May 12, 2015 FORGETTING
Philippians 3:12-14: “Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not consider myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
If there is anything difficult to do in our own strength, it is that of forgetting what lies behind-particular our failures and bad decisions. Most, if not all, have to deal with some fallout from mistakes of the past and if not careful, we will live with a sense of regret -“I wish I had done that, or not have done that.” The cold-hard fact is that we can’t turn back the clock and do things differently and we can’t live today while focused on past successes or failures. It is possible, and it is helpful, to learn from our past experiences in life, but we must not keep our focus on the past. Someone said: “Do not let the past define the future”- so true. It is a trick of the enemy to use the past to defeat us, but as children of God, we are instructed to look forward. What are we to be looking for in the future? God has specific plans for each us, and we are to be focused how we can know and fulfill the plans He has for us. Paul chose to “press” on. There are times that we will have to “press” on just as Paul did because we will face obstacles that would cause us to lose our focus. As we see in this same chapter, Paul had no greater passion than to know God and the power of His resurrection. The more we come to know God and the power of the resurrection, our own successes and failures of the past fade in comparison. What we once thought so important, no longer holds sway over our life. God is all about newness and new beginnings. If it is our desire to know Him, God will begin to change us from the inside out-a change that draws our attention and focus to Him. Actually, there is no genuine satisfaction to be experienced outside of the satisfaction that comes from knowing Him. Once our focused is turned to Him, we will discover that we can spend our lifetime discovering more and more of just how awesome He is. God has “laid hold” of each of us, and now it is our opportunity to day-by-day discover the plans and purposes He has for us. We find purpose and fulfillment in life when we pursue the plans God has for us.
Philippians 3:8-11: “More than that, I count all things to be lost in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”
Blessings,
Buddy
Philippians 3:12-14: “Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not consider myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
If there is anything difficult to do in our own strength, it is that of forgetting what lies behind-particular our failures and bad decisions. Most, if not all, have to deal with some fallout from mistakes of the past and if not careful, we will live with a sense of regret -“I wish I had done that, or not have done that.” The cold-hard fact is that we can’t turn back the clock and do things differently and we can’t live today while focused on past successes or failures. It is possible, and it is helpful, to learn from our past experiences in life, but we must not keep our focus on the past. Someone said: “Do not let the past define the future”- so true. It is a trick of the enemy to use the past to defeat us, but as children of God, we are instructed to look forward. What are we to be looking for in the future? God has specific plans for each us, and we are to be focused how we can know and fulfill the plans He has for us. Paul chose to “press” on. There are times that we will have to “press” on just as Paul did because we will face obstacles that would cause us to lose our focus. As we see in this same chapter, Paul had no greater passion than to know God and the power of His resurrection. The more we come to know God and the power of the resurrection, our own successes and failures of the past fade in comparison. What we once thought so important, no longer holds sway over our life. God is all about newness and new beginnings. If it is our desire to know Him, God will begin to change us from the inside out-a change that draws our attention and focus to Him. Actually, there is no genuine satisfaction to be experienced outside of the satisfaction that comes from knowing Him. Once our focused is turned to Him, we will discover that we can spend our lifetime discovering more and more of just how awesome He is. God has “laid hold” of each of us, and now it is our opportunity to day-by-day discover the plans and purposes He has for us. We find purpose and fulfillment in life when we pursue the plans God has for us.
Philippians 3:8-11: “More than that, I count all things to be lost in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”
Blessings,
Buddy
RSS Feed