Philippians 3:13-14
Do you ever look back at your life with regret? Perhaps you have something in your life that you wish you had done differently. I know that I have many things in my life that I wish I had done differently. I am sure that we can all think of some things that we wish that we hadn't done. Some of that list probably comes from before we even knew Jesus.
Here in chapter 3, Paul gives us a great example of this. "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead" Paul had done a lot of things in his life that one may regret or wish didn't happen. Paul had a ton of confidence in the flesh and also persecuted the early church strongly. He found himself opposing God rather than serving Him like he thought he was. In his persecution of the church, he did everything he could to stop them. He even held the coats of those who stoned Steven to death. Paul had every reason to forget what was behind him. He probably felt ashamed in many ways.
We have all done things that we are ashamed of and we find ourselves living in a tension for the hope that we have in Christ. Because of Jesus, we can let go of our past guilts and look forward to Him. We are not called to dwell on our past. Instead, we can choose to grow in our relationship with God now. It is important for us to realize we are forgiven by the work of Jesus and that we can move on to have a life of faith and obedience. May we set our hope in Him and keep our eyes fixed on the prize of Heaven!
Paul is the perfect example of this. A life that needed to be left behind. He chose to turn from it and turn to Jesus. Paul's life went on to be all about Christ. A completely different life that what he lived previously. Paul knew that there was no good in holding onto his own works for salvation. He knew there was hurt and pain he caused the early church. He abandoned that and pursued Jesus with everything he had. He left it behind to be with Jesus. That was what Paul was all about. Everyone who knew him going forward knew that he was all about sharing Jesus boldly, even if it cost him his life. He left who he was and fixed his eyes on Jesus, knowing the reward was Heaven. An eternity with Jesus. May we look to have this same mindset in our lives. Forgetting what is behind, and straining forward to the prize. What is your life aimed at?
Do you ever look back at your life with regret? Perhaps you have something in your life that you wish you had done differently. I know that I have many things in my life that I wish I had done differently. I am sure that we can all think of some things that we wish that we hadn't done. Some of that list probably comes from before we even knew Jesus.
Here in chapter 3, Paul gives us a great example of this. "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead" Paul had done a lot of things in his life that one may regret or wish didn't happen. Paul had a ton of confidence in the flesh and also persecuted the early church strongly. He found himself opposing God rather than serving Him like he thought he was. In his persecution of the church, he did everything he could to stop them. He even held the coats of those who stoned Steven to death. Paul had every reason to forget what was behind him. He probably felt ashamed in many ways.
We have all done things that we are ashamed of and we find ourselves living in a tension for the hope that we have in Christ. Because of Jesus, we can let go of our past guilts and look forward to Him. We are not called to dwell on our past. Instead, we can choose to grow in our relationship with God now. It is important for us to realize we are forgiven by the work of Jesus and that we can move on to have a life of faith and obedience. May we set our hope in Him and keep our eyes fixed on the prize of Heaven!
Paul is the perfect example of this. A life that needed to be left behind. He chose to turn from it and turn to Jesus. Paul's life went on to be all about Christ. A completely different life that what he lived previously. Paul knew that there was no good in holding onto his own works for salvation. He knew there was hurt and pain he caused the early church. He abandoned that and pursued Jesus with everything he had. He left it behind to be with Jesus. That was what Paul was all about. Everyone who knew him going forward knew that he was all about sharing Jesus boldly, even if it cost him his life. He left who he was and fixed his eyes on Jesus, knowing the reward was Heaven. An eternity with Jesus. May we look to have this same mindset in our lives. Forgetting what is behind, and straining forward to the prize. What is your life aimed at?
Posted in Devotional