Philippians 3:12 12Not that I already received this or have already been made perfect, but I press and make it my own, that for which I have been made Christ Jesus’ own.
Paul not qualifies his loss and gain and what he has obtained. He does not say in this verse what he has received, but the context would indicated that he had not yet reached the goal of experiencing the power of resurrection and the full knowledge of Christ. This could only happen at death when he could “gain Christ” (1:21) and not be stuck in the imperfections and suffering of the physical body. His number one priority in life was to live his life to the honor and glory of God by preaching the gospel. He was growing in his knowledge and experience of Christ, but there was so much more–“the breadth and length and height and depth” (Ephesians 3:18). At this point, he had not fully grasped who Christ is. Christ is too great to be grasped, yet Paul pressed on towards that goal.
He was not perfect in his understanding of Christ. The verb have been made perfect (teteleiōmai). The meaning of this important New Testament word means to reach a goal or fulfill one’s purpose. It is a perfect passive, which indicates that this was something being done to Paul, with the implied subject being God, and that it had started in the past and was an ongoing development in his life. God was working deeply within Paul’s life to transform him into the resurrected image of Christ. This transformation brought deeper knowledge and experience of who Christ is and what he offers people. This is the power of resurrection of verse 11.
And so, Paul presses on to make this promise his own experience. Press on can also mean pursue or persecute. It is used for hunting and chasing down, like it is used earlier in verse 6. The same type of effort Paul put into persecuting the church he now puts into knowing Christ. His goal is to make it his own. The verb used here (katalambanō) is repeated in the passive voice in the next phrase. It means to grasp and attain something. Paul’s goal was to attain resurrection and to know Christ face-to-face. The was only possible because Christ has first grasped Paul. This started on the road to Damascus and continued throughout Paul’s ministry. This is another way to say that Christ pursued Paul with grace.
People who commit to a purpose beyond themselves find life meaningful. If we are going to spend our lives and energy achieving one thing, we need to make sure it is something that is worth eternity. Nothing is more pitiful than to end one’s life by saying, “That wasn’t worth it! I spent my life climbing the ladder, only to discover when I reached the top, that the ladder had been leaning against the wrong wall.” As Paul faced an uncertain future, with possible death, he put his hope in something that outlasts this life.
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