Forgetting What Is Behind, Striving Toward What Is Ahead
Pastor Tan Thai · Dec 1, 2024
This sermon based on Philippians 3:12-15 addresses the need to leave the past behind and pursue God's calling. The pastor emphasizes that past failures, mistakes, and criticisms should not hinder one's current faith journey. The message encourages believers to focus on God's call with determination, adding good things to their lives and removing negativity.
The opening section presents the main theme of the sermon: leaving the past behind to pursue God's calling. The pastor explains that Paul writes in Philippians 3:12-15 that he does not consider himself to have reached the goal completely, but continues striving forward. This is not complacency but a recognition that the faith journey is a continuous process, with the ultimate aim being to attain the prize of God's heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.
The second section develops the argument about three shackles binding us to the past: the accomplishments of a golden age, criticism and contempt from others, and mistakes, losses, and failures. The pastor uses the example from John 21:16 about Peter to show that despite past failures, Jesus still calls us and asks us to serve. He also cites Genesis 41:51-52 about Joseph, who named his sons to signify forgetting hardship and seeking prosperity in a new land. Similarly, Luke 15:29-30 illustrates the tension between focusing on the past and losing sight of the future.
The third section applies the message to the congregation's real life through a two-column table of things to add and remove. Things to add include: understanding God's Word, forgiveness, joy, mutual support, confession and repentance, faith, participation in service, good example, fruit of the Spirit, gospel proclamation, and discipleship. Things to remove include: bitterness, cynical words, greed, jealousy, resentment, anger, and prolonged sorrow. The pastor encourages each believer to fight a good fight, not shadowboxing (1 Corinthians 9:26), with the clear purpose of attaining the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
The sermon concludes by reaffirming the main passage from Philippians 3:13-14, emphasizing that believers must forget what lies behind and strain toward what lies ahead, racing toward the goal to win the prize of God's heavenly calling in Christ Jesus. This is not merely personal ambition but a sacred commitment to spiritual growth and service within the body of Christ.