Start Right-Finish Strong

 

July 18, 2021               NOTES NOT EDITED
Starting Right—Finishing Strong
Philippians 3:10-21

SIS: Starting right and finishing strong are the keys to true success and real happiness.

A man had been battling his weight problem all his life and once more found himself on the scale at the Doctor's office.  Now, every year his doctor would tell him, "you have to lose weight."  Every year, the man took same action:   he found a new doctor.

So, here he is on the scale.  This doctor took a much different approach.  He was very upbeat and very positive.  Right off the bat the doctor said, "Well, it looks like your diet has been working great.  There's just one small problem."  The man said, "Well, what's the problem, Doc?"  The doctor smiled and said, "According to our charts your weight is fine, but you are eleven feet too short!"

So often in life, as we pursue happiness and success, we come up about eleven feet too short.  We don’t see the kind of happiness and the kind of success we really want in life.

We can change that.  We can achieve true success and real happiness by “Starting Right and Finishing Strong” in our faith.  Paul uses the word picture of an Olympic runner to teach about success. In a footrace the two most important parts are “how you start and how you finish.”  I’ve watched racers get a great start and in the middle of the race fall down, but get back up and finish first. Starting right and finishing strong are what really matter in a foot race, and it is what really matters in life.

Here’s what Paul said about finding true success and real happiness in life.  in Phil. 3:10-21.  Let's read that together:

10 _⌊My goal_⌋ is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,  11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead.  12 Not that I have already reached _⌊the goal_⌋ or am already fully mature, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.  15 Therefore, all who are mature should think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal  this to you also. 16 In any case, we should live up to whatever _⌊truth_⌋ we have attained. 17 Join in imitating me, brothers, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. 18 For I have often told you, and now say again with tears, that many live as enemies of the cross  of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction; their god is their stomach; their glory  is in their shame. They are focused on earthly things, 20 but our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. 21 He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of His glorious  body,  by the power that enables Him to subject everything to Himself.

Take note of this:  positive change doesn't just happen.  It takes real effort. Someone once called the Christian life:  a long obedience in one direction.  True success—godly success—and real happiness—for this life and forever—requires we “Start right and finish strong.”

Paul outlines FOUR NECESSARY COMMITMENTS to finding true success and real happiness.

❶ First, reaching forward requires that
            we must START RIGHT (7-9)

For a time in Junior High, I ran track.  My brother was a varsity long distance runner, and popular with girls, so I thought I’d give it a shot.  It didn’t work out on the track or with the girls, but I did learn an important lesson. Many, maybe most, races are won or lost at the starting line and how you get “out of the blocks,” as they say. 

This is even true in NASCAR racing.  The most coveted position awarded to the driver with the best qualifying time is the “pole position.”  I read this about the pole position:  “Inside of the first row is the so-called pole position. The pole is a highly valued position in NASCAR, often associated with cash bonuses from the race sponsor, the driver’s sponsor and, perhaps, the car’s owner. Beyond the cash prize associated with the pole position, there are considerable advantages in the race for the driver and team in that position.”

To win in life and achieve true success and real happiness, you must get started right.  Look at what Paul describes as “getting started right” in life.  Read with me Phil. 3:7-9

⁷ But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. ⁸ More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God based on faith.

Paul speaks of giving up everything in life in order to  “know Jesus.” v8.  Paul is not describing a casual knowledge ABOUT Jesus.  Paul is speaking about LIFE-CHANGING encounter with Jesus that caused him to give up everything.  Compared to a “saving relationship with Jesus Christ,” everything else in life is  “dung” (horse manure!).  Notice, that this  “suppassingly valuable  relationship  Christ Jesus”  does not come from  “keeping the laws of religion,” which is only a “self-righteousness,” but a saving relationship is based upon  “the righteousness from  God based  on faith in what Jesus did FOR us on the cross.” 

Getting started right is not based upon “self-righteousness” but upon a Savior’s righteousness.  The Bible says ( 2 Corinthians 5:21 CSB)

21 He [God] made the one who did not know sin [Jesus] to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

To get started right you have you have to give up your life and receive the new life as a free gift from God.

❷ Second, true faith and real happiness require a commitment to  STAY FOCUSED (12-14, 19)

A key principle of this passage is "focus"--an intense and consuming passion to do "one thing" as Paul says in verse 13-14:

¹³ But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind  and reaching forward to what is ahead, ¹⁴ I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. 

Let me go back to my Jr. Hi. track days.  Over and over and over again the coach told us: “Never look back! Never, never, never look back.” In fact, if you watch relay races you will notice that even when a new runner is receiving the baton from the previous runner, he or she never looks back.  Looking back is a formula for losing the race of life.

Circle these words in verse 14:  I . . . pursue . . . my . . . goal!  Now, underline “my.”  We don’t look back, and we don’t look AROUND!  Everybody must run their own race.  It doesn’t matter what other runners are doing, it only matters what you are doing.  Worrying about what other people are doing with only distract you from the race God called you to run.  Stay focused on “your goal.”  Look at v19.  Here’s a description of an OUT-OF-FOCUS life:

19 Their end [that is non-believers] is destruction; their god is their stomach [what they pursue]; their glory is in their shame; and they are focused on earthly things.

In this passage Paul uses the image of both a foot-race, and a chariot race—or any race really.  Every athletic contest has rules to play by and a goal to achieve.  In archery, the goal is to hit the bulls-eye.  In a foot-race there is a finish line.  To win, a contestant must focus on the goal.  Winning is all about, "the goal."

