INTRODUCTION
How many of you had a good year last year?
I did, I got to live another year, I learned that I was going to be a grandfather and many other great things happened. The Cardinals made the playoffs again and the Rams did the same.
In the sports world what does a team whom is successful do? What do teams that win a Super Bowl or the World Series do? (I know for you Cub fans this is not a fair question) Do they rest on their success? No, good organizations will press on and will try to improve on their previous performance.
As a church I believe that we can learn a lesson from the sports world. I cannot help but be excited over the year that we had at Auburn Christian Church. Through the ministry of this church, we immersed ten people (including my daughter) in 2001. We had four people transfer their memberships to our church. I know that in past years we have won more people, but for me, I have not been a part of this kind of growth in year.
I would consider 2001 as a championship year for Auburn Christian Church. There have been many other ones in the church’s history. 1868 was another one. That is the year that the church was organized. In 1917 the church was closed until 1921 when a group of ladies saw to it that the church reopened. 1921 was a championship year. In 1951 the House of worship was completed. Another championship year. 1969. On October 19,1969, this very building was dedicated to the Lord’s service. Many of you may have been here for that. Another championship year.
The question that every champion has to ask is “What now?” Are we going to live in our past glories or are we going to “Press On?”
This church has a glorious past. This church has been blessed with godly men to lead it, men who had a heart for God and the vision for what God wanted this church to do. Men such as Reaves Evans, Marc Criquelion, W.E. Shutt, C.H. King and many others have laid a foundation for us to build upon in 2002.
Now we have a new generation of leaders. Will they have the same heart for God, vision and support that the men of the past have had? I believe they will.
Our leadership has a high standard to obtain because of the great men of the faith that has led this church to where it is today.
Today, I want us to look at what it will take for us to be able to build on the foundation that we have inherited.
To do this I want to look at a formula that Paul gives to us in Philippians 3:12-16.
In verses 1-11 Paul speaks of how his life in Christ caused him to reevaluate his life’s goals and purpose, now he states that he has more work to do, he is not complacent with his walk.
In verses 12-16 Paul gives us a formula that he personally lived by. In t his passage we will see how we can personally “Press On” for Jesus and how we as a church can “Press On” also.
SERMON
If the Auburn Christian Church is going to build like a champion we first must have:
I. PROPER MINDSET 12,13A,15,16
Verses 12 and 13 set the tone for Paul’s mindset regarding his position in the race for the prize.
In the previous section Paul spells out all of his accomplishments and then in verses 12 and 13 he tells us that even with all he has done, he has yet to reach the end of the race.
One of the things that kills the churches and our individual spiritual growth is thinking that we have made it to the top.
On an individual basis, when we feel that we have reached the pinnacle of maturity we will stop growing. We will quit putting out the effort to grow closer to Jesus.
In the church when we get into a comfort zone, we will cling on to programs and methods of the past that once worked very well. The problem comes in that when we feel like we have made it as a church, we quit looking for ways to make what we do better and more relevant to today’s society.
When we feel like we have made it, we quit trying to grow.
Not obtained it?
What is it that Paul has not obtained? Completion in Christ. He is still striving to grow closer to Jesus. He is not speaking of salvation because he tells us that we NOW possess salvation in Jesus. When he speaks of not being perfect yet, he is speaking of being fully mature, or that he is to the point that he can quit working on his growth in Christ. Paul is not speaking of being sinless.
Paul was never satisfied about where he was in his relationship with Jesus. He never felt that he had done all he could and now it was time to sit back and relax.
Paul denies complacency and affirms yet unreached possibilities. Indeed, one of the joys of being in Christ is this process of open-ended growth. As one writer has observed, the more one knows of Christ the more one wishes to know.
Following Jesus is a great adventure, one full of excitement and surprises.
As a church we cannot be complacent about where we are because that will lead spiritual laziness.
Perfect
When Paul speaks of being perfect, he is speaking of being made complete in Christ, he is speaking of having a complete or perfect knowledge of Jesus.
As a church our job in not complete until we can fulfill the admonition in COL 1:28 which says, “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.”
If we are going to build on the foundation that has been laid for our church our mindset has to be one of restless excitement. We are excited about what God has done in the past and that past excitement should lead us to be excited about what God will do with this church in the future. We need to be excited about what God is going to do in our individual lives in the future also.
Philippians 3:15 in the(GWT) says, 15Whoever has a mature faith should think this way. And if you think differently, God will show you how to think.
Our mindset has to be one that says, “we have not finished the race, we have not won the prize yet and there is more to do. We cannot live in the glories of the past, we must look at what we need to do as a church to reach the people in 2002. For many churches if 1950 ever returns, they will be ready, but 1950 will never return. Our programs, our worship and our music need to be relevant to the people of 2002. Our message will never change, but how we present it will.
As you look around you this morning, are you content with where we are at, do you think God has done all he can do with us or are you one that believes that God has even greater things on the horizon for the Auburn Christian Church!
