Don’t allow your feelings, finances, or friendships to steer
you away from the will of God. Those are all important things, but don’t let
these things take the lead and keep you from following Jesus as the central aim
of your life. Don’t let a dream situation, a dream job, or a dream relationship
become the thing you pursue to the detriment or denial of your faith. Any dream
that requires you to venture outside the will of God is a nightmare.
Of course, people will try and justify their actions by
thinking about the good that they might be able to do because of the action. But
to do this is to simply justify the action after the fact, when the action itself
is wrong in the first place. You might tell yourself or others, “Well, if I do
this then we can do this or this”, but you can’t do wrong to get a chance to do
right. And you can’t put good things as the reason for denying God things. That
is idolatry.
Speaking of idolatry, think about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
(Daniel 3:13-18). King Nebuchadnezzar told these young men that he would spare their
lives if they bowed down to his golden statue. They said no. How could they deny
God in such a way?
But now imagine if Nebuchadnezzar went further, and told them
that he would release all Israel from captivity if they just bowed down to his
idol. What an opportunity! They would be heroes! Surely, God would be pleased.
Surely, he wanted his people set free. Surely, this must be his will. But their
answer would still have been no.
Think about Jesus with Satan on top of the mountain (Matthew
4:8-10). The Devil said he would give Jesus the whole world if he would just bow
down to him. But Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You
shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’”
Lady Folly tells you to gratify your desires (Proverbs 7:18).
But Lady Wisdom says nothing you desire can compare with her (Proverbs 3:15). Don’t
be a fool. Mark 8:36 – For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world
and forfeit his soul?
To follow Jesus despite potential loss is the opportunity of
a lifetime. It shows the world his worth to you.
For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; (James 1:7 – ESV)
Can a "saved" individual spend his life submitting to his old man, and have hope of spending eternity with the Father?
If that “saved” person was actually saved then obviously the answer is yes, but the question is if this so called “saved” person is really saved at all.
These are age-old questions in Christianity, regarding the matter of degree. Where is the line, if any, to be drawn regarding sanctification? Is someone who never even sets foot in a church once, who never gives up any of his old life of sin, a genuine, born again Christian? If the answer is no, where do we draw the line? Is it up to us anyway, and if not, do we just let anyone into our church fellowship, even the stubbornly and defiantly unrepentant person who says they are a believer? Perhaps it might be more suitable for us to ask what degree does the light of Christ need to shine from a person in order to reveal that the Light is actually within a person?
Now to get back to the originally worded question, I imagine he could, but he wouldn't have any earthly assurance. This might be akin to a drunk who makes it, but all his works in terms of rewards are as nothing. He makes it on God's grace alone like the rest of us, but since he didn't live a sanctified life, he forfeits blessings on earth and rewards in heaven, and his assurance was shaken while here in this life, perhaps. It is a good question, and one in which I fear too many rest on some "decision" earlier in life.
Perhaps there are some who never realize the release from the shackles of sin at all in this life and will still make it to heaven. I believe it certainly is possible. To do justice to the question however, we must look at the full picture. We don't know for sure how many might be like this, and there are going to be more that are the other way around. They lead bad lives that don’t reflect the light of Christ to any visible degree, and yet they think they will be in heaven based on some “decision” that “they” made earlier in life. They were only fooling themselves. They need to ask the real question, “If you didn’t like who God was and want to love Christ, and by extension want to live a life pleasing to God on earth, why in the world would you want to have to live that life in heaven?”
So the answer to the original question or any similarly worded question is this. In theory, yes, some will make it, but in practice, many won’t.
…And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you…And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved. (2 Corinthians 12:14-15 – ESV)
Surely as Christians we want to connect with people, but the best way to do that is to make sure we are connected to God first. That may bring an “of course” thought in your mind, but hear me out. It is true that showing special interest makes people feel special and gets special results. Most often, if you give it your best it will bring out their best. However, you have to remember to be looking to give not get, otherwise you will be disappointed. We often get angry because we feel we have given extras but it went unrecognized. We need to heed the lesson God is teaching us through the Apostle Paul. Pour yourself out to people, but go further than the world would and pour out your expectations as well, that is learning of Christ as Paul had done. It is when we can be poured out, spent, and not appreciated that we connect with God in a very real way.
I seek not yours but you – this is the testimony of every godly minister. They do not serve for what they can get from God’s people, but for what they can give to God’s people. Now some think they are seeking to give but they are still seeking to get, not money but recognition, approval, validation from men. Faithfulness is more important than friendliness. We do this by seeking to be connected to God, to be faithful to His Word, before we seek connection with men. A minister should be able to say that he is not seeking your approval but seeking your improvement.
This will lead to the right kind of burden, a burden to build, in the right way. Some can build the number of members, but God wants to build the members in our numbers. Some focus on church growth but God wants to focus on people growth, not numbers but godliness, not the quantity but the quality. Numbers can be wonderful if more are truly getting connected with God in a deeper way. However, chasing numbers just for the sake of more may mean more are connected overall but not percentage wise, and not very deep either. It is a mile wide and an inch deep, and leads to being led astray by chasing and feeding the monster of ministry. Before God is interested in any Christian’s ministry, He is interested in the minister.
When someone is talking with you and you are really listening intently they usually can tell and are eager to share more about themselves. When you show interest others become interested, and in a sense, in obeying God, it works a lot like that. If we are interested in His way, He shows us more of it more clearly. He is the only One who won’t ever ignore you when you truly seek Him. When you pour out to God He will always pour back on you.
