Press On
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Intro
Last week we saw in the beginning chapter 3 Paul tell us to trust in Jesus because everything that we can do on our own is a loss compared to knowing Jesus. We don’t need Jesus plus anything because he is more than we need to be satisfied.
But here is the preceived conflict in mindset that I feel like every Christian must address at some point in their lives. How do we reconcile the truth that we can be satisfied in Jesus with the commands of scripture that tell us to press on, to keep pursing being like Christ.
How do we press on while being satisfied with Jesus at the same time? Paul is going to lay out how we can press on because we are satisfied
Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this also to you. In any case, we should live up to whatever truth we have attained.
Whats the goal Paul is saying he hasn’t reached. Its from verse 10 that we saw last week that says. Philippians 3:10
My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death,
To know Jesus fully and become fully like him.
That’s the goal and Paul is humbly saying I am still working on it. even though he just said in the previous section that he has been found in Christ.
So he isnt worried about his salvation. He isn’t saying I need to work harder to gain salvation. He is talking about the work to do after salvation.
And thats where we find that tension. How do we press on toward a goal while at the same time being fully satisfied with jesus.
Moyter
The Message of Philippians Chapter 18. On to Maturity (3:13–16)
On the one hand it is a life of personal commitment, effort and determination (verses 13–14); on the other hand, it is a life resting upon great certainties, in particular the abiding truths of the cross and coming of the Lord Jesus.
We do not press on trying to find certainty. We press on because we are certain. And these verses highlight the example of how Paul did that and how we can do that. The first thing we see from Paul’s example is the same thing we need if we are going to press on towards the goal of knowing Christ and becoming like him.
1. We Press on Humbly
1. We Press on Humbly
Paul was able to look at himself and say this goal that I am telling you all to press on toward I haven’t fully accomplished it yet. Paul knew being able to give a proper humble assesment of yourself is crucial to our ability reach the goal of knowing and becoming like Christ. and yet it is skill that is hard to do.
Cause its way easier to asses where other people are at than it is to asses where we are. It’s way easier to be honest about where other people are than where we are.
But it is crucial to pressing on toward the goal that is before us. If there is any goal that we have that we need to work toward it always starts with a correct assesment.
A guilty pleasure that I have is watching reels from podcasts that people who are in finacial trouble go and talk to a financial expert. weather its Dave Ramsey or Caleb Hammer. I watch way more of those types of shows than I should. and every episode has people who are in way over their heads financially. They are drowning in debt and often times the reasons they are in debt are entertaining and crazy, like maxing out credit cards to go to Disney or buying collectables action figures while behind on rent. But the reality is the debt is consuming their life and it’s terifying.
But the thing I have noticed watching those shows is that every person on those shows are terrible at self assesment. the person interviewing them will ask how much money did you bring in last month. $4000 how much money do you think you spent. and they will say something just a little over like $4,300 and then they will show them the documents that prove they spent $7,000. and the people on those shows that get hit in the face with that first self assement, make changes, and continue with the plan laid out are the ones that come back on in year and are in much better shape. But the ones that continue to fail to accept an accurate self assesment by acting like there isn’t really a problem and they are fine are the ones that come back on in a year in a worse spot.
The reason the first group makes progress isn't just because they finally found a better budget. It's because they finally accepted an honest assessment of where they really were. You can't make progress from a place you're pretending to be.
The same is true spiritually. Before God can grow us into the likeness of Christ, we have to be willing to honestly admit where we still need to grow. And that takes humility Paul Could press on because he refused to pretend he had already arrived.
Could the reason you feel stuck or lack the motivation to press on in your faith this morning be that you are pretending your progress is way more than it actually is.
Humility is an essential posture for every step of the Christian life. Coming to Christ for the first time for salvation is impossible if you dont give yourself an honest humble self estimate. You realize how without Jesus you are dead and the only way you can become alive is if you have Jesus.
Just like an honest self assesment is essential for us to realize we need salvation it is just as essential for us in or daily walk to press on towards the goal. If you think you are good and you already have the goal why would you press on? If you think you don’t have any debt why would you follow the budget plan to pay it off?
We need to follow Paul’s example of continually honestly assesing where we are and where the goal is. And we may never fully grab hold of the goal this side of heaven and we will certainly never be perfect. I know I am not perfect and I will never be perfect. But I do know is this as I press on towards the prize with the knowledge that I don’t have the prize yet.
I will be closer to the goal than I was yesterday, and I will be more perfect tomorrow than I am today. Every honest step of humility moves me one step closer to the one I am pursing.
Paul continues to show us an example of what pressing on looks like Philippians 3:17-19
Join in imitating me, brothers and sisters, and pay careful attention to those who live according to the example you have in us. For I have often told you, and now say again with tears, that many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction; their god is their stomach; their glory is in their shame; and they are focused on earthly things,
2. Press On with Compassion
2. Press On with Compassion
The trademark of Paul in this passage is humility. Like him we to look at ourselves humbly, but as we see in this passage we also need to
let Humility shapes how we view everyone else. Which will naturally lead to compassion
Paul is very clear here and I want to be very clear there are enemies of Christ. and if you are a Christian then they are also enemies of you.
Jesus had enemies. Those who hated him. They killed him. Jesus still has enemies today. and we will encounter them in person and online. and when we do we need the correct perspective. It must be a humble perspective and not a proud one.
A proud person either idolizes the world or hates the world.
A humble Christian can look at enemies of Christ and say,
"Apart from God's grace, that would be me."
