Gain (2770)(kerdaino from kerdos = gain) means literally to procure an advantage or profit, to acquire by effort or investment (as in the parable of the talents Mt 25:16,17, 20, 22; James 4:13 = "make a profit"). In 1Cor 9:19-22 kerdaino is used 5 times and translated "might win", in each use this "gain" referring not to money but to men's souls, for those whom Paul might "gain" equates with those who were saved. This is the ultimate "good investment" which will pay "dividends" for eternity! Are you placing more effort into investing in the market were the gains are temporal or in men where the gain is eternal? Gain also conveys the idea of to win in (Mt 18:15) apparently the "gain" being that the reproved brother repents. Peter also uses kerdaino figuratively of a submissive wife winning her husband. The synoptic Gospels use kerdaino to emphasize the tragic state of a man who "gains" the whole world (Mt 16:26, Mark 8:36, Luke 9:25), this use speaking literally of money, possessions, investments, etc, but also figuratively of the position, power, acclaim, etc ("boastful pride of life"). The Spirit must consider this truth of great importance, to reiterate it in all three Gospels! Note also that world in each of these three passages is kosmos which refers to the world system of evil of which Satan is the head, all unsaved people his servants, together with the pursuits, pleasure, purposes, people, and places where God is not wanted. Vine writes that kerdaino is used metaphorically metaphorically, (a) to win persons, said (1) of gaining an offending brother who by being told privately of his offence, and by accepting the representations, is won from alienation and from the consequences of his fault, Matt. 18:15; (2) of winning souls into the Kingdom of God by the Gospel, 1 Cor. 9:19, 20 (twice), 21, 22, or by godly conduct, 1 Pet. 3:1 (R.V., “gained”); (3) of so practically appropriating Christ to oneself that He becomes the dominating power in and over one’s whole being and circumstances, Phil. 3:8 (R.V., “gain”) (Vine, W E: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. 1996. Nelson) Kerdaino is used 17 times in the NT (none in the LXX)... Matthew 16:26 "For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 18:15 "And if your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. Matthew 25:16 "Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. 17 "In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more...20 "And the one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, 'Master, you entrusted five talents to me; see, I have gained five more talents.' 22 "The one also who had received the two talents came up and said, 'Master, you entrusted to me two talents; see, I have gained two more talents.' Mark 8:36 "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? Luke 9:25 "For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? (Comment: Vincent notes that kerdaino is " A merchant’s word. Jesus is putting the case as a common-sense question of profit and loss.") Acts 27:21 And when they had gone a long time without food, then Paul stood up in their midst and said, "Men, you ought to have followed my advice and not to have set sail from Crete, and incurred (kerdaino) this damage and loss. (Comment: Here kerdaino pictures gain through avoiding loss. It could be translated "spared this damage...") 1 Corinthians 9:19 For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win (kerdaino) the more. 20 And to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win (kerdaino) Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law, though not being myself under the Law, that I might win (kerdaino) those who are under the Law; 21 to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, that I might win (kerdaino) those who are without law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win (kerdaino) the weak; I have become all things to all men, that I may by all means save some. Philippians 3:8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, (The best investment anyone could ever make!) James 4:13 Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow, we shall go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit." 1 Peter 3:1 (note) In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, (Comment: Without a word means without the wife’s spoken words and does not mean that unbelieving husbands do not need to hear the Word of Truth which the "seed" by which one is born again - see note 1 Peter 1:23) NIDNTT writes that... kerdaino means to make to profit or gain an advantage, gain something or somebody for something; it can also mean to spare or avoid (e.g. in Acts 27:21), since avoiding loss brings a gain. The opposite of kerdaino is accordingly zemioo, suffer loss, attested only after Homer. (Brown, Colin, Editor. New International Dictionary of NT Theology. 1986. Zondervan) The verb speaks of a personal appropriation which makes Christ my own. Knowing Christ and making Christ my own outstrips everything, absolutely everything. The encouraging truth is that when we have nothing left but Christ, we find that Christ is everything we ever needed! Wuest adds that I may gain Christ does not refer to Paul’s acquisition of Christ as Saviour, but to Paul’s appropriating into his life as a Christian, the perfection, the graces, the fragrance of the Person of Christ." (Wuest, K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans or Logos) How does this happen? Salvation (past tense salvation) takes place in a moment but sanctification (present tense salvation - daily being saved from myself and being transformed and conformed into the image of Christ) takes a lifetime. He (Christ) must (continually) increase, but I must (continually) decrease." (Jn 3:30) How? By daily, continually working out (my) salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God Who is at work in (me), both to will and to work for His good pleasure. (see notes Philippians 2:12; 13) As I submit to this daily process in the practical tests He allows in my life, I will grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (see note 2 Peter 3:18) Vine says that To gain Christ is more than gaining the knowledge of Him; it is to gain Him in all His fullness; it is, to repeat a frequent quotation, “to lay fast hold upon Him, to receive Him into our hearts, and so to make Him ours and ourselves His, that we may be joined to Him as our Head, espoused to Him as our Husband, incorporated into Him as our nourishment, engrafted in Him as our stock, and laid upon Him as a sure foundation. (Vine, W. Collected writings of W. E. Vine. Nashville: Thomas Nelson or Logos How else does one gain Christ? Jamieson's comments are worth pondering A man cannot make other things his "gain" or chief confidence, and at the same time "gain Christ." He who loses all things, and even himself, on account of Christ, gains Christ: Christ is His, and