Paul was defending his ways before the Corinthians, who had approved of false apostles and turned away from him. He says, “I’ll tell you about great and marvelous things I have seen and done, things those “super apostles” can’t even dream of let alone demonstrate. Now God hasn’t rid me of this thorn and you all run after the false apostles and despise me, and yet I still will be spent for you. That is what is going on that is what it is all about. They care about themselves, I care about you, and the poor among you, that is why I collect funds, for them, not me.”
Here we see Paul poured out and even doing so if it meant they loved him less. He will keep spending even if they don’t spend, he will keep pouring in even if it seems unfruitful to him. We can give, and give in any number of ways. But do we resent it when we give or serve? A good way to measure this is to see our reaction when our service is unappreciated. Do we resent it? If Paul’s service was unappreciated by the Corinthian Christians, he did not resent it. We need to learn to give where we can get nothing back, to lay up treasures in heaven, to trust God that He is watching our labor. Paul cared about God firstly and was poured out to Him and that is how he stayed connected even through the trials of the thorn and the anguish of being turned away.
What is worse, feeling the pain of the physical or suffering the anguish when you try and help someone and they despise you for it? For example, when your children turn from you, or think of Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, or Paul understanding what the sovereignty of God meant in dealing with the Jews. Would you do it then? Would you serve God anyway, even if it meant He didn’t rescue you, didn’t revive you, didn’t restore you, and didn’t reconcile you to your loved ones? Well, that is the place where God works. That is part of the fellowship of His sufferings. Is He worth it? Yes He surely is, and when you can get to that place you will see God work like no other way you’ve known.
Pleading prayer is a start. Paul pleaded for the thorn to go away but it wouldn’t and he still was willing to sacrifice for the Corinthians. Even through God did not help him in the way he wanted, and those he was called to minister to even turned on him, still he served. That is consecration. That is powerful. That is like Christ, and that is the Holy Spirit living through you; that is connecting to God’s heart.
That is how Jesus was, how Paul was, how I hope to be, and what I am encouraging you to be like. Poured out; this is the example I am exhorting you to follow. Now I am no Apostle Paul, and Paul was only a shadow of Jesus Christ, it is Him we look to as our ultimate example, and it is only Him that can empower us to live this way. He will do it if we will get connected.
Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. (Philippians 3:17-19 – ESV)
Vs.17 – People who are pressing on follow and fellowship with likeminded, maturing saints. Whose examples are you following; you are following after something, someone, pressing on to be like them, sometimes if we can’t change our friends we need to change friends. Make God the goal of your life, fellowship with other people who are doing it right, and walk in the light you already have, and you will be given more light to walk by, this is what pressing on is about. Otherwise you will be like the many that fall back and fall away. Again, Paul is not saying you have to be perfect he is saying that maturing believers strive toward it, and those that do not are not who they think they are. Too many talk a good game but God is not mocked; if they actually trusted Christ they would treasure Him, but their lives prove that their treasure lies elsewhere.
Vs.18-19 – He has warned them many times, and with a broken heart, that there are many that are not really Christ’s. Those that are not pressing on are falling away to their own desires for earthly things, they have the wrong mindset. Many who profess Christ do not actually possess Christ. He has warned them many times. He tells them with tears that many walk as enemies, not in doctrine, but in practice. What is your mindset, what is your mind set on (Colossians 3:1-2)? If they are not pressing on they are not actually Christians, they may be in name but not for real. This passage is clear that this is the normal Christian life; the high call must be answered. It is not that your work saves you but that if you are saved God will give you the desire to answer the call. “Their god is their belly” means their appetites, what they set their minds on, what has them fascinated, what they live and strive for, what is most important to them, it says “who set their minds on earthly things”. They don’t treasure Jesus; they are not broken over their sin and their heart grows harder and their sight becomes dimmer and their mind becomes more clouded every day. They are pressing on, yes, but they are pressing on to perdition. No one stands still to the things of God, you will either be pressing on towards the upward call, or you will be pressing on down the path of destruction.
We could still have a revival but we must answer the call and press on, souls are at stake including yours. We will either press on or fall away. In doing that we must remember it isn’t your decision to start but your determination to stay that counts, and he that endures to the end shall be saved, and we can endure all things through Christ who strengthens us. Let’s press in that we may press on.
Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained. (Philippians 3:15-16 – ESV)
Mature people press on, they keep maturing, and God gives them more light. We must walk in the light we have in order to receive more. The expectation of a new revelation is not to make you less careful in walking according to whatever degree of spiritual maturity you have already attained. God makes further revelations to those who are obedient to the light they already have (Hosea 6:3). There is little point in pursuing God's will if we are not willing to comply, especially with obedience in the things He has already made known to us. How can we expect to receive more light if we have not responded to the light we have been given? God's guidance subsides when it is unaccompanied by our acceptance. We should examine our lives to see if we are disobeying in areas He has already made clear. Walk in the light as you have it, or else it will become darkness to you, and you will grow cold to the things of God.
Maturing people, people who are pressing on walk consistent with the light they already have. Many are deceived into thinking they are in the kingdom of God but all they do is walk outside the will of God. They are falling back into the flesh, instead of pressing on in the Spirit of Christ. Instead of advancing they are retreating, instead of pressing on, they are falling back, and they are falling away. Falling away from the faith, falling away from Christ, falling away from church, falling away from the Bible, falling away from prayer, falling away from the old paths, falling away from Jesus being the only way, falling away from sound doctrine, falling away from all that is holy, falling away and falling prey for all the fads and frauds that come down the pike. People are falling away and falling down and falling back and falling into a trap, falling for anything that makes them feel good but is not of God. Falling away and falling to stay, falling to pieces but still not broken over their sin.
