Refocus: On our Purpose

Introduction

Good morning Liberty Baptist Church!

My family and I are ecstatic about being finished with our transition to CT. Well, almost. Currently in aa hotel but should be in our house tomorrow and furniture here this week. Either way, the important things are here, my wife and kids, and we are with the important people, you all.

Thanks to pulpit committee and families, thanks to Pastor Davidson.

Beginnings are always an exciting time. I pray the new beginning that haas started here is no different. I pray we are of one mind and of one accord to serve the Lord Jesus and see Him glorified in this place.

Today is the second message in our series Refocus series. Last week we saw what can happen when we focus on Christ. We serve Him joyfully. We have a change of heart and we are not afraid to be what no one else will be and go where no one else will go so we can be with the one that can do what no one else can do.

This morning we will refocus on our purpose. Our Purpose as a church, our purpose as a person, and how we live that out to the glory of God.

This morning I want you to look with me please at Philippians chapter 3 as we seek to understand the importance of our focus on our purpose.

While you’re turning there I want to talk to about someone that some of you may know but I expect most of you won’t.

Her name is Marla Runyan. Marla Runyan gave her all to qualify for the Olympic Games in 1996, but her best time finished short of the mark to make the United States team. Undeterred by that failure, she returned in 2000 and made the team for the Sydney Olympics. Her eighth place finish in the 1,500 meter race was the best finish ever for a United States woman runner. The thing that makes Runyan’s accomplishments even more remarkable is that she is legally blind. She is the first legally blind athlete to ever qualify for and compete in the Olympic Games. After her Olympic career was over she switched to running marathons and in 2002 posted the second fastest debut marathon time ever by an American woman.

Runyan can only see shapes and blurs, but she says that her lack of vision is actually an asset—she just focuses on the finish line in front of her rather than looking around to see what the other runners are doing. Not having visual distractions helps her compete and win her races. The same thing can be true in our lives.

Mrs. Runyan was a lady who did not let distractions or difficulties keep her from running her race. She did not allow her victories to deter her from training and doing even more. The was focused on her purpose.

This morning I want to ask you, have you got distracted from your purpose? Have you had a defeated mentality? Have you stepped back from serving or living for the Lord? Are you running your race for the Lord…are have you lost focus. If that’s you today, I want to challenge you this morning…get back in the race. If you have been running this race for a long time but have rested on the good ol’ days, it’s time to get back in it. If you were waiting for the right time, that’s today.

If living for the Lord sounds strange to you, I pray you will see why so many Christians around the world and in the room have decided to do so.

Let’s read these verses together this morning before we get into our message

“Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.”

PRAY

Paul is writing to the church at Philippi a letter focused on Joy. He has had joy in his trials. He is currently chained to a roman soldier day and night. When we are focused on Christ, we will have joy. When we are focused on Christ we will understand our purpose. Focusing on Christ and on our purpose begins with a Humble foundation.

I. A Humble Foundation

Paul knew he would never attain perfection this side of Heaven. That is when we will ultimately be made perfect. What Paul is saying in this verse is that he has not attained full maturity. He has not arrived.

At this point in Paul’s ministry he has been on two missionary journeys. He has planted a multitude of churches in many cities.

He has worked with men and discipled them into pastors and leaders in those churches. He has given eloquent speeches to the intellectuals of the day.

He has been used by God to do a great work and yet he writes of himself “Not as though I had already attained.” He said I’m not there yet.

I believe if the Apostle Paul, at this point in his ministry can’t say, I’ve reached my full potential, then none of us can either.

He must have had a conversation with Peter at some point who wrote “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.”

What does it take to have this type of maturity? Where does that come from? How can we get to the place where we know we are not there yet?

We have to first, forget the past.

A. Forget the Past

Now I know some of you are thinking “Great! I forget stuff all the time.”

But that’s not exactly what’s meant by “forgetting those things which are behind.