Have you ever heard the saying, “It is not whether you win or lose that counts, but how you play the game?”  The only team that believes that is the “losing team.”  It does matter whether we win or lose—especially in spiritual matters.  Yes, playing fair and following the rules are important, but the “goal or objective” is to win the game of life—that is “finish strong in your faith” by seeking to please Jesus Christ with every thought and action. 

Paul admonishes us through his own example to have a single-minded, intense focus on the "goal" -- the one single goal -- of winning the prize (another word for goal refers to a "trophy" for winning).

The noun, “goal, (skopon, v14), comes from the Greek verb meaning, "to guard, spy, or scout"  The noun means, "something that is guarded or watched with great intensity and focus." We are not to "focus on many things," but focus on "one thing" and that is expressed very well in verse 10:

10 _⌊My goal_⌋ is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.

Notice Paul describes what it means to be "out of focus" in verse 19:

19 Their end is destruction; their god is their stomach; their glory  is in their shame. They are focused on earthly things,

It is extremely easy to become "unfocused" in our lives when we allow too many worldly distractions to creep into our daily activities.  Paul is also making a reference here to "religion" being a huge distraction.  "Their glory is in their shame" refers to those who think that focusing on religious ritual will bring you eternal glory.  The Word says, it will bring you shame.  Only one goal matters:  “pursuing a relationship with the resurrected Jesus!”

Have you ever noticed they put blinders on a racehorse so that all they can focus on is "forward."  They have one goal and that is to reach the finish line as fast as possible once they are out of the gate.

❸ Success and happiness requires a commitment to
STAY FIT (13)

13 Brothers, I do not  consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind  and reaching forward to what is ahead.

The word picture expressed here once again vividly enhances the truth of God's Word.  With the eye of a master painter, Paul paints the mental picture of a charioteer straining every muscle to stay balanced on the narrow platform between two large wheels while being whisked around the arena by powerful stallions.

We are accustomed to seeing pictures of the ceremonial chariots crafted in ornate bronze or perhaps even covered with gold.  These were not the common chariots of battle and competition.  They were nothing much more than a flat platform between two wheels.  The charioteer had to be extremely strong and stretch forward to remain upright in the chariot.  Charioteering took great skill and immense strength.  That's why the NIV (ESV)  translation is perhaps a better fit for this language:

13 forgetting what is behind and
straining toward what is ahead,

When a charioteer was racing you could see his muscles bulging as he “strained” to stand on the narrow platform. The same is true watching a runner “stretch out” across the finish lines with every muscle in their body straining to finish strong.  Success in athletics requires long hours of strenuous training along with disciplined eating to “STAY FIT.” 

How many of you have “Covid Love Handles” from being locked up inside for over a year and practicing “Death By Drive-through?”  It is easy to get out of shape, but it takes real effort to STAY FIT—that’s true physically, and even more true spiritually.

We need to exercise our spiritual muscles by serving in our church and community.  We need to “eat healthy spiritually” by reading our Bible daily and seeking to apply the sermons we hear weekly.   

True success and real happiness require we STAY FIT spiritually.

❹ True success and real happiness requires Starting Right, Staying Focused, Staying Fit, and,  STAYING FAITHFUL (15-17, 21)

15 Therefore, all who are mature should think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this to you also. 16 In any case, we should live up to whatever _⌊truth_⌋ we have attained.  ¹⁷ Join in imitating me, brothers and sisters, and pay careful attention to those who live according to the example you have in us.

The Apostle Paul records God’s call upon our lives as believers to “pursue maturity in our thoughts and actions.”  By this, the Bible does not mean we are “perfect” (as the KJV and some Bibles translate the word), but that we are “gaining or pursuing maturity in our Christian life.”  Simply stated, “we are GROWING in our knowledge of and service to Christ.”  Of course we will fail in our Christian lives.  We will make mistakes. The key to STAYING FAITHFUL is to seek God’s forgiveness often and move forward.  1John 1:8-9 says,

⁸ If we say, “We have no sin,” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

STAYING FAITHFUL requires continual confession of our sins and the receiving of God’s forgiveness.  FAITHFULNESS does not mean we never “fail,” but it means we “never ACCEPT failure.”

There’s the oft-told (maybe too often told) story of Thomas Edison and his attempt to find a filament that would glow inside a vacuum tube but not burnout quickly, in order to have a lasting electric lightbulb. After trying over 700 different types of filament materials each of which failed, someone asked Edison, “Aren’t you discouraged after having so many failures?”  Edison supposedly replied, “I’m not discouraged at all.  I now know 700 things that won’t work!”

STAYING FAITHFUL DOES NOT MEAN NEVER FAILING—FAITHFULNESS MEANS NEVER ACCEPTING FAILURE.

Paul writes that when we have failures in life, God lovingly “will reveal the error of our ways to us” (v15).

This simply means that in some way God will show us where our attitudes and actions do not line up with the “examples we have in the Bible (v17).”

STAYING FAITHFUL requires constant reevaluation of our lives.  This reevaluation happens when we read our Bible, pray, and spend time in church with fellow believers. 

God does not leave us on our own to STAY FAITHFUL.  God in His Glorious Providence gives us the power to STAY FAITHFUL.  Look closely at verse 21.  

21 He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of His glorious body, by the power that enables Him to subject everything to Himself.

Let me sum things up this morning by saying, “We’ve all been to the doctor’s office” in regard to how we are pursuing true success and real happiness. 

Perhaps you realize that you have not been making the NECESSARY COMMITMENTS it takes to achieve true success—godly success—or real happiness—temporal and eternal.  Perhaps the spiritual scales are telling you today that your weight is perfect but you are about 11 feet too short spiritually.

Don’t change doctors – change your ways. Start Right and Finish Strong.