PRESS ON
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 at 2:05PM PHILIPPIANS 3:12-14
“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. 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.”
Notice that Paul says.. "Not that I've obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on", towards what? "Towards the goal for the upward call in God in Christ Jesus".
There is an upward call in God that we need to press on for. We have to forget what lies behind us and press on towards Him. That means we have to get past all the hurts, offenses and failures that we've experienced in the past and draw a line in the ground and step over it today, and never look back as Lot's wife did. We have to set our face towards God and His purpose and press on. Constantly looking back in life and longing for the things of the past will only stunt who you are in Christ.
We can't afford to be another generation of believers that just does the same things as the previous generations. We have to get desperate and more passionate for the things of God and seek His face daily! We can’t afford to live off of the stale bread from last week. God has a word for us to live off of for today; a word that will help you through the circumstances that you might be facing right now. BUT, it takes action on our part. We have to become persistent and relentless in these things like the widow in Luke 18 if we want to press on in Christ.
Another thing that we must do to press on in Christ is separate ourselves from the world.
James 4:4 says,
“You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
The world can look very appealing to our flesh and it’s desires. But, when we become friends with the world we are actually cheating on God! Think about that for a second. We are basically telling God that He isn’t good enough for us. This is a scary road to be on because the bible is very clear about how when people live for themselves and set their minds on earthly things, the end of the road for them is destruction.
We as Christians are called to lead and that means we have to have a higher standard in our lives. If it feels like something is missing and isn’t right in your life, get before God in prayer and the word, and pinpoint the problem. We must strip off the old man and its desires and put on the new man that is renewed and created in the likeness of God. (Eph 4:22-24). That only happens by spending quality time with God.
Examine your life and where you're at today with God. What are the areas that God is asking you to cut off, and what are the areas can you raise the bar and set a higher standard? Write them down so that they are always before you and work towards them. We have a mission to fulfill on this earth, not only as individuals but as a body.
Lets press on and believe God together as a group and change our world! Be persistent in your walk with God, never looking back to where you came from. It’s not worth it! We don’t have time to long for the things of this world that end up leading to destruction. Lets continue to push ourselves to get the gospel out and let our lights shine! We can’t afford to be silent. It’s action time!
Mark 16:17-18
“And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
-Chris Duncan
Reader Comments (4)
Great word Chris!
Wise words!
Excellent word CD and perfect in it's timing.
Very Good Chris! Keep pressin' on!