. Add to it cold and sleepless nights, not knowing if and when he was going to die, hungry, thirsty, threatened by false friends, secular authorities and on top of it all—having to deal with innumerable problems in the small infant churches he had planted proved to be extremely difficult. And yet he pressed on.

Why? Because of who Christ is. It was Christ’s all-surpassing worth that enabled such transformation, and elicited such devotion. Paul understood who Jesus is and his life reflected that truth. He would endure anything and everything for Christ, even it meant the loss of his life, because he understood that the things of this world pale in comparison to what we gain in Christ. As the modern martyr missionary, Jim Elliot expressed it, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep in order to gain what he cannot lose.” And what do we gain? Everything. Indeed, we will receive more than we can imagine—greater joy and pleasure more than anything this world could ever offer. Paul was willing to give everything. Are you? Amen.