The Immutability of God, Part 3

December, 2007

by: Bob Powell

Gregory of Nyssa lived in the 4th century and is considered one of the great fathers of the church. In his book, The Life of Moses, he writes concerning living the virtuous life and specifically the subject of perfection: “But in the case of virtue we have learned from the Apostle that its one limit of perfection is the fact that it has no limit. For that divine Apostle… never ceased straining toward those things that are still to come. Coming to a stop in the race was not safe for him.”

We want to consider today the state of our Christian walk. How are we responding to the abundant grace that God has poured out upon us? What gains have been made since we began? What plans do we have for the time left before us?

In I Corinthians 9:24-27 we read, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things… Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified.” Paul speaks of the Christian life in athletic terms. Some are satisfied to just be in the race. But Paul says our goal must be to win the prize, to aim for the greatest success, to finish strong and victorious.

How would someone looking at your spiritual journey describe it? Do you appear to be satisfied to be part of the competition? Is your training regimen sporadic and uninspired? Might you be doing just enough that you think will keep you in the competition and not disqualify you, or are you running “in such a way that you may win”?

Notice v. 25 says that those who compete exercise self-control in all things. They have a plan and are carrying out the specifics of that plan. They are purposeful in their actions. They aren’t leaving anything to chance. They don’t just show up to the competition and hope everything works out okay. They have prepared and they have sacrificed. Paul says in v. 27 that his application of this purposeful planning in self-control is to buffet his body and make it his slave so that he will not be disqualified from the competition.

In speaking of the Christ likeness he will have in the resurrection, Paul says in Philippians 3:12-14, “Not that I have already attained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Jesus Christ.”

Wherever your Christian life is now, this passage applies to you. Have you been dabbling in sinful behavior, ignoring the grace of God so that you could pursue fleshly pleasures? Repent of this sin and receive God’s cleansing, “forget what lies behind,” and begin today “reaching forward to what lies ahead.” Have you been too busy working to gain the treasures of this world to the detriment of your spiritual life, forsaking prayer and the blessed study of God’s Word, not tending to the spiritual care of your family, and avoiding service to the people of God? Purpose to redirect your priorities to those things which last for eternity. Have you become discouraged in your ministry or spiritual walk, weary from the attacks that come with pursuing Christ likeness (John 15:18-20), tired of persevering under trials? Do not lose heart in doing good (Gal. 6:9; Rom. 2:7) and “press on for the prize of the upward call of God.”

Finally, in I Timothy 6:12 Paul exhorts his disciple to “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called.” The verbal commands are very aggressive: Take the offensive and aggressively apply your daily life to the molding of Christian character, to having the Word of God formed in you, to the discipline of prayer. In other words, forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead, pressing on daily toward the goal of fulfilling the calling of Jesus Christ in your life.