Two areas we must work at keeping behind us because both can hold us back from moving forward for Christ.

1. Keep your sin behind you

I have much sin in my life. When God called me to full time ministry that was the first thing I turned to as an excuse for not serving the Lord.

After serving the Lord in full time ministry I’ve learned, I still have sin in my life.

Maybe you’re like me and have some sin in your life. It’s sin that you have no desire to remember. You wish the memory of that sin would be erased.

All of you teenagers in the room are at the age or quickly approaching the age where many of those memories lie for me.

As I prayed to erase memories from my youth I would read over “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

I also never found a verse that told me to “forget” my sin. This made me realize. I’m not meant to forget the sins of my past. I meant to confess them. Trust that I’m forgiven and move forward.

That sin is covered under the blood of Christ. Your sin, your cussing, your drinking, your lust, and whatever else you have in your life, is covered under the blood. Confess it, trust that it’s forgiven, and move forward.

Quote: It was Michael Jordan that said “I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions, I have been entrusted to take the game winning shot and I missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is precisely why I succeed.”

We will all fail. We must learn from it and move forward for Christ.

The second area we have to keep behind is us our victories.

2. Keep your victories behind you

It’s easy for us to think about moving past our sin. But this concept of moving past your victories may seem foreign to you. Let me explain with a commonly used quote.

“You can’t rest on your laurels”

As a church Liberty has many blessed years. This year I’m told is the 40th year of it’s existence. In that forty years, souls have been saved, lives have been changed, and great things have been accomplished.

What if that’s all we talked about? What if that’s all we discussed?

Making statements like “Back in the day we used to…” or “There was a time when…”

To any who find themselves having those thoughts and thinking the best years of Liberty are behind it let me answer you with this…

We aren’t back in the day, and the time is now to be moving forward for the Lord. Jesus Christ said “I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

He will build. He will not stop building because of an upgraded facility, he will not stop building because of so many in a church service, he will not stop building because of disagreements or troubles. He said I will build my church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it.

Followers of Jesus, Christians, are not meant to just meet in a building, sing songs, listen to a preacher, and go about life. Christians are called to do so much more.

As the church, the body of Christ, we are called to be a part of the eternal building program Jesus began.

But what about in your life? It is with great respect I make the next statement: Many of you have had great spiritual victories. Many of you have endured great trials and difficulties and overcame. Many of you have had times where the Lord has blessed immensely because of your obedience and now you may feel that your time has passed.

Let me say, if the Lord has you on this earth, He has a use for you on this earth.

Teens, children, you have many years ahead of you. You will all hopefully have great victories for Christ. Don’t let one victory be enough. Be like Paul and seek to continue moving forward. Keep your sin and your victories in the past and look forward to the future.

B. Forward to the Future

Paul forgot what was behind him and reached for those things which were in front of Him.

He could look back and see God’s blessing on His life. He could look back and see God delivering Him in times of trials.

Many of you can look back with hindsight and see God provide and deliver during what may be difficult times. Let those times be the motivator for your future.

VISION

He blessed you before, why would He not bless you now?

Paul didn’t just sit back and think about the future and how God would do great things. Paul uses an action verb here “reaching.”

He isn’t waiting for the future to come to him. He is reaching forth and taking the future into his control under the leadership of the Lord. He’s taking the future by the horns if you will.

As some of you prepare for the life God has ahead of you in college, career, and marriage, don’t just wait for life to happen to you. Seek the Lord’s wisdom and Reach forth for what he has for you.

For those a little later in life that may feel there is no future and the glory days are behind you. Let me remind you that Moses was 80 when he started in ministry. Abraham was over 100 when he had his first son and was leading people for the Lord. There’s no age God won’t use you to do something for Him. Being a prayer warrior for your pastor, an encourager to the flock, a cleaner, a person that passes out outreach cards to those in the community, or anything else you believe God would have you do. Just don’t stop serving the Lord no matter your age. You might change the way you serve just don’t stop serving.

