As we experience the joy of knowing Jesus we must learn to continue in that joy. We must press on. The Christian journey is one that is filled with unspeakable joy. We are pilgrims in this world. We are on a journey to our Heavenly home. This journey is filled with many ups and downs. However, it is an adventurous journey and a joyful journey. In Philippians 3:13-21 we learn of several things that pressing on requires as we continue on this journey.
Pressing on requires humility. In verse 13, Paul declares that his journey is not over. He has not apprehended. He has not arrived. Paul realized that he still had a long way to go and he still had much to learn. Paul has a sense of dissatisfaction. He was not dissatisfied with Jesus. He was dissatisfied with himself. He was not where he wanted to be in his Christian journey. Warren Wiersbe says, “A sanctified dissatisfaction is the first essential to progress in the Christian race.”[1] If we want to truly grow in our faith and our walk with God, we must be humble enough to realize that we still have much to learn. None of us are where we ought to be in our sanctification process. We could all be further along than we currently are. The moment you think you have arrived is the moment you fall. Spiritual pride is the downfall of many believers. Spiritual pride opens up a door that leads to sin. When you get to a place where you think you have arrived and you know all there is to know you will take many steps back and will stumble back further than you came. To press on we must be humble.
Pressing on requires dedication. Paul continues in verse 13 by stating that though he has not arrived, he is dedicated to forget the things which are behind and press on toward those things that are before him. Pressing on requires a dedication to continue to grow. It is understanding that I still have much to learn and am determined to press on. Are you dedicated to your Christian journey? Are you dedicated to the sanctification process that God is bringing you through? One who is dedicated to his Christian journey is one who takes seriously his time with God in prayer and in the study of His Word. It is one who is serious about his involvement in the church. It is one who is serious about the mission to which he is called. Are you a dedicated Christian? Do you have the dedication to press on?
Pressing on requires focus. In verses 13-14 Paul describes how he is reaching forth to things that are ahead and he is pressing toward the mark which is Jesus. Focus is key. There are so many distractions in our world today. If we are going to press on in our Christian journey, we must be focused on Jesus. We cannot look to the right or the left, we cannot allow ourselves to get sidetracked. We need to have tunnel vision where we see only one thing and that is Christ alone. Too often our vision is skewed by the things of this world. Everyday there is a battle for our eyes and our mind. Satan dangles the attractive things of this world in front of our desires toying us and daring us to take a bite. However, we must be disciplined. We must stand firm and keep our eyes on Jesus. Like a runner who is near the finish line we must look straight ahead. Like a football team on 4th and goal we must focus on the goal line. Pressing on requires focusing on Jesus.
Pressing on requires discipline. In verse 15-16 Paul speaks of the discipline of pressing on. The Holman New Testament Commentary says, “As followers of Christ, we are responsible to live out or put into practice what we have learned. We are not perfect, but that is no excuse not to run the race and seek the prize. God is calling us to the victory stand. We must run as hard as we can to cross the finish line.”[2] Paul mentions the discipline that is needed to finish well in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. He mentions that the runners in a race run to win a prize. Those runners must discipline themselves with a proper diet and good exercise in order to be able to run well. Paul says that our spiritual journey also requires such discipline. We are to keep our bodies in subjection. We are to live untainted by the world and be filled with the knowledge of God’s Word so that we may run the race well and enjoy the prize that awaits us.
Pressing on requires discernment. In verses 17-19 Paul warns us to be mindful of those who are enemies of the cross. He teaches us to have discernment and to choose those we follow wisely. Ellsworth writes, “Getting to know God well is a difficult and demanding business. What should we do when we find ourselves facing a challenge that seems too difficult for us? We should do what the unsure guest does when he is at one of those fancy dinners and doesn’t know which fork to use: we should find a good role model and do what that person does.”[3] Do you have Godly role models in your life that you can follow? Do you use good discernment in choosing who those role models are? Every day I pray for wisdom on many different fronts. I pray that God would grant me the wisdom to discern who I should listen to and who I should ignore. Not all advice is good advice. Not all information shared is the right information. Therefore, much wisdom and discernment is needed. Many Christians have been led astray because they listened to the wrong people. Many churches have succumbed to discord and division that hinders the cause of Christ in the community because of listening to the wrong people. It is a sad reality that you cannot trust everyone who claims to be a Christian. Choose your friends wisely. Discernment is needed to press on, lest you fall to the wayside.
Pressing on requires expectation. There are those who ‘mind earthly things’ according to verse 19. These are those who are so focused on this world that they have no expectation of Heaven. Paul reminds us that our ‘conversation’ or ‘citizenship’ is not on this earth, but in Heaven. As one commentator says, “The unworthy Christians mentioned in the last verse mind earthly things; but our city, our country, our home, is in heaven: there is the state of which we are citizens; there is the general assembly and Church of the Firstborn, whose names are inscribed in the roll of the citizens of the heavenly city. Our real home is there now.”[4] Ephesians 2:19 says, “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God.” As believers in Christ, we are citizens of the Kingdom of God now! Therefore, we should not ‘mind earthly things’. We should live for the Kingdom. We should live with Kingdom expectation; serving as an ambassador of the Kingdom in this life and looking forward to life in the Kingdom. We should press on as pilgrims in this foreign land as we wait for that call to come home. As the old preachers would say, “keep your hands on the plow and your eyes on the sky.” Keep on serving the Lord faithfully with the expectation of going home. We have a promise from God that we will be changed. Our vile sinful bodies will give way to a glorious pure body. King Jesus will subdue all things and will rule and reign forever. This is our expectation. This is our hope. We must press on through the pain. We must press on through the suffering. We must press on through the persecution. We must press on through the confusion. We must press on through the doubts. We must press on through the fears. We must press on through the disappointments. We must press on through the temptations. We must press on through the heartache. We must press on through the victories and the defeats. We cannot tire. We cannot grow weary. We cannot give up. We cannot quit. Why? Because we have a hope. We have an expectation. Our redemption draweth nigh. The trump is about to sound. Jesus is coming soon. Don’t give up church, for we are almost home!
We have a choice to make. Will we succumb to the pressures of this word or will we press on? Will we throw in the towel or will we press on? Dear friend, we have come too far to give up now. Press on!
[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 88). Victor Books.
[2] Anders, M. (1999). Galatians-Colossians (Vol. 8, p. 246). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[3] Ellsworth, R. (2004). Opening up Philippians (p. 71). Day One Publications.
[4] Spence-Jones, H. D. M., ed. (1909). Philippians (pp. 115–116). Funk & Wagnalls Company.
Pastor Chris Noland 