Straining Toward Christlikeness

Introduction

Good evening church!

I am thankful to be with you all again. Jesse and I have been eagerly awaiting finally getting to be with you all. It has been quite the transition in all honesty. However, we are so thankful to be here with yall.

Before we begin tonight, I want to share with you an illustration. Illustration with rope.

If eternity is the longer end of the rope, shouldn’t we be striving toward eternal things instead of earthly things. Paul is driving home in tonight’s passage how we as believers are to strive toward the goal of Christlikeness.

Recap

Last week, we looked at the church at Philippi that were under attack from Judaizers who were claiming that in order to become a Christian you must first become a Jew. Paul took time in his letter to address these false teachers. He then ended that section of his letter by pointing out how he strives to know Christ more. He strives to know Christ in such a way that he will know Him in His sufferings and resurrection. That is what Paul is striving towards in tonight’s passage. So I have entitled tonight’s message Straining toward Christlikeness

Sermon Summary: We, as believers, are to strive to grow in Christlikeness following the example of other mature believers as we look forward to eternity.

Scripture: Philippians 3:1-12

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

17 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Php 3:12–21). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

Pray

Point 1: The Christian is to pursue Christlike perfection.

Look back at verse 12 with me

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.

After I first read this verse, I remembered why I love Paul’s writing so much. Paul packs so much theology into one verse.

Paul is reflecting upon his desire or goal to know Christ more. Paul wanted to know Jesus as much as possible. (Phil. 3:10-11)

Remember in verse 10-11 of Philippians 3, Paul writes, “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” Paul longed to continually grow in his knowledge of Christ. Likewise, Paul wanted to be like Christ as he wrote about sharing in His sufferings and being resurrected. Which as believers, we will all be resurrected upon the return of Jesus. However, the point is that Paul’s goal is to be as much like Christ as possible.

Also, whenever I think of Paul, I think like good grief man how could you be anymore sold out for Jesus than you already are. Paul traveled sharing the Gospel. Paul was in prison as he writes this letter. He had suffered for Christ, yet his desire was to grow more and more in Christ.

Paul is blatantly honest and reveals that he has not obtained this perfection.

Paul is honest that his desire is to know Jesus more and more; however, he has yet to reach this point of perfection. Here is the thing. Paul knew he was merely a human being. He knew that he would never reach perfection. Likewise, neither will we. We will never be sinless like Jesus. We will never reach the perfection of Jesus Christ. But it leads me to a question for y’all.

What did Jesus say to the woman caught in adultery?

He said go and sin no more.

Go and sin no more. That is the call for us. If we are believers in Jesus Christ, the call is for us to go and sin no more. We are all sinners, but if we are in Christ, we have been saved by faith in Jesus Christ and are now called saints. Our sins are forgiven and now we can begin to truly live for Jesus in our lives. Jesus has imputed His righteousness upon us. No longer are our sinful deeds seen, all that is seen is the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Now, we are called to sinlessness. We are called to avoid and fight sin at all cost. We are called to be perfect because Jesus Christ is perfect.

Notice that Paul says in verse 12, “I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.”

Paul has made it his goal to become like Christ because Jesus made it His goal to take hold of Paul.

God chose Paul just as he chooses every believer. Now, Paul is making it his goal to honor Christ in every way possible in order that he may conform to the image of Jesus.

Look with me at Romans 8:29

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. -Romans 8:29

Here we see that upon salvation, the call is for believers to conform to the image of Jesus Christ.

Jesus was perfect and the call is for believers to become like Jesus, perfect. As believers, we must be doing as John Owen said. John Owen has one of my favorite quotes of all time,

“Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work; be always at it whilst you live; cease not a day from its work; be killing sin or it will be killing you.”

As believers, the call is to be holy as God is holy. We are to be perfect because Christ is perfect.

We are to be sinless. Will we fall? Yes. Should we be okay with falling to sin? NO! We must be killing sin in our lives as we seek to earnestly follow Jesus Christ in order that we may grow closer to Him.

Paul then tells us how we can do so, verse 13-14

says, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Paul first begins by calling the believers brothers in the faith which points yet again to Paul’s affection for this Church. Then, he continues on pointing out how he still has not achieved or seized Christlikeness. Paul like us is in the lifelong pursuit of Christlikeness.

Then, Paul is encouraging these Philippian believers to leave the past in the past and move forward to the future pursuing Jesus.

Remember the Judaizers had seeped into the church here in Philippian. As they were in the church spreading the false doctrine that you must become a Jew and then a Christian, they were deceiving people and calling them to hold to physical standards and Jewish heritage. These Judaizers were holding to their past. They were still clinging to the Jewish tradition and claiming it was still to be upheld even though Jesus had fulfilled the Law.

Paul reveals his fixed mindset whenever he says, “one thing I do.” Paul does one thing and that is forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead.” Paul had been called upon by Jesus on the Road to Damascus and was saved at Ananias’ house. Paul then forgot his old way of life which involved persecuting the church and following Jewish tradition. He then began encouraging the church as he pursued Christ. He left his old way of life to take up the Way which is Jesus. After doing so, he began, “straining forward to what lies ahead, ..pressing toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul was now fixing his mind upon following Jesus Christ. He had a single, acute, and pointed goal of becoming like Jesus Christ.

Believers, is that your single-minded focus? Are you solely striving to be like Jesus leaving behind your past?