Paul began his journey with this humble foundation where he forgot his past and looked forward to the future. He looked to the future with a Resolute Focus.

II. A Resolute Focus

Paul wrote “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

He had one goal in mind. The prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ. He wanted nothing more and nothing less.

He would take all that he is and all that he had and use it as a means to reach this one goal. The Prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ.

What is that Prize? I want to first start by saying it is not salvation. Salvation is a gift. Salvation is free. Salvation is based upon your faith in Jesus Christ and Him paying the penalty for your sin.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

So what is that prize? Some might say it is to conform to the image of Christ. The mark that is set before us is perfection in Christ Jesus.

Some have said the prize was Heaven. The result of our salvation. Eternity with God. The crowns or treasures we get to lay down at the feet of Christ.

Some would say, and I would agree with, say that the prize is those words we all long to hear

“…Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

How do we focus in like Paul did on this prize? We first see it is a personal journey.

A. A Personal Journey

Maybe you have heard of the story of Everybody, nobody, and somebody

Illustration: There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have.

As Christians we can begin to play this same game with our spiritual growth.

We look to the Pastor to preach the message that will change our heart. Our spouse to change their behavior so we won’t respond wrongly. Our children to act right so we don’t lose our temper.

We blame the Bible for being too hard to understand for us to apply it. We blame God for not taking our anger away or removing a trial.

What we are doing there is waiting for someone else to take control of our Christianity whereas Paul said “I Press toward the Mark.”

He knew no one else could do it for Him. No one else could develop his spiritual habits of prayer and study. No one else could yield his flesh to the Holy Spirit. No one else in this world could control his tongue. No one else in this world could motivate Him to pursue after Christ.

He knew that being focused on Christ, eternity with Him, and hearing “well done good and faithful servant” began with acknowledging it was His responsibility to pursue, to press after Christ.

He began his personal journey following after a personal calling.

B. A Personal Calling

God has called each of us to some of the same things.

Love the Lord and Love others. A ministry of reconciliation.

But we each have a personal calling in our lives.

“For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.”

“And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.”

While each of us are apart of the body of Christ, we each have our own function. It’s your responsibility to find out what that calling is and follow after it.

High school students in the room, as the years pass and people ask “what do you want to do when you graduate” Remember, whatever your answer is, no one will make that happen for you. Whatever God’s will for your life is, it is your responsibility to get up in the morning and, with Christ, make it happen.

Paul took his life and moved it forward for Christ. He didn’t sit stagnate, He said I’m going to do something for the Lord. He humbly admitted he wasn’t there yet. He focused in on Christ and pressing toward Him. Then he looked for a Roadmap to Follow.

III. A Roadmap to Follow

Paul wrote in verse 16 “Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.”

He said wherever you are, let us have the same rule, the same guide, and mind the same thing” At the time they didn’t have the complete writings of scripture as we do today. So what was Paul speaking of here to the believers in Phillipi.

I believe that Paul was speaking of the spirt of God. The Holy Spirit. Let Him be the rule. Let Him be your guide. Now we have the complete canon of scripture and that should definitely be used as the rule and guide of our faith but we can’t read the Bible and expect to apply the principles to our lives on our own. We must see the prize we are striving for as a collaborative goal.

A. A Collaborative Goal

It’s the mature Christian that realizes they are not yet fully matured. It’s the mature young man and woman that realizes they don’t know everything and need to keep growing.

Who better to grow you through the Word of God than the author of the Bible itself, the Holy Spirit of God.

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.”

A person who tries to live for Christ while ignoring the power of the Holy Spirit through obedience is a person who won’t live for Christ long.

I said earlier it is you that must take responsibility for your own Christianity. I am the only one that can work out my salvation. You can’t do that for me.

But I’m not meant to work it out alone. I work out my salvation and live for the Lord by yielding to the Holy Spirit and His leading in my life as it is revealed in the Bible.

