Pressing On When The Pressure's On Series

Pressing on When the Pressure’s On

Philippians 3:12-4:1

Rev. Brian Bill

March 15-16, 2025

A little over a year ago, I celebrated how God is using Pastor Ed Hedding from Pleasant View Baptist Church in Bettendorf. He’s a man on mission with a genuine love for the lost in our community. One of the ways Ed builds gospel bridges is by teaching a World Religions class at Scott Community College. Since then, he has started teaching at North Scott as well.

One of the assignments he gives his students is for them to attend a worship service and write a report about it. This week, he forwarded one of those papers written by a student after he engaged via the Edgewood livestream two weeks ago. I was eager to read it because I’m always curious what people think after worshiping with us the first time.

The church looked very welcoming and exceeded my expectations with how nice, clean, and modern it was…Edgewood does a lot for the community…the service was very enjoyable and informative…I have never been to a religious church service before or viewed an online service, so it was a new experience for me. The sense of community was immediately noticeable from the comfortable and happy setting. The music was moving…the sermon was passionate and thought-provoking as I had never heard these ideas before. It changed my point of view…the atmosphere seemed full of acceptance and kindness…I would be interested in watching or attending another service…especially since I am questionable about my beliefs…it was a refreshing way to view new ideas, and I look forward to experiencing it more.

This report made me go back and read what another student wrote in her paper over a year ago:

I miss attending church, and this seemed like such an upbeat and kind one. I feel this experience gave me a new perspective of what church can be like. After watching this, I wouldn’t mind attending church again. It just gave me a taste of the comforting and happy atmosphere, and I truly miss it…[It] made you feel like Jesus still loves you even if you have messed up in the past.

It makes me sad that so many young people have never been to a church service before. At the same time, I’m thrilled to see how many are finding forgiveness from their past and fulfillment in the present. If either of you are watching today, please know this: Jesus still loves you, no matter what you have done in your past!

Last weekend, we celebrated how God is using FCA on campuses in the Quad Cities area. We also support InterVarsity and their work at Augie and Blackhawk and love how Youth Hope is giving hope to youth. In addition, we see lots of life change happening in our children, youth, and young adult ministries here! It’s such an honor to be part of a church filled with faithful Christ followers who exhibit joy by pressing on to know Christ and to make Him known. Our guests can see what you have and want it for themselves!

Last weekend, we learned how a relationship with Christ, not a religious resume, is what makes us righteous. Paul made it very clear that the seven accomplishments on his spiritual resume were smoldering rubbish compared with knowing Christ:

1. Ritual.

2. Relationship.

3. Respectability.

4. Race.

5. Religion.

6. Reputation.

7. Righteousness.

Paul used forceful words to warn the Philippians about false teachers who were tripping up new believers. Speaking of that, did you see the story about the Virginia high school track athlete who has been charged with assault and battery after she used her baton to clobber another runner in the head to knock her out of the race? In a similar way, the Judaizers were attempting to knock Christians out of the race by enforcing legalistic requirements.

As we look at the second half of Philippians 3, we’ll see how Paul balances these seven accomplishments with seven essentials for running and winning the race of faith. Several times in Scripture the Christian life is referred to as a race (1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 2 Timothy 4:7; Hebrews 12:1). These essentials will help us get into spiritual shape so we can run the race set before us.

Here’s our main idea: You will never coast into Christlikeness because spiritual growth is intentional, not automatic.

I’ve used parts of Warren Wiersbe’s outline for this passage and have added a few points to it.

1. Dissatisfaction. To run the race and keep moving forward, first we must be dissatisfied with where we are right now. Paul had some incredible faith experiences like meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus, he was caught up into the third heaven (2 Corinthians 12:4), he wrote a number of letters, preached incredible sermons, and yet, after walking with Christ for about 25 years, he was not satisfied with the status of his spiritual life.