Deo Gloria
Sermon for October 4, 2026
Pastor Martin Bentz
Text: Philippians 3:12-21
Theme: Press on Toward the Goal!
- Keep a realistic view of yourself.
- Follow good examples.
- Look forward to the finish.
The year was 2008 and Michael Phelps had a goal, a very ambitious goal: to win more gold medals in one Olympics than any other person in history. He knew it was going to be tough. He knew there were hundreds of other athletes who were determined to beat him. He knew all it would take is one mistake for him to lose one of his races, so he was by no means overconfident. And yet, that was his goal. And with a lot of hard work and little luck, he accomplished it: winning 8 gold medals in a single Olympics.
What’s your goal in life? To win a gold medal in the Olympics? To win a conference championship? To own your own business some day? To make a six-figure income? To retire in comfort? This morning in Philippians ch. 3, the apostle Paul reminds us of the goal we have as Christians, the most important goal of all: eternal life in heaven. And he urges us to press on toward that goal!
Like us, the people Paul was writing to were very familiar with the Olympics. After all, they lived in the country where the Olympics were born, the country we know today as Greece. In these verses Paul uses words and imagery from athletic competition to encourage the Christians in Philippi, and to encourage us today, in our own race, our race to eternal life in heaven. He urges us to strain like a runner, exerting every once of energy to reach the finish line. He urges us to press on toward the goal of eternal life in heaven. And he gives us three important tips to help us in running our race.
The first is to keep a realistic view of ourselves. Over the years I’ve done a lot of swimming. I took swimming lessons back when I was in grade school and high school and was even a lifeguard at one point; but I am no Michael Phelps. In the time it takes me to swim one length of the pool, he could swim all the way down and back. In fact, the same is true of all the Olympic swimmers. I wouldn’t stand a chance against any of them.
So often when athletes become good at a particular sport, they let it go to their heads. They start thinking that they’re better than they really are. They become cocky and overconfident, and usually it isn’t too long before they end up losing. It’s always important for athletes to keep a realistic view of themselves.
The apostle Paul had a very realistic view of himself. Listen again to what he says in verses 12-14:
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Over the years Paul had grown tremendously in his knowledge of Jesus and his Word. Over the years Paul had likewise grown in his sanctified living, striving to live his life for Christ each and every day. For many years already Paul had being serving as an apostle of Jesus Christ, proclaiming the good news of the Gospel in many countries, bringing many people to faith and founding numerous congregations. Over the years Paul had also endured suffering and persecution, but had never wavered in his faith. And yet, Paul was by no means perfect. He readily admits that: “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect….” Or maybe you remember the very candid confession he made in Romans ch. 7? “For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing”(v. 19). Paul was not perfect, and he didn’t pretend to be perfect. Paul knew he was a sinner, a sinner who needed God’s grace and mercy and forgiveness as much as anybody else.
The same is true of us. Like Paul, we too may have grown tremendously over the years in our knowledge of God’s Word and our knowledge of Jesus our Savior. We too may have grown tremendously in our sanctified living. With God’s help, we may have made some dramatic changes in our lives, overcoming certain sins or breaking sinful habits and living new lives for Christ. We too may have been very active in sharing God’s Word with others and bringing other people to faith. We too may have stood firm in the face of rejection or persecution. And yet, we too are by no means perfect. Like Paul, we too are sinners, sinners who disobey God’s commands each and every day, sinners who often have tried to run their race their way instead of God’s way, sinners who have often had their minds set on earthly things instead of heavenly things, sinners who have often set a bad example for others instead of a good example. We are not perfect and there is no use pretending that we are. We are sinners who need God’s grace and mercy and forgiveness each and every day.
But we don’t need to dwell on our sins either. Did you catch that in these verses? “But one thing I do,” Paul says: “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus”(vv. 13+14). Yes, you and I are sinners, sinners who have committed many, many sins; but our sins are forgiven. Jesus has taken them all away, washed them all away in his holy, precious blood. So we don’t have carry around this load of guilt and continue to beat ourselves up for our failures of the past. Through faith in Christ, we are forgiven. Through faith in Christ, we are God’s holy, precious children. And one day we will be perfect, absolutely perfect and sinless, when we cross the finish line and join our Savior in heaven. So don’t dwell on your sinful past. Focus on your glorious future. Keep a realistic view of yourself as you press on toward the goal.