It will be the job of the leader of this church to keep us moving forward, to remind us that we have not yet reached the goal or won the prize. Sometimes in the course of moving the church forward, decisions will be made that are not always popular, but we have elected Miles, Mark and Mike to keep us moving forward.
If the Auburn Christian Church is going to build like a champion we will have to:
II. EXERTION OF ENERGY 13B,14
In order for us to build upon the great heritage that we have inherited, as a church we will have to have a focused exertion of energy. This energy will have to be focused on two things in particular.
The first area of exertion will be mentally blocking the past.
In verse 13 Paul says that, "but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind…”
As a Christian or as the church one of the worst things that we can do it to live in the past.
Paul does not imply that we should erase our past, but that we are not to let the past impede the progress of the present and future. Many people rest on there past accomplishments, or wallow in their past failures.
He is forgetting the things which are behind. That is to say, he will never glory in any of his achievements or use them as an excuse for relaxation. In effect Paul is saying that the Christian must forget all that he has done and remember only what he has still to do. In the Christian life there is no room for a person who desires to rest upon his laurels.
What would have happened if the past leadership of our church decided that since we already had a building, that we were not going to build another one because it might hurt someone’s feelings that were a part of the old building?
What if when we get to the point where our building is at capacity we decided we are not going to expand because someone may not like it?
I have been around churches that had a great past, but they tried to relive that past and it does not work. A program that worked 20 years ago most likely will not work today. A program that did not work 20 years ago may very well work today.
The way we used to do outreach years ago does not work today. A friend of mine who preaches in Missouri had to spend a lot of time to get the leadership up to speed about that fact when it came time for outreach.
We do not want to forget the past, but we also do not want to be tied down to the past either.
Many people are anchored to their past failures. It keeps them from growing. We need to learn from the past and move on.
Paul was not one to live in the past. The past he properly appreciated; but his thoughts continued to dwell upon the future. The great prize still lay forward at the finish line.
The second area of exertion will be an unwavering progression forward.
Reaching forth—The word used for “reaching forward” points out the strong
exertions made in the race; every muscle and nerve is exerted, and he puts forth every particle of his strength in running. He was running for life, and running for his life. )
The word is a very vivid and is used of a racer going hard for the tape. It describes him with eyes for nothing but the goal. It describes the man who is going flat out for the finish. So Paul says that in the Christian life we must forget every past achievement and remember only the goal which lies ahead.
In our walk with Jesus we must always make a strong effort to reach forward and not slip backwards.
Have you ever anyone stop a race before it was finished to crown a winner? Have they ever given a Super Bowl trophy out to a team in mid-season?
What happens to a team that in the middle of the season thinks they have it wrapped up and quit reaching forward? They do not win the prize.
I cannot help but to think about the comments that came from the Seattle Mariners last season. They won the 2nd or 3rd most regular season games in the long history of baseball. They lost in the playoffs and then said when the Yankees beat them that the best team did not win. It is all about the prize. Who cares about anything else?
As a church we need to ALWAYS be looking for ways to press forward toward our goal.
If the Auburn Christian Church is going to build like a champion we must have:
III. FOCUSED PURPOSE 14,15
The goal!
What is our goal as a Christian? What is our goal as a church? Our goal as a Christian needs to be to finish the race.
2TI 4:7-8 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
I hope and pray that I will be able to say that when my days on earth are completed!
What is the difference between Championship teams and ones who fall short? Many times it is a matter of the goal. I am not a Yankee fan, but in that organization anything short of a World Series trophy is a failed season. Many teams would be happy to win a division or get to a World Series, not the Yankees. Their goal EVERY year is to win it all. That is the focus.
In our lives our focus needs to be on Jesus.
HEB 12:2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Our eyes need to be fixed on Jesus! It should be our goal to be able to stand before Jesus and receive our final reward.
In verse 14 Paul says, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
When a race was completed, the winner was called up to a raised podium to receive their prize for winning the race, it was an upward call.
As a church we should not be continent until we have reached every lost person in Auburn! As long as there are people in our town dying and going to hell, we need to know our job is not finished!
All of our energies need to directed toward doing what we need to do to reach lost people and once we reach them, growing them in Christ! Remember what COL 1:28 says, “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.”
CONCLUSION
Today after our worship service we are going to install our new leadership team for 2002. These men will have the job of making sure that as a church we continue to press on toward the goal of the prize of the upward call of God in Jesus Christ.
In your walk with Jesus you must not be content with where you are in Christ. Once you reach that stage, you will quit growing.
As a church if we are content with where we are today, we will stop growing.
God has called us to reach this community for Him!
I am confident that our leadership team will lead this church in such a way that we honor our past heritage by respecting what has been done and building upon it.
It is my prayer that all of us will support and encourage our leaders to find new and innovative ways to reach the Auburn community for Jesus. How many of you would like to see this place bust out at the seams!
Let us remember that the race is still on and we are still running it. Let us keep our eyes upon Jesus as we strive to reach the finish line!
Last year we reached 10 people for Christ, this year lets go for 20 or more!
