Facing Forward

Facing Forward
Paul did not count himself as having yet attained—
he was not yet perfect. Perfection is the great end of
the believer. God has apprehended or laid hold of
the believer for one reason only: to perfect the
believer—to make him perfect so that he can live
and worship and serve Christ forever. Beyond
doubt, Paul was one of the greatest men who has
ever lived. If Paul was so short of perfection, how
much further are we? The point bears repeating: no
person achieves perfection on this earth. But note:
Paul shows us in today‘s passage of scripture that
there are four significant things that point us in the
direction of perfection.

Facing Forward
Philippians 3:12-14 (NKJV) 12Not that I have
already attained, or am already perfected; but I
press on, that I may lay hold of that for which
Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13Brethren,
I do not count myself to have apprehended; but
one thing I do, forgetting those things which are
behind and reaching forward to those things
which are ahead, 14I press toward the goal for
the prize of the upward call of God in Christ
Jesus.

Facing Forward
Phillips Brooks wrote, "Bad will be the day
for every man when he becomes absolutely
content with the life he is living, with the
thoughts he is thinking, with the deeds he is
doing; when there is not forever meeting at
the doors of his soul some great desire to
do something larger, which he knows that
he was meant and made to do because he is
still the child of God."

Facing Forward
Grief refuses to flee the past just because it is gone
and things have now changed. .... Consider when
we lose our innocence--when we discover that we
can injure and have injured others, that the slate of
our lives is not clean. Suddenly we realize that we
must travel into the future carrying not just any
past, but our particular past, a past that cannot be
changed. Whatever freedom means, we are not free
to undo this past. The freedom comes in how we
relate this past to our future. We can drown
ourselves in regret, lose ourselves in nostalgia, or
cling to these old injuries and losses. But if we do, it
is our "choice," not our destiny.
John C. Raines in The Christian Century

Facing Forward
A Divine Discontent – Philippians 3:12-13a
 Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) Let your conduct be without
covetousness; be content with such things as
you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never
leave you nor forsake you.”
 Matthew 5:6 (NKJV) Blessed are those who
hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall
be filled.

Facing Forward
A Divine Discontent – Philippians 3:12-13a
 1 Peter 2:2 (NKJV) as newborn babes, desire the
pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,
 Psalm 42:1-2 (NKJV) 1As the deer pants for the
water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God.
2My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When
shall I come and appear before God?

Facing Forward
A Disciplined Devotion – Philippians 3:13b
 Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV) But without faith it is impossible to
please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He
is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek
Him.
 Joshua 23:14 (NKJV) ―Behold, this day I am going the way
of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and in all
your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good
things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All
have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed.
 2 Peter 3:8 (NKJV) But, beloved, do not forget this one
thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years,
and a thousand years as one day.

Facing Forward
 Psalm 27:4 (NKJV) One thing I have desired of the
Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the
house of the Lord All the days of my life, To
behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in
His temple.
 Mark 10:21 (NKJV) Then Jesus, looking at him,
loved him, and said to him, ―One thing you lack:
Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to
the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven;
and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.‖

Facing Forward
1 John 3:21-23 (NIV) 21Dear friends, if our
hearts do not condemn us, we have
confidence before God 22and receive from
him anything we ask, because we obey his
commands and do what pleases him. 23And
this is his command: to believe in the name
of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one
another as he commanded us.

Facing Forward
 Luke 10:42 (NKJV) But one thing is needed, and
Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be
taken away from her.‖
 John 9:25 (NKJV) He answered and said,
―Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One
thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.‖

Facing Forward
 Disciplined Devotion requires a Decision to
actually do it
 Disciplined Devotion requires a Dedication in
spite of obstacles and opposition
 Disciplined Devotion requires an ability to be
Deaf to certain inner and outside voices
 Disciplined Devotion requires a Declaration of
God‘s Word concerning situations and
circumstances

Facing Forward
1. A Divine Discontent
2. A Disciplined Devotion
3. A Definite Direction
4. A Diligent Determination

Facing Forward
A Definite Direction – Philippians 3:13c
 Galatians 1:13 (NKJV) For you have heard of my
former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the
church of God beyond measure and tried to
destroy it.
 Acts 22:20 (NKJV) And when the blood of Your
martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by
consenting to his death, and guarding the clothes
of those who were killing him.‘

Facing Forward
A Definite Direction – Philippians 3:13c
 Luke 9:62 (NKJV) But Jesus said to him, ―No one, having
put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the
kingdom of God.‖
 Hebrews 10:16-18 (NKJV) 16“This is the covenant that I will
make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put
My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write
them,” 17then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I
will remember no more.” 18Now where there is remission of
these, there is no longer an offering for sin.
 Luke 13:24 (NKJV) ―Strive to enter through the narrow gate,
for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be
able.

Facing Forward
 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 (The Message)
 Matthew 26:41 (NIV) ―Watch and pray so
that you will not fall into temptation. The
spirit is willing, but the body is weak.‖
 Ephesians 4:17-32

Facing Forward
Follow the Leader
Lead the Follower

Diligence
 Doing things by halves is worthless. It
may be the other half that counts.
 Earnestness commands the respect of
mankind. A wavering, vacillating, dead-
and-alive Christian does not get the
respect of the church or of the world.
John Hall (1829- )

Diligence
 God wishes each of us to work as hard as we can,
holding nothing back but giving ourselves to the
utmost, and when we can do no more, that is the
moment when the hand of divine providence is
stretched out to us and takes over.
Don Orione (1872-1940)
 If God is diligent, surely we ought to be diligent in
doing our duty to him. Think how patient and how
diligent God has been with us!
Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)

Facing Forward
A Diligent Determination – Philippians 3:14
 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NKJV) Therefore, my beloved brethren,
be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of
the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
 Galatians 6:9 (NKJV) And let us not grow weary while doing
good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose
heart.
 1 Peter 1:13 (NKJV) Therefore gird up the loins of your
mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace
that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus
Christ;

Facing Forward
A Diligent Determination – Philippians 3:14
 Luke 1:38 (NKJV) Then Mary said, ―Behold the
maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me
according to your word.‖ And the angel departed
from her.
 Matthew 25:23 (NKJV) His lord said to him, ‗Well
done, good and faithful servant; you have been
faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler
over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.‘

Facing Forward
Philippians 3:12-16 (TMNT) I‘m not saying that I
have this all together, that I have it made. But I am
well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so
wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don‘t get
me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert
in all of this, but I‘ve got my eye on the goal, where
God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I‘m off and
running, and I‘m not turning back. So let‘s keep
focused on that goal, those of us who want
everything God has for us. If any of you have
something else in mind, something less than total
commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—
you‘ll see it yet! Now that we‘re on the right track,
let‘s stay on it.

Facing Forward

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Facing Forward