Forget What Is Behind, Strain Toward What Is Ahead
Pastor Tan Thai · Jan 1, 2024
The sermon teaches believers not to let the past hinder their present and future lives. Based on Paul's words in Philippians 3:12-14, the pastor emphasizes the necessity of forgetting failures, losses, and regrets in order to strain toward the goal with complete focus. The message applies this principle to personal, family, and church life with concrete examples and encourages believers to persistently pursue God's purpose.
The sermon opens with a story of two friends, where one is worried about the future because the past was not good, leading to uncertainty about what to do with the present. The pastor frames this issue in the context of 2021, which had major challenges like the COVID pandemic, economic inflation, and losses experienced by many church families. However, the pastor suggests that with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can change ourselves to live according to God's word. This principle is drawn from the teaching of Apostle Paul in Philippians, who despite serving God for nearly 30 years did not consider himself to have reached perfection.
The second section develops the concept of "forgetting what is behind," explaining that forgetting here does not mean erasing from memory but not allowing the influences of the past to hinder present and future life. The pastor identifies three main "shackles" that the devil often uses: mistakes and failures, achievements of a glorious past, and criticism from others. Through biblical examples like Adam and Eve, Noah, and Paul, the sermon shows that no one is perfect and everyone sins. However, the "what if" question cannot change the past. The sermon emphasizes that the value of the past lies in lessons we can learn to live better in the present.
The pastor uses the lengthy story of Jacob from "Something by Tolstoi" to illustrate how past suffering can imprison a person for life. Jacob buried himself in reading books to forget the pain when his wife Lila left to pursue a singing career, but when Lila returns after many years, he has completely forgotten her and does not recognize his own wife standing before him. The sermon points out that one reason why forgetting painful memories is so difficult is that negative influences are always stronger than positive ones. We remember failures and criticism clearly, but easily forget words of encouragement and affirmation.
The third section presents "straining toward what is ahead, with aim to run" with emphasis that we need complete focus, not distracted or divided. The pastor uses Joseph as an example, who was sold as a slave, falsely accused and imprisoned, but still forgot what was behind to strain forward, and God ultimately used him to save Egypt and his own family. The sermon explains that the Greek verb "diōkō" (run/strain forward) also carries the meaning of persecution, indicating pursuit with purpose and undivided focus. The pastor emphasizes the power of concentration, using examples of a magnifying glass concentrating sunlight to create fire, or a laser beam having extraordinary brightness because of its focused direction.
The sermon concludes by presenting a concrete "equation" for each individual and the church in the new year: things to subtract (division, sarcasm, greed), add (knowledge of God's word, love, forgiveness, joy), multiply (faithful workers, faith, active participants) and divide/share (burdens, sorrows, difficulties). The pastor believes that when people practice this equation, the church will have unity, joy, and a distinctive identity. The sermon reminds that pursuing God is a long-distance race, not a sprint, and those who finish are not special people but those who persist in relying on God's power even when they stumble or sin.