While discarding old files, I came across an old and venerable essay. It was a buried treasure.
In “Winning Christ,” best-selling author and evangelist David Wilkerson puts a different spin on a familiar verse and provides the reader with a superb mindset to prepare for both the Rapture and the judgment seat of Christ.
The verse: “1 count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, THAT I MAY WIN CHRIST” (Philippians 3:8).
Paul’s focus here is to win Christ, not “win souls,” as one may expect, but “win Christ.” Wilkerson takes this to mean to win Christ’s favor. Somewhat different, in that we would tend to think Jesus Christ is surely “already won” because he loved us enough to die for us, but it appears Paul (and Wilkerson) is going to a deeper level: addressing our actual, personal, interactive, and reciprocal relationship with Christ.
Background
The verse’s original Greek is:
- κἂγὼ ἡγοῦμαι πάντα ζημίαν ὡς ζημίαν ὑπὲρ τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς γνώσεως Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Κυρίου μου
Parsing:
- ἡγοῦμαι (hēgoumai) – “I count, consider, regard.”
- πάντα ζημίαν (panta zēmian) – “all things as loss” (literally “all as a loss/damage”).
- ὑπὲρ τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς γνώσεως Χριστοῦ (huper tēn huperbolēn tēs gnōseōs Christou) – “because of the surpassing value of the knowledge of Christ”
- γνώσεως (gnōseōs) = knowledge, relational/intimate knowledge (not mere intellectual information).
So literally, from the Greek, the verse is: “I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” The sense of “winning,” or “gaining” Christ comes from “counting everything as loss” in order to obtain or experience the surpassing value of Christ.
Like Wilkerson, Matthew Henry (1662-1714, who wrote the six-volume Commentary on the Bible as well as a summary version, goes a step farther here to interpret “win Christ” as securing Christ’s friendship, favor, and eternal fellowship — the only true treasure a believer can seek. “He (Paul) tells us what it was that he was ambitious of and reached after: it was the knowledge of Christ Jesus his Lord, a believing experimental acquaintance with Christ as Lord, not a merely notional (i.e., theoretical) and speculative, but a practical and efficacious knowledge of him.”
Wilkerson surely sought to “win Christ” in his own life. Wilkinson started preaching at 14; he attended Bible college; he was ordained as a minister and served small congregations in Pennsylvania. Then something remarkable happened: the Lord called him to minister to New York City street gangs. So, like Abraham, he picked up and went. His faith was living, practical, and reciprocal. His was a real relationship with the Lord. He wrote a book about his experiences, and a certain amount of fame and notoriety ensued.
Here is his remarkable essay:
Winning Christ By David Wilkerson
“1 count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, THAT I MAY WIN CHRIST” (Philippians 3:8, KJV CAPS OURS).
Have you won the Lord’s heart? The apostle Paul stated the purpose of renouncing his past life as this: “That I may win Christ.” He was completely captivated by Christ, having eyes only for the Lord.
Why would Paul feel the need to “win” Christ? Christ already had revealed Himself not just to the apostle, but in him. Even so, Paul set out to win Christ’s heart and affection.
You see, Paul’s entire being—his ministry, his life, his very purpose for living—was focused only on pleasing his Master and Lord. All else was rubbish to him! I believe one of the reasons Paul never married was to give himself more time to care “for the things that belong to the Lord, how (I) may please the Lord” (1 Corinthians 7:32). And he urged others in the same direction, “that ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing” (Colossians 1:10).
Is this scriptural—this “winning the heart of Jesus”? Are we not all the object of God’s love, regardless? Indeed, His benevolent love extends to all mankind. But there is another kind of love—an affectionate love such as occurs between a husband and wife—and only a few ever experience it.
The Example of Ruth
The Book of Ruth is a wonderful story of a converted heathen maiden who won the heart of her earthly lord. I believe it is a prophetic story—a message that speaks powerfully to us today. For we win Christ in the same way that Ruth won Boaz!
When this message stirred in my heart, I searched throughout my library, including all the commentaries—but could not find a single writer who saw the spiritual and prophetic meaning of the book of Ruth. Only one writer even suggested that, since Ruth was a Moabite, God may be telling us something about the Gentiles being grafted into the vine.
But this story is more than just historic! Paul writes: “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come” (1 Corinthians 10:11). Paul says that even the Old Testament’s mention of muzzling oxen was written “for our sakes, no doubt” (1 Corinthians 9:10).
Find this wonderful (and copyrighted) essay in full at https://www.worldchallenge.org/winning-christ
“Winning Christ” makes spirituality personal, meaningful, interactive, and rewarding rather than academic, abstract, and for some, oppressive. Yes, we are saved by grace; yes, there is nothing more to do about that, but seeking his favor elevates us to a new status with Christ, remarkably, as “friends.”
“Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you” (John 15.15).
Friends relate, engage, give, “win” each other’s favor. So should we, with God. If our prayers or Bible study have flagged, good news: he is waiting to hear from us.
We can each ask Him what we can do today to “win” his favor. Then – we can do it! How much better it will be at the bema seat of Christ, where rewards are distributed if our bond with Christ is close, personal, and favored. At His right hand are pleasures for evermore (Ps. 16). We will be thrilled beyond measure both in this world and in the world to come because we wisely use our time here to “win Christ.”
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David Wilkerson (May 19, 1931 – April 27, 2011) was president of World Challenge, Inc., in Lindale, Texas, and founded Teen Challenge in New York City. Widely known as “the gang preacher,” he traveled to the heart of New York City to preach the gospel to gang members, and became famous as “the gang preacher.” His remarkable account, The Cross and the Switchblade, sold more than 15 million copies, was translated into 30 languages. A film version was made as well (1970).
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John A. Sarkett wrote After Armageddon, Strangest Stories in the Bible, Bach and Heaven: The Promise of Afterlife in the Text of the Cantatas, and most recently published Revelation Illustrated.