Not that I have already
obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay
hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do
not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting
what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the
goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14
What is your aim? Are you certain? A certainty of aim has to
do with life focus and the things we pursue each day. Paul was saying, “I have found my calling, and
I am in hot pursuit of fulfilling my purpose.” I know what God wants me to do, and I spend my
time, my energy, my resources and strength in the pursuit of that purpose.
Fulfilling the purpose of God was Paul’s passion. It was that for which he
lived. What is the driving passion of
your life?
- Strategy number 2 - Have a certainty of aim. …but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for
which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. v.12b
A story is told of a greyhound racing
dog. Until a few years ago, the greyhounds were euthanized when they got too
old to race. They were no good for breeding and too old to race. A group of
ladies started an adoption agency whose sole purpose was to find good homes for
these dogs. A dog whisperer’s daughter adopted one of the greyhounds. When he
visited her home at Thanksgiving, she showed her father the beautiful greyhound
she had adopted. After dinner, he went in the backyard to visit with the dog.
He asked the dog, “Greyhound, how are you doing? Did you ever race in Miami?
Did you ever win? The stately greyhound responded, “Life is good! I have a big
yard to play in, three square meals a day and an owner who loves me.” He
continued, “Yes, I ran in Miami and won five times!” The man asked, “Did you
get too old to run?” The stately greyhound responded, “No, I quit.” The man
asked further, “Why did you quit?” The greyhound called him a little closer and
said, “I found out the rabbit wasn’t real.”
Many “rabbits” in the
world are not real.
We are constantly being bombarded with things trying to claim our attention, so
we must have a certainty of aim. Be careful what you spend your time chasing.
- Strategy Number 3: Pull the curtains on
the past. This one thing I do... forgetting what lies behind. Philippians
3:13
One of the greatest weights that hold us back from moving
forward with freedom is our past. Paul
would not allow his past to prevent him from fulfilling his purpose. Even though others could not forget, he would
not let their opinion of him keep him from being who God had made him to
be. We must not allow our past to keep
us from our future.
Paul’s attitude seemed to be that the past was real and
needed to be acknowledged. It happened.
Mistakes were made, and he was sorry. He had repented and forsaken his sin. It was
over and he rejoiced that his sins were covered by the blood of Jesus. The old
“Saul” was dead. He was a new creature in Christ Jesus; forgiven and delivered.
Satan has a way of bringing up our past failures, mistakes
and sins. He tries to condemn us with
the mistakes of the past. They are
called "skeletons” in our closets because they are dead and they need to
be buried. A part of your strategy in
going forward must include pulling the curtains on your past. Your mistakes,
sins, shortcomings and other skeletons, are behind you, so forget them all! Take a text, eulogize those bones, and lay
them to rest!
Jesus came, suffered, bled and died as penalty for the sins
of the world. You have been forgiven. You are free to go! Go into your future!
Go fulfill your purpose in Jesus name! You are free!
Scripture to Claim:
In freedom Christ has made us free [and
completely liberated us]; stand fast then, and do not be hampered and held
ensnared and submit again to a yoke of slavery [which you have once put
off]. Galatians 5:1
