Movin on Up

Intro

Eye of the tiger?

Paul has been talking about how he was willing to give up everything that he previously considered important to him in order that he might gain Christ. Not just intellectual knowledge about Christ, but gain a close, personal relationship with the Lord of Lords. That relationship then in turn has supplied Paul with a righteousness that is not his own, increasing knowledge and association with Christ, in both his death and resurrection, and that one day he might be resurrected and behold His Lord in glory. He wants to know Christ

From there he now goes into what the Christian life looks like right now. He addresses a potential misunderstanding—that Paul is this super saint who has arrived. He’s made it. There is nothing higher to attain for him. He has perfect knowledge of Christ

Paul says no…I’m not perfect, I do not have perfect knowledge of Christ. but I do press onward.

As we approach our text today, I want you to keep in mind the context of the previous passage, where Paul has been heavily stressing his desire to know Christ. To know Christ is why he was willing to suffer the loss of all things! It’s worth it to know Christ. As we come into our text today, that remains the underlying current. Pursuit of additional sanctification is more than letting go of sin. Its pursuing a deeper knowledge of Christ.

Let’s read our text.

Philippians 3:12–15 ESV

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.

What we are going to see from this text is that

The Progressing (not progressive) Christian life is one that is marked by holy discontentment, focus, determination, and mindfulness.

First

The Progressing Christian Life is Discontent

Philippians 3:12–13 (ESV)

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.

It might seem strange to identify the Christian life as one of discontentment. The Bible speaks in other places of contentment being a great virtue.

1 Timothy 6:6 ESV

6 But godliness with contentment is great gain,

Hebrews 13:5 ESV

5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

and of course Paul himself later in this same letter is going to say

Philippians 4:11 ESV

11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.

In each of these contexts, however the issue is about physical and material matters. It’s about possessions. Wealth. Poverty. Etc. In that context, yes, we are called to be content.

But when it comes to our personal Christian walk, there is an appropriate holy discontent that should be present in our lives.

Because here’s the reality, we all have things to work on, do we not?

Anyone here willing to raise their hand and say “Hey, I’ve made it. I’ve been perfected. I no longer struggle with any sin. I have a perfect ongoing relationship with God that I never neglect”

If you’re willing to admit that you still have room for improvement in your Christian life, than you’re in good company. Even the Apostle Paul recognized that he had work to do to continue to be refined by His God so that we might look more and more like Christ.

He says at the end of the previous paragraph that he anticipates attaining to the resurrection from the dead in one way or another because of the righteousness of Christ that has been granted to him, but he recognizes that as long as his on this earth, he has not yet been perfected. He has not yet obtained perfect knowledge of Christ.

Philippians 3:12 ESV

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.

Paul wants you to know. Even Paul isn’t perfect. I hope that’s an encouragement to you today because sometimes we can look at these characters in the bible that would be considered heroes of the faith and think that they are some special level of super-saint that we can never hope to be like them.

There is the reality that Paul is an Apostle and none of us will be an apostle, but from the standpoint of personal holiness and knowing Christ, Paul recognized that he himself was still in process.

Now, on one hand that should be encouraging. Even Paul didn’t have things all together, but that doesn’t mean that’s okay.

A recognition of imperfection is not permission to sin.

“Well, no one is perfect” should never be uttered as an excuse for bad behavior.

Such comments are an attempt to minimize sin to make ourselves comfortable with our sin.

It’s like covering up holes in the wall with pictures. Well, if I cover it up, put something nice in front of it, I won’t have to think about it or deal with it.

No. That’s now how we should deal with sin.

What should be our response?

Holy Discontentment.

I’m not satisfied with the level of sanctification that I have attained. I still have sin in my life. I still act selfishly. I still entertain bitter and malicious thoughts, I still allow my eyes to linger on what is not for me, or whatever else still plagues your life, I am not satisfied with where I am.

I hope you have a hatred for your sin. I hope you don’t console your conscience with cliches and platitudes like “at lest I’m not like such and such” or “hey, everyone has their vices”

No

The progressing Christian life is discontent. Paul says I know I have not yet attained to glorification nor am I perfect, but I press on.

Again, the underlying current of what it means for Paul to press on is knowledge of Christ. This knowledge impacts how we live and our personal sanctification, but it is the knowledge of Christ.

The verb to make it my own means to lay a hold of something, to grasp it. There is something more that Paul desires for his life and he’s reaching out for it to lay a hold of it.

