Our times are marked by suffering. Voices of suffering line the streets. They resound on social media. They echo on the TV and in our newspapers. And when we talk to one another or pause to listen to the heartbeat of our next door neighbor, as when in a moment of vulnerability, they let you inside and they tell you about how life truly is. We frequently hear the words of loneliness, the sounds of pain, of disease, of relationships in conflict. It's the sounds of suffering. And all of us have experienced suffering to one degree or another. Suffering is something that we typically try to avoid. And much of recent history points to the desire to reduce, even eliminate suffering. This quest has been particularly seen the last 150 years in the fields of technology, of medicine, education, science, and philosophy. We could go back still further to the origin of the Renaissance period in the 14th century when the European society moved out of and away from the late Middle Ages and into modernity. and with a rebirth of European culture and life being wed to its version of humanism, in which man was said to be the very measure of all things. Man was believed to be able to create a better world for himself, to architect a world in which there would be unstoppable progress and flourishing, flourishing that would take place all without God. And yet, even with the advent of penicillin, of electricity, vaccines, the internet, air travel, flushing toilets, and other modern comforts, wars and rumors of wars have not gone away. As Jesus said, nation will rise up against nation, and there will continue to be famines and earthquakes in our days, even pandemics. not to mention the moral outrage from suffering that fills our streets today. Suffering is all around us, and none of us are seeking it out. Yet in our text, Paul makes what appears to be a staggering claim, suggesting something that runs totally counter to the pursuit of our late modern sensibilities. You see, in verse 10, Paul says that he wants to share in the sufferings of Christ. That would appear to go against our very nature. I mean, up until this point, Paul has been a perfect role model and father figure in the faith. But at first blush, some of us might wonder if Paul has, in fact, just gone a little too far. Has he become a religious fanatic that has lost touch with the real world? I mean, it's one thing to say to live is Christ and to die is to gain Christ. That's exactly right. But it seems to be quite another thing to say, I want to participate in Christ's sufferings. I want to share in his trials. I want to fellowship in his tribulations. The question is, what is Paul saying here? What is Paul saying to each and every one of us? And what is it that God is revealing in the gospel that will ultimately lead to the fulfillment of the longing of our hearts to know a world that is free from suffering, from pain, from hardship and sin, in which beauty, justice, goodness will triumph over all that is dark. To be able to answer these questions, we need to first look at the context in which our verses are set, as this will certainly enable us to have a better grasp of the pattern of Christ's life to which a believer is to be conformed. And as we will see is that this pattern is not static, but it moves inexorably towards a goal, towards a telos, an end point. And that being the glorious consummation of all things to come. And so if you are looking for an outline this morning, we are going to move from context to conformity, to consummation. And all of this can be summarized in the simple yet magnificent words of Paul, knowing Christ. He is the pearl of great price. It's Him who we need at this very hour. It's Him that we need more than anything else in all of the world, whether you are in a sunny and summery season of life or things are quite the opposite, where the clouds of darkness and the waves of pain and sadness seem to be one's closest companions. Let's have a look at the context and the composition of our verses, our texts right now and consider our first point. We saw last week that what was once great gain for Paul, his lineage, his pedigree, his personal accomplishments were now viewed as loss because of Christ. In fact, like an accountant at work determining what was profit and what was loss in the ledger of what matters most, we find that Paul counts everything that he once saw to be gain as loss in comparison to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, his Lord, simply nothing in all the world could compare to Christ. Now, In these three verses that we find before us this morning, we find one of the most compact summaries of the gospel in all of scripture. If you are in Christ, you have been justified, verse nine. You are being sanctified, verse 10. And you will be glorified, verse 11. These benefits of our redemption are ours for us who are in Christ Jesus. And Paul says that in gaining Christ and being found in him, he was no longer seen to be in solidarity with Adam and his sin and death. And this changes absolutely everything. His entire standing before God has been fundamentally changed. What he once was, he no longer is. He is no longer alienated from God. He's been adopted into the family of God, and the judgment and condemnation of God for his sins has not fallen on Paul, but has rather fallen upon another, the one who took his place on the cross, Lord Jesus Christ. You see, at Calvary, The Lord Jesus Christ is both Paul's substitute and his sacrifice, his atoning sacrifice. He was the needed sacrifice to appease the just wrath of God on behalf of Paul. Paul had no way out, no way out at all except for God's kindness to him in Christ. Paul was condemned. In an act of God's free grace, in an act of God's extravagant grace, Paul, a sinner before a holy God, had his sins pardoned. He was declared to be righteous in his God's sight, not because of anything in him or anything done by him that would somehow make him deserving of God's kindness. No, all that he had, all that he previously was and had was like filthy rags, a life stained by sin and wickedness. That is what God saw in his sight. And yet, in God's pleasure, in his sheer goodness, God gave Paul a righteousness that was not his own. A righteousness that we could term and call an alien righteousness. It was a righteousness from another, the very righteousness of Christ that comes to Paul by faith and