“ONE THING I DO” (V.13)
Philippians 3: 12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have
already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which
Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers, 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, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the
prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
INTRODUCTION
Paul’s personal goal “I” SMART. May I recommend the following steps:
FORGET, FOCUS, FORWARD, FINISH.
A. FORGET
✴ V.13, “forgetting what is behind” = our mistakes, mess-ups
✴ Luke 9:62, “Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand to the
plow and looks back [to the things behind] is fit for the kingdom
of God” (Amplified).
B. FOCUS
✴ “I've got my eye on the goal” (V.14, The Message).
✴ “I focus on this one thing” (V.13, NLT).
✴ “It is my one aspiration” (V.13, Amplified).
✴ V.8, “What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the
surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (NIV).
✴ V.8, “The priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness,
the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord and of progressively becoming more
deeply and intimately acquainted with Him” (Amplified).
✴ V.10, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection
and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him
in his death” (NIV).
What it is not--
✴ When self-improvement is our primary goal, we tend to be
preoccupied with ourselves instead of with Christ.
✴ This preoccupation parallels our culture’s self-help and
personal enhancement movement.
What it is--
✴ Westminster Catechism: “Man’s chief purpose is to glorify
God and to enjoy Him forever.”
✴ “I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us
onward—to Jesus” (The Message).
✴ The only One worthy of our preoccupation is Christ.
C. FORWARD
✴ V.13, “straining toward what is ahead” (NIV).
✴ “I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first
possessed me” (V.13, NLT).
✴ “Reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for
me” (V.13, The Message).
✴ “For the joy set before Him (consuming goal) He endured the
cross, despising the shame” (Heb. 12:2).
✴ Pursuing Christ will result in growth in the character of Christ—
his love, grace, mercy, endurance, values, priorities, & pursuits.