Yes I believe that when we are saved we remain saved forever, but I also know that the scriptures declare that many will think they are saved when they are not, and that many will be caught up and carried away with the cares of this world (Mark 4:18-19), and that is what Paul says in this chapter. Examine yourself in the light of God’s Word. Are you pressing on or are you falling back? Is your life becoming increasingly conformed to the image of Christ, is it even a real concern for you, are you consumed with Christ or with being a worldly consumer? Are people better off spiritually having been around you? Is your light shining, or is it becoming dimmer, soon to be snuffed out? If you fall behind, eventually you will be left behind.
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14 – ESV)
Here again is our basic outline of the text from Philippians 3:12-19.
12. Paul is not there yet, he presses on to know Jesus more 13. He isn’t complacent, he leaves the old life behind and strives toward his destiny 14. He moves toward his goal, the upward call 15. Mature people think this way, they keep maturing, and God gives them more light 16. Maturing people, people who are pressing on walk consistent with the light they already have 17. People who are pressing on follow and fellowship with likeminded, maturing saints 18. He has warned them many times, and with a broken heart, that many are not really Christ’s 19. Those that are not pressing on are falling away to their own desires for earthly things, they have the wrong mindset
Vs.14 – He moves toward his goal, the upward call. What is the goal of your life, what are you chasing after, are you using God as a means to an end, or is Jesus Christ the goal Himself? Is your goal to glorify God, to chase after Him, really now, can you say that with a clear conscience? Godliness doesn’t seem to be the goal in many people’s lives. Most certainly God is patient with us, but which way are you headed? Which goal are you running towards? If you aren’t running towards God, then you are carrying the ball for the other team, and there are only two sides to this contest.
Complacency is the cancer that has eaten up the Body of Christ in these days. This is why God must send affliction our way because the poison must be rooted out. The Bible says that in the very last of the last days, there will be a great falling away from the faith (2 Thessalonians 2). I know that we are in those days because I can see the falling away everywhere I look.
How do I know that this is the falling away? It is because everywhere I look people are falling behind. Falling away starts by falling behind. Today they are falling behind; tomorrow they will be falling away. We will press on or we will fall back. Press on to perfection, to maturity, mature people will continue maturing. The word for "press on" means to follow after like a servant. Too often we are looking to be served.
There is a higher call, and God invites you to higher ground, but it takes diligence (2 Peter 1:10). It is all about Christ and knowing Him. Do you dare to go there; will you press on?
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 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, (Philippians 3:12-13 – ESV)
We’ll start our next series of posts with a basic outline of the text from Philippians 3:12-19.
12. Paul is not there yet, he presses on to know Jesus more 13. He isn’t complacent, he leaves the old life behind and strives toward his destiny 14. He moves toward his goal, the upward call 15. Mature people think this way, they keep maturing, and God gives them more light 16. Maturing people, people who are pressing on walk consistent with the light they already have 17. People who are pressing on follow and fellowship with likeminded, maturing saints 18. He has warned them many times, and with a broken heart, that many are not really Christ’s 19. Those that are not pressing on are falling away to their own desires for earthly things, they have the wrong mindset
Vs.12 – He is not there yet, he presses on to know Jesus more. Conversion is only the beginning, not the end of the chase. Paul knows that he will not be fully perfected and completely matured until he is in the glorified state of heaven, but since it is his destiny, he strives toward it, as all true maturing Christians do, because God gives them a hunger for it, and then they know Christ more fully as they progress, as they mature in this life, they begin to understand Jesus more intimately, whether it be by dying to self interest, or having to suffer persecution and affliction. They press on toward the prize, the upward call, not upward mobility, but spiritual mobility, that they may be as Christ would be in any and every situation. Paul wasn’t all the way there yet, but he was on the right road, the road of faith, the road of submission, the road of repentance, the road of revelation, the road to his Lord. Paul presses on to make the prize of fully knowing Jesus his own, because Jesus has made Paul his own. 1 Corinthians 13:12 / 1 John 3:2, we will finally and fully know God as He knows us, but if we truly have God given faith then we will pursue God, to know Him as fully as we can right now.
Vs.13 – Paul isn’t complacent, he leaves the old life behind and strives toward his destiny. Those that aren’t hungry for God and are only hungry for the same old things are only fooling themselves. Is your faith the faith of fools, or has God truly put His stamp on you? If He has put His stamp on you, then you will be headed in His direction, your life will be run along the right route, which way are you headed? Christians are forgetting their old life and reaching out to their destiny; “what lies ahead” for you? You know the truth! Paul may have been wearied but he wasn’t wandering, he may have been pressed down but he pressed on. This needs to be the pattern of our lives as well. He is not saying you have to be perfect he is saying that maturing believers strive toward it, and those that do not are not who they think they are. If Paul knew he needed to press on, how much more we?
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.
(Jeremiah 17:7-8 – ESV)
We hear it said time and again, as if it were some new revelation, either saying that the children are our future, or that the children are our right now. I want to dispel those notions right here and now. Children are not our future and they are not our right now. The old folks are the right now, and they will be the right now in the future as well.
How and why, you say? Think about it. By the time children become our future they will be older. When will we wise up and discover that the future of the church is in its old people not its young people? Young people will be growing older just like the rest of us, and hopefully the emphasis is on the growing not the older but the wiser. Yes we need the young people for many things, but what we need is for them to start young and grow old with God. So yes lets get them in while they are young, but lets grow them up so they can be old and mature as well.
