Philippians 3:20-21: Growth leads to glory!
Devotions based on week 8 of Joy in the Journey: Growth (WATCH HERE)
Philippians 3:20-21 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
I have only visited a foreign country. For the few days that we were there, we were able to learn a few phrases that enabled us to catch a bus, find a bathroom, or buy some food. We felt at times a bit out of place and regularly had to try to find someone who understood and spoke English to help us out.
When you are in a foreign country, you know you are not a citizen there. It is not home.
For those that live for a longer period of time or make the commitment and move to a foreign country, eventually the language, the customs and the way of life become familiar. Perhaps at some point one applies to the country for citizenship to participate in all the legal benefits and responsibilities of being an official citizen of that country.
Paul uses this picture to describe the ultimate shift in our heart and mind as we “forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead.”
He wants to move our thinking from being a citizen of this world to a citizen of heaven. He wants the heart and mind and word of God to be the normal, not feel weird and out of place. He invites us into all the blessings and privileges of being a citizen of heaven and challenges us to let go of the appeal and trappings of this world.
Instead of chasing after with eagerness all the things this world has to offer, we eagerly await all the blessings that come from being gifted the status of citizen in heaven. Paul lists two key things we have to look forward to.
Seeing Jesus face to face.
The one we have read about, heard about and placed our trust in will finally be a reality that we can see with our own eyes. The one that we know in part will be known to us in full. It’s like 100x the excitement of meeting a celebrity you have admired but not met, is seeing Jesus the one we praise but have not met in person.
Our lowly bodies will be transformed like his glorious body.
What will this be like? We can compare notes when we get there. But we know that our earthly bodies are affected by sin and the consequences of it. We get sick. We have pain. We have suffering and eventually we die. We are bound by physical limitations and have to sleep, eat and exercise to maintain our bodies. Revelation 21:3-4 captures this reality:
3 And from the throne I heard a loud voice that said, “Look! God’s dwelling is with people. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them, and he will be their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain, because the former things have passed away.”
It’s no wonder Paul desires us to shift our citizenship from earth to heaven. The blessings are many and the full experience of the goal is glorious.
So forget what is behind and strain to what is ahead…the fullness of citizenship in heaven!
Apply: Be intentional today about embracing being a citizen of heaven. How does it change your interactions at work, with your family, or with your friends? What barriers get in the way of embracing your citizenship in heaven? Use the Word and the work of the Spirit to move your heart from attachment to earth to the anticipation of heaven!
Prayer: Lord, thank you for the gift of citizenship in heaven. Thank you for providing your Son to do all that was needed to secure our home in heaven. Keep my heart and mind always grounded in my citizenship in heaven! AMEN.
Philippians 3:18-19: Discern the deceptions!
Devotions based on week 8 of Joy in the Journey: Growth (WATCH HERE)
Philippians 3:18-19 For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.
Spiritual growth is a spiritual battle!
Every Christian will probably agree with the statement, “I want to grow spiritually.”
However, not all would agree with the statement, “I am growing spiritually.”
Wanting and doing are two different things.
Like with every goal we might set, setting the goal is the easy part. Actually accomplishing it is the difficult part. Losing weight means daily discipline to eat the right thing and get adequate exercise. Graduating debt free from college means discipline in spending and curbing impulse outings with friends. Building greater intimacy and romance in your marriage means investing in your spouse on a daily basis.
But each one of these has obstacles that get in the way…most of them from our own mind, our own narratives, our own weaknesses.
Just one brownie, just one concert with friends, just one moment of selfishness and the goals we set are challenged.
Spiritual growth is, as Paul wrote, like an athlete training for competition. It’s easy to WANT to win the race. It’s hard to actually WIN the race.
To add to it, Satan is working hard on every Christian who desires to grow spiritually to get them to give up, question the value, or simply to get them to feel its too hard and not worth it.
Paul saw people give up on growth. But it wasn’t just growth, they were giving up on the goal, heaven. With tears he points out what is happening. It was emotionally hard for him. But his heart for people leads him to write what was happening…so we can know the enemy and with God’s help over come his lies and temptations.
What gets in the way of growth?
We dismiss forgiveness in Christ and live in guilt. An “enemy of the cross of Christ” is one who moves away from the saving grace of Christ and to his own effort and performance. This shift leads one to self-centered pride or deep despair. Going at heaven on our own will leave us way short. Satan wants us to oppose the cross. The Spirit invites us to live in the joy of full and free forgiveness found in the cross.
A second thing that gets in the way of growth is living for personal pleasure or personal prestige. Our goals become simply to build our pride or build our prestige. These may be satisfying in the moment, but always leave the appetite for more. Satan loves to lead us to think the time we are reading the word, in church, or fellowshiping with other Christians has minimal value compared to investing all your time in career, running your kids to any and every extracurricular event or trying to gain the sales person or parent of the year award. Paul points out that Satan loves to get us to be driven by our stomachs and propelled by self-promotion. All of these take us away from what matters most, growing in the grace and truth of Jesus and his Word.
