“What 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.” — Philippians 3:8
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“I only talk about people telling me my stats, and I’m trying to say it’s team basketball.”
These were the words of three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic — evidently annoyed by having to answer another question about his stats — during the 2023 NBA Finals. Jokic’s Denver Nuggets won that series in five games against the Miami Heat and captured the only NBA title of Jokic’s 10-year career.
Along with players like Russell Westbrook, LeBron James and Oscar Robertson, Jokic is one of the most prominent “stat-sheet stuffers” in NBA history. When basketball pundits talk about a stat-sheet stuffer, they are referring to a players’ ability to accumulate substantial statistics across a wide array of categories. For example, last season, Jokic averaged 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, 10.2 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.6 blocks per game. Meanwhile, he shot 41.7% from 3-point range and 57.6% overall.
Now that’s a stat-sheet stuffer if I’ve ever seen one. But Jokic counts it all as loss, because this spring, the Nuggets lost in the second round of the playoffs. As one of the greatest basketball players on earth, Jokic certainly could boast in all of the eye-popping statistics he’s recorded during his career, but he doesn’t, because he’s fixated on a higher purpose: his team winning the title.
The apostle Paul also had plenty of reasons to boast in his “statistics,” which he enumerates in Philippians 3. He was “circumcised 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; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless” (Philippians 3:5-6). Each of these phrases would impress many of the Jews of Paul’s day, but his point in providing the list was actually the opposite. He explains why in the next two verses.
“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What 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.” — Philippians 3:7-8
Garbage. A powerful word. Everything that Paul could have pointed to as proof of his importance he considered as garbage because of the infinitely greater value of knowing Jesus.
Do you find value in knowing Jesus for Jesus’ sake? Or do you rest on your statistics? Do you seek to impress people with your Godly parents’ faith, or the lengthy record of missions trips attended and Bible verses memorized? Those are empty statistics.
Rather, seek what is of higher value. Seek a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, where you not only know about Him but know Him for who He is. When you do, when you truly immerse yourself in the love of God, all those other stats begin to fade into nothingness.
— Kevin Mercer
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