Pile up all the awards, accolades, academic accomplishments and praise of others, and they don’t even come close to what Paul had come to discover. At one time, his past life was a source of pride, but no more. What made the change? It was that fateful encounter on the road to Damascus (Acts 9), when he was confronted by One whose glory blinded Paul’s eyes to everything worldly. He walked away from all his former accomplishments to follow Christ. Only one thing mattered.

Paul didn’t just walk away, as though the things of his past were neutral. No, he eschewed them, he counted them to be a loss. He even went as far as calling them rubbish. In the world’s eye, that is backward. People that follow Christ give up so much, they suffer loss of the good and pleasant things of the world. Yes, it is true, being a Christian, a genuine one, means walking away from things once enjoyed, things from which one receives much pride.

How can a person do that. The only way to walk away from something considered of value is by moving toward something of greater value. For Paul, and for all Christians, that would be the Lord Jesus Christ. Because of Him, Christians have forsaken all. They have turned their backs on the things that once gave them significance or security. One young man, on the day he was saved, rushed home and threw out all his athletic trophies. Another took down his award certificates. Their significance now lay in something greater.

Knowing Christ is of surpassing value, says the apostle. There is nothing greater in all of life. No longer did his past give him satisfaction, there was now only one source of satisfaction, and that is Jesus Christ.

Paul had in view not just his old life in Judaism, but also included anything else that a Christian could aspire to. To be sure there is knowledge of many things that are helpful in both this life and in the spiritual realm. And it’s possible to seek after promotion in Christian circles, to seek after fame, positions of influence and significance. But as a life pursuit, they all fall short of the greatest possible knowledge, namely knowing Christ. Paul’s desire was to “gain Christ.” In some respects he already had Christ, but for him it was a constant striving, a continual gaining Christ.