A Focused Life
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THE APOSTLE PAUL...
HE COULD HAVE EASILY LOST FOCUS IN HIS LIFE
WHY?
BECAUSE OF THE ADVERSITY HE FACED
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT KNOCKS US OFF COURSE
OR CAUSES US TO SHIFT FOCUS IS....
WHEN ADVERSITY COMES INTO OUR LIVES
SOME OF YOU KNOW WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT....
YOUR DOING GOOD AND MAKING GOOD DECISIONS...
AND THEN....BAM
SOMETHING HAPPENS AND WE TOTALLY LOSE FOCUS
IF THERE IS ANYBODY IN THE BIBLE WHO EXPERIENCED ADVERSITY....
IT’S PAUL
I MEAN IF ANYONE HAD AN EXCUSE...
PAUL DID...
I MEAN WE SEE MANY OF THE TRIALS HE SUFFERED IN HIS LIFE
HE WAS BEAT NEARLY TO DEATH, BRUISED AND FLOGGED
HE WAS HATED AND TORTURED
LOCKED UP, AND LIED ON
I MEAN PAUL SUFFERED SOME DIFFICULT ADVERSITIES
BUT WE CAN SEE THAT....
HE NEVER QUIT
HE DIDN’T GIVE UP
HE REMAINED FOCUSED AND FAITHFUL TO CHRIST
LET ME ASK YOU A QUESTION???
HAVE YOU COME TO A PLACE IN YOUR LIFE WHERE....
YOU FIND YOURSELF EASILY LOSING FOCUS SPIRITUALLY
LOSING FOCUS ON THE THINGS THAT MATTER MOST....
YOUR FAMILY, YOU MINISTRY, YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS
I’M TALKING ABOUT THE THING THAT ARE IMPORTANT IN YOUR LIFE
IT’S SO EASY TO LOSE FOCUS IN A DISTRACTED AGE....
THERE ARE SO MANY SQUIRRELS
HOW IN THE WORLD DO WE STAY FOCUSED
HOW DO WE LIVE A LIFE OF FOCUS???
SMARTPHONES AND APPS....
WE THOUGHT THESE THINGS WOULD SIMPLIFY OUR LIVES
BUT I’M NOT SO SURE THAT...
TECHNOLOGY HASN’T COMPLICATED THINGS AT TIMES
THE TRUTH IS...
FOCUS IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE LIFE OF A BELIEVER
FOCUS KEEPS US ON TRACK
KEEPS US ON OUR PATH WITH GOD
TOWARD OUR DESTINY
IF WERE HONEST THOUGH,
WE CAN ALL GET OFF TRACK VERY EASILY
AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, I CHALLENGE THE BODY TO TAKE PART IN A FAST...
AND SOMETHING I NOTICED THIS YEAR
AND MAYBE I NOTICED LAST YEAR ALSO
BUT THIS YEAR FOR SOME REASON IT WAS VERY CLEAR TO ME
IT IS SO EASY TO GET DISTRACTED DURING A FAST
OUR KIDS ARE VERY INVOLVED IN SPORTS
AND IT SEEMED LIKE WE WERE JUST ALWAYS ON THE GO
NEVER HOME
WITH CHURCH AND SPORTS
IT’S JUST GO, GO, GO ALL THE TIME
AND WHEN YOUR AWAY FORM HOME LIKE THAT...
IT CAN BE VERY TEMPTING AND DIFFICULT AT TIMES TO STAY TRUE TO THE FAST
IT’S LIKE AFTER EVERY GAME…WERE HUNGRY AND OF COURSE ALL THATS OPEN IS....
TACO BELL (SURE I GUESS I’LL EAT A SMALL BOWL OF BLACK BEANS)
A COUPLE TIMES IT WAS MCDONALDS
MY POINT IS...
IT WAS SO HARD TO STAY FOCUSED ON THE TASK AT HAND
PAUL IN HIS LETTER TO THE CHURCH AT PHILIPI
HE CAME TO CHRIST IN 34 A.D.
HE PLANTED THE CHURCH IN PHILIPI IN 49 A.D.
11 YEARS LATER....60 A.D....
HE WRITES BACK TO THE CHURCH THAT HE PLANTED WHILE HE IS IN PRISON
AND HE ENCOURAGES THEM TO STAY....FOCUSED
IF THERE IS ANYBODY THAT EXEMPLIFIES AND DEMONSTRATES THE POWER OF GODLY FOCUS......
IT’S PAUL
24 From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep;
HE’S SAYING....