He’s discontent.

But it’s discontentment for a reason. It’s discontent for a purpose.

Notice the last clause of verse 12

“because Christ Jesus has made me his own”

The same word that Paul used to say he pressed on to make something his own, to lay a hold of it to grasp it, that’s the same word he uses here for Jesus action.

Jesus laid a hold of me. He grasped me. He made me his own. He has a purpose for my life and therefore I’m going to pursue that purpose. I’m going to seek to lay a hold of additional Christian growth in my life because Jesus laid a hold of me for a purpose.

You are likely familiar with Paul’s conversion story. How Jesus Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus. Jesus Christ certainly got a hold of Paul that day.

And Jesus Christ has laid a hold of us each for a particular purpose which has been clearly revealed in his word.

Romans 8:29–30 ESV

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. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

Ephesians 2:10 ESV

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

We were saved not so we could simply sit back and relax and say “alright, glad my ticket is punched. Now that I know I’m going to heaven I can live however I like” No! We were saved for holiness. We were saved to know Christ and be conformed to His image!

There should be a holy discontentment in our lives with the remaining sin that still dwells within us, a desire to know Christ more fully, to taste more of his glorious splendor!

Notice verse 13:

Philippians 3:13 (ESV)

13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own.

Paul uses very emphatic language to stress the point. Translated literally we could say “Brothers, even I myself do not consider myself to have laid a hold of it”

Lest someone hear Paul say “oh come one Paul, you’re not that bad, in fact you’re doing better than most if not all of us” Paul reiterates in a very personal way.

He calls the Philippians his brothers. He places himself right along side them and says “yes, even me, I do not consider myself to have made it”

He has a holy discontentment.

The Progressing Christian life is discontent.

Well, perhaps such a life is discontent, but what is to be done? First we need to get focused.

The Progressing Christian Life is Focused.

Philippians 3:13–14 ESV

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.

This is a text that people often go to for a New Year’s Sermon as many people make their New Year’s Resolutions.

Notice Paul’s words: he does not consider himself to have arrived, he’s not perfect, but he does consider that there is one thing he’s been able to grasp: Focused pursuit of a goal. Of all the things that Paul has accomplished, there is only one things he considers to have been attained.

He says he forgets what lies behind.

You probably have things in your past that trouble you. Sins you’ve committed. Mistakes you’ve made. Things you wish you could do over.

Those things don’t have to define your pursuit forward. Remember lessons you’ve learned, absolutely, but it’s in the past. Don’t let that define your path forward.

Perhaps there are things that others have done to you. Someone has sinned against you and the damage has been significant. Those things don’t have to define your path forward. There is new life available to you in Christ where the sins of others don’t have to hold you down.

Perhaps you’re resting on past successes. Hey, I’ve made great progress here, I deserve a break where I can just sit back and bask in the glow of my accomplishments. Sorry. I’m glad you’ve made progress. There a lessons there I’m sure that can help you as you move forward, but we can’t even allow our past accomplishments keep us from moving forward.

We forget what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead.

The word for “straining forward” has the idea of stretching out your hand to reach something. There is something just out of grasp and you want to reach it so you strain and you work in order to grasp it.

Not long ago I set a personal goal that I want to be able to touch my toes. Why? I don’t know. It just seemed like a good thing to be able to do. Flexibility is good, I haven’t been able to touch my toes in 10-15 years or more. How do I get there? Regular stretching. I have to keep reaching and stretching, moving myself just a little bit closer to the goal each day until one day I bent over guess what? I touched my toes!

But I had to keep reaching. I wasn’t going to get there if I never reached for it. I had to literally stretch myself.

Similarly, if we want to attain to higher levels of sanctification, if we want to know Christ more deeply we have to reach for it. We must strain forward to what lies ahead.

Paul was focused on the task, and he reached for it.

The progressing Christian life is focused.

The Progressing Christian Life is Determined.

Philippians 3:14 ESV

14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul is not only focused on the goal, but he is determined to get there.

The word for “I press on” has the idea of chasing after something, a zealous pursuit. This word can have different meanings depending on the context. Just a few verses earlier Paul used this exact same word to refer to persecuting the church. He chased after, he persecuted the church.

Here with the language of pursuing a prize many scholars believe this is a race analogy, which Paul has been known to use.