The Bible is a complete guide.

B. A Complete Guide

The canon of scripture is closed. No more books will be added and no books should be taken away. We have all that we need in the 66 books God has given us.

It’s been said that “A Bible that is falling apart belongs to someone who is not.”

That’s because a Bible that is falling apart has an owner that knows what it says and is most likely living by it.

The BIble is where we find our purpose. Our purpose in life.

God gave us this purpose in two short commandments on different occasions. Duet 6:7 and here in

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

If our purpose as Christians is to Love God, how do we do that? We all should know that love is an action verb. So how do show our love to Christ.

Jesus also said “If ye love me, keep my commandments”

I believe, the best way we can show our love to Christ is to obey his last command to us.

“All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

We are to be his witness to those around us. As your pastor I have something to help you with this. It should have been in your bulletin today.

These are called outreach cards. On the front a nice and attractive design, on the back a picture of an ugly guy with a nice family, information about the location and service times of the church, and then…the most important thing that could be on any document. The gospel and how to be saved.

A vision I have for this church is that there will come a day when there are 1000 interaction between the members of this church and the community of the written and/or verbal gospel.

You might think “That’s crazy, 1000 a week. That’s way to much.

Notice the verse in Matthew again “ALL power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore…”

Jesus has all power and because of that we are to go. When we have the one with all power on our sides, there is not limit to what can be accomplished when we desire to see Jesus glorified.

Secondly we are to love our neighbors. We are to be the hands and feet of Jesus. As a church I pray that we become a church that exists for bristol by serving the people of the community in a variety of ways. Not for the purpose of serving and so we can say we have so many volunteer hours. Not so we can be recognized as a church for the community. It’s so that Jesus Christ can be glorified and we earn the right to share the gospel with those we serve.

Conclusion

This morning you may be a person that doesn’t read the Bible. You don’t pray. You got saved one day some years back, you were baptized but you have rested on the those laurels and not pressed toward the mark.

Maybe you have gotten distracted by the things around you. You’ve let your job. Your hobby, your children sports, distract you from prize of the high calling of Jesus Christ on your life. You’ve been living for self.

You could be a teen or child in here with us today that doesn’t know what you want to do when you graduate. You’re not sure what God would have for you.

I give the same advice to each of you: Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you.

Seek Jesus. Let Him direct you. Be active and engaged in your Christianity and Press toward the Mark of the high calling of God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Humbly acknowledge you are not there yet, focus in on Jesus, and then follow the roadmap.

If you are here today and haven’t trusted Christ as your savior I want you to know how to do that.

First, Humbly acknowledge that you are a sinner and need a savior. “for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

Second understand the penalty for that sin is death and hell. “for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”

You don’t have to be a slave to sin any more. You don’t have to be a slave to anger, pride, or ungratefulness. You can find Freedom in Christ.

If you know you’re a sinner and need a savior. The Bible says in “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

As we stand to our feet right now with every head bowed and every eye closed, the music will begin to play and I want to ask you “If you died today, do you know for sure that you would go to Heaven?”

Why wait to make this decision, trust Christ right now.

Say something like this from your heart to Jesus “Dear Jesus, I’m a sinner and I know that for my sin I should go to hell. But because fo your death burial and resurrection, I can be saved. Dear Jesus, I trust you as my savior and my only hope for Heaven.”

If you prayed that prayer from your heart and meant it would you raise your hand so that I may pray for you?

Thank you please put your hands down.

Christian have you not been living out your purpose?

What about you Christian? Have you been focused on the purpose God has in your life?

If your hands raised would you come forward to the altar and join me in committing to be a Christian focused on Christ to see Liberty move forward?

PRAY

Thank you for your attention this morning, you may be seated.

If you made a decision this morning would you be an encouragement to me by letting me know that on your connection card? I would like to pray for you and your spiritual growth but I can’t do that unless you let me know what’s happening.

Connection Card speech.