in Christ alone. A righteousness that is now remarkably counted as Paul's own. I mean, friends, this is one of the true marvels of the gospel. And so what is true in verse 9 is also true in verse 10. If you've been justified in Christ, declared righteous in his sight, you will also be sanctified by him. I mean, if you are in Christ, you have all of Christ and all his benefits. Salvation purchased by his blood, which is for you. In being sanctified by the Holy Spirit, you will be conformed to the very likeness of Christ. And the work of the Holy Spirit is to renew you in the whole man after the image of God. This is the very point that Paul is getting at in verse 10. And so let's focus on our main concern this morning. Verse 10 is in our sights, our conformity to Christ and the topic of sharing in Christ's sufferings of second point. Now, the primary focus of Paul's writing in verse 10 is not that of any and all kinds of sufferings, earthquakes, cancers, terrible accidents and the like. The scripture certainly addresses these things. But here in verse 10, Paul has a particular focus in mind, that of Christian suffering. And front and center in the life of Paul is Christ. He wants to experience the know Christ and the power of his resurrection, the fellowship of his suffering. As we see in the New American Standard Bible, Paul wants to become like Christ in his death. so that he may attain the very resurrection of the dead. So what we find in verse 10 is that Paul is explaining how you and I know Christ, the side of glory, the side of the grave before Christ returns one day. And what's important for us to understand as we look at this verse in particular is that Paul is not saying that I want to know three things. He is not saying I want to know Christ, one, the power of the resurrection of Christ's resurrection, two, and the fellowship for the ability to share in his suffering, three. The two ands that are found in verse 10 aren't functioning in a way to join a series of things when you or I say that I went to the park, and then I went to the store, and then I went to the swimming pool. three distinct places or three distinct activities. Like I say, I fed the dog and I played some golf and I had dinner. This is not what Paul is doing. This is not what Paul is describing when he uses the word and here in verse 10. Rather, what Paul is explaining and doing is he's explaining to us how he knows Christ experientially on earth. What does it look like for him? And it's this. It involves knowing the power of Christ's resurrection, which is realized through his day-to-day life of sharing in Christ's suffering and becoming like him in his death. In other words, knowing the power of Christ's resurrection and sharing in his sufferings are not two additional things to knowing Christ. His aim is not to know Christ and a few other things. No, Paul's aim is to know nothing else but the Lord Jesus Christ. See, to experience the power of Christ's resurrection in his life is seen in Paul's conformity to Christ's cross, to his sufferings, this side of glory. Remember, as Paul writes to the Corinthians, we see that it was his aim to know nothing except Christ and him crucified, which is to know Christ in the power of his sufferings. And that necessarily leads to future glory. This is what's known as the road of the cross. What we see in these three verses in front of us, as one scholar notes, is that the Christian is encircled by resurrection. What we mean by this is that in dying with Christ to his old man as a Pharisee, Paul, and his inner man is raised with Christ in resurrection power. That's Colossians 3 in verse 1. He's been born again. And one day, as we find in verse 11, his physical body will likewise be raised unto newness of life, resurrected, glorified, and renewed. And thus, having been raised with Christ spiritually, that which took place on the Damascus road as he's converted, He now eagerly longs with all of creation for the bodily resurrection of the sons of God, Romans 8. And so him who has been raised and him who will be raised now works out his salvation in the here and now in the power of the Holy Spirit, in the resurrection power of God. He who has been raised spiritually in power now experiences the power of Christ's resurrection in his life so that he can attain to the resurrection of the dead when Christ returns. In other words, for the believer, there is resurrection from beginning to end. Here's the kicker. Here's where it comes home. Here's where this text comes into the real here and now. Is that the mode of resurrection power for the believer today is expressed in the believer's life of weakness, of cruciformity, of bearing Christ's sufferings in his body in their very present times. That's what the scripture qualifies as for a little while. In other words, the glory of the believer in this age is contained within us like treasure within earthen vessels displayed under the sign of the cross. In weakness, in rejection, in insults, in persecution, in hardships, and in knowing, as the larger catechism says, the miseries of this life. the infirmities of the flesh. You see, our theology, this side of the grave, is the theology of the cross, where God's power is made perfect in our weakness. And that power will one day break forth unto glory when Christ returns and he makes all things new again. This theology of the cross, of knowing the power of God and his sufferings is exceedingly practical. It affects our every day. Jesus, as we remember in the gospels, he exalts us to take up our cross daily. Follow Christ, follow the pattern of his death unto resurrection of weakness unto strength of suffering unto glory. The pattern of the life of Christ. This is the way of the disciples of Christ. They are not above their teacher just as a servant is not above his master. So we are not above Christ. To be conformed into the image of Christ is not actually a morbid picture at all. It's one that is filled with great hope. There's suffering. These sufferings are not our eternal lots, but that which has begun in our inner man will be seen in the whole man in the days to come, in which the perishable will put on the imperishable. The mortal will put on immortality. This is exactly what Peter, Simon Peter says in first Peter chapter four in verse 13. He says, but rejoice in so far as you share Christ's sufferings that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. Let's