LOOK…I’M NOT OUT HERE JUST LIVING THE DREAM
I’M NOT KICKING BACK ON THE BEACH
NO, HE’S SAYING,
I’M GOING THROUGH TRIALS
I’M BEING PERSECUTED WITH YOU
I TOO AM BEING TESTED AND TRIED IN THE FIRE
UNDERSTAND THIS....
PAUL IS ABOUT TO TEACH US....
IN ALL THE DISTRACTIONS
HOW TO LIVE A LIFE OF FOCUS
IT’S NOT EASY
IN FACT IT’S VERY DIFFICULT
BUT IT’S POSSIBLE TO LIVE A LIFE OF FOCUS
I WANT TO GIVE YOU 3 KEYS TODAY ON A FOCUSED LIFE
4 though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: 5 circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; 6 concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,
WHICH LEADS US TO POINT 1....
PAUL WOULD SAY TO US...
IN THE DISTRACTED AGE IN WHICH WE LIVE
AND THE TIMES IN WHICH WE LIVE
WITH LITERALLY EVERY GADGET AND DISTRACTION ALL AROUND US
AND EVERYTHING FIGHTING FOR OUR FOCUS
HOW DO WE STAY FOCUSED???
PAUL WOULD SAY...
WE HAVE TO LEARN TO
KEEP FIRST THINGS FIRST
PAUL HAD THE CREDENTIALS
HE HAD THE POSITION
WATCH THIS....
HE HAD
HE HAD POSITION....
HE WAS A PHARISEE OF THE PHARISEES
AND HE HAD PERFORMANCE....HE WAS REALLY GOOD AT HIS JOB
YET, WHEN HE MET CHRIST…HE SAID
“I COUNT ALL OF THOSE THINGS AS RUBBISH, THAT I MAY KNOW CHRIST”
WOW....TALK ABOUT KEEPING JESUS AT THE CENTER
IT’S ABOUT NOT ALLOWING ANYTHING IN LIFE
THE GOOD THINGS IN LIFE OR THE BAD THINGS IN LIFE
TO BE ON ANY LEVEL OR PARALLEL WITH KNOWING CHRIST
THE QUESTION IN YOUR LIFE IS THIS....
IS CHRIST PREEMINENT IN YOUR LIFE???
I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT JUST AN ADD-ON TO YOUR LIFE
“WELL, IT’S A NEW YEAR 2024, I GOTTA GET MY FINANCES STRAIGHT, I NEED TO ADD A LITTLE BIT OF CHURCH AND JESUS TO MY LIFE”
UNDERSTAND THIS...
IT’S NOT ABOUT ADDING JESUS TO OUR LIFE
IT MUST BE....HE BECOMES OUR LIFE
HE BECOMES OUR PASSION
HE BECOMES OUR FOCUS
NOT JUST IF YOUR A PASTOR OR INVOLVED IN LEADERSHIP
BUT THIS IS FOR EVERYBODY
THE WAY THAT WE STAY FOCUSED IN THIS WORLD IS...
THE CENTER OF YOUR WHEEL
MUST BE CHRIST
PAUL SAID.....
WHEN WE KNOW CHRIST
IT BRINGS ORDER TO THE REST OF OUR LIVES
HOW MANY OF YOU KNOW THE STORY OF PAUL???
HE WASN’T ALWAYS SAINT PAUL
BEFORE HE WAS TRANSFORMED BY GOD
HE WAS A PERSECUTOR OF THE CHURCH
HE MURDERED CHRISTIANS
THE BIBLE SAYS THAT ON THE ROAD TO DAMASCUS
PAUL IS KNOCKED TO THE GROUND BY A BLINDING LIGHT
AND A VOICE FROM HEAVEN SAYS...
“SAUL, SAUL…WHY ARE YOUR PERSECUTING ME?”
THE KJV SAYS IT THIS WAY...
“WHY ARE YOU KICKING AGAINST THE GOADS”
THE GOADS WERE LONG STICKS WITH SHARPS METAL POINTS ON THEM
THEY WERE USED TO PROD OXEN AND THEY WERE PLOWING
AND SOMETIMES THOSE OXEN WOULD KICK AGAINST THOSE GOADS...
IN ATTEMPT TO STOP THEM FROM BEING POCKED
AND WHEN THEY DID THIS…THOSE GOADS WOULD ONLY DIG IN DEEPER TO THEIR FLESH
CAUSING EVEN MORE PAIN
SO IN OTHER WORDS...
GOD IS SAYING
“SAUL....WHY ARE YOU FIGHTING AGAINST MY WILL FOR YOUR LIFE?”
MAYBE SOME OF YOU ARE THERE TODAY???
