The Upward Call of God

Okay, so Paul spoke to the Christians in Philippi about how they needed to watch out for those who were trying to get them to follow after some of the Old Covenant liturgical, ceremonial, and dietary laws and restrictions, who were telling them that they must be circumcised (men only, I believe). And then he explained that we who believe in Jesus are that circumcision. We are those who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Romans 6:1-23; Ephesians 4:17-24).

And he said that we are those who put no confidence in the flesh. And then he went on to describe all the things that he did, that he thought he was doing for God, that were in the flesh. And then he told of how, now that he was a believer in Christ, that he counted all those things loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus the Lord. For he wanted to know Christ and the power of his resurrection, that he may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible he may attain the resurrection from the dead. And then this is what he said next:

“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, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 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 3:12-16 ESV).

So, what was he saying here in this context? He was saying that he had not yet reached perfection, for none of us will until Jesus takes us, his bride, to be with him for eternity, but providing that we are true followers of Christ who did die to sin and who are dying to sin daily and living for the Lord and in his righteousness, and in obedience to him and to his commandments. For it is us who are walking (in conduct, in practice) according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh who have the hope of eternal life with God.

[Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23; Galatians 5:16-21; Ephesians 5:3-6; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

But he did not say that he was failing. He did not say that he was struggling with (regularly giving into) sin, as many would have you believe. Paul was such an example of what it means to live a godly and holy life that he would tell other believers in Christ to emulate him and to follow his example. How many of us can do that? Paul exemplified the crucified life when he walked on this earth in service to the Lord Jesus Christ. He was a man above approach, a holy and righteous man who lived the truth he professed and that he taught to others. But he was not yet perfect. None of us are!

And this is why he was hated and persecuted as Jesus was, because he emulated the life of Christ. Did he do it perfectly? Probably not. But he wasn’t “struggling” with sin. And he probably did it better than most of us, if truth be told. And that is why he was in prison for so long, not because he was doing wrong, but because he was doing what was right and passionately and consistently and without compromise of truth and righteousness. And this is why he was beaten and falsely accused of wrongs he didn’t do.

But what was his attitude through it all? He kept pressing on. He kept moving forward. He kept walking with Jesus and obeying him, even when he was opposed, and even when he was falsely accused of wrongdoing, and even when he was beaten and left for dead, and even when he was thrown into prison and kept there for many years, although he had done no wrong. And we should follow that example, shouldn’t we? We should not be those who easily give up and retreat because of persecution or false accusations.

So, what did he do? He chose to forget the past, not that he forgot it entirely, because he did give regular testimonies of what Jesus had done and was doing in his life, but he chose to not let the past affect who he now was in the present. He chose to not let those things weigh him down and keep him from obeying the Lord and doing the will of God. Yet none of us has the power to change our past, and I am most certain all of us have something in our pasts we wish we could erase, as though it never happened. But our pasts can be steppingstones to maturity in Christ, too, if we let them.

For hopefully we have all learned from the mistakes, the failures, and the sins of our pasts, and that we are now no longer walking in those ways, but by the grace of God we are now walking in holiness and righteousness and in obedience to our Lord, by his grace. And I am not speaking here of sinless perfection, for it is still possible that we might sin (1 John 2:1-2). But we should no longer be making sin our practice. We should not be living in deliberate and habitual sin to where we keep going back to our vomit.

But we are to be the people of God who are straining forward to what lies ahead, and who are pressing on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. We should be those who are walking in conduct in holy living, in obedience to our Lord, and no longer in sin. And then we have the hope of salvation and of eternal life with God when Jesus returns to take his bride to be with him for eternity. For this is when our salvation will be complete, and not until then, but provided that we continue in walking in righteousness and in obedience to our Lord, and no longer in sin.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

Until Then 

By Unknown 

My heart can sing when I pause to remember

A heartache here is but a steppingstone

Along a trail that's winding always upward,

This troubled world is not my final home. 

The things of earth will dim and lose their value

If we recall they're borrowed for a while;

And things of earth that cause the heart to tremble,

Remembered there will only bring a smile. 

This weary world with all its toil and struggle

May take its toll of misery and strife;

The soul of man is like a waiting falcon;

When it's released, it's destined for the skies. 

But until then my heart will go on singing,

Until then with joy I'll carry on,

Until the day my eyes behold the city,

Until the day God calls me home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4SaKgGZijM

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