Philippians 3:12-16 – Pressing forward

Paul was so in love with Christ that he was prepared to go all the way with Him. So in verse 12 he paused and evaluated his life. In examining his life, he looked at three stages: his past (Not that I have already obtained it), his present (I press on) and his future (to lay hold of that which also I was laid hold of by Christ).

In looking back, he was thinking of the time prior to his conversion, where he thought he had arrived by keeping the Law. But when Christ encountered him on the road to Damascus his perception changed forever. It was Christ who had apprehended him. And he, on his part, would readily collaborate with Him to attain the purpose which God had for him in Christ. With that goal in mind, Paul shared three vital ingredients in his quest to attain the prize of the upward call of God.

First of all, Paul saw the necessity of a proper evaluation of himself. He did not regard himself as more superior than the rest of the believers. Addressing them as “brethren”, he was actually saying that he was as needful to progress as anyone of the believers. Then he said that he had not arrived yet. In his estimate, he felt that he still had some distance to go to lay hold of it. What is the “it” that he was referring to? In verse 12, he referred to it as perfection. Paul wanted to be increasingly more and more like Christ. He did not want it only as an inner spiritual experience but also an outward expression of that inner life.

Having realized where he stood, he could then focus on what he desired. Paul knew he needed to be single-minded in focus. Only with a single-mindedness could he concentrate on attaining his goal. In the pursuit of Christ, he was certain that the things of his past, whether successes or failures, would come back to haunt him. Therefore, it became imperative that he refused to be distracted by them. So with a resolute mind, he chose to focus and look forward. He would keep doing things that would help him to attain his goal by keeping this goal at the forefront of all his priorities.

What was his goal? In verse 14, he called it the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Paul was talking about a life that is oriented toward pleasing the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a life that seeks to emulate Christ that keeps on progressing to become more and more Christ-like.

Finally, mindful that some among the Philippians were negatively influenced by wrong teachings, Paul set out in verses 15-16 to correct them. In a diplomatic undertone, he was dealing with those who tried to follow the standards set by men. He told them that if they were matured, they would have the orientation of moving toward being Christ-like. If they were departing from proper standards, God would reveal to them. However, he instructed them to keep on living by the right standard they had already attained.

Like Paul, we should have that singular priority to pursue the Lord Jesus Christ. We must make knowing Christ better each day and give ourselves unreservedly to it. Let us keep on pressing on to ascend the upward way and gain new height in Christ every day!