YOUR BEATING YOUR HEAD AGAINST A WALL
TRYING TO LIVE YOUR LIFE THE WAY YOU WANT TO LIVE IT
ALL THE WHILE…GOD IS JUST TRYING TO GET YOU TO SURRENDER TO HIS WILL
BY THE WAY.....
GOD’S PLAN…IS BETTER THAN YOUR PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE
I PROMISE YOU THAT
SO WE SEE…THAT PAUL IS BLINDED
HE GETS UP FROM THE GROUND
BUT HE CAN’T SEE ANYTHING FOR 3 DAYS
GOD TOLD SAUL TO GO TO THIS GUYS HOUSE IN DAMASCUS...
HIS HOUSE IS ON STRAIGHT STREET (I’M NOT MAKING THIS UP)
THE GUYS NAME IS JUDAS....
BY THE WAY....THERE ARE OTHER JUDASES IN THE BIBLE
SO SAUL IN AT JUDASES HOUSE IN DAMASCUS ON A STREET CALLED STRAIGHT
AND SAUL BEGINS TO FAST AND PRAY
ONE DAY....NOTHING HAPPENS
TWO DAYS....NOTHING
THIRD DAY.....GOD SPEAKS TO ANANIAS
HE SAYS, HEY I HAVE AN ASSIGNMENT FOR YOU
HE WILL BE ONE OF MY CHIEF SERVANTS
HE’S JUST COMING INTO RELATIONSHIP WITH ME
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.
GOD SAYS....
I WANT YOU TO GO DOWN THERE AND PRAY FOR HIM.....
SO ANANIAS DOES THIS...
HE GOES AND KNOCKS ON THE DOOR
“HEY, JESUS HAS SENT ME HERE.....IS THERE A GUY NAMED SAUL HERE?”
SAUL....YOUR BLIND?
COME OVER HERE I WANT TO PRAY FOR YOU
ANANIAS PRAYS FOR SAUL...
THE BIBLE SAYS…HE PRAYS FOR HIM
HIS EYES ARE OPENED UP
HE’S FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
THEN THEY GO AND BAPTIZE HIM IN THE BACK YARD
THEN HE SAYS THIS...
HE SAUL....I KNOW YOUR A BIG SHOT
YOU HAVE ALL THESE CREDENTIALS
POSITION ANS POWER AND PERFORMANCE
BUT JESUS IS SAYING....YOU HAVE TO LAY IT ALL DOWN
TO LOVE AND KNOW HIM AND HE HAS ANOTHER ASSIGNMENT FOR YOUR LIFE
CHURCH I’M ASKING YOU THIS MORNING...
ARE YOU WILLING TO LAY DOWN YOUR PLANS
AND PICK UP GOD’S PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE???
WHATEVER IT IS....
BECAUSE HIS PLAN IS MUCH BETTER FOR YOUR LIFE
HE SAID TO KNOW CHRIST AND THE POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION
PAUL LEARNED...
TO KEEP FIRST THINGS FIRST
HE LEARNED TO SUBMIT HIS LIFE TO THE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST
HE LEARNED TO SUBMIT HIS AGENDA
HE LEARNED TO SUBMIT HIS PLANS TO CHRIST
HOW OFTEN DO WE WANT TO DO OUR OWN THING
THEN WE ASK GOD TO BLESS OUR OWN PLAN
AND YET WE’VE NEVER CONSULTED WITH HEAVEN
AND ASKED....GOD WHAT IS YOUR PLAN?
EVERYBODY SAY...
FIRST THINGS FIRST
IF YOU WANT TO LIVE A LIFE OF FOCUS
MAKE JESUS THE CENTER OF THE WHEEL
THE FOUNDATION OF YOUR LIFE
8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ
HAVE YOU EVER HAD A CONVERSATION WITH SOMEONE AND THEY SAY....
YEAH I TRIED CHRISTIANITY AND IT JUST DIDN’T WORK OUT
NO YOU DIDN’T
NO YOU DID NOT
YOU TRIED CHURCH
YOU TRIED RELIGION
BUT YOU DIDN’T MEET CHRIST
BECAUSE WHEN YOU MEET CHRIST...
HE TRANSFORMS YOUR LIFE
WHEN YOU MEET CHRIST…
THERE IS AN INNER TRANSFORMATION
WHEN YOU MEET CHRIST....
YOU DON’T GO BACK TO YOUR OLD WAYS
YOU MAY BACKSLIDE
BUT YOU WILL SLIDE BACK…WHY?
BECAUSE SPIRIT OF CHRIST IS IN YOU
WHAT YOU DID WAS MENTALLY ASCENDED TO SOME THEOLOGICAL FACTS
BUT YOU DIDN’T HAVE HEART TRANSFORMATION
PEOPLE THAT ARE DECONSTRUCTING TODAY....
