We are never far from reminding God of our credentials, of providing him with a curriculum vitae that lays out all we are, all we have been through, and all we have accomplished for his sake. We are never far from making the subtle turn from grace to merit, from what is freely given to what has been hard-earned.
The Apostle Paul knew this temptation. In his letter to the church at Philippi, he goes to some trouble to lay out his credentials as the most admirable of all Jewish men—a man who had impeccable ethnic, family, religious, and personal credentials. Yet after he lays them out, he drops a bomb: He says that he counts them all as rubbish. Why? Because in his former life these credentials had been the ground of his confidence before the Lord. And even now he knew he could once again begin to believe that God loved him because of who he was and that God owed him because of what he had done. And he knew that if this was constantly on his mind, it might entrap or distract him. So he “forgot” it to keep it from negatively impacting his ability to serve the Lord. (See Philippians 3:12-14)
Of course, he didn’t forget it in the sense of purging it from his memory altogether. He forgot it in the sense of no longer allowing it to impact his thinking and no longer ground his confidence. And I think it’s worth taking our cue from Paul to think of a few different things he might tell you to forget.
He would tell you to forget your spiritual heritage if you are tempted to make this the grounds of your confidence before the Lord. If your parents and grandparents were Christians, you ought to praise God for that blessing—and it is a great blessing, indeed. But you ought to forget it if it in any way may cause you to set your hope on your heritage instead of on Christ.
You need to forget your spiritual accomplishments. You might find yourself recounting the good things you once did for the Lord or the great things he once did through you. But you need to forget about those accomplishments if they are making you complacent about obedience today, if they are tempting you to think “I’ve already done enough. I’ve already proven myself.” Obedience yesterday gives you no right to be complacent or disobedient today.
Confess that sin, then forget it. Leave it in the past with the God who has already forgotten it in the same way.Share
Just as you need to forget about your spiritual accomplishments, you also need to forget about your spiritual failures. You might look back and get all bound up in shame for the evil things you once did or the people you once harmed—and this shame may keep you from pressing on. But you have repented, you have been forgiven by God, you are a new man, a new woman. So confess that sin, then forget it. Leave it in the past with the God who has already forgotten it in the same way.
And then, you need to forget even your sorrow, even your suffering, even your grief, even your pain. You need to forget even these deep trials in any way that they may hinder you as you press on toward the goal.
Of course, it’s important to be nuanced with such deep and difficult trials. We might think about griefs—all the people you have loved who have died. Would Paul tell you to forget those people and leave them in the past? No, God doesn’t demand you live as if they never existed, as if you never loved them, as if you don’t love them still. But he does mean for you to understand that these losses did not happen apart from his providence, that somehow they are part of his faultless plan for this world, and that somehow he will receive glory from it all. This is not easy. You need help to accept this and faith to believe it. But God is pleased to give the help and to grant the faith so you can accept and believe it.
This puts the responsibility on you to forget whatever it is in your sorrows or trials that might cause you to become trapped in the past instead of pressing on in the present. It calls you to forget whatever would cause you to look to God with reproach instead of submission and to forget whatever would cause you to live in a state of never-ending sorrow instead of enjoying God’s many blessings. It puts the responsibility on you to forget anything that might impede your full-out pressing on toward the Lord.
God’s call to each of us is plain: We must always press on—press on toward the goal and press on to receive the prize. To run this race well, we must run unhindered—unhindered by sin, of course, but also by whatever lies in the past that may threaten to slow us, to weigh us down, or to keep us from reaching the finish line. Forgetting what lies behind, we must discipline ourselves to press on—to always and ever press on toward the end of our race and to our Savior’s open arms.

Good morning. Grace and peace to you.