He is Christ's". Jesus adds that If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it." (Lk 9:23, 24) ><> ><> ><> Spurgeon writing on Paul's desire that I may win (gain) Him reflects... The very high value that the apostle Paul set upon the Savior, is most palpable, when he speaks of winning Him. This shows that the Savior held the same place in Paul’s esteem as the crown did in the esteem of the runner at the Olympic games. To gain that crown, the competitor strained every nerve and sinew, feeling as though he were content to drop down dead at the goal if he might but win it. Paul felt that were he to run with all his might, if that, were the way of winning Christ, were he to strain soul and body to win Him, he would be well worth the effort. He shows his value of Christ by speaking of Him as the prize he panted to win. He uses the very same word which the soldier would use concerning the victory, when, with garments rolled in blood, amidst confused noise and clouds of smoke, he counts all things but little if he may but hear the shout of triumph. So, Paul, regarding Christ as more glorious and excellent than mountains of prey, considered such a prize to be worth all the fighting, even though he should agonize and sweat with blood. He would be well worth dying to win. I take it that he speaks of Christ here as though he felt that he was the very climax of his desire, the summit of his ambition. If he might but get Christ, he would be perfectly satisfied; but if he could not get Him, whatever else he might have, he would still remain unblessed. I would to God that you all felt the same. I wish that the ambition of every one of my fellow-creatures here assembled — and, indeed, the wide world over, — were this, that they might win Christ. Oh, if they did but know His preciousness, if they did but understand how happy and how blessed He makes those to be who gain Him, they, too, would give up everything else for this one desire, — that they may win Christ. I hope that, perhaps, a few words of mine may be blessed of God the Spirit to stir up such a desire in the hearts of the congregation now assembled below then shall I begin? (See Spurgeon's full sermon "The Priceless Prize") ><> ><> ><> Religion Or Relationship? READ: Galatians 1:11-24 Two kinds of religion exist in our world: Religion A and Religion B. The first is "faith" in name only (see note 2 Timothy 3:5). It's the outward practice of Christianity without genuine faith in the living Lord. Religion B, on the other hand, is a life-transforming, destiny-changing experience. It's a definite commitment to the crucified and risen Savior, which establishes an ongoing personal relationship between a forgiven sinner and a gracious God. This difference explains why for many years British author C. S. Lewis had such great difficulty in becoming a Christian. Religion A had blinded him to Religion B. According to his brother Warren, his conversion was "no sudden plunge into a new life, but rather a slow, steady convalescence from a deep-seated spiritual illness--an illness that had its origins in our childhood, in the dry husks of religion offered by the semi-political churchgoing of Ulster, and the similar dull emptiness of compulsory church during our school days." Are you bogged down in the empty ritual of Religion A? If so, you must receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Then make sure your relationship with Christ is growing deeper and more vital every day. —Vernon C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) You only are true life-- To know You is to live The more abundant life That earth can never give. --Clarkson You can have tons of religion without one ounce of salvation. ><> ><> ><> Just Living? (READ: Ecclesiastes 1:1-11) I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. --Philippians 3:8 There's a gulf of difference--far wider than the Grand Canyon--between living for something and merely living. But what is a worthy purpose for our existence? Ty Cobb, one of baseball's all-time greats, made a revealing admission: "For years I ate baseball, I slept baseball, I talked baseball, I thought baseball, I lived baseball." But then he added, "When you get beyond those years of playing professional baseball, you can't live on baseball." Certainly there is a vast multitude of purposes to which we can devote our energies. But in the end none of them will prove sufficient. One purpose alone gives enduring motivation to life. The apostle Paul stated that lasting purpose this way: "For to me, to live is Christ" (see note Philippians 1:21). Knowing Christ, trusting Him, abiding in fellowship with Him, and serving Him--this is the one driving purpose that saves life from being little more than a monotonous march of meaningless days (Eccl. 1:1-11). Even when we are old and infirm, we can serve Him through a ministry of example and intercession. This makes life a joyful journey with our Savior and Friend, the Lord Jesus, whose face we will see when we reach our eternal home. —Vernon C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) Those searching to know life's true meaning Can find it in only one way: By serving the Lord with commitment And living for Him day by day. --J D Branon Life's purpose is found in a person--the Lord Jesus Christ ><> ><> ><> God's Paradoxes - Whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. --Matthew 16:25 The Bible tells us there is a wisdom that is foolish and a foolishness that is wise (1Cor 1:20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25). There is a gain that is loss and a loss that is gain (Phil. 3:7, 8, 9). And there is an exalted way that leads downward and a humble way that leads to exaltation (Phil 2:5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11). Statements like these seem to be contradictions, but they are actually paradoxes. A paradox is a statement that contains two truths, which at first glance seem to be incompatible. A psychiatrist once unknowingly referred to one of God's paradoxes, remarking, "The greatest secret of mental health comes down to us in the words, 'Whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will save it.'" He added, "I forget who said that, but it is a great truth." Who said that? Our Lord Jesus Christ! He gave us that principle in Matthew 16:25. And the apostle Paul lived it out as he endured countless hardships for the benefit of others (2Cor 4:8, 9, 10, 11, 12). Yet Paul knew that even as his physical body was dying, his spirit was being renewed (2Cor. 4:16). You cannot find your richest personal fulfillment until you sacrifice your time, strength, and resources to God's will. "Lose your life" for Christ. Start really living! --V C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) Take up thy cross and follow on, Nor think till death to lay it down, For only he who bears the cross May hope to wear the glorious crown. --Everest