“If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead” (Philippians 3:11)
Paul is known for his long sentence structures. This verse comes at the end of a sentence that begins in verse eight. After he speaks of the “nothingness” of his fleshly accomplishments before he met the Lord, he enumerates regarding his life in the Spirit following salvation in Christ Jesus.
In the thirteen epistles he has written he has no uncertainty about the believers’ resurrection or the power of God to make it happen. His statement here is one of humility, not uncertainty. John Philips, in commenting on this verse, says the word “if” used here is not a word of doubt but rather it is used as, “seeing it is so.”
For the person saved by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, the resurrection from among the dead is his greatest anticipated joy.
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