26.1.2017
What stared as a ‘kitchen sink meditation’ has somehow turned
into more of a sermon. That was honestly not my intention. It just happened
. I’ve never preached in my life but as
I entered another year , I felt undeniably
drawn to this passage and hope that in some small measure I can apply it to my
own life.
Philippians
3vs13,14
‘ Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold
of it ( see verses 8-12) But one thing I
do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead I press
towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in
Christ Jesus. ‘
Here Paul exhorts the church at Philippi to :-
*
Lay hold of Christ
*
Let go of the past
*
Look forward to the future
In verses
8 to 11 Paul says ‘ that I may gain Christ and be found in him’ and have a ‘righteousness ....through faith
in Christ’ ‘ I want to know Christ..’ ‘
experience the power of Christ’s resurrection’ ‘ share in Christ’s sufferings’
‘ become like Christ in his death’ ‘
Christ Jesus took hold of me’
Surely if anyone in
scripture could honestly say that he shared in Christ’s sufferings or had
become like him in His death it was the apostle Paul. Even at the time of writing Paul was in prison,
suffering for his faith. In 2 Corinthians
chapter 11 he tells us :
’23 Are
they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I
have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more
severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the
Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten
with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I
spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been
constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from
bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in
the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false
believers. 27 I have laboured and toiled and have often gone
without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food;
I have been cold and naked. ...’
In Ephesians he writes ‘ For it is by grace you have been saved
through faith, and this is not of
yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works so no one can boast’
Paul understood his standing , his
righteousness, was all of Christ. As he embraced this truth Paul longed with
every fibre of his being to be more like Christ ‘ being changed into His
likeness from one degree of glory to another’ . Paul’s aim was simply to be
obedient to God , to be obedient to His calling on his life , to die with Him that
he might be raised with Him, to experience the ‘power of His resurrection’
As we
lay hold of Christ , we too may often walk the painful road of self-denial
. . Jesus himself said that ‘ If any man would come after me He must deny
himself, take up His cross daily and follow me.’ Luke 9:23
What is the Lord asking of my life? No one would wish to suffer as Paul did, and mercifully we may never have to, so how can this
truth be applied ? This is a personal
challenge.
It could entail giving up a secret sin , something we
cling to dearly . It could be literally
putting others first in some seemingly small way, giving someone an hour of your time, ministering to someone in need, giving material goods , clothes or money to the poor and destitute.
Paul encourages himself to let
go of the past.:- ‘forgetting what is
behind...’ What
had Paul in mind? In chapter 3; 1-8. , I
think Paul makes it pretty clear. Paul’s credentials were outstanding , his
achievements exemplary , his knowledge impressive. He had experienced an encounter with the
risen Christ Himself. He had ministered to thousands. He had seen many souls
saved under his ministry. If anyone had cause to boast it was Paul. Yet Paul
would rather forget all of these things . Why? ‘
for the surpassing greatness of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord’.
Paul, like all believers, recognised
that nothing he had achieved,
nothing he had suffered could put him right with God. Accolades, rewards, achievements, promotions and
indeed all forms of self- aggrandisement must be left behind if we are to know
Christ and the power of His
resurrection. We can praise God for the many gifts and abilities we have been
given : preaching, teaching, hospitality, healing, prophecy , evangelism.......
yet we do not glory in these but in the cross of Christ !
As for us, there may be other things , more difficult ,
that we need to let go of :- hurts, resentments, regrets, rejections, addictions,
immoral lifestyle... to name but a few. All must be brought to the foot of the
cross , and left there!
‘ Nothing in
my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling....’
Paul’s aim, his goal , his sole desire, was to
press forward. To use an analogy from athletics , it’s not how we start that’s
of upmost importance , but how we finish. This means training hard,
sacrificing time and effort, pressing forward during those times when we ‘don’t particularly feel
like it’ .
Michael Phelps , the most outstanding swimmer of
our time and the most decorated Olympian , with 28 medals to his name, did not
achieve this by simply jumping in the pool for a few hours to practice now and
again. He trained in the pool six days per week and did circuit training with weights three times per week. He swam an average of eight miles a day during his six hours of
swimming. He began his training at 6:30 a.m. , a gruelling , punishing schedule
!
Paul says in Hebrews chapter 12vs 1,2 ‘ let us throw off everything that hinders
and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race
marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus....’ I
like the Living Bible paraphrase for this ... let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before
us.
That’s so important . God has a particular race, a
particular journey that only I can run,
not looking round, not comparing my progress with others, and not giving up ! I keep having to remind myself of this constantly.
Isn’t it great, though, that we do not
run this race alone but in the company of fellow believers, fellow runners, the amazing
fellowship of His church, God’s people, ‘encouraging one another and all the
more as we see the Day approaching’ .
