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Keep Your Eyes on the Prize

  • Stephen Salinas

    • See the previous articles in this series:
    “Press on Toward the Goal”
    “Why Did Paul Press On?”
    “Forget What Lies Behind”

    “Keep your eyes on the prize.” We’ve all heard that phrase. It speaks to staying focused on your goal. The apostle Paul uses similar language in Philippians 3, when he exhorts the Philippians to press on in the Christian life. What is the prize that Paul is pursuing?

    Let’s look at Philippians 3:14 to find out.

    I press on toward the goal

    Paul is pressing on towards something. He has a goal, a target, a mark that he’s aiming at.

    for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

    What is the prize that Paul is pursuing? The reward of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. The word “call” could be translated as “invitation” or “legal summons.” Paul is focused on the finish line when he is finally called to heaven by God. That would happen at Paul’s death or at the return of Christ.

    Holy Discontent
    With that end goal in mind, Paul pursued an even deeper knowledge of Jesus and conformity to His image. This will not be complete until we are glorified, but Paul was striving towards the end goal. He loved Jesus and wanted to be more like him. He was going to pursue that as his “one thing.” He was not content with his present spiritual maturity.

    You might say, “Paul, you’re already saved. What’s the big deal? Let go and let God, buddy. Just live your life how you want. You have a get out of hell free card.”

    However, Paul is not content with being apathetic, but rather he wants to pursue Christ with zeal. Because we are saved, we should want to be more like Christ. Through the power of the Holy Spirit we should walk worthy of Jesus. Again, this is the process of sanctification—growing more like Jesus in who he was and how he lived in obedience to God and in love for others.

    How Can We Be More Like Jesus?
    What are ways that Christians can be more like Jesus? Throughout Philippians, Paul explains to the Philppians how they should be growing more like Jesus in different ways. Listen to this list of practical ways that Paul wants them to grow in Christ.

    Those are just a few of many examples of how the Christian is exhorted in Scripture to be more like Jesus.

    All throughout the New Testament, there are commands of how the believer should fight sin and live in obedience to be more like Jesus.

    As the Holy Spirit works in the believer, they will grow in the fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

    A Christian growing more like Christ will have a greater love for God’s Word, a greater love for God Himself, and a greater love for other people. They will lean on God in the midst of suffering. They will hate sin and love righteousness. 

    Spiritual Maturity
    A believer’s understanding of that pursuit of Christlikeness speaks to their spiritual maturity. Paul says:

    Let those of us who are mature think this way,

    Those who are mature Christians will have the same mindset that Paul is outlining. In his book, Redemption Accomplished and Applied, Scottish theologian John Murray says this:

    Indeed, the more sanctified the person is, the more conformed he is to the image of his Savior, the more he must recoil against every lack of conformity to the holiness of God. The deeper his apprehension of the majesty of God, the greater the intensity of his love to God, the more persistent his yearning for the attainment of the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, the more conscious will he be of the gravity of the sin which remains and the more poignant will be his detestation of it.

    The more mature you are in your faith, the more you will pursue Christ with a single-minded devotion.

    and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.

    Paul will let God mature those believers who don’t think the same way. But he does encourage all believers, both mature and immature by saying:

    Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

    Make sure you hold true to what you were saved to. Your day-to-day conduct should match your salvation in Christ. Don’t drift from that in your pursuit of the prize.

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