Keep On Keeping On
Philippians 3:12-14
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 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.
Introduction
Most marathon runners share a common experience – running into a metaphorical wall during the race. At about three-quarter way into a 42 km marathon, an athlete would quite suddenly be overcome by dreaded feelings of fatigue and a loss of energy. It could literally feel like running into a brick wall.
This happens because your body can only store a finite amount of energy and at about 32 km, there is just no energy left. Some runners slow to a walking pace; others would be so overwhelmed with both physical and mental fatigue that they simply stop. These runners have run 32 km, but they did not finish the marathon. They did not reach their goal, and they will not be winning a prize.
A wise friend in ministry once told me “Glenn, the call to full-time ministry is not a sprint, it is a marathon.” And for this reason, I thought of sharing on Philippians 3:12-14 at this juncture of my ministry journey as a reminder to myself and hopefully to encourage all of us to “keep on keeping on”.
We all know that Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi is part of a quartet written whilst he was under house arrest or imprisoned in Rome. I’d like us to consider two key points in these short three verses.
Not There Yet
First, Paul writes in verse 12: “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
What is Paul trying to say here? Isn’t this the apostle to the Gentiles? Didn’t he travel more than 16,000 km on his three missionary journeys, planting 14 or more churches? Wasn’t he under house arrest in Rome and awaiting execution whilst writing to the Philippian church? Why do we get a sense that his mission is still incomplete even as he nears the end of his life? What other goal is Paul seeking to arrive at?
… but they did not finish the marathon. They did not reach their goal, and they will not be winning a prize.
The context of Philippians 3 shows us that Paul’s expressed goal is to know Christ – not just mentally comprehend who He is, but to experience the power of His resurrection – to participate in His suffering, become like Him in His death, and to attain resurrection from the dead.
Paul knows that being under house arrest is not the end of his ministry marathon. His goal, his prize, is not here on earth. He knows that God has called him heavenward in Christ Jesus. He exhorts in verse 20 that his mission, so long as he still draws breath or before Christ comes again, is to bring people to citizenship in heaven.
Keep On Keeping On
And so, Paul tells his readers that he will keep on keeping on!
Paul uses the verbs “press on” and “straining” thrice altogether in these three scripture verses. He says, “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me”, I am “straining toward what is ahead”, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize.” But how was Paul doing so whilst imprisoned?
It is perhaps pertinent to consider the semantics of the Greek words translated as “press on” and “straining.” “Press on” does not just mean persevere, it has the connotations of following with haste, with intensity of effort. As if lagging behind, Paul is pouring a tremendous effort into his ministry goal, because the word translated as ”straining” is better translated as “to try hard, to stretch out.”
Paul knows that being under house arrest is not the end of his ministry marathon.
His goal, his prize, is not here on earth.
Taken together, Paul is telling the readers in Philippi that despite the gospel work he has been able to accomplish, despite the fact that he was imprisoned and can no longer step out of the front door to be a witness for Christ, it almost seems that Paul has redoubled his efforts – he was straining and reaching out from his prison.
This is corroborated in Acts 28:30-31, which say, “For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance!” Not only that, Luke did not record that Paul also wrote the four prison epistles. Despite his physical constraints, the Apostle Paul was determined to keep on keeping on for Christ!
Application
Whether laity or clergy, and regardless of which juncture of our ministry marathon we are each at, Paul reminds us that we share one commonality: it isn’t over until it is over. So let us consider two crucial questions:
- Are we still pressing on and straining in ministry?
- What are we pressing on and straining in ministry for? What goals are we headed to?
Pressing on and straining does not always have to mean going faster. It may sometimes mean going slower in difficult circumstances, while still being faithful to God’s call.
Covid-19 may be the wall in our ministry. It has quite literally imprisoned some of us at home. For pastors and leaders of the church, ministry in the era of Covid-19 means having to strain, to reach beyond conventional methods of pastoral care to shepherd our sheep. We will also have to press on in encouraging our congregation members to return to on-site services as some of our sheep have grown accustomed to the convenience of attending church services from home.
Even before Covid-19 blanketed the world, the marathon of ministry was already exhausting! Sometimes, torn asunder with the guilt of not wanting to abandon the ‘responsibility’ that God has called us to, we choose to trudge on. But the brain’s natural defence mechanism kicks in – we shut down or disconnect, and go into cruise control mode. How can we still strain towards the goal that God has called us to when it gets so hard to go on?
A pastor was so ministered to when he read Hebrews 12:1 that he wrote this exhortation about ‘Cruise Control Christianity’,
To persevere, however, especially in the context of the metaphor of running, is to refuse to simply go through the motions. It is to be actively engaged, to move forward with purpose, to refuse to put our lives on cruise control. In spiritual growth, it means that daily devotions (prayer and time in the Word) are not done so that we can check them off the list, but with a genuine desire to be transformed more into the image of Christ. In personal ministry, it means that we do not serve Christ’s people or our neighbours out of a sense of obligation, but with a purposeful desire to further Christ’s kingdom and bring glory to Him. Even in our down time, perseverance in the race means that we do not judge the use of our time solely by what pleases us, but that we run everything through the grid of that which is pleasing to our God… intentionally for Christ and His kingdom.
A wise leader recently told me that he needed to step down from some of his ministry positions because he was assigned additional responsibilities at work, and his newborn daughter was facing some health issues. Pressing on and straining does not always have to mean going faster. It may sometimes mean going slower in difficult circumstances, while still being faithful to God’s call.
As we reflect on how God has called each one of us to ‘keep on keeping on’ – even when our circumstances change, when we are constrained, or when we think we are nearing the finishing line – we remember the last words of the founder of Methodism, John Wesley. Reportedly still preaching at age 88, just a few days before he died in 1791, he said: “The best of all is, God is with us.”
So keep on keeping on because God, who has called us heavenward to Christ Jesus, is with each one of us, every step of the way.
Rev Glenn Tan
Associate Pastor, Toa Payoh Chinese Methodist Church