The way to get them young is to show them hope for when they are old. I want a church full of old saints, a community of spiritual sages, wise old oaks who burn on a low simmer but whose kindling embers are real fuel for the younger set giving them something to look forward to.
We think young people are more important because they have more life to live but actually they need old people, old people are more important because they have more life to give. They have a lifetime of living with Jesus and all those young folks are coming that way too, we all grow older, even if we die young, the day we die we will be a day older than the day before etc., and we had better be longing for continued growth. Spiritual life is not meant to be an early peak and then slow fade out; that is a flawed concept. It is not our physical or mental strength that gives the gospel its power but God and the relationship with Him is the demonstration of that power. Why would it ebb backward unless we are backsliding, and do you mean to tell me that all older people are on a downward slide spiritually just because they are physically? Think about what you’re thinking with that type of nonsense.
In a sense the old oaks matter more, at least as much as we all do but they matter more than they did, not less, because they have grown more with God over time. They may be able to do physically less, but their relationship ideally had ought to be more. Spiritually they can do more in prayer, etc. mentoring or just being a witness by being alive. The old oaks can take the heat, and they can bear a dry season, and they bear fruit when others don’t. If you grow old with God you can count on abundant fruit even as the seasons change.
When you don’t respect the hope of the elders you don’t respect the hope for yourself, because that is they way you and I and all of us are headed. Even if we die young, we will die older than we were before we did. It is no wonder so many want to delay the onset of aging they don’t have anything to look forward to. People see it all as if youth and vigor is all that matters, and as if only youthful vigor means useful vitality. Instead the truth is that spiritual vigor comes through maturity, and that should be increasing as we age.
We need to model the spiritual fact that we can be looking forward to growing old as opposed to merely getting old. Young person you need to find an oak. Adults get growing and become an oak. Old folks make sure you stay old oaks by keeping others lit. We are like trees that are planted by the water (Psalm 1:3 / Isaiah 61:3) and we need more oaks. We need to keep showing all our people the right path, that of growing older in God. In our church communities, let’s surround our young ones with hope. Let’s become an avenue of oaks.
…and they shall become one flesh (Genesis 2:24 – ESV)
Have you ever wondered why men and women who work together in a movie fall in love so often? Or why people who work together at the job fall for each other so often? Or why when you start helping a friend out, working together to solve a problem, and you do it together and it works out good, then you want to fall for them? Well think about it. What is the same in all these scenarios? The people work together toward a common solution, and doing this has bonded them together for a common cause. Both are in unison and harmony about it. They both have different talents but they combine them, they work together to achieve something.
Think hard now about the words “work together” and their meaning. Work together, work together, working or coming together. See? Not just working side by side but working into togetherness, into a unit. You share a significant event in your life together. You overcome something by being together, and that is what good marriages are made of and good relationships are made of. It is no wonder if people aren’t processing things well, or they aren’t in a relationship, or the current one is not going well, for them to want to come together with that person they have already bonded with successfully. What do you expect?
People should be able to work together without working themselves together. We must mature to the point that the trouble with togetherness doesn’t enter into our lives, else we cannot partner and accomplish things we might be able to do otherwise. We must remain closely knit to our spouses as one flesh so that people can work with us together, but no one else can work their way together with us. If your relationship has depth you won’t drown in these shallow waters.
Cease to hear instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge. (Proverbs 19:27 – ESV)
If we’re not in the Word of God, then we’re not in the will of God, so we won’t have the wisdom of God, therefore we will be taken captive by the wooing of the world, the wants of the flesh, and the wiles of the devil.
We are all in a spiritual battle. There is no reason for you to believe that you will be successful in Spiritual warfare without having your sword sharpened and your armor on (Ephesians 6:10-18). If we are in an intimate, present reality, dynamic relationship with Christ, we will be invincible, in a sense. But when we look away from Jesus we, like Peter, begin to see the storms of life, and sink under our own weight of unbelief.
God wants communion with us; if we become lax in our prayer life, Bible study, and our corporate worship, fellowship, and stewardship, we will suffer. No matter how long we have been a Christian or how many verses we have memorized, our flow will be hampered. It is our constant communion with God that gives the Word its power in our personal lives. It is the Spirit that gives life. To stop the flow of communication means that using the Bible can become an exercise in our own strength, a one-way street where you just go to the Word when you feel like you need it. You can’t bottle the blessings of God (Exodus 16:15-21); that is why we are to pray for our daily bread (Matthew 6:11).
The wisdom from God is predicated upon a present tense relationship with Him. No amount of “build up” or maturity can take this fact away. Want proof? How about Solomon: Once he strayed from God, he sank into apostasy. If it can happen to the wisest man who ever lived, then surely it can happen to us. Consider also Samson and Saul; if your character doesn’t grow in proportion to your anointing, it will crush you.
Modern day examples abound. Consider the great preachers who had anointing by the barrelful yet fell all the way down the mountain because they trusted in the past without tending to the present, treating God as a means to an end, rather than their relationship with Him being the purpose itself. He is not a cosmic concierge, waiting at our beck and call.
Looking to our own lives, and the corporate life of the local churches, we cannot simply rest on our laurels. Leaders are to set the example, to live by a higher standard so that those who follow have something to look forward to. When called to lead we must do exactly that: lead, not lounge. We must move forward, not sit idle. We must continue to learn if we are to continue to lead, else we will learn, the hard way.
