Are We Pressing On Toward the Goal?
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 toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14
One thing the apostle Paul did was press on toward the goal to win the prize of heaven. When we focus on what the Lord guides us to do, we are motivated to move forward to serve the Lord, and this tends to take away our fear of this sinful world. The Lord tends to free us from fear when we serve him, motivated to be light for Christ in the darkening world.
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10) The Lord is with us and gives his strength and courage as we move forward serving him, pressing on toward our heavenly home. When we have a divine purpose and we are striving for our heavenly home, we walk in the power of God with his courage, love, peace, and joy.
We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20) If we take this verse to heart and realize that we are ambassadors for Christ, and we see ourselves as ambassadors for Christ throughout each day until it becomes who we are, then we are truly changed. This is a powerful verse but only if we take it to heart.
An ambassador for Christ represents Christ in a foreign land knowing heaven is our homeland. Living as true ambassadors for Christ keeps us pressing on as the Lord’s servants. It takes away our fear because this darkening world that we live in is nothing more than our ministry field, and it is not our home. Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. (Romans 8:5). A true ambassador for Christ, who is pressing on toward heaven, will have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
Our minds can be controlled by the Holy Spirit, allowing us to think inward towards the Spirit as we commune with Christ, or our minds can be controlled by the world as we think outward toward the world. When we think inward toward the Spirit, we interface to the world through the Spirit, seeking Godly counsel with our thoughts, words, and actions. And through this process of thinking inward, we learn to control our emotions, and this is essential because Satan will attack us through our emotions. Satan will make our emotions work against us while Christ will make our emotions work for us. Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. (Proverbs 16:32) We live in power and wisdom when we have self-control.
Today, focus on building your treasures in heaven as you press on toward your heavenly home. See yourself as an ambassador for Christ and realize you are here temporarily on assignment from God and heaven is your home. Therefore live free of the evils of this world.
Prayer: Lord, fill my heart with the drive to press on toward my heavenly home, guide me to reflect Christ, and to point others toward your eternal Kingdom. Open my eyes and ears through the Spirit to bring the Light of Christ to everyone I see today. In Jesus name, Amen