be honest. Suffering and joy, they don't typically go hand in hand. Peter is not saying rejoice insofar as you suffer any and every kind of suffering. But rather he says rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings. For one day, At the conclusion of this present time, this little while, in the light of all eternity, you may be overjoyed, be exceedingly glad when Christ's glory is revealed. This again is what Paul is saying in Romans 8. When he says of those who are adopted as children of God, he says that if we suffer with Christ, we will also be glorified with him. That the sufferings of this present age are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. See friends, suffering is the present mode of our existence as sons of God. Yes, the Lord blesses us in so many remarkable ways. But in fact, part of our blessing is suffering that is unto glory. Glory lies ahead of us as our certain future. And this is true of all believers. If we go back to chapter 1 in Paul's letter to the Philippians, we read that for it is being granted to you that for the sake of Christ, you should not only believe in Him, but also suffer for his sake. See, if we look in verse 11, we see that the upward call in Christ is to attain the fullness of the resurrection. Resurrection from the dead. Our final point. See, what's important for us to grasp is that the sufferings of Christ were not an end in and of themselves. weren't an end to themselves. In one sense, the entire life of Christ was that of cross bearing. Each and every day he carried a cross. He was a man of sorrows. He was acquainted with grief, was rejected and despised. And all of this led consummately to his death on the cross. But death was not his end. For suffering is unto glory, death is unto newness of life. And in rising from the dead, the Lord Jesus Christ became the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. He was the first of a great harvest to come. The dead in Christ will one day rise again, and they shall be like Him in resurrection glory, with renewed bodies, purified from sickness, and disease and every other kind of result of the curse as they are made new. They are freed from sin and death. What a great day that will be. No more cancer or migraines or COVID or Alzheimer's or decay, just unimaginable beauty. and glory. See, just as faith alone is the instrument that saves us, though faith is never alone, but produces fruit of good works. So our sharing in Christ's sufferings leads to the resurrection of the dead, though it is God alone who raises the whole man to glory. It's in this hour, dear friends, that what we need is Christ. It's in these times of sufferings that we need the power of the resurrection to be at work within each and every one of us in our lives, evidenced in how we act and how we speak and how we relate one to another. And it's this that Paul wanted more than anything else. He wanted Christ. to be found in him. He wanted to know Jesus. You see, Jesus wasn't a means to a greater end, but Christ was his everything. He had forsaken everything to gain Christ and to identify with all of Christ. And what greater joy was there for Paul than to be conformed to Christ and his pattern of life? You see, when reviled or slandered or rejected or alone, such things were not without point. There was beauty in these sufferings, but they were the sufferings of Christ. And these sufferings did not overcome or win out. There were signposts, there were pathways to the new creation in all its fullness. They were also the means in which Paul in his day-to-day life knew the Lord Jesus Christ. There were opportunities to display Christ to the world. There were opportunities to see the character of Christ being produced in his life. And in all of this, God was with him. He was with him in resurrection power in the Holy Spirit. And this as Christ would intercede for him. So as Paul said to the Corinthians, he was always carrying in the body the death of Christ so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in his body. So dear friends, as we think of Paul, we think of ourselves that if you are in Christ, he is with you. As we saw last week to follow Christ can be very costly. And some of us may or will one day lose our jobs because of our stand for the gospel in the future. Many have already been overlooked for promotions. Oh, we find in Paul's days that government overreach was not uncommon. And just as the court is humbly submit to civil authorities that are ungodly in our day is true of us. And we are to do so. How would you do so as righteous sufferers, those who rejoice at the privilege of suffering dishonor for the name of Christ. which is exactly what was true of first century believers. You see, even when we think of this time of the pandemic, this trial from the Lord, so many of us have experienced suffering as a consequence, one way or another. To bring it all the way home, will we draw upon the power of God that is at work within us? When our carnal instincts want to simply react in sin and in anger. Some of you are scoffed, jeered at at home. You are persecuted at work. But one thing is true of all of us who are in Jesus. is not one of us will be exempt from the cup of suffering that Christ drank from. Every believer will drink from Christ's cup, but for a little while. How we cannot wish to be exempt from it, for the shape of Christ's suffering is unto glory. And it's in this shape that we will know him in the sweetest of ways. The righteous sufferer will be with you as righteous sufferers. He sympathizes with you for he has walked the very same path ahead of you only far greater, far more severe, far more excruciating and unjust. He was sinned against far worse than any of us could ever imagine. He was sinned against far more than any of us have even experienced. He was oppressed. He was afflicted. He opened not his mouth in defense or in indignation. And he did it for you. And he now stands with you. He will bring you all the way home, home to glory as you put your trust in Him. He who is faithful is with you. May you stand with Him in the power of God as you fellowship in His sufferings, which will lead you to glory, glory in the whole man. in the new heavens and the new earth. This little while, this present time will soon pass away as God leads us home. Let's pray. Lord God, even if we are afflicted in