Dragocjena spoznaja Krista
1I na koncu, draga braćo, radujte se u Gospodinu. Meni ne dodija pisati vam stalno isto, a za vas je sigurnije.
2Čuvajte se pasa—zlih ljudi koji kažu da se morate osakatiti radi spasenja, i njihovih zlih djela. 3Jer mi koji se Bogu klanjamo u Duhu jedini smo zaista obrezani. Mi se ne pouzdajemo u ljudske napore. Umjesto toga, hvalimo se onime što je za nas učinio Isus Krist.
4A ako bi se itko mogao pouzdati u vlastito tijelo, mogao bih ja. Imaju li drugi razloga da se pouzdaju u vlastite napore, ja ih imam još više! 5Obrezan sam kao dijete od osam dana, rođen u židovskoj obitelji čiste krvi iz Benjaminova plemena. Pravi pravcati Židov. Pripadnik farizeja. 6Glede revnosti: progonio sam Crkvu. Glede pravednosti u ispunjavanju Zakona: bio sam besprijekoran.
7Sve što sam nekoć smatrao vrijednim, sada smatram bezvrijednim zaradi Krista. 8Štoviše, sve je bezvrijedno u usporedbi s onim najdragocjenijim: spoznajom Isusa Krista, mojega Gospodina. Sve sam drugo odbacio i sve smatram smećem da bih zadobio Krista 9i postao jedno s njime. Ne pouzdajem se više u vlastitu pravednost ni u ispunjavanje Zakona, već se pouzdajem u Krista da me spasi. Jer Bog nas pred sobom opravdava našom vjerom u Krista. 10Svega sam se odrekao—da zaista mogu spoznati Krista i iskusiti moćnu silu koja ga je uskrsnula, naučiti što znači trpjeti s njim i dijeliti njegovu smrt 11ne bih li doživio uskrsnuće od mrtvih!
Prezati za ciljem
12Ne kažem da sam već sve to postignuo ili da sam već postao savršenim, nego prežem da to dosegnem jer je Krist dosegnuo mene. 13Ne smatram, braćo, da sam već postao kakvim trebam biti, nego da sam se sav dao na to da zaboravim ono što je iza mene i da hitim prema onomu što me čeka. 14Trudim se istrčati utrku do cilja i primiti nagradu kojoj nas je Bog, kroz Krista Isusa, pozvao u nebo.
15Tako mislimo svi koji smo zreli u vjeri. Ako vi drukčije mislite, Bog će to i vama objaviti. 16Ali moramo biti poslušni istini koju smo spoznali.
17Draga braćo, živite poput mene i učite od onih koji slijede moj uzor. 18Jer sam vam prije o tomu često govorio, a i sada velim sa suzama u očima: mnogi svojim životom pokazuju da su zapravo neprijatelji Kristova križa. 19Njih čeka vječna propast. Njihov je bog njihov trbuh. Ponose se sramotnim stvarima. Misle samo na ovaj zemaljski život. 20Ali naša je domovina na nebesima, odakle iščekujemo da će nam doći Spasitelj, naš Gospodin Isus Krist. 21On će ova naša smrtna tijela preobraziti i suobličiti ih svojemu slavnome tijelu moćnom silom kojom će sve podložiti sebi.
No Confidence in the Flesh
1Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. 2Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. 3For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.
7But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in3:9 Or through the faithfulness of Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. 10I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Following Paul’s Example
15All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. 16Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
17Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. 18For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. 20But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
