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IBS 45 - Philippins 3:12-13

Philippians 3:12-13
“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.”

Press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. “Fight the good fight of faith.” (1 Timothy 6:12).  He fought for me, chased after me, suffered for me, and died for me. He did it first, and now it’s my turn to fight for Him, chase after Him, suffer for Him, and die to myself for Him. Paul says to “Be imitators of me”, for he imitates Christ. (1 Corinthians 4:16). I need to follow after Him, do all I can for Him. I need to press on and take hold of that for which Christ took hold of me. He took hold of me first, and now I’ll take hold of Him. 
The fact that Paul says He hasn’t taken hold of it yet shows that it’s not a super easy task to accomplish. But he’s striving to get there, therefore so will I. He does say, “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.” That’s hard for me to do. It’s really easy for me to go off in my thoughts remembering things from the past; funny stories, crazy things that happened, or whatever it might be. I get distracted by the past forgetting things are taking place in the present. If I’m always living in the past, then I’m not living. 
Strain toward what is ahead. Paul isn’t saying to always be focused on the future. That’s also very easy for me to do. To think about what my future will look like is exciting, and then I get lost in those thoughts. Once again, I get distracted, this time about the future, forgetting things are taking place in the present. So, Paul isn’t telling me to strain toward my future always thinking about it, but strain toward what is ahead. The Kingdom of God. Drawing people closer to Him. Keeping focus on Him. Doing what He’s called me to do. Strain towards that. Pleasing God, glorifying God, worshiping God, submitting to God, following God. Paul’s saying to me to forget my old ways, I’ve been made new in Christ. Chase after Him, straining towards Heaven, the righteousness of God. Keep the distractions at bay and God in the center. 

Application: I’ll draw an arrow on my arm as a reminder to keep looking forward and whenever I see it I’ll pray that God will keep me focused on Him and what He has for me. Vanessa will keep me accountable. 

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