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(Yesterday on the blog: Will the Cause of Righteousness Be Overthrown?)
The Wisdom of Work
“Time is short. We only have so many years, months, days, and hours in which to be productive. This is reason enough for us to work as unto the Lord during the short time God has given us in this life.” Nick puts out the call to be diligent in our labor.
When You’re at Your Lowest
Barbara has a valuable word of encouragement in this one. She focuses on the only Psalm of lament that doesn’t end with hope and a renewed perspective.
What can make me whole again?
Olivia shares a long and sweet story here. “This chain of events makes me question my questions about God’s goodness because I can see him working in unexpected and miraculous ways. And yet the bumpy ride to Ndalani, Kenya mirrored my own heart: one moment exultant that God had redeemed my sorrow in an incredibly beautiful way, the next finding myself near tears, longing for someone with whom I could share the upside-down beauty of that starry night.”
What Does James 1:2 Mean?
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” This is a tricky text and one that is handled well by Robert Plummer.
Gifts Forged in Grief
“I have two sweet boys whom I adore, but the void of never knowing the three children who came before them still aches sometimes. Were they all boys, or was there a girl? I always wanted to have a little girl. Did they have blue eyes like their brothers? What would it be like to hold their tiny hands? I don’t know them, but I miss them.”
Where Does Mission Happen? How the Church Wins the Lost
“In your mind, what are the most appealing aspects of our churches for nonbelievers? Is it the personal invitation? The welcoming and thrilling atmosphere? The uniqueness and oddity of Christian worship?” Seth Porch tells how the church is the place where mission happens.
Flashback: Sometimes “Love Your Enemy” Means “Love Your Spouse”
If he calls you to love your enemy in sacrificial ways, he surely calls you to love your spouse in even more sacrificial ways. If he warns of the temptation of fraudulent forms of love when you respond to your enemies, you need to also heed his warnings when you respond to your most cherished companion.

To extend forgiveness is a precious thing. The one who forgives expresses a willingness to cancel debts, and even to absorb some of the bad fruit of the other person’s sin against him or her. —Gary and Betsy Ricucci

It is good to contemplate God’s work in our lives—to contemplate the wonderful reality that we are children of God only because God took the initiative and drew us to himself. F.B. Meyer once considered this in light of Hebrews 7:25 which proclaims that Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him.” Here is how Meyer rejoiced in that fact.

We draw near because we are drawn. As the sun is ever exerting a drawing power on each planet and each particle of stardust in the solar system, so God is ever attracting us to Himself. To all eternity we shall be ever drawing nearer to Him, though there will be ever an infinite distance to traverse. When Jesus was lifted up on the Cross He began to draw all men unto Himself, and that magnetic attraction has continued through the centuries.
There is no reason for us to be afraid of God. He is Love! He is a consuming fire to our sin, but His Nature is essentially lovely. Moses exceedingly feared when he ascended Sinai, amid the trembling of the mountain and the heavy clouds that enclosed the Divine Light. But, as we learn from the 12th chapter of this Epistle, when we approximate to God, we encounter three circles. The innumerable Hosts of Angels, including the Cherubim and Seraphim, with their burning love and purity! The Church of the First-born, the purest and noblest of elect spirits! The Spirits of the Just made perfect, inclusive of our own beloved ones that have passed over. Surely where these are, we may venture without fear. The God in whom they live and move and have their being cannot be other than infinitely beautiful to know and love. Lord, Thou hast been the dwelling-place of all generations, and Thy secret place shall be our home for ever. “Draw us, and we will run after Thee!”
Our fears are met by the Risen and Living Saviour. First, He will ever live to make intercession for us; but next He will go on sanctifying us lower down, even to the uttermost. To the depths of our nature, He will carry His gracious work. Salvation has three stages. It begins with deliverance from the penalty of the past. Our sins are blotted out. The penalty is remitted or turned to benediction. Then we are saved lower down. The process of purification goes deeper and deeper into our nature. Finally, our body is renewed through the resurrection-grace of Christ. And surely there is a sense in which the grace of Christ will ever sink deeper, giving us a profounder realisation and participation in the things that will open before us in the eternal progress. Here we see in a glass darkly, there face to face. Here we know in part, there we shall develop in the knowledge and love of God. Salvation to the uttermost!