13 … but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
This is the ultimate, worthy goal of the Christian. It is like the E=mc2 formula for the theory of relativity: simple to state, but profound in its implications. Paul simplifies his life’s mission to “one thing I do.” This sums it all up. And it would serve every Christian well to contemplate this thought.
There are myriad of experiences in our past lives that have potential to keep us from this goal though. Regrets, painful memories, bitterness or failures may thwart us. But like Paul we need to forget what lies behind us. In financial investing terms, past results are no guarantee of future returns. In spiritual terms, however, dwelling on the past can guarantee future failure! We cannot move forward by living in reverse. We cannot change the past.
True, we need to learn from our experiences, but we cannot dwell on them in negative ways and become debilitated by them. To be sure, there is a place for sorting through issues that paralyze us. But we must be careful that such efforts don’t become a way of life, keeping us stuck in the past. The reality is that we may not be able to resolve all those issues. Our faces and thoughts must be turned forward. But to what?
Paul was forward thinking, a forward mover. He describes this as looking toward the goal of winning a prize. There will be an award for his labors. He is not talking here about salvation—that is already his. Romans 8:1 says, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Paul models for us a motivation in the Christian life that comes from his relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not about winning spiritual trinkets that we will proudly boast about through eternity. Rather, the prize he has in mind is the “upward call of God.”
The apostle saw his ultimate destiny as a “promotion to glory.” It will be a graduation from this testing experience we call life into the ultimate life we were made for, called eternity. “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much (Luke 16:10). It is what Peter wrote about when he said, “for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you” (2 Peter 1:11). Imagine such a welcome into eternity!
Lord, help me keep Christ in view, with the eternal prospects of the much greater life with Him when I am received into Your presence for eternity.
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