“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, 13. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
When Paul wrote that he had not “apprehended,” he did not mean that he was not already saved. His conversion obviously took place on the Damascus Road, and other statements in his writings let us know that he did not doubt his salvation. What he meant was that he had more growing to do in Christ, and that he was not already what he would be. Neither Paul, nor anyone else, can claim to be at a point where more growth is not needed. Paul shared here what could help us grow in Christ. He wrote that he would forget “those things which are behind.” If we are going to go forward in our growth, forgetting the past will be absolutely necessary. Satan is adept at reminding us of all of the times that we have not lived up to our Christian calling. This is how he keeps us down in the dumps. We need to forget those things which we regret. I’m certain that most of us have some regrets. We have probably spoken words that we wish we had not spoken. Unfortunately, we cannot reel words back into our mouths. When words are uttered they are out to stay. But we can be forgiven for this and it does not mean that we have to let regretted words stunt our growth in Christ. We have all probably done some things that we wish we had not done. Like words, once a deed is done we cannot recall it, but we can be forgiven for it. We cannot let those deeds stunt our growth in Christ. We cannot undo the past, but we can learn from it. If the Lord makes us recall our past failures, it is to teach us to do better, to learn from them and go forward. Haven’t you had things that you have done or said that made you vow that you would never do or say them again? This is where Jesus would have us be, while Satan will rub our noses in these past failures. We need to let the Lord teach us to do better. I recall that in Matthew 26:75, after Peter denied Jesus that he “remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, before the cock crows, thou shalt deny me thrice (three times). And he went out and wept bitterly.” This was a bitter pill for Peter to swallow, but Peter did not let his denial keep him from serving Jesus. Somewhere along the line, he repented, got right with the Lord, and preached that great sermon on the Day of Pentecost when 3,000 people were saved. It might do us good to “weep bitterly” over our sins and failures, repent and go forward from there. We can’t undo anything from the past, but we can certainly do better in the future. Further, Paul wrote that he would not only forget what was behind, but that he would reach “forth unto those things which are before.” In other words, Paul would not give up because of the things that were behind. We have a tendency to feel defeated by our sins and failures. To do this is to fall into the hands of the devil. He wants us defeated and deflated so that he can have his way with us. Like Paul, we need to reach “forth unto those things which are before.” We do that by living each day, each present moment, being careful to trust the Lord. Let’s take Paul’s words to heart and “forget those things which are behind,” and reach “forth to those things which are before.” We can do it by the power of the Holy Spirit. Let’s do it!!! Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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