THEY AREN’T SAVED
BECAUSE WHEN YOU DECIDE TO TRULY GIVE YOUR LIFE TO JESUS
YOU GO FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT
YOU GO FROM HELL TO HEAVEN
YOU ARE TRANSFORMED BY CHRIST
COME ON SOMEBODY....
THIS IS THE WORD OF GOD
THIS IS NOT CHRIS’S OPINION
THIS IS WHAT THE WORD OF GOD SAYS
YOUR NOT PERFECT
IT’S NOT THAT YOU NEVER SIN AGAIN
BUT SOMETHING IS FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGED AND TRANSFORMED ON THE INSIDE OF YOU
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
WHEN YOU ARE IN CHRIST...
YOU CAN’T....NOT LIVE DIFFERENTLY
THE PROBLEM IS THIS…
WE TRY TO ADD JESUS INTO OUR LIFE
HE MUST BECOME YOUR LIFE
IF YOU WANT TO LIVE A LIFE OF FOCUS...
YOU HAVE TO LEARN TO...
2. FORGIVE AND FORGET
Philippians 3:12 (NKJV)
12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.
PRESS ON....
YOU HAVE TO ACTIVATE YOUR WILL
13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
WATCH THIS...
PAUL UNDERSTOOD...
THE DETRIMENT OF RUNNING A RACE THIS WAY (FORWARD)
BUT LOOKING THIS WAY (BACKWARD)
DISTRACTION OFTEN COMES BECAUSE
WE ARE PREOCCUPIED WITH OUR PAST
RATHER THAN BEING FOCUSED ON THE FUTURE
THERE IS POWER IN LEARNING TO BIBLICALLY FORGET THE PAST
BUT PASTOR I THOUGHT THE BIBLE TALKED ABOUT REMEMBERING THE PAST
PAUL TALKS A LOT ABOUT REMEMBERING
BUT IT’S NOT REMEMBERING YOUR PAST
IT’S REMEMBERING THE FAITHFULNESS OF GOD IN YOUR PAST
I AM TO REMEMBER THAT GOD DID IT BEFORE
AND HE WILL DO IT AGAIN
BIBLICAL REMEMBERING
PAUL IS TRYING TO TEACH US THAT....
WE HAVE TO PUSH THROUGH
WE SEE A LOT OF THE WORD PRESS IN THIS PASSAGE
PRESSING PAST THE FLESH
PRESSING PAST WHERE YOU MIND IS STARTING TO LOSE FOCUS
AND YOUR PRESSING THROUGH THE LIES OF THE ENEMY
PRESSING THROUGH THE TRIALS OF LIFE
AND PRESSING THROUGH THE DESIRE OR TEMPTATION TO QUIT
FORGIVE AND FORGET...
PASTOR IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO FORGET WHAT HAPPENED
PAUL IS NOT TALKING ABOUT FORGETTING TO THE POINT OF NOT REMEMBERING
When Paul said he was....
“forgetting those things which are behind,”
he’s referring to not looking back at past relationships, memories, failures, temptations,
or anything that might distract us from staying focused on “the upward call of God in Christ.”
To inspire his audience,
Paul gave this image of an athlete running a race with uncompromising determination to reach the finish line and win the prize.
The New Living Translation reads the passage like this:
Philippians 3:13–14 (NLT)
13 I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
The word forgetting in Philippians 3:13 means
“dismissing from the mind or paying no attention to.”
To “forget” in this way is to....
stop dwelling on something.
To win the race, a runner must dismiss every distraction from his mind.
he can’t rehash every misstep
or dwell on the mistakes along his course.
“Forgetting what is behind” is Paul’s way of saying....
“Don’t look back! Stop dwelling on the past.
(TALK ABOUT COACHING MY SON’S BASEBALL AND THEN LAST YEAR FOOTBALL TEAM)
.....(TALK ABOUT THE....WHINING AND TANTRUMS IN FOOTBALL OVER MISTAKES)
WE LEARN FROM THE PAST MISTAKES
BUT WE HAVE TO CHOOSE TO MOVE ON
OTHERWISE....
WE WILL BE CONSTANTLY DEFEATED BY THE ENEMY OF DISTRACTION
......WORSHIP TEAM COME......
3. FOCUS ON THE FINISH LINE
14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
THERE IS THAT WORD AGAIN…PRESS
YOU HAVE TO ACTIVATE YOUR WILL
YOU HAVE TO MAKE A DECISION
WHEN YOU MAKE A DECISION WHAT HAPPENS IS...