The third thing that gets in the way is the earthly mindset and cultural pressures that surround us. In many ways the Christian faith and life runs contrary to much of what the world proposes. Satan leads us to believe that the ways of the world are more acceptable than the Word of God. He gets us to believe that following the ways of the world will gain us more friends, more wealth, and more happiness. It’s a lie as nothing of this world carries the benefits and blessings as walking as a child of God each and every day.
So don’t buy the lies. Satan will seek to get us away from “straining to what is ahead” and get us focused on everything but Christ.
Seek the Spirit of God to discern the deceptions and stay focused on the heavenly prize!
Apply: What are you glorifying that is only focused on yourself or worldly ambitions? How can you ensure you are shaped by the cross rather than your cravings? Take a moment today to ask God to shift your mind and your heart. To live as a friend of the cross is to live with eternity in mind.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for the cross that saves me from myself. I confess that I have often chased after comfort, pride, and earthly things. Forgive me for living with a shallow focus. Fix my eyes on You. Lift my heart to long for heaven. Teach me to glory in grace, not shame, and to live as a true friend of the cross. In Your name, Amen.
Philippians 3:15-17: Keys to Keep Growing!
Devotions based on week 8 of Joy in the Journey: Growth (WATCH HERE)
Philippians 3:15-17 All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. 16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained. 17 Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.
Growth doesn’t happen by accident.
Paul has given the encouragement to forget what is behind and strain to what is ahead. Enthusiasm can get us started, but what are key things to sustain our growth? Just like a tree needs sunlight, water, and good soil, faith must be cultivated. Paul points us to three mindsets that will help us keep on the path of growth: maturity, consistency, and mentorship. These three are essential ingredients to keep growing in faith.
- Cultivate a Mature Mindset
Maturity doesn’t mean perfection. It means humbly recognizing we are works in progress and being open to correction and change. Growth in faith begins in the mind—a heart and mind that says, “I haven’t arrived, but I’m not staying where I am.”
Sometimes we resist growing because we think we already know enough. Paul warns against that kind of spiritual stagnation. A mature Christian welcomes ongoing input and direction from the Lord. Maturity consistently seeks God’s wisdom for areas that are unclear and decisions that are not obvious. Maturity is recognizing when we are off in our thinking or missing the mark in our lives and turning to the Lord to guide and to bring clarity to us. Growth takes time as we allow the Spirit of God to work in our hearts and minds.
2. Don’t Regress—Live Up to What You’ve Attained
Staying healthy and fit is a daily challenge. A week of doing nothing leaves your muscles atrophying. The same is true for our spiritual growth. Paul’s challenge here is simple: keep walking forward. Don’t let what you’ve gained be lost by apathy. If you’ve grown in prayer, don’t stop. If you’ve overcome a struggle, don’t go back. Don’t drift away from the habits or convictions that brought you closer to Jesus.
Spiritual growth often feels like walking uphill. If we stop moving forward, we start sliding backward. Paul’s charge is to continue walking in the light God has already given you. Even small steps make a difference.
3. Imitate Faithful Examples
Growth often requires examples. Paul knew this. That’s why he says, “Follow my example” and “keep your eyes on those who live as we do.” He wasn’t pointing to himself out of pride, but because he knew believers need tangible models of faith in action.
In our individualistic culture, we often try to grow alone. But God designed the Church so we can learn and grow together. Having a mentor, a small group, or godly friends can keep you on the path of growth. We grow faster and stronger when we grow together.
Apply: Who are your spiritual examples? Are you actively following anyone’s godly example—and are you setting one? Ask God to put faithful role models in your life and help you become one to others.
Ask God to shape your mindset to match His. Be teachable. What area of your life is God calling you to mature in right now—your attitude, priorities, generosity, forgiveness?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, I thank You that You are not finished with me. I want to grow in faith, to press forward with purpose and maturity. Shape my thinking, increase my hunger for You, and keep me walking in the truth You’ve already shown me. Surround me with faithful believers who inspire and challenge me. And help me to be that kind of example to others. In Your name I pray, Amen.
Philippians 3:13-14: Focus forward!
Devotions based on week 8 of Joy in the Journey: Growth (WATCH HERE)
Philippians 3:13-14 Brothers, 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, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
No one wins a race by looking over their shoulder.
To win a race, one must stay focused on the goal.
Looking over your shoulder slows you down. If you have competed in a track event, you perhaps have experienced or witnessed the detriment of a runner looking over their shoulder to see who was coming, only to lose stride and lose the race. In that same context, you see the effort of the athlete to give their best effort to cross the finish line, sometimes at sheer exhaustion and collapse after they finish.
Paul uses this picture for our life as Christians.
The amazing difference is that it doesn’t matter when you finish as the goal and prize are already secure in Christ. It matters THAT you finish!
Paul offers one key with two parts:
Forget what is behind.
Stop looking over your shoulder and allow the distractions of the past to hamper your spiritual growth and momentum forward!