…that the works of God should be made manifest in him (John 9:3)
Thinking of this particular passage in the book of John, let's imagine for a moment. What if God were to ask this man to go back after being in heaven, if He gave him a mission to glorify God so that people could see a person who exalted God in spite of seemingly bad circumstances?
Of course this man would agree fervently to go; he would be delighted to go on such a mission. He would know what is going on and why he was sent, and know that this temporal situation was giving glory to the One he knew so well, and loved so much. We have examples: remember Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration, or what about the two witnesses sent back from heaven in the book of Revelation?
Well now, imagine this: What if, after you died and went to heaven, God sent you back to be a witness and He sent you back blind, wanting you to rejoice to His glory despite your circumstance? You would gladly do it, knowing where you came from, why you were sent, the eternal reward, and where you were going to return!
Friends, in a very real way, God has done that. We are on a mission. You see we are already in the heavenlies positionally (Ephesians 2:6) and we have been sent to testify to the glory of God (Ephesians 1:11-14). In John 9:5 Christ said that while He was in the world He was its light. He still is in this world, manifesting God’s glory, through Christ in you the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). Jesus was and is the light and now we are to manifest that light, we are to be lights in this world (Matthew 5:16 / Philippians 2:15). Christ says that we are already salt and light we do not become them. The mission is to let your light shine.
Do you want to let the glory of Christ shine through you? Well look at what 1 Peter 4:12-16 says. Paul said he glories in infirmities (2 Corinthians 12:9). He says that although our outward man is dying our inward man is flourishing (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). We cannot “see” the power but others can experience it; it is the eternal power being made manifest in His saints. We don’t exert power against things that come against us we withstand (Matthew 7:24-25). This is what it is to know him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings (Philippians 3:10); it is life from death. We can say with Paul that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13). It’s to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man (Ephesians 3:16). It’s rejoicing in knowing that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in us (Romans 8:18). You can let the glory shine now by understanding that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).
We are on a mission, and we will not, indeed we cannot fail. Look with me at 2 Corinthians 2:14 – He causes us always to triumph! Jesus said that He had overcome the world (John 16:33), and that He is in us (John 14:21), and that greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4). Well, is it showing, do you complain as much as the other guy when things are looking bad? Or do you show forth the fact that you are God’s child, and that though he slay me yet will I trust in him (Job 13:15)? You have got to know it and believe it; this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith (1 John 5:4). We are on a mission of faith just like Abraham, the father of faith (Romans 4:11-16).
The Bible is full of men sent on a mission, men who weren’t ready to do what it took, or so they thought. Think about Noah, Abraham, Moses, Gideon, and Paul. God has a mission for you and He will see you through. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6). Faithful is he who calls, who will also do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
You may say that for me it is mission: impossible, but my bible says, For with God nothing shall be impossible (Luke 1:37) and all things are possible to him that believeth (Mark 9:33). You might think that you haven’t got what it takes, but it isn’t you that is responsible for the results! Let’s say it like this; if you get placed you’ll get graced, God doesn’t call the gifted He gifts the called. He will say to you mission: accomplished! Mission impossible for the unsaved but mission unstoppable for the child of God!
Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. (Philippians 3:17-19 – ESV)
Vs.17 – People who are pressing on follow and fellowship with likeminded, maturing saints. Whose examples are you following; you are following after something, someone, pressing on to be like them, sometimes if we can’t change our friends we need to change friends. Make God the goal of your life, fellowship with other people who are doing it right, and walk in the light you already have, and you will be given more light to walk by, this is what pressing on is about. Otherwise you will be like the many that fall back and fall away. Again, Paul is not saying you have to be perfect he is saying that maturing believers strive toward it, and those that do not are not who they think they are. Too many talk a good game but God is not mocked; if they actually trusted Christ they would treasure Him, but their lives prove that their treasure lies elsewhere.
Vs.18-19 – He has warned them many times, and with a broken heart, that there are many that are not really Christ’s. Those that are not pressing on are falling away to their own desires for earthly things, they have the wrong mindset. Many who profess Christ do not actually possess Christ. He has warned them many times. He tells them with tears that many walk as enemies, not in doctrine, but in practice. What is your mindset, what is your mind set on (Colossians 3:1-2)? If they are not pressing on they are not actually Christians, they may be in name but not for real. This passage is clear that this is the normal Christian life; the high call must be answered. It is not that your work saves you but that if you are saved God will give you the desire to answer the call. “Their god is their belly” means their appetites, what they set their minds on, what has them fascinated, what they live and strive for, what is most important to them, it says “who set their minds on earthly things”. They don’t treasure Jesus; they are not broken over their sin and their heart grows harder and their sight becomes dimmer and their mind becomes more clouded every day. They are pressing on, yes, but they are pressing on to perdition. No one stands still to the things of God, you will either be pressing on towards the upward call, or you will be pressing on down the path of destruction.
We could still have a revival but we must answer the call and press on, souls are at stake including yours. We will either press on or fall away. In doing that we must remember it isn’t your decision to start but your determination to stay that counts, and he that endures to the end shall be saved, and we can endure all things through Christ who strengthens us. Let’s press in that we may press on.
Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained. (Philippians 3:15-16 – ESV)
Mature people press on, they keep maturing, and God gives them more light. We must walk in the light we have in order to receive more. The expectation of a new revelation is not to make you less careful in walking according to whatever degree of spiritual maturity you have already attained. God makes further revelations to those who are obedient to the light they already have (Hosea 6:3). There is little point in pursuing God's will if we are not willing to comply, especially with obedience in the things He has already made known to us. How can we expect to receive more light if we have not responded to the light we have been given? God's guidance subsides when it is unaccompanied by our acceptance. We should examine our lives to see if we are disobeying in areas He has already made clear. Walk in the light as you have it, or else it will become darkness to you, and you will grow cold to the things of God.
Maturing people, people who are pressing on walk consistent with the light they already have. Many are deceived into thinking they are in the kingdom of God but all they do is walk outside the will of God. They are falling back into the flesh, instead of pressing on in the Spirit of Christ. Instead of advancing they are retreating, instead of pressing on, they are falling back, and they are falling away. Falling away from the faith, falling away from Christ, falling away from church, falling away from the Bible, falling away from prayer, falling away from the old paths, falling away from Jesus being the only way, falling away from sound doctrine, falling away from all that is holy, falling away and falling prey for all the fads and frauds that come down the pike. People are falling away and falling down and falling back and falling into a trap, falling for anything that makes them feel good but is not of God. Falling away and falling to stay, falling to pieces but still not broken over their sin.
Yes I believe that when we are saved we remain saved forever, but I also know that the scriptures declare that many will think they are saved when they are not, and that many will be caught up and carried away with the cares of this world (Mark 4:18-19), and that is what Paul says in this chapter. Examine yourself in the light of God’s Word. Are you pressing on or are you falling back? Is your life becoming increasingly conformed to the image of Christ, is it even a real concern for you, are you consumed with Christ or with being a worldly consumer? Are people better off spiritually having been around you? Is your light shining, or is it becoming dimmer, soon to be snuffed out? If you fall behind, eventually you will be left behind.
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14 – ESV)
Here again is our basic outline of the text from Philippians 3:12-19.
12. Paul is not there yet, he presses on to know Jesus more 13. He isn’t complacent, he leaves the old life behind and strives toward his destiny 14. He moves toward his goal, the upward call 15. Mature people think this way, they keep maturing, and God gives them more light 16. Maturing people, people who are pressing on walk consistent with the light they already have 17. People who are pressing on follow and fellowship with likeminded, maturing saints 18. He has warned them many times, and with a broken heart, that many are not really Christ’s 19. Those that are not pressing on are falling away to their own desires for earthly things, they have the wrong mindset
Vs.14 – He moves toward his goal, the upward call. What is the goal of your life, what are you chasing after, are you using God as a means to an end, or is Jesus Christ the goal Himself? Is your goal to glorify God, to chase after Him, really now, can you say that with a clear conscience? Godliness doesn’t seem to be the goal in many people’s lives. Most certainly God is patient with us, but which way are you headed? Which goal are you running towards? If you aren’t running towards God, then you are carrying the ball for the other team, and there are only two sides to this contest.
Complacency is the cancer that has eaten up the Body of Christ in these days. This is why God must send affliction our way because the poison must be rooted out. The Bible says that in the very last of the last days, there will be a great falling away from the faith (2 Thessalonians 2). I know that we are in those days because I can see the falling away everywhere I look.
How do I know that this is the falling away? It is because everywhere I look people are falling behind. Falling away starts by falling behind. Today they are falling behind; tomorrow they will be falling away. We will press on or we will fall back. Press on to perfection, to maturity, mature people will continue maturing. The word for "press on" means to follow after like a servant. Too often we are looking to be served.
There is a higher call, and God invites you to higher ground, but it takes diligence (2 Peter 1:10). It is all about Christ and knowing Him. Do you dare to go there; will you press on?
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 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, (Philippians 3:12-13 – ESV)
We’ll start our next series of posts with a basic outline of the text from Philippians 3:12-19.
12. Paul is not there yet, he presses on to know Jesus more 13. He isn’t complacent, he leaves the old life behind and strives toward his destiny 14. He moves toward his goal, the upward call 15. Mature people think this way, they keep maturing, and God gives them more light 16. Maturing people, people who are pressing on walk consistent with the light they already have 17. People who are pressing on follow and fellowship with likeminded, maturing saints 18. He has warned them many times, and with a broken heart, that many are not really Christ’s 19. Those that are not pressing on are falling away to their own desires for earthly things, they have the wrong mindset
Vs.12 – He is not there yet, he presses on to know Jesus more. Conversion is only the beginning, not the end of the chase. Paul knows that he will not be fully perfected and completely matured until he is in the glorified state of heaven, but since it is his destiny, he strives toward it, as all true maturing Christians do, because God gives them a hunger for it, and then they know Christ more fully as they progress, as they mature in this life, they begin to understand Jesus more intimately, whether it be by dying to self interest, or having to suffer persecution and affliction. They press on toward the prize, the upward call, not upward mobility, but spiritual mobility, that they may be as Christ would be in any and every situation. Paul wasn’t all the way there yet, but he was on the right road, the road of faith, the road of submission, the road of repentance, the road of revelation, the road to his Lord. Paul presses on to make the prize of fully knowing Jesus his own, because Jesus has made Paul his own. 1 Corinthians 13:12 / 1 John 3:2, we will finally and fully know God as He knows us, but if we truly have God given faith then we will pursue God, to know Him as fully as we can right now.