GOD EMPOWERS THE ACTIVATION OF THE WILL
YOU CAN’T JUST WAIT FOR GOD TO DO IT....
YOU GOTTA TAKE A STEP
THE MAN WITH THE WITHERED ARM
THE MAN HAD TO STRETCH OUT HIS ARM AS JESUS TOLD HIM TO....
AND BY DOING SO…HE ACTIVATED THE POWER OF GOD
AND THE MAN WAS HEALED
IN OTHER WORDS…
GOD IS LOOKING FOR OUR PARTICIPATION
HE GIVES YOU THE POWER
BUT YOU HAVE TO TAKE A STEP
“THE UPWARD CALL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS”
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN
I BELIEVE IT’S WHEN...
YOU BECOME WHAT GOD CALLED YOU TO BE
AND YOU DO WHAT GOD CALLED YOU TO DO
IN OTHER WORDS....
WE NEED YOU TO BECOME WHAT GOD CREATED YOU TO BE
THE UPWARD CALL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS...
WAS PAUL BECOMING WHAT GOD CREATED HIM TO BE
THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO NEED YOU TO BECOME WHAT GOD CREATED YOU TO BE
WHEN WE STAND BEFORE GOD
I BELIEVE WE WILL NOT JUST ANSWER FOR THE BAD THINGS WE DID
BUT I BELIEVE WE WILL HAVE TO ANSWER FOR WHAT WE DIDN’T DO
I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL SOMEHOW SEE ...
THE LIVES WE COULD HAVE TOUCHED AND CHANGED...
IF WE HAD ONLY BECOME WHAT GOD CALLED US TO BE
CHURCH....SOMEBODY NEEDS YOU TO PRESS ON
SOMEONE NEEDS YOU TO FORGIVE AND FORGET
SOMEONE NEEDS YOU TO ANSWER THE CALL AND BECOME
WHAT GOD HAS CREATED YOU TO BE
SO OFTEN PEOPLE QUIT BECAUSE THEY LOSE FOCUS...
An uncle of R. U. Darby was caught by the gold fever in the gold-rush days, and went west to DIG AND GROW RICH. He had never heard that more gold has been mined from the brains of men than has ever been taken from the earth. He staked a claim and went to work with pick and shovel. The going was hard, but his lust for gold was definite.
After weeks of labor, he was rewarded by the discovery of the shining ore. He needed machinery to bring the ore to the surface. Quietly, he covered up the mine, retraced his footsteps to his home in Williamsburg, Maryland, told his relatives and a few neighbors of the “strike.” They got together money for the needed machinery, had it shipped. The uncle and Darby went back to work the mine.
The first car of ore was mined, and shipped to a smelter. The returns proved they had one of the richest mines in Colorado! A few more cars of that ore would clear the debts. Then would come the big killing in profits.
Down went the drills! Up went the hopes of Darby and Uncle! Then something happened! The vein of gold ore disappeared! They had come to the end of the rainbow, and the pot of gold was no longer there! They drilled on, desperately trying to pick up the vein again— all to no avail.
Finally, they decided to QUIT.
They sold the machinery to a junk man for a few hundred dollars, and took the train back home. Some “junk” men are dumb, but not this one! He called in a mining engineer to look at the mine and do a little calculating. The engineer advised that the project had failed, because the owners were not familiar with “fault lines.” His calculations showed that the vein would be found just three feet from where the Darbys had stopped drilling! That is exactly where it was found!
3 FEET FROM GOLD
3 FEET
I WONDER HOW MANY LOSE FOCUS
AND QUIT 3 FEET FROM BREAKTHROUGH
.......STAND TO YOUR FEET.......
I PRESS TOWARD THE GOAL.....
NO MATTER HOW HARD THINGS GET
I PRESS ON
NO MATTER HOW DARK MY DAYS GET
I PRESS ON
NO MATTER HOW HARD MY WALK WITH CHRIST GETS
I PRESS ON
I FORGET ABOUT THE PAST
I DON’T DWELL ON THE PAST MISTAKES AND FAILURES
BUT I FORGET AND PRESS ON FOR THE PRIZE
IF YOUR HERE TODAY
MAYBE YOU HAVE BEEN STRUGGLING WITH DISTRACTION
MAYBE YOU HAVE LOST FOCUS IN YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD
I’M GONNA INVITE YOU TO COME THIS MORNING
______________________
IF YOUR HERE AND YOU DON’T KNOW JESUS AS LORD AND SAVIOR
BUT TODAY YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE THAT DECISION
WOULD YOU COME TO THE ALTAR TODAY
WERE GONNA PRAY WITH YOU AND HELP YOU WITH THAT DECISION