10) That
I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his
sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
11) If
by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
12) Not
as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow
after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ
Jesus.
13) Brethren,
I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting
those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are
before,
14) I
press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
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T |
ragically, many will not make it into
the Kingdom simply because they are not willing to make a complete effort to
make it. Those who do not see a need to totally submit their lives show a lack
of respect for their Saviour. Particularly today, it
is necessary to make every effort to be what God would have us to be.
All of us have access to that which is
common, that is, of general understanding and acceptance. This makes us feel
that we are entitled to certain rights and privileges just because we exist.
The truth of the matter is that as saints, we do not deal with what is simply
common. Our understanding should be enlightened so that we accept that whatever
we know, whatever we have, whatever we accomplish is the result of the
intervention of an uncommon, supernatural God.
We can get bogged down in looking at
salvation as if the walk is a matter of our pleasure—how pleased we are. Too
often, we attempt to deal with God as if He is a “genie,” existing to satisfy
our every whim. By now, we have learned enough of the Lord to know that His
purpose is above our pleasure.
Perhaps this is a hard saying, but all
indications are that at one time, Man was not so conniving against his brother.
There now exists a blatant disregard for the rights,
welfare and well-being of others which seems to be unprecedented—except, of
course, before the fall of any great civilization. We must know by the signs of
the times that this is what scripture previews when it lets us know that there
is coming a time when one will be “pressed” to be saved.
Obviously, as society decays and Man’s
inhumanity to man increases, there will be a subsequent rise in opposition to
salvation. Why? Because the symptoms we experience all point to the selfishness
of Man—and this is in direct opposition to salvation. World events continue
worsening at a breakneck pace because Satan knows that his time is getting
shorter. And what is always true of a drowning man? He becomes desperate. For
Satan, this means throwing out anything as a substitute for true salvation and
holiness, simply to keep potential people of God from ever knowing who He
really is.
For all of his self-glorification and
cherished intelligence, Man often seems less rational than the animals. Why?
Because we will very quickly do what we want to do without regard for the
consequences or effect upon others. Our attitude is primarily one of doing what
we feel is right for us at the moment; what will be most joyous or bring us the
most pleasure. We now seem to have no conscience about lack of any standard, be
it moral or spiritual. Sadly, this is not just true of the sinner.
In all that has been said, we should be
able to see that a “press” is needed just to wade through all of the
foolishness surrounding us today. So much untruth is
so convincingly presented that your determination to love and serve God must be
unshakable. You see, the life you live (or the “press” you make) is your proof
or deliverance. If your conduct and manner of living does not change upon your
salvation, for what can you say you are pressing?
We are living to meet and express the
standard of God, not for ourselves alone, but for the countless others who have
not yet tasted His goodness. This will never be accomplished by doing anything
the easy way, for there is no such thing in the life dispatched of God. The
responsibility must be instilled in us that we must make every effort to be
what He needs us to be. This precludes us just willing things to happen. We
must make them happen in that we exhibit the appropriate behavior before God.
In like manner, we cannot simply will ourselves to be saved, but we must press
to make it.
When we are instructed that we must
know the Lord, the knowledge that we are to acquire must transcend mere written
or spoken word. To know Him in the fellowship of His suffering, we must
experience the same things He experienced. Our desire in this life must be to
be exactly like Jesus. This sounds impossible only when one does not fully
comprehend who Jesus is. That “who” is not described by His
deity, His humanity or His heritage, but rather by His motivation. What
was His motivation? Simply to do at all times that which pleased the Father. To
be saved, we must do likewise — no less.
If one intends to make it through this
life with joy and not despair, he must remember at all times that what we see
now is not our final destination. The upwardly mobile in Christ are continually
moving forth to attain, lay hold on, apprehend or capture our final end. The
life which will allow us to do this will find us standing perfect in the sight
of the Lord in a glorified body.
Neither God, our fellowman, nor consequently,
ourselves will be served by us living in the past or
standing still. Since no one can change an unsavory past or relive a good one,
the best thing for all to do is to forget those things which are behind. It
does one no good to bemoan the past, beat oneself up over it or feel bad about
it. This changes nothing. All we can do is to press and make sure that our
future is not like our past. In that you are saved, baptized and filled with
the Spirit of the Invincible God, your future holds greater things. These are
what we press toward.
Pressing our way is a matter of life
and death, therefore, we can allow no one with whom we
come in contact to affect us. We must move continually forward. We must press
for the mark, press for the truth!
Passivity in salvation will get you
nowhere. It is the “fighter” operating in the Spirit of God who makes it
through here. Just think about it: where are all of the self-proclaimed “great
people” who have come, gotten saved, claimed to have possessed such power, and
then just disappeared?
The only way our subject scripture will
apply to you, and that you will be able to say “I...” is for you to do it.
Not only will this assure you blessings in the life to come, but your sojourn
here on earth will be blessed as well. The “press” we are willing to make
will determine our enjoyment, and in turn, will determine our commitment and
submission. “Pressing toward the mark” necessitates both, so as long as we
are willing to expend a little effort, we are assured our happiness, aren’t
we?