Paul’s One Goal is Moving Forward in Christ
Philippians
3:13-14 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. KJVPaul perhaps could have boasted much about the accomplishments that were directly attributed to him for our Lord Jesus Christ, thinking himself to be personally responsible for Gentiles in Galatia, Thessalonica, Corinth, Colossi, and Philippi hearing the Gospel of Christ preached by him, then coming to faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. However, Paul knew himself to be just an instrument of Christ to spread His message of saving faith throughout the world as our Lord Jesus spoke of Paul to Ananias using these very words, “Then Ananias answered, ‘Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.’ But the Lord said to him, ‘Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.’” (Acts 9-13-16) (NKJV). Surely Ananias told Paul of this conversation that he had with our Lord Jesus Christ and with these words of our very Lord Jesus always on his mind, Paul sees himself rightly before Christ as being His vessel used for His work and that nothing is coming from Paul or by any power from Paul the Apostle, therefore, he now says to these Philippian believers how he sees himself before God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit, “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” (Philippians 3:13) (NKJV).
Paul has purposed in himself to forget or to dismiss from his mind or to lose out of his mind the things which are in his past, this would surely include his past sins and failures, but it likewise includes his past accomplishments listed above done by our Lord Jesus through Paul’s very tent, house, or body. Paul sees every new day, week, month, or year as a mandate from our Lord Jesus Christ personally to him, to as he puts it here “reaching forth” and this English phrase is translated by one Greek word epekteinomai meaning to stretch (oneself) forward upon something. In other words, Paul’s mandate (and every Christians mandate) from our Lord Jesus Christ in our Christian walk is to be like a runner in a marathon race forgetting the sights and sounds experienced at mile 14 or mile 7 while currently running toward mile 21 including the accomplishment of passing the earlier miles as well as the pain experienced in the body during those miles, but instead stretch or extend one’s limbs or muscles, or the entire body toward the goal of reaching the final mile 26 and the finish line. In like manner, the Apostle Paul was stretching his spiritual muscles toward the spiritual mile 26 which would be his face to face home going meeting with our Lord Jesus Christ in heaven as he (Paul) witnessed Brother Steven have as he was being stoned to death by the enraged Jews as documented for us by Dr. Luke with these words, “When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’ Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not charge them with this sin.’ And when he had said this, he fell asleep.” (Acts 7:54-60) (NKJV).
Note: “Paul refers to those things behind meaning everything, i.e. his years of ignorance before he encountered Christ on the Damascus Road, as well as all these years (30 plus now) that he has walked with Christ including his failings, faults, and fumbling’s, likewise all the good, generous, and great things he accomplished for Christ sake, his mission journeys, all the occasions he preached the Gospel, the Churches planted in Christ name (such as this one here in Philippi), and many more. ‘The Christian is always humbled by the contrast between what he is and what he desires to be. The eye reaches before and draws on the hand, the hand reaches before and draws on the foot.’ [Bengel]”. Paul being a student of the Old Testament before his salvation and even more so since his encounter with Christ on the Damascus Road surely has in his mind these words spoken by God the Father to the children of Israel when he said, “And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward.’” (Exodus 14:15) (NKJV) as he (Paul) writes this to the Philippian Church, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14) (KJV). The Lord Jesus Christ is the mark that the Apostle Paul is stretching forward unto (and all of us as His followers) as the writer of Hebrews puts it with these words, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2) (NKJV).
“The goal of every one of us as Christians is the high calling we have been chosen for in Christ Jesus our Lord. While we are here on the earth we will never attain to perfection, but that will be ours when we see our Lord Jesus Christ in heaven receiving our glorified body fashioned like His, therefore, while we are still here on earth we must be as King David was when he wrote his desire saying, ‘One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple.’ (Psalm 27:4) (NKJV).” Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
“The nearer the saint comes to the perfect life, the farther he feels from it. It is only when we have climbed the foothills that we realize how lofty the mountain summits are. But there is no need for discouragement. We have eternity before us, the expanding landscape of truth is our inspiration, and the loving Spirit of God bears us upward on eagle’s wings. Our Savior had a distinct purpose in view when He apprehended us. Its full scope was only known to Him; let us strive that we may not fail to realize His ideal. We can do this best by forgetting past failures, past sins, and past successes, and pressing on toward the goal. Will not the prize be the Lord Himself? Let us always remember that God’s call is upward. This will help us when there seems collision between two duties.” F. B. Meyer
If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…
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