Paul’s second bit of advice is found in v. 17. He writes, “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.” When I was younger, I played a lot of tennis. And one of the examples I looked up to was Bjorn Borg. He was always so cool out on the court, never lost his temper. He always gave 110%. He was always so good at hitting those tough shots under pressure. I wanted to be just like him.
As they ran their race toward heaven, Paul urges the Christians in Philippi to follow good examples. He encourages them to follow his example, for instance, as well as other leaders in the congregation who set a good example. “Look up to them,” he says, “and follow them.”
On the other hand, he warns them to avoid the bad examples: “For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things”(vv. 18+19).
So whom do you look up to? Whom do you strive to imitate and follow? Unfortunately, I think many times we pick poor examples to follow. We pick people who are rich or famous, but not necessarily good examples. Back when I was younger, many teenage girls looked up to Madonna. They dressed like her and tried to act like her and talk like her. Talk about a lousy example! Many young people today look up to pop music stars like Bruno Mars or Rihanna or Taylor Swift. But there too, are they good examples? Are they friends of the cross of Christ, or enemies of the cross of Christ? Do we really want to follow people whose destiny is destruction, whose god is their stomach, whose glory is in their shame, and whose mind is on earthly things?
Just as young soccer players often look up to someone like Lionel Messi to inspire them and help them become their best at soccer, we too want to follow good examples, people who will inspire us and encourage us in our race toward heaven. And there are plenty of good examples we can look up to. Obviously, you can follow the apostle Paul as your example. Or maybe it’s one of the leaders here at church, someone who is godly, honest, respectable, dedicated, faithful, encouraging. Maybe it’s your Sunday School teacher. Maybe it’s your mom or dad or your grandpa or grandma. Maybe it’s a dear, Christian friend or relative. Follow people like that. Look up to them and imitate their example as you press on toward the goal.
Paul’s third bit of advice to help us in running our race is to look forward to the finish. When runners run a race, do they run like this, looking backward? Of course not! If they ran like that, they might trip and fall, or they might run into something or crash into another runner. No, they run looking forward, with their eyes focused on the finish line.
That’s what Paul is encouraging the Christians in Philippi to do in verses 20+21, to keep their eyes focused on the finish line. “But our citizenship is in heaven,” he writes. “And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” The city of Philippi was a Roman colony, established as such in 42 B.C.. So even though the people of Philippi may have lived a long way from Rome, they were Roman citizens. They had all the rights and privileges of Roman citizens. They dressed like Roman citizens and even spoke the Latin language. They were citizens of Rome.
Paul reminds the Christians in Philippi that they were citizens not only of Rome, but also of heaven. Through faith in Jesus their Savior, they were members of God’s family, which also made them citizens of heaven. They enjoyed the heavenly blessings of forgiveness for their sins and peace for their souls. They enjoyed the heavenly privilege of bringing their requests and petitions to God in prayer. And one day, they would live in heaven with the King himself.
The same is true of us. Not only are you and I citizens of the United States, by faith we are also citizens of heaven. We enjoy all the rights and privileges of citizenship. We too are sons and daughters of God, members of God’s own family. We too enjoy the heavenly blessings of forgiveness, life and salvation. And we too look forward to living one day in heaven.
When that day will be we don’t know. It could be the day that we die when we cross the finish line and enter the gates of heaven. Or it could be the day when Jesus comes back. But no matter when it is, we know it will be a glorious day for us. On that day all the striving and straining will be done and we will finally be at rest. On that day the longing desire we have to see our Savior will finally be satisfied as we see our Savior face to face. And, as Paul reminds us, on that day our bodies will undergo a tremendous transformation. Our Lord “will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body”(v. 21). You and I won’t need our glasses anymore. We won’t need hearing aids anymore. We won’t have that pain in our back anymore, or that arthritis in our hands, or that cancer in our lungs. It will all be gone. Sin and all the effects of sin will all be gone. And our bodies will be new and perfect and glorious, just like Jesus’ body. Is that not something to look forward to? And that’s just the beginning. There are so many wonderful and glorious things our Savior has in store for us in heaven. Keep your eyes on that, on the finish line and the glory that awaits you in heaven. Let that inspire you and encourage you as you press on toward the goal.
To win 8 gold medals in one Olympics is a pretty ambitious goal, but Michael Phelps accomplished it in Beijing back in 2008. As Christians you and I have an even higher goal: to live forever with our Savior in heaven. As you run your race and strive to reach that goal, be sure to take Paul’s words of advice to heart. Keep a realistic view of yourself, follow good examples, look forward to the finish, and press on toward the goal. Amen.