What are those things that we see when we look behind? All the things Satan wants us to see to distract us from the race of faith.
He wants us to see past sin and feel like God will never forgive us for them. He wants guilt and insecurity and feeling of doubt to keep us ineffective as a Christian.
He wants us to see our past and regret that we didn’t spend more time in the Word or live out our Christian life in a more intentional way.
He wants us to see the people we hurt with our sins and when we lived according to our sinful nature that only thought of ourselves. He wants us to feel like God’s grace would never be enough to cover all that.
He wants us to see a path so cluttered with sin that we try to go back and fix everything with our effort and performance rather than relying on the forgiveness Christ gives.
FORGET what is behind!
Why? Because our present is not defined by our past sins and failures, but by the every present and real grace of God. Reread the first part of Philippians 3. Grace is real. Grace enables us to do the second part of the key to finishing:
STRAIN to what is ahead!
This phrase indicates very intentional and very intense effort to put into practice every gift of grace and live out every purpose of grace. The Christian life is one of joy and blessing, even in challenges and discouragement. We don’t give up. We keep moving even when tired. We know that the Lord Jesus and faithful Christians are cheering us on (Hebrews 12). We know the goal and we stay focused on it.
Over the years, I have run a few Tough Mudder events. These events are not timed, but simply a challenge to finish. The race is filled with obstacles that test your mental capacity, your strength and your courage. But even when tired, you strain forward. Why? Because a headband is waiting at the end for you, given only to those that finish.
A Tough Mudder finish is nowhere close to the motivation of experiencing heaven. But life is filled with obstacles that test our faith, our minds, our courage and strength. Finish exhausted, but finish. The welcome in heaven is well worth the intentional and intense effort.
Apply: What of your past must you let go and leave behind you? What does it look like for you to strain to what is ahead? Find one way today to put the focus of heaven in your heart and mind so you don’t give up the race of faith!
Prayer: Lord, give us strength and courage to run the race of grace well with intentionality and intensity. We keep focused on heaven and look forward to the day we fall exhausted into your arms in heaven! AMEN.
Philippians 3:12 Press on toward Growth!
Devotions based on week 8 of Joy in the Journey: Growth (WATCH HERE)
Philippians 3:12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
We need people around us that see our potential.
An athletic coach inspires a player to excel and become a key contributor to the team’s success. A business owner sees the potential in a young intern and hires them for their first job.
A parent sees special gifts in their child and surrounds them with opportunity to maximize it.
The same is true of our journey of faith. God calls us into the purpose and potential for which he gave us grace.
Experiencing grace for the first time, whether that is in the waters of baptism or the moment the truth of God’s forgiving love takes over our heart, sends us on a journey to fully realize the blessings of God’s goodness.
The first great realization is that we are fully forgiven through Christ and stand as perfect before our holy Father in heaven.
But not only does grace secure our spot in heaven, it leads us to desire a life that is spent understanding every aspect of Christ and his impact on our life.
The Apostle Paul was in pursuit of all that Christ had gifted to him.
It was not a passive pursuit, but intentional.
It was not a half-hearted effort, but intensive.
Paul could have easily boasted about his credentials, his dedication, or his hardships endured for Christ. Yet he confesses his own unfinished state. In this, we are reminded that spiritual maturity is neither sudden nor static. Growth in Christ is a lifelong pursuit, not a status we attain once for all.
Paul pictures the Christian life as an ongoing pursuit, fueled by the desire to grasp the very purpose for which Jesus has saved us.
Like he did for Paul, Jesus has taken hold of us, not because of our goodness, but because of His love and mercy. But God’s purpose for us doesn’t end at salvation. Our journey continues as we learn to live out that purpose with perseverance.
So what does it mean to “press on”?
It is an active, daily pursuit. It’s the picture of a runner who, after many miles, strains forward toward the finish. Pressing on requires endurance through disappointments and setbacks, persistently seeking Christ above all else. Pressing on means not allowing guilt over past failures or complacency from past victories to define us.
Why press on?
Because Christ has set before us a calling: to know Him, to become like Him, and to fulfill the mission He has given to us. Our motivation is not self-improvement, but the deep desire to both express and experience the fullness of grace in our lives with gratitude and love toward the One who first loved us.
So, how do we press on? First, humbly recognize your need for continued growth. Rather than being discouraged by our imperfections, we see them as invitations to rely more deeply on God’s grace. Second, we commit to intentional pursuit. Spend time each day in the Scripture and in prayer. Commit to fellowship with Christians and service of others. Put what you are learning into practice. Third, keep our eyes fixed on Jesus Himself. The “goal” is not just correct living or theological knowledge, but to experience all the blessings Christ loves to give those he has taken hold of by faith.
Apply: How can you renew your “pressing on” today—not by striving in your own strength, but by trusting Christ who has taken hold of you?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for taking hold of my life. Help me confess my need for Your ongoing work in me. Give me strength and humility to press on daily, not to earn Your love, but because of it. Help me aim for the calling You have placed before me, encouraging others along the way, until I see You face to face. Amen.