Vs.13 – Paul isn’t complacent, he leaves the old life behind and strives toward his destiny. Those that aren’t hungry for God and are only hungry for the same old things are only fooling themselves. Is your faith the faith of fools, or has God truly put His stamp on you? If He has put His stamp on you, then you will be headed in His direction, your life will be run along the right route, which way are you headed? Christians are forgetting their old life and reaching out to their destiny; “what lies ahead” for you? You know the truth! Paul may have been wearied but he wasn’t wandering, he may have been pressed down but he pressed on. This needs to be the pattern of our lives as well. He is not saying you have to be perfect he is saying that maturing believers strive toward it, and those that do not are not who they think they are. If Paul knew he needed to press on, how much more we?
…and they shall become one flesh (Genesis 2:24 – ESV)
Have you ever wondered why men and women who work together in a movie fall in love so often? Or why people who work together at the job fall for each other so often? Or why when you start helping a friend out, working together to solve a problem, and you do it together and it works out good, then you want to fall for them? Well think about it. What is the same in all these scenarios? The people work together toward a common solution, and doing this has bonded them together for a common cause. Both are in unison and harmony about it. They both have different talents but they combine them, they work together to achieve something.
Think hard now about the words “work together” and their meaning. Work together, work together, working or coming together. See? Not just working side by side but working into togetherness, into a unit. You share a significant event in your life together. You overcome something by being together, and that is what good marriages are made of and good relationships are made of. It is no wonder if people aren’t processing things well, or they aren’t in a relationship, or the current one is not going well, for them to want to come together with that person they have already bonded with successfully. What do you expect?
People should be able to work together without working themselves together. We must mature to the point that the trouble with togetherness doesn’t enter into our lives, else we cannot partner and accomplish things we might be able to do otherwise. We must remain closely knit to our spouses as one flesh so that people can work with us together, but no one else can work their way together with us. If your relationship has depth you won’t drown in these shallow waters.
Cease to hear instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge. (Proverbs 19:27 – ESV)
If we’re not in the Word of God, then we’re not in the will of God, so we won’t have the wisdom of God, therefore we will be taken captive by the wooing of the world, the wants of the flesh, and the wiles of the devil.
We are all in a spiritual battle. There is no reason for you to believe that you will be successful in Spiritual warfare without having your sword sharpened and your armor on (Ephesians 6:10-18). If we are in an intimate, present reality, dynamic relationship with Christ, we will be invincible, in a sense. But when we look away from Jesus we, like Peter, begin to see the storms of life, and sink under our own weight of unbelief.
God wants communion with us; if we become lax in our prayer life, Bible study, and our corporate worship, fellowship, and stewardship, we will suffer. No matter how long we have been a Christian or how many verses we have memorized, our flow will be hampered. It is our constant communion with God that gives the Word its power in our personal lives. It is the Spirit that gives life. To stop the flow of communication means that using the Bible can become an exercise in our own strength, a one-way street where you just go to the Word when you feel like you need it. You can’t bottle the blessings of God (Exodus 16:15-21); that is why we are to pray for our daily bread (Matthew 6:11).
The wisdom from God is predicated upon a present tense relationship with Him. No amount of “build up” or maturity can take this fact away. Want proof? How about Solomon: Once he strayed from God, he sank into apostasy. If it can happen to the wisest man who ever lived, then surely it can happen to us. Consider also Samson and Saul; if your character doesn’t grow in proportion to your anointing, it will crush you.
Modern day examples abound. Consider the great preachers who had anointing by the barrelful yet fell all the way down the mountain because they trusted in the past without tending to the present, treating God as a means to an end, rather than their relationship with Him being the purpose itself. He is not a cosmic concierge, waiting at our beck and call.
Looking to our own lives, and the corporate life of the local churches, we cannot simply rest on our laurels. Leaders are to set the example, to live by a higher standard so that those who follow have something to look forward to. When called to lead we must do exactly that: lead, not lounge. We must move forward, not sit idle. We must continue to learn if we are to continue to lead, else we will learn, the hard way.
…that the works of God should be made manifest in him (John 9:3)
Thinking of this particular passage in the book of John, lets imagine for a moment. What if God were to ask this man to go back after being in heaven, if He gave him a mission to glorify God so that people could see a person who exalted God in spite of seemingly bad circumstances?
Of course this man would agree fervently to go; he would be delighted to go on such a mission. He would know what is going on and why he was sent, and know that this temporal situation was giving glory to the One he knew so well, and loved so much. We have an example: remember the two witnesses sent back from heaven in the book of Revelation?
Well now, imagine this: What if, after you died and went to heaven, God sent you back to be a witness and He sent you back blind, wanting you to rejoice to His glory despite your circumstance? You would gladly do it, knowing where you came from, why you were sent, the eternal reward, and where you were going to return!
Friends, in a very real way, God has done that. We are on a mission. You see we are already in the heavenlies positionally (Ephesians 2:6) and we have been sent to testify to the glory of God (Ephesians 1:11-14). In John 9:5 Christ said that while He was in the world He was its light. He still is in this world, manifesting God’s glory, through Christ in you the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). Jesus was and is the light and now we are to manifest that light, we are to be lights in this world (Matthew 5:16 / Philippians 2:15). Christ says that we are already salt and light we do not become them. The mission is to let your light shine.
Do you want to let the glory of Christ shine through you? Well look at what 1 Peter 4:12-16 says. Paul said he glories in infirmities (2 Corinthians 12:9). He says that although our outward man is dying our inward man is flourishing (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). We cannot “see” the power but others can experience it; it is the eternal power being made manifest in His saints. We don’t exert power against things that come against us we withstand (Matthew 7:24-25). This is what it is to know him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings (Philippians 3:10); it is life from death. We can say with Paul that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13). It’s to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man (Ephesians 3:16). It’s rejoicing in knowing that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in us (Romans 8:18). You can let the glory shine now by understanding that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).
