Knowing Christ | Wednesday: Sharing the Life of Christ
WEDNESDAY | October 28, 2026
Knowing Christ | Room to Grow | Philippians 3:7-16
Knowing the risen Savior shapes our obedience, our suffering, and our hope of resurrection.
Philippians 3:10-11
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.
English Standard Version
Devotional
Paul already knows Christ. He has trusted him, suffered the loss of what he once treasured, and abandoned confidence in his own righteousness. Yet his desire remains that he may know him. There is no contradiction. Knowing Christ begins a life of growing fellowship with him. We never reach the point at which the Savior has nothing more to teach us about himself or nothing more to change in us.
Sunday’s sermon used the difference between knowing facts about someone and sharing life with a spouse. Facts matter to a real relationship, but a collection of facts is not the relationship itself. Love draws us into attention, communion, and a willingness to order our lives around the person we love. With Christ, that fellowship includes receiving what he says and submitting to his authority. We cannot separate intimacy with him from the truth he has revealed.
Paul wants to know the power of Christ’s resurrection. The resurrection is a historical reality with present implications. The Lord who conquered death is alive, and his people do not pursue holiness by the resources of their flesh. We depend on him. That dependence does not remove the need to resist temptation, confess sin, or obey difficult commands. It gives us reason to act when our own strength is plainly insufficient.
This power is not a promise of uninterrupted comfort. In the same sentence, Paul asks to share Christ’s sufferings. We often want the power while hoping to avoid the fellowship that follows it in the text. But following the risen Christ means following the One who was rejected and crucified. Faithfulness may bring misunderstanding, loss, or hostility. Those experiences do not prove that Christ has ceased to care for us.
Sharing his sufferings does not mean adding anything to his atoning work. Christ alone bore the judgment required to reconcile his people to God. Our suffering cannot improve that sacrifice. We share in his sufferings as those who belong to him and walk in his way. We learn to obey when obedience is costly, to trust the Father when the path is painful, and to love when self-protection feels easier.
Philippians 2:5-8 helps us understand the shape of this life. The Son humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death. Becoming like him in his death therefore confronts our insistence on being served, admired, or spared inconvenience. In the life of Twelve 5 Church, Christlikeness will show itself when we willingly take a low place to serve another member. A claim to deep knowledge of Christ should make us more ready to wash feet, not more offended when someone fails to notice our importance.
Paul’s hope reaches beyond this present life to the resurrection from the dead. His words do not turn suffering into a method of earning resurrection. He has already located his righteousness in Christ. He looks toward the completion of the salvation found in his Savior, even as he submits to the path by which the Lord will bring him there. Death will not have the final word over those who belong to the risen Christ.
Consider the obedience in front of you today. You may need to bear the cost of telling the truth, remain patient under criticism, or serve when you are tired. Do not pursue suffering for its own sake. Pursue Christ, and trust him with the cost of following. Ask to know him in that very obedience. The Lord you follow has risen, and the life he gives will finally include your bodily resurrection.
Questions for Reflection and Application
Where have you wanted Christ’s power while resisting the costly obedience his Word requires?
How does Philippians 2:5-8 explain the character of a life becoming like Christ?
What is the difference between sharing Christ’s sufferings and contributing to his atoning work?
How can the promise of bodily resurrection shape your response to a present hardship?
Journal
Describe one costly act of obedience before you. Write how Christ’s humility, present power, and promised resurrection give you reason to take that step.
Meditate and Memorize
Related Scriptures
Philippians 2:5-8
Romans 6:4-11
Romans 8:11, 17-18
1 Corinthians 15:20-23
Memory verse - Philippians 3:10
that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
Prayer
Risen Lord, I want to know you more. Strengthen me to obey where I am weak and to trust you when faithfulness is costly. Put my pride to death and teach me your humility. Keep the hope of resurrection before me as I follow you today. Amen.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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