‘Not that I have already grasped it all or have already become perfect, but I press on if I may also take hold of that for which I was even taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not regard myself as having taken 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. Therefore, all who are mature, let’s have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that to you as well; however, let’s keep living by that same standard to which we have attained. Brothers and sisters, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us. For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even as I weep, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who have their minds on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our lowly condition into conformity with His glorious body, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.’ Philippians 3:12-21
Short of Jesus Himself, I don’t know if anyone alive at the beginning of the church age knew scripture better than Paul. He was a Pharisee who had learned from the best teachers of his day.
Paul was uniquely gifted as a Pharisee and a Roman citizen. This gave Paul the dual purpose of bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles while beating back the false teachers who wanted everyone to conform to the Old Testament laws.
He wrote two-thirds of the New Testament, known as the Bible.
I can only imagine the patience that this educated man had to have while dealing with those he brought the Gospel to while doing his best to keep the false teachers at bay.
However, his attitude while dealing with these challenges was tremendous. Let’s break down the focus verse:
‘Not that I have already grasped it all or have already become perfect, but I press on if I may also take hold of that for which I was even taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not regard myself as having taken 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.
Immediately, we see a humble spirit in Paul.
“Not that I have already grasped it all or have already become perfect.” He is open to revelation. He was a student of scripture. In his youth, he was taught by the best teachers in Jerusalem and received teaching directly from Jesus. I love that Paul relied on God to clarify, “God will reveal that to you as well.”
Here are some of the contentious subjects that we get in the mud about:
- Once saved, always saved
- KJV only
- Keeping the Old Testament laws
- Judge/Judge not
- The role of women in the church
This is just a quick list of what Christians argue about with each other. What I find interesting is that the watching world sees us arguing about these things. This does not glorify God in any way.
‘Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. ‘ Ephesians 4:1-6
Over the recent years, I have found a tone that is everything BUT humble, gentle, or patient. YouTubers spend their time pointing out all of the “false teachers” and what they preach, looking for fault as if there is a reward for it.
But wait, there is a “reward” for it. There are views, and with enough views comes a check from YouTube. One of these YouTubers was asked why they don’t teach, and they answered that they don’t get any views on those videos. That statement made the hair on the back of the neck stand up. This is sad!
I don’t know what scares me more: the thought that this is why they make their videos or that there is an audience for them.
‘He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.) And He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. ‘ Ephesians 4:10-13
When we spend our time “equipping” the saints, we give them what they need, not to fall for the false teaching out there today. We have a stronger body when we allow the Holy Spirit to clarify scripture to those around us. And when the Holy Spirit makes it clear to the believer, it will never return to the old way of seeing things.
‘As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of people, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, that is, Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. ‘ Ephesians 4:14-16
We focus on others so we don’t have to deal with the sin in our own lives. We can kick that down the road until the day we die. When we focus our efforts to be more Christ-like, we build up the body of Christ.
Our time is better spent dealing with the sin in our lives while helping others in their walk. But it has to be done in that order. Here’s how Jesus told us to do this:
‘ “Do not judge, so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye! “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. ‘ Matthew 7:1-6
This statement by Jesus scares me. I think about how easy it is to take my attention off the things I need to deal with by focusing on the ills I observe about others.
For the husbands out there, I’ll give you this example that might sound familiar.
Wife: “John, I wish you would stop doing… (fill this in with anything that you know you do that aggregates your wife)”
Me: “Yeah, but you do this… (fill this in with anything your wife does that aggregates you)”
See what I did there: instead of dealing with something that would make my wife happier to be around me, I deflected it with something I don’t like about her.
‘If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people. ‘ Romans 12:18
Deep inside, I know what my wife tells me is true. Why don’t I just stop doing it to live in peace with my wife? I think sometimes I may avoid it because I may be asked to change even more things. And I should be willing to do that to be the best husband for my wife.
How does this translate to those who we come in contact with at the church?
I’ll start this answer this way: if you claim to be a Christian, you must be involved at a local church. Fellowship is one of the spiritual disciplines that must be practiced. There are people who need you, and there are people there that you need.
You will run into many people at varying degrees of spiritual growth. We are not there to change them; we are there to help them grow, as we are there for them to help us grow in our faith.
There will be people who want to argue theology. (See the list above for the most common areas of contention)
There will be people we know are not doing the right things; unfortunately, these tend to be the people who are the most vocal about their “faith.”
It can get messy, but a wise Pastor said, “No mess, no ministry.” The perfect church will only come when Jesus brings us to Himself.
In the meantime, we do our best to study and meditate on God’s Word, we listen to Biblical preaching, and we get involved with others in our local church.
Here’s the truth: God’s Kingdom is marching forward despite us. His plan is moving forward perfectly, as it is predestined. He will use us if we are in step with the Spirit, which He leaves in our hands. If we find ourselves in conflict with others, we are in conflict with Him.
‘“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.” ‘ Matthew 22:36-40
Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your Word. I pray that You continue to allow the Spirit to help illuminate my understanding.
I thank You for the people You have brought into my life. I pray that my life will shine as an example of a worthy servant for You.
I pray for those who do not know Jesus that You soften their hearts to get to Him as their Lord and Savior.
I pray for the return of Jesus.
In the name of Jesus, I pray, Amen!!