Paul was no stronger to confronting enemies of Jesus. he never backed down from the truth and he didn’t hesitate to cut ties with those who tried to twist the truth of God’s word. but that doesn’t mean he was happy about it. He says here “I say again with tears, that many live as enemies of the cross of Christ”
I wonder when Paul is thinking about the enemies of Jesus. He is thinking about the men he grew up with, the ones he persecuted Christians with, and all the young men he knew got pulled away after he left a city. whoever he was picturing in his mind it filled his heart with compassion and filled his eyes with tears.
Even as he is warning us about them he is weeping because he loves them and knows that could have been me.
Which is the perspective we need to have with enemies of Jesus. We do not back down in identifying them and warning each other about them but we don’t do it with joy. It shouldn’t bring us happiness to realize someone is an enemy of Christ. If we have the proper perspective. It should break our hearts like it did Paul’s. But he still did what he had to do and helped us identify those who are enemies of the cross. and each one is opposite to how a Christian lives
First he says in 19 their end is destruction. As Christian’s we look beyond this world hope, but he knows for them their is no hope at all there as long as they remain enemies of Christ, which is what brings him to tears.
second he says “their god is their stomach” which means their authority is their own personal satisfaction. Their appetite dictate their lives. As Christians we are free from living as slaves to our appetites.
Next he says Their glory is their shame. which means they find glory in thing that they should be ashamed of. They have warped their values to celebrate what scripture condemns. They are proud of their sin and they wear it like a badge of honor. this is the opposite of the Christian wants to glorify Christ instead of their sin.
Lastly Paul says the enemies of Christ are focused on earthly things.
a commentary I read called this section a contrast of horizons.
The Message of Philippians 1. Contrast
They are earth-bound. Their minds are set on earthly things. Their whole attention, their point of view or way of looking at things, their general frame of mind, their customary objects of study—all these are earth-centred and bounded by the horizons of this world. But Paul’s eyes are on heaven, and the prize of the heavenly calling
The Message of Philippians 2. Diagnosis
At the very centre of their being, where their life finds its direction, where attitudes and tendencies are fashioned which subsequently influence decisions and govern likes and dislikes—at this vital centre the world and its ways are the whole object of attention. The mind is set upon earth
Paul gives us theses very specific warning signs about how to identify enemies of Jesus if they are hiding trying to deceive or being in your face about it. Paul is raising the warning sign with tears in his eyes. They are tears of compassion because he knows the hope that the enemies of Jesus live every day without, and that motivates him to stand firm in truth and love as he looks to the hope that we have taken hold of.
Our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject everything to himself.
Paul has been showing us how to live in the present. throughout Phillipians he has been showing us how we can have joy anyway. But this chapter follows a consitent theme with the rest of the Bible. in order to have a successful life in the present we must take into account the lessons, blessings, and trials of the past, like when he said I look back and count it all loss, as well as looking forward to the future promises of God.
Because Paul looked back to calvary he could press on in the present, and because he looked ahead to the second coming of Jesus he could press on in the present.
3. Press on with Hope
3. Press on with Hope
Paul is saying if you want imitate me. If you want to know how to be satisfied in Christ while also pressing on you have to put the focus of your hope where it belongs on the return of Jesus.
We put so much focus on the cross and rightfully so. but the cross isn’t the designed end of all God’s saving work. The second coming of Jesus is. The cross is the means to the end of the saving work but the end result isn’t Jesus dead on a tree, its not even Jesus rising from the tomb it is Jesus returning to reign in all power and all glory forever. as it says here with everything subject to himself.
Your kingdom come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. The end goal is not us going to heaven it is heaven coming down here. Which will happen when Jesus returns. Look through the Bible time after time its God coming down to dwell with us. It happened in the garden of eden, it happened in the tabernacle, it happened in the temple, it happened when Jesus was born, and its happening right now when the Holy Spirit takes up residence in the hearts of believers. and it will happen when Jesus returns and the kingdom of God with all the believers that are with him in heaven come to earth and make it new.
What that will look like and when it will happen, and in what order are things people can debate. I choose not to spend my time trying to lock in beliefs on details the Bible didn’t fully reveal to us. But this is what I know and this is where my hope is Jesus is coming back, and when he does we will be with him fully and like Paul I eagerly am waiting for it.
My life in the present is built on my hope of what Jesus has done in the past on the cross and what he will do in the future when he returns.
I can be satisfied while still pressing on because I know he’s coming back and I want to be as much like him as possible when I meet him face to face. Whether that’s in heaven or on earth when he returns. We press on with hope.
Conclusion
Conclusion
If you want to press on toward Christ this week...
Look inward with humility.
Look outward with compassion.
Look upward with hope.
And if you keep looking in those three directions, you'll find yourself becoming more like the One you're pressing toward.
As we close today, I don't want us to simply admire Paul's example. I want us to imitate it.
So I'm going to ask you to spend the next few moments talking to God through these three lenses.
First, look inward with humility.
Ask God, "Lord, where have I convinced myself I've already arrived? Where do I need to keep growing? Show me one area where You want me to become more like Christ."
(Pause for 20–30 seconds.)
Second, look outward with compassion.
Now ask God to bring one person to your mind who is far from Him. Maybe they're hostile to the gospel. Maybe they've wandered away. Maybe they've rejected Christ altogether. Don't think about them with frustration. Pray for them with tears. Ask God to soften their heart and give you an opportunity to show them the love of Christ.
(Pause for 20–30 seconds.)
Finally, look upward with hope.
Remember that this world is not your home. Your citizenship is in heaven. Whatever burden you're carrying today, whatever disappointment or struggle you're facing, lift your eyes to the Savior who is coming again. Thank Him that your future is secure because of Him.
(Pause.)
Father, make us people who press on—not because we're trying to earn Your love, but because we've already been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Give us humility to keep growing, compassion to love those who don't know You, and hope that fixes our eyes on the day we'll finally see You face to face. In Jesus' name, amen.
