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More than one observer calls our age The Entitlement Age. By that, they mean many people believe they are better than others; they lack caring relationships, look for attention, treasure material wealth, and focus on outward appearances. To help reverse this trend, leaders say parents must teach their children to save money, to work, to respect adults, to delay their appetites, and to realize that giving brings greater pleasure than getting. The apostle Paul identifies in Philippians 3 a principle we must not overlook. He urges God’s people to live Christ-centered lives; that is, pleasing Jesus Christ should be our highest ambition. After listing his great achievements, Paul says, “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake, I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ.” Paul spoke with tears in his eyes because some were living self-centered lives. He realized that God’s people are citizens of both this world and heaven. Since we know this, we faithfully seek to grow in our relationship with God; we share with others the truth of God’s love and His offer to forgive sin; at the same time, we work to foster social justice and morality in our world.