Have everyone stand up and figure out who the longest believer in the room is

So, we have quite a bit of years in this room as believers. We have legacies of faith in this very room. However, I want you to notice that Paul says to forget what lies behind. This is a call to forget both good and bad in your past. Think back on all the good you have done as a believer serving the needy, sharing the Gospel, going to church, and helping others. Paul says to forget it. Now, think about all the bad you have done. Let’s get real about it. Think of all the lies you have told, people you have hated, sexual immorality, greed, pride, stealing etc. Paul also says forget about that as well. However, he does not say to neglect the addressing of sin. If you have wronged someone, you do need to seek forgiveness. The call is to forget both good and bad things that lie behind you. Why?

By forgetting all that lies in our past, we are left with the decision of we will do today. Today, will we forget about our sin, repent, and press forward pursuing Jesus by living in accordance with His Word? Today, will we reflect upon our past and remember that we served on committee after committee, served the needy, taught Sunday school, and gone to church our whole lives and think we have done enough for Jesus? Or, will we remember that we are believers call to grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ until our very last day.

The church must flee the thought that the youth are too young to serve in the church and the senior adults are to old to serve in the church. That is not biblical. The Bible does not give an age to begin being a Christian and it does not give an age for someone to retire from being a Christian. The Bible calls the believer to pursue Christ for all of his or her life. There is no quitting in the Christian life. There is no retirement in the Christian life. The call is for believers to be faithful to the Word and live for Jesus, seeking to be like Him, until the day of their death.

How different would the church look if we worked tirelessly for Jesus all of our days?

Moreover, when is the last time that you worked to exhaustion for Jesus?

May we, Salem Springs Baptist Church, from the youngest believer to the oldest believer press on for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul uses athletic language here and describes the Christian life to that of a runner. We are to have our mind fixated on the finish line and have our eyes set on the prize. Furthermore, we are to run until we reach the finish line.

As we consider the race analogy, let’s look back at verses 15-16.

15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Php 3:15–16). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

This continues the athletic language and also draws us back to the point that we, as believers, are never done running the race until the day of our death. The mature believer will recognize that he or she has never arrived at spiritual perfection. We are sinful humans that cannot reach the perfection of Jesus. However, that is no excuse for us as believers to simply be complacent. We are to be unsatisfied with our spiritual attainment until we see Jesus face to face. Likewise, we can never know Jesus Christ enough. We must seek to grow in the knowledge of Jesus more and more just as Paul did.

Then we see the call for the church in verse 16, “Only let us hold true to what we have attained.” As we continue in sanctification, we must hold to what we have attained in conforming to the image of Jesus. Also, notice that Paul uses the word us in that verse. He includes himself in this statement to the church. We the church must be unified as we seek to kill sin, strive for the prize, and seek to become more like Jesus.

Point 2: As citizens of heaven, seek to imitate mature believers avoiding apostacy.

Let’s take a look back at verses 17-21:

17 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Php 3:17–21). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

Paul again refers to these believers as brothers beginning in verse 17 which points once again to his love for this church. Though they had problems, they were still his brothers and sisters in Christ.

After Paul’s acknowledgement, he gives these believers two commands in verse 17, “join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.” Paul is know for his humility. Then whenever someone reads this verse, they may have the thought of, “Well! Paul does not sound very humble here!” However, Paul maintains his humility as he points these believers to not only follow or imitate him but to imitate those who walk according to the example you have in us. Paul is telling these believers to look to the example set before them by himself, Timothy, Epaphroditus, and other fellow believers who live according to the word. Paul simply is encouraging these believers to look to other believers who live lives of repentance, grace, and obedience.

This is a command to us as well. There are examples within this church of godly believers. I think back within my own life. I look to guys like Pastor Steve Gaines, David Platt, and Dr. Jason Allen on a higher level. However, even within the local level, I look to men such as Andy John King, Dr. Chris Bolt, and Bro. Joel Carwile. These men have had a great impact on my life. However, not only have pastors had a great impact on my life, but I have had godly examples within the churches I have attended and served. I looked up to men at Community Baptist Church that taught me what it meant to be a Christian man. I can still list name upon name of men that I looked up to as they followed Jesus. We are to look to those who follow Jesus faithfully and imitate them.

Moreover, they is another side to this coin. We should also be setting the example for others. Older believers, you are influencing others. Likewise, young believers and youth, you have an influence in your school. Not only that, you have an influence within the church. Whenever these older believers see you living for Jesus, they will rejoice and find joy in seeing the next generation follow Jesus faithfully. Be sure both older generation and younger generation that you are staying close and clean. Stay close to Jesus and free from sin.

Paul continues on in verses 18-19 saying, “For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.”

Paul warns the Philippian church yet again of false teachers. Paul warns them but he also expresses grief over these false teachers. Notice he mentions that he has shed tears over them because they walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Scholars are unsure of exactly who these false teachers or believers are. However, they are oftentimes coined as the pretenders. They were those in the church casting the wrong example for believers to follow. They were deceivers.

Notice, Paul says their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. What Paul means there is that these pretenders were boasting not in the cross but in the things that offend God. Their end will be divine judgement. They were boasters of sin and set examples contrary to God’s Word. They set their mind on earthly things and not eternal things. Their desires were their god.

Do we have pretenders in the church today?

In all honesty, we do. We see this all the time. We have church attenders who come on Sunday morning and sin like crazy the rest of the week. This is saddening and cannot be the state of our church. We must be like Paul and shed tears over pretenders and pray for their deliverance. You see, they glory in their citizenship being on earth.

However, our citizenship as believers is in heaven look with me at verse 20-21, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”

We, who are in Christ, are citizens of heaven and can eagerly look forward to the day whenever we are freed from these earthly bodies and receive our glorified bodies in heaven.

Invitation

How to gain a heavenly, glorified body=Jesus Christ.