good Wednesday morning well on Monday we looked at the topic of suffering namely the Divine Design behind suffering what is God doing inside of us win trials hit that was a PJ 1852 God is the great physician he knows how to use pain in our lives to kill inside of us the sin that robs us of the greatest Pleasures namely enjoying Christ as our greatest treasure
 that Monday episode was a deep exploration into why suffering is not paradoxical to the Joy games of Christian hedonist
 as a complement to that episode I want to play for you a sermon clip today one that stands out to me in this clip Pastor John explains how to prepare for suffering before going to suffer well what groundwork must happen inside of us first appointment for Paul's own Ministry in Philippians chapter 3 verses 1 to 11 Piers Pastor John to explain the text
 you know this list don't you he's a listing off his distinctive that as an unbeliever he really enjoy
 circumcised on the 8th day of the people of Israel of The Tribe of Benjamin a Hebrew of Hebrews Jewish culture was simply awesome and when you got a good pedigree if you stretch your pedigree to get the Praises and your basket in the pleasures of the admiration of being dissatisfied I've got a pedigree and people
 that's that's the unbeliever satisfaction that's the fall
 any ads for the universe 5.3 other things that make my life glorious I am Pharisee and there are no better
 lawn mowers Hadlock Keepers then Pharisees and fine said in another place I have exceeded
 he had a lot going for you Richard Tyson
 and DIY
 this Renegade Chef undermining was calling to see if I could get it on from City to city and bring it downstairs who I am that's my identity has anybody got a car phrase it take it all and I'll take it on
 meaning of significance purpose in life
 and then he said for the guard to righteousness in the law blameless
 I think call was buying large
 free in his conscience I know a lot of people try to say his conscience was killing him all the time because of this and that I was blameless
 he was blind but he was famous in his eyes
 now
 haen Meats
 Christ
 Acts chapter 9 on the Damascus Road
 and suddenly
 his world
 watches
 he was getting his meaning from allegiance to the laws he understood it passion for God as he understood it was the the opposite Jesus crucified Pretender Criminal
 rightly executed
 people saying you suck
 they're alive with the glory so bright of greatness so great and all I could do was listen why do you persecute me and his life was over
how at that juncture did he prepare himself to suffer
 verse 7
 said whatever things were gain to me those things I have counted as a loss for the sake of Christ
 that's what he did
 he looked at his life
 and all that list all that pedigree
 old is Chief matsol that reputation
 he said no I will regard that
 Los
 I will regard that as lost consciously reversed turned upside down
 this is how you prepare to suffer you turn upside down your value system
 stop before he was a Christian he had he had a ledger right lost column profit column game over here in the column a game profit was
 Hebrew Hebrews Hawthorne is in category Pharisee seal blameless off the charts with a game called loss was this horrible opposition Christ Jesus might be the Messiah and that's not going to happen and then meets Jesus and what did he do takes out a big red pencil
 and on this game called him over here i l o f f f
 I'm here in the Jesus call him G
 that's what it means to become a Christian right Matthew 13:44 shortest parable
 the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who found a treasure hidden in a field
 and in his Joy he goes and sells all that he has count it as loss that he might have the treasure
 it was just a field before just walking through a field on his way to his treasure and he stumbles over King Jesus
 Glory
 Full silver
 God opened his eyes and now everything else lost
 then your mind makes that transition your mind
 considers it. Why do you prepare to suffer in the morning and you consider it that way so he says I consider I I regarded I consciously mentally I'm looking at all the good in my life and regarding that's compared to Jesus as lost in the loss column Jesus is in the game column
 and if you say well that was just Paul he says in verse 17 rather than joining imitating me joining my example to Christianity every believer Jesus said Luke 14:33 no one of you can be my disciple who does not renounce all that key
 . no one sitting in this is Luke 14:33 no one can be my disciple who does not renounce possession
 now you got clothes on I got a car out in the snow parking lot
 I have an apartment or house and other possessions I have a iPhone pewter
 so you own things and this text as you can't be a follower of Jesus if you don't renounce those and check out different translations on that word wouldn't that be the same as Paul saying count them as loss
 so this is mine I think my wife bought it for me
 this is my preaching coat
 and I should count this is lost because there's a fasting value of knowing Jesus as a humorous and simple illustration of a bigger we all must learn and embrace to look at our lives in our possessions in our successes and our pedigree and our achievements and our reputation and to see all of it as loss compared to knowing Christ that is profound this was from John Piper sermon title preparing to know Christ deeply through suffering was preached on March 2nd 2014 and of course it is online right now
 how does Herman clip to share with us send me an email give me your name Hometown is sermon title the timestamp over the Papas an audio and make a note what stands out to you in the clip for the word clip in the subject line of an email and send it to me and I specially John at desiringgod.org that's our email address to ask Pastor John at desiringgod.org
 Christian Unity is important it's really important but Christian Unity is not uniformity so if we are not the same in every way how do we strive for Unity with other believers three steps Christian unity in three steps past next time I'm your host Tony Reiki will rejoin in city with Pastor John on Friday will see you then