My mother-in-law is a superhero. She rarely wears a cape, although she should. She doesn’t have x-ray vision, or leap tall buildings in a single bound. But she has proven herself to possess super-human bravery, and powers which defy all logic. The story I am about to tell you is one hundred percent true – […]
Making Progress
Philippians 3:16 “Only let us live up to what we have already attained.” Do you ever feel like you are taking two steps forward and three steps back? I do. Sometimes, I wonder how God can have such patience with me, for I continue to make the same old mistakes I always have. Instead of […]
In Philippians
Not a Spectator Sport
Philippians 3:15 “All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.” Paul has just written one of the most poetic, most memorized passages in all of scripture. He has told us to forget the past, […]
In Philippians
The Prize
Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Paul continues to paint a picture of himself as a runner. He presses on, and we picture him, sweat pouring from his body, panting heavily, head forward, pushing, pressing on toward the prize. […]
In Philippians
Forgetting the Past
Philippians 3:13 “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead . . . ” Paul had done some pretty terrible things in his lifetime. Before converting to Christianity, he had actually persecuted Christians! He had […]
In Philippians
Athlete in Training
Philippians 3:12 “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Paul must have been a real sports fan. Time and again in his writing, he uses metaphors which liken the Christian life […]
In Philippians
I Want to Know Him
Philippians 3:9 – 11 “. . . not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in […]
In Philippians
Simple Geography
Philippians 3:8 – 9 “. . . that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.” I am a proud Texan. I live […]
In Philippians
Assets and Liabilities
Philippians 3:7 – 8 “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” […]
In Philippians
Impressive Background
Philippians 3:3 – 6 “For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh – though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, […]
In Philippians