Daily Wisdom

“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.” Phil 3:13-14

There are endless ways of illustrating the point, but a clear and easy way to say it is: you can’t drive a car looking in the rear view mirror. Paul was not referring to his past sins, which God had forgiven to remove all guilt. Nor was he making mention of worldly things, which believers are apt to respect and look back upon and hanker after, as the Israelites did during the exodus from Egypt (Exo 16:3).  Paul told us “what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.” (vs 7)  What Paul was referencing was his labors and works of righteousness since his salvation. Though he makes mention at times for the glory of the gospel, and to stop vain boasting of false teachers, but he forgot them in point of making dependence and trust on them. Instead he put his hand to the plough (Lk 9:62) and refused to look back, and continued reaching towards the prize in Christ. What Paul reached and pressed for was the perfection (maturity) in the faithful knowledge of the word and holiness in/through Christ-likeness. Like a metaphor of a runner striding for a finish line, but not yet having reached it he refuses, and can’t afford to look back on what he’s accomplished; only where he is heading. What consumes your mind controls your life. Losing focus or being distracted from the race (1 Cor 9:24) in which you’re are called will cause you to lose sight of where you were heading. Your objective is not about outperforming or beating others running with you, it’s about you finishing your race with the great eagerness and desirous efforts in which Paul ran. That’s the mark and the prize of God’s calling.

Live your life as a soldier on a mission, not a saint on a sabbatical

HSAY… Todd