The language is strong. There is a zealous pursuit and chasing hard after something. This is the same word he used at the beginning of the paragraph “not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on” I zealously pursue, chase after this.

He’s running toward a goal. There is something specific in his sights and he’s chasing after that.

There is practical wisdom here that might be too obvious to state. You don’t achieve goals you don’t set. Paul is pursing a goal.

What is this goal?

“the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus”

How are we to understand Paul here?

The prize of the upward call of God.

Paul says that there is a prize that awaits those who have received the upward call. Those who have responded in faith to the Gospel will receive the prize, so why does Paul speak of running after it?

In the context, the Paul has been talking about surrendering all that he previously thought gain in order to gain something far better: knowing Jesus Christ. As he runs toward the goal he pursues that very prize that he is guaranteed to receive upon finishing his race: the prize of the upward call. full and complete knowledge and fellowship with his savior.

I’m reminded of that scene in the C.S. Lewis’s The Last Battle, the final volume of the Chronicles of Narnia when the characters are entering into the New Narnia and are marveling at all the beauty and splendor before them, and yet are increasingly encouraged: “Come! Further up and further in!” and they race and run with all their might toward Asian all the while rejoicing and echoing the call “Further up and further in”

Lewis captures this idea well. There is one who is greater than the fictional Aslan who is waiting for us, whom we can know truly and deeply. As we run on this earth we have an opportunity to taste in small degrees of the fullness of Christ, and when we step into glory we will receive in full the prize that we have been experiencing in part, yet we will receive it in full.

Knowing Jesus Christ.

That’s Paul’s goal. He is determined to get it.

The progressing Christian Life is determined.

The Progressing Christian Life is Mindful

Philippians 3:15–16 ESV

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.

We are called to be mindful of Paul’s Instructions. If you are a mature believer in Christ, this is how you will approach life. You will want to know Christ more. You will have a holy discontentment with where you are in your spiritual walk. You will want more of Christ.

If that hunger isn’t there, then you may not be as mature as you might think you are.

Hence Paul’s words “if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you”

As we study God’s word, he challenges us and reveals to us areas where we are not in step with what His word says. His Holy Spirit convicts us and shows us our shortcomings.

There are a few pitfalls in the Christian life that Paul corrects with this paragraph.

One is the concept of perfectionism. There are some who believe that it is possible to attain to a level of sinless perfectionism on this earth while we live out our days here. I once had a man tell me that he hadn’t sinned in years.

If anyone could have attained to sinless perfection, it would have been Paul, but even he says “nope. Not even me”

The second is the idea that you should not be worried about putting any effort into you Christian walk. You don’t need to expend effort because Christ has done it all for you. Sometimes the cliche that is used is “You just need to let go and let God”. There are times when circumstances are out of your control and you do need to surrender it into God’s hands, but the phrase is often used even in regard to personal sanctification. Let go and let God. Don’t worry about striving for holiness.

Paul is clear: there is effort involved from our perspective.

If you recall from chapter two, Paul describes both sides of the growth-in-holiness coin. There’s our own effort: work out your salvation with fear and trembling, and there’s God’s work which enables our’s: because it is God who works in your both to will and to do for his good pleasure.

Here in chapter 3, Paul’s main focus seems to be on our effort, but he doesn’t ignore God’s. Christ has laid a hold of him, and that’s the reason why he can seek to lay a hold of additional sanctification in the first place. There is a prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. This pursuit isn’t done in the flesh, because we are not to put confidence in the flesh. It’s done in the strength of Christ.

So he calls us to be mindful of these instructions and think in this partiuclar way.

Finanlly he calls us to be mindful of previous progress and grasp it.

Philippians 3:16 ESV

16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

Paul encourages us to not allow ourselves to slide backward forgetting what we have already known. Have we come to know Christ as savior. Hold tightly to that. Though he calls us to forget what lies behind, he does not want us to forget what we have attained. What lies behind doesn’t need to hinder us. Our past accomplishments do not ensure future progress. But any progress we have made, let us strive to hold on to that.

The Christian life is really a life of pursing the knowledge of Christ. It is not enough to simply want to stop sinning. We must want to know Christ. Personal sanctification is more than letting go of sin. It’s pursing a deeper knowledge of Christ.

The progressing Christian life is a life that marked by a holy discontentment, a focus, a determination, and a mindfulness that this is how we ought to think.

Come! Further up and further in!

Let’s pray.