Philippians 3 V 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind. Some people have misunderstood this verse and taught that we are to forget everything in the past. That is not what Paul was saying. The Scriptures teach us that memory can be a very powerful force for good in our lives (In context, Paul was speaking about forgetting all the things that he used to trust in prior to his salvation experience (Philippians 3:4-8). Paul forgot his own attainments and focused only on what Christ had done for him. (Andrews LFT Commentary) The word “forgetting” in the Greek is “EPILANTHANOMAI,” and it means “to forget...given over to oblivion” (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon). The Greek verb for “reaching forth unto” is “EPEKTEINOMAI,” and it means “‘to stretch out to’...‘to stretch’ (oneself) ‘forward to’” (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon), as a runner that is running in the Greek games for the prize. Paul used a metaphor of a runner running in a race. The Greek verb Paul used for “I press” is “DIOKO,” and it was used figuratively of one running swiftly in a race to reach the goal. It also carries the idea of one who pursues, seeks eagerly after, or earnestly endeavors to acquire the prize (Hebrews 12:1-2). Since the “prize” of eternal life cannot be acquired by works of righteousness that we have done (Titus 3:5), Paul must have been thinking of the rewards that come from service to the Lord (Philippians 3:12). Paul just said in Philippians 3:12 that he wasn’t already perfect. Here, he spoke of those who are perfect and put himself in that number. The answer to this apparent paradox lies in the meaning of the word “perfect.”In Philippians 3:12, Paul used the word “perfect” to say that he wasn’t flawless or without defect. In this verse, Paul was speaking of being spiritually mature, which he was. The New King James Version and the New International Version translate this verse by substituting the word “mature” for the King James Version’s “perfect.” The Amplified Bible says “spiritually mature and full-grown.” The “mind” that Paul admonished us to have was the single-mindedness he described in Philippians 3:13 Paul had been stressing growth and winning, not just surviving. He wanted the Philippians to stretch themselves more for the glory of God. He didn’t want them to stop what they had been doing. He wanted them to do more. In this verse, Paul reminded them to keep walking in the light that they had. In moving forward, value the teamwork and involvement of others. Remember in your focus and forging ahead, a lot of trust and self-worth must be in place when teamwork is working! A team is NOT just a group of people. A team is two or more individuals who are given or developed a common, mission, goal or task. We can achieve better results interdependently rather than independently. When you have people that HINDER the innovative process – they are NOT team players Paul challenges us to lose the self-focus. In Romans 8:5-9 reads like this in The Message: Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God's action in them find that God's Spirit is in them—living and breathing God! Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed with self ignores God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn’t pleased at being ignored. (Message Version) Denise CapraPastor, Author, Teacher
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