Moving on!

Lately Ive been reading alot in the book of phillippians.  And there is one thing for sure, it is one book that could be classified as a “super rich” book of the Bible! Alot of my favorite verses are found in Phillippians, and it only has four chapters!! I guess I’ve been thinking about “going forward” alot. Right now we are at a place in our ministry in which we have recently become involved in alot of different things, Titus started a radio broadcast, I started this blog, and weve had more doors open for us recently in Mexico. Going forwad though, is something thats important for us to do at any part of our walk with God. We should really always be moving forward with God but instead we often end up “hung up” on something in our pasts. I think paul was a man who was constantly moving forward. It’s obvious in one particular verse in phillippians. 

Phillippians 3:12-14

 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.

13 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,

14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

What sticks out to me in this verse is the line that says “forgetting those things which are behind.” Did he literally erase them from his mind with one of those handy little majic erasers? No. But he did make a conscious choice to put some things behind him. 

What all could paul have gotten hung up on? Alot. 

Paul could have gotten hung up on his past.

He was responsible for persecuting the church, he was responsible for the death of steven, he traveled to Damascus for the express purpose of imprisoning more believers in Christ. These are things that he could have looked back on and saw as a crippling mistake; something that he could never recover from. But After he became a beleiver in Christ these are things that were under the blood. Things that were over and things that he didn’t have to continue to live under for the rest of his life. Did he look back on the pain he caused so many people and regret it? Im sure he did. But it didn’t stop him from going on with God.

There are things that happened to him after he Got saved as well. He had to confront peter in antioch over his treatment of gentiles, he seperated from silas barnabas over the indiscretion of john mark. And let’s face it; his life in the ministry was just plain difficult.

2 corinthians 11:24-28

 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.

Whew!!!! I think I would want to find myself a hole to hide in , and stay there a while if Id been through all that!

But paul did not become bitter because of these things. he didn’t become bitter against his brothers in Christ; in fact later on he said bring me John Mark because he is profitable for the ministry. He is also known for saying “for me to live is Christ, to die is gain.” Paul did not get hung up on the difficult or the bad things that he had to go through as a minister of the gospel or just as someone who believed in Jesus Christ. He allowed them to push him forward. 

But sometimes we do get hung up. we get hung up because of the things we did before we were saved or because of difficult things that happened to us after we got saved or because we thought that things would be different than they are now. maybe because of the hypocrisy that we might see, or think we see, in others. But God wants us to be moving forward, past the hindrances and trouble around us and onward into his will, into a closer walk with him and into a truly beautiful future that he has planned for each of us. 

Paul also could have gotten hung up on past victories. He was known for raising a man from the dead, casting demons out of others, and healing the sick. He started churches all over the known world, and he had spoken before kings. But paul wasnt stuck on these either! He knew that his past victorys were not enough to carry him through on that final day when he would stand before Christ. he needed a relationship with Christ that was fresh and current. 

1 corinthians 9:27 “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” 

He did not have a hum drum christian experience. Paul had one goal, one motivation that kept him moving onward and upward everyday of his life. Jesus Christ. 

Come what may, he never Got over that meeting he had with Jusus on the road to Damascus. He never forgot it, he never was distracted from it, he always went back to it. 

Paul refused to allow either the good things or the bad things to control his future and his actions of that day. 

Phillippians 3:7-8 “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,” 

Paul chose to forget the things of the past, realizing that at no point has someone arrived until they’ve already made it to heaven; and he wasn’t there yet. he realized that his past was the past. he might have done horrible things in the past but he didn’t have to allow that to control him today. he might have performed many miracles in the past but that didn’t mean that he was maintaining current victory. 

     Paul was a forward focused Christian. he was focused on moving forward with Jesus Christ, on moving forward in the church, on moving forward in his personal walk with God. he did not allow himself to be bound by the past or to become prideful of his previous victories. But he walked on. On and up. 

Paul was a forward focused Christian because he followed a forward focused Christ!

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2 

Jesus pressed through, not only the hardship of life on earth, but he endured the death of the Cross

    This is the example that we are called to follow. We are called to look forward, to leave our past behind, to fix our eyes on Jesus and walk on through hardships and pain, through good times and bad. Jesus is our example, he shows us how to forgive, how to endure, how to move onward  and upward with God.