Have you ever tried to forget something? You know that, “one thing”. The more you tried the harder it was. There was something said on TV, radio, a billboard sign that seem to remind you of what you were trying to forget. The enemy of our souls is the master of rewind. And whenever we give him the opportunity he will cause our minds to rewind to the past.
Paul tells in Philippians 3:13 …..but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead…. We will never be able live a peaceful life until we make peace with our past. Part of the process of maturing in our relationship with God is not allowing the past to be a stumbling block. Stop looking in the rearview mirror. How far do you think you would make it on the road driving if you were constantly looking in the rearview mirror.
Philippians 3:12-13 “ Not that I have already obtained it [this goal of being Christ like] or have already been made perfect, but I actively press on so that I may take hold of that [perfection] for which Christ Jesus took hold of me and made me His own. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have made it my own yet….. Paul seems to be saying, “Whatever strides I have made, whatever ground I’ve covered, I don’t consider myself done running. There is more race to run.” Paul says this as he is in Rome, he is in prison. He has already lived what we read about in the book of Acts. He has already been on several missionary journeys. Miracle after miracle, convert after convert, church plant after church plant. Paul goes on to talk about attitude in verse 14-15 “I press on toward the goal to win the [heavenly] prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature [pursuing spiritual perfection] should have this attitude. And if in any respect you have a different attitude, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us stay true to what we have already attained”. What attitude was Paul talking about? The attitude of letting the past go and reaching for those things that God has ahead for us.