Worth Pressing After

Philippians 3:13-14 ESV says, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

If there is one thing worth doing, it’s pressing on after Jesus.

He is worth every effort we could give and more. What is unique about God is that he doesn’t expect us to strive our way into the kingdom. His acceptance of us is not based on what we deserve but on what he has done.

When Paul talks about pressing on for the prize, he is talking about running past all the things that hinder freedom and love.

God has invited us to rest. He has called us sons and daughters and opened the way to abide in his presence forever. Yet the pressures of life, temptations of the flesh, and worries of the heart bog us down and keep us from living wholeheartedly for God.

As we come into another weekend, I encourage you to set your eyes on the prize: Jesus. Whatever is in the past is forgotten. Everything that we need is ahead in Christ Jesus.

Satan accuses us based on the past, but God has redeemed the past through the blood of Jesus.

Trust me when I say that you can never reset the pain of the past in your own strength. At your very best, you can numb the wounds or distract yourself from the truth. Either way, the path to freedom is blocked. In Christ, we are called to surrender. We confess that we cannot earn our way to salvation alone, and we fall into the arms of a loving and sustaining God.

This is the upward call of God in Christ Jesus: surrender to know him.