We are on a mission, and we will not, indeed we cannot fail. Look with me at 2 Corinthians 2:14 – He causes us always to triumph! Jesus said that He had overcome the world (John 16:33), and that He is in us (John 14:21), and that greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4). Well, is it showing, do you complain as much as the other guy when things are looking bad? Or do you show forth the fact that you are God’s child, and that though he slay me yet will I trust in him (Job 13:15)? You have got to know it and believe it; this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith (1 John 5:4). We are on a mission of faith just like Abraham, the father of faith (Romans 4:11-16).
The Bible is full of men sent on a mission, men who weren’t ready to do what it took, or so they thought. Think about Noah, Abraham, Moses, Gideon, and Paul. God has a mission for you and He will see you through. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6). Faithful is he who calls, who will also do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
You may say that for me it is mission: impossible, but my bible says, For with God nothing shall be impossible (Luke 1:37) and all things are possible to him that believeth (Mark 9:33). You might think that you haven’t got what it takes, but it isn’t you that is responsible for the results! Let’s say it like this; if you get placed you’ll get graced, God doesn’t call the gifted He gifts the called. He will say to you mission: accomplished! Mission impossible for the unsaved but mission unstoppable for the child of God!
…And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you…And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved. (2 Corinthians 12:14-15 – ESV)
Surely as Christians we want to connect with people, but the best way to do that is to make sure we are connected to God first. That may bring an “of course” thought in your mind, but hear me out. It is true that showing special interest makes people feel special and gets special results. Most often, if you give it your best it will bring out their best. However, you have to remember to be looking to give not get, otherwise you will be disappointed. We often get angry because we feel we have given extras but it went unrecognized. We need to heed the lesson God is teaching us through the Apostle Paul. Pour yourself out to people, but go further than the world would and pour out your expectations as well, that is learning of Christ as Paul had done. It is when we can be poured out, spent, and not appreciated that we connect with God in a very real way.
I seek not yours but you – this is the testimony of every godly minister. They do not serve for what they can get from God’s people, but for what they can give to God’s people. Now some think they are seeking to give but they are still seeking to get, not money but recognition, approval, validation from men. Faithfulness is more important than friendliness. We do this by seeking to be connected to God, to be faithful to His Word, before we seek connection with men. A minister should be able to say that he is not seeking your approval but seeking your improvement.
This will lead to the right kind of burden, a burden to build, in the right way. Some can build the number of members, but God wants to build the members in our numbers. Some focus on church growth but God wants to focus on people growth, not numbers but godliness, not the quantity but the quality. Numbers can be wonderful if more are truly getting connected with God in a deeper way. However, chasing numbers just for the sake of more may mean more are connected overall but not percentage wise, and not very deep either. It is a mile wide and an inch deep, and leads to being led astray by chasing and feeding the monster of ministry. Before God is interested in any Christian’s ministry, He is interested in the minister.
When someone is talking with you and you are really listening intently they usually can tell and are eager to share more about themselves. When you show interest others become interested, and in a sense, in obeying God, it works a lot like that. If we are interested in His way, He shows us more of it more clearly. He is the only One who won’t ever ignore you when you truly seek Him. When you pour out to God He will always pour back on you.
Paul was defending his ways before the Corinthians, who had approved of false apostles and turned away from him. He says, “I’ll tell you about great and marvelous things I have seen and done, things those “super apostles” can’t even dream of let alone demonstrate. Now God hasn’t rid me of this thorn and you all run after the false apostles and despise me, and yet I still will be spent for you. That is what is going on that is what it is all about. They care about themselves, I care about you, and the poor among you, that is why I collect funds, for them, not me.”
Here we see Paul poured out and even doing so if it meant they loved him less. He will keep spending even if they don’t spend, he will keep pouring in even if it seems unfruitful to him. We can give, and give in any number of ways. But do we resent it when we give or serve? A good way to measure this is to see our reaction when our service is unappreciated. Do we resent it? If Paul’s service was unappreciated by the Corinthian Christians, he did not resent it. We need to learn to give where we can get nothing back, to lay up treasures in heaven, to trust God that He is watching our labor. Paul cared about God firstly and was poured out to Him and that is how he stayed connected even through the trials of the thorn and the anguish of being turned away.
What is worse, feeling the pain of the physical or suffering the anguish when you try and help someone and they despise you for it? For example, when your children turn from you, or think of Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, or Paul understanding what the sovereignty of God meant in dealing with the Jews. Would you do it then? Would you serve God anyway, even if it meant He didn’t rescue you, didn’t revive you, didn’t restore you, and didn’t reconcile you to your loved ones? Well, that is the place where God works. That is part of the fellowship of His sufferings. Is He worth it? Yes He surely is, and when you can get to that place you will see God work like no other way you’ve known.
Pleading prayer is a start. Paul pleaded for the thorn to go away but it wouldn’t and he still was willing to sacrifice for the Corinthians. Even through God did not help him in the way he wanted, and those he was called to minister to even turned on him, still he served. That is consecration. That is powerful. That is like Christ, and that is the Holy Spirit living through you; that is connecting to God’s heart.
That is how Jesus was, how Paul was, how I hope to be, and what I am encouraging you to be like. Poured out; this is the example I am exhorting you to follow. Now I am no Apostle Paul, and Paul was only a shadow of Jesus Christ, it is Him we look to as our ultimate example, and it is only Him that can empower us to live this way. He will do it if we will get connected.
