Don’t live your life ‘treading water’, Paul was determined to Press On.
‘Treading Water’ means keeping our head above water, but not going anywhere, no forward movement.
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, (Conformity to Christ and Resurrection with Him) or have already arrived at my goal, but I PRESS ON to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Philippians 3
Paul was aware that he hadn’t yet achieved his goal and so he was Pressing On. His purpose was to fulfil that for which Christ had taken hold of him. Every Christian has FIRST ‘been taken hold of’ by the Lord! God is the One who initiated our coming to know Him, He pursued us. But Paul now says twice that he’s going to Press On to fulfil God’s Call on his life.
13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: FORGETTING WHAT IS BEHIND AND STRAINING TOWARDS WHAT IS AHEAD, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
It’s interesting that Paul puts Forgetting first. HE WASN’T ALLOWING HIS PAST TO ROB HIM OF HIS FUTURE. If ever anyone had reason to look back and reflect on all the things he’d done for the Lord it was surely Paul, but Paul was determined to Press On. Our past, especially if we’re older, can rob us of the good things God still has for us to do, if we too are willing to Press On. Paul wanted ‘to win the Prize’ for which he’d been called heavenward and we too have our own prize to win.
12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, … I charge you 14 to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which God will bring about in his own time 1 Timothy 6
Paul urged his spiritual son, Timothy, to ‘Fight the good Fight of Faith and lay hold of the eternal life to which he also was called’. In the previous verse Paul exhorts Timothy to pursue six things, including Endurance. We’re living in days when we need a stubborn determination to hold onto God, no matter what happens.
God bless and keep you today.