Calvin and Hobbes was a popular comic strip in the 1990’s. It featured a young and mischievous boy named Calvin and his stuffed tiger named Hobbes. Calvin imagined Hobbes to be a living and talking tiger. They were inseparable friends.
One of the things Calvin and Hobbes most enjoyed doing together was playing “Calvinball.” [1] Unlike games such as basketball and football and volleyball, Calvinball had no permanent rules. The rules changed every time you played. And the game had no logical way of keeping score. There was no real way to determine who won a match of Calvinball and what a win even looked like in Calvinball.
- In one popular strip Calvin yells out “Olly-Wolly Polliwoggy Ump-Bump-Fiz” while grabbing Hobbes’ flag.
- “Ha!” Calvin says. “I stole your flag.”
- Hobbes objects: “But I hit you with the Calvin Ball. You have to put the flag back and sing the ‘I’m Very sorry’ Song.”
- Calvin responds, “I don’t have to sing the song. I was in the ‘No Song Zone’.”
- “No you weren’t,” Hobbes states. “I touched the opposite pole,” so the ‘No Song Zone’ is now a ‘Song Zone’.”
- Calvin retorts, “I didn’t see you touch the opposite pole. You have to declare it.”
- Hobbes explains: “I declared it oppositely by not declaring it. Start singing.”
- Calvin begins to sing the “I’m Very Sorry” song and Hobbes joins in. Once the song is over Calvin exclaims, “I’m free! I get free passage to wicket five.”
- “No,” says Hobbes. “That’s what we did last time, remember?”
- “Oh yea. Hmm” Calvin ponders. Finally Calvin concludes, “Ok, the new rule is we have to jump everywhere until someone finds the bonus box.”
- “That’s good!” says Hobbes.
- As they hop away, Calvin says, “The only permanent rule in Calvinball is that you can’t play it the same way twice.”
- And Hobbes reminds Calvin, “The score is still Q to 12.”
Calvinball is a nonsensical game. No permanent rules. The game changes constantly. And from our perspective, there’s no way to tell how to win or when one person has won. Most of us would be terribly frustrated with Calvinball. Most of us prefer clearly defined goals. We want a win that easy to define even if it’s not easy to achieve.
In Phil. 3:12-21 Paul takes up this issue of a “win” in our spiritual lives. The reality is that many of us don’t know what a win looks like when it comes to our walk with God. We have no clearly defined goal. Each year our rules change or our goals change. And if someone were to look in from the outside, some of us would have a spiritual life a bit like Calvinball.
So in Phil. 3:12-21 Paul defines the “win.” What is the win in the spiritual life? Here’s how Paul describes it. The goal, Paul writes, is to truly “know Christ Jesus my Lord” (3:8,10). That’s the finish line. We know we’ve arrived when we “know Christ Jesus my Lord.”
Paul broadens this a bit when he also says the goal of the spiritual life is to “share in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (3:10). The race is ended when we finally experience deep intimacy with Jesus and deep imitation of Jesus. When we are fully in love with him and fully living like him. When our hearts beat passionately for him and our hands serve passionately for with him. That’s the mark we’re here on earth to strive towards. That’s the win.
Paul describes it this way in 3:15–“the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul isn’t speaking of heaven here. He’s not saying that the win is simply to get to heaven. The “upward call” is not a synonym for “getting to heaven.” Instead, the “upward call” refers to the higher and glorious calling which all Christians have received. The calling to know Jesus and share in his sufferings. That’s the goal. [2]
But it is one thing to know the goal. It is another to achieve it. Is this win even possible? Can we intimately experience one who remains invisible and mysterious? Can our stubborn selfishness be hammered into heroic selflessness? Can we fall in love with one we cannot see or touch? Can we overcome the lust, greed and self absorption which seems hardwired into us? Can the world, truly, be changed? Is it possible to know Christ Jesus our Lord and share in his sufferings.
To those of us (and there are too many of us) who answer “Yes! And I’m basically already there!/ My church is already there!” Paul rebukes us. He writes this:
- “Not that I have already obtained this, or am already perfect…” (3:12).
- “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own” (3:13).
Just as some of us declare ourselves or our churches to be faultless, there was a time in Paul’s life when he would boasted that he was “blameless” (3:6). Now, however, Paul declares he is “incomplete” (one meaning of the phrase “not…perfect”). There’s still work to do in Paul’s life. In the spirit of 2:12, even Paul is still “working out his own salvation with fear and trembling.” He’s still a work in progress. Paul has not “laid hold of” this goal (the meaning of “made it my own” (3:13)). He still doesn’t know Christ Jesus his Lord the way he wants to. He still doesn’t share in the sufferings of Jesus the way he wishes.
And if Paul was still in progress, so are we. It’s important for every church and every Christian to adopt this same spirit of humility. No church has fully restored this pattern of life. No Christian has arrived at this goal. It’s something we are all still short of.
So, what does Paul do? What are we to do? Paul states his response in these words:
- “I press on” (3:12);
- “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead” (3:13);
- “I press on toward the goal” (3:14).
Acknowledging his missteps, but refusing to let them define him, Paul keeps his “eyes on the prize” and presses on and strains toward this goal.
We should linger for a moment at his phrase “forgetting what lies behind” (3:13) [4] As I’ve walked with people along this journey, I’ve noticed that many struggle with a fundamental issue. When they fall and fail people tend to get down and discouraged. They can’t stop thinking about how, once again, they’ve fallen short of the life for which they were created. And they begin to think that such a life is only a fairy-tale. It’s a story whose happy ending they’ll never quite reach. They get engrossed in how many times they lost their temper that month, how many mornings they didn’t pray that week, or how many people they didn’t serve that day. It doesn’t matter how many spiritual successes they experienced that month, week, or day. All they can see are the failures. They forget the hits. They forget the runs. All they notice are the errors.
Paul admits his errors. But those errors are not his focus. His eyes remain glued instead on the end, the goal, the vision of life he’s found in Jesus Christ. When Paul fails to achieve that vision, he puts that mistake in the past and keeps his focus on the goal. He forgets what is behind—the failures and the falls—and keeps straining and pressing on toward the goal.
I’m not suggesting it’s wrong to recognize and acknowledge our errors. The challenge many of us face, however, is a tendency to think only or primarily of our weaknesses. We stare so long at the darkness of our errors that eventually we become blind to anything else. Those who make real progress in any facet of life acknowledge their shortcomings but are not handicapped by them.
Paul forgot what was behind. He left the past in the past. We would do well to do the same.
And as we keep our eyes on the goal–knowing Christ Jesus our Lord and sharing in his sufferings–we would do well to keep our eyes on the compass rather than on the clock.
You are watching the clock when the primary questions asked about life-change are these:
- “How fast am I growing?”
- “How quickly am I changing?”
- “How soon will I arrive at spiritual maturity?”
What matters most to those of us who watch the clock is haste and hustle. Getting there with haste. Showing lots of hustle.
Alternatively, you are considering the compass when these questions fill your mind:
- “Am I headed in the right direction?”
- “Am I making progress?”
- “Am I pointing at the right goals?”
What matters most to those of us who consider the compass is trend and trajectory. Trending in the right direction. Travelling on the right trajectory.
One of the primary sources of discouragement in the spiritual journey stems from the clock. We despair because we’re not growing in prayer promptly enough or becoming a servant swiftly enough or overcoming rage rapidly enough. We are clock watchers. And clock watching inevitably leads to disappointment because none of us develops as quickly as we desire.
Thankfully, the issue which Paul models in this testimony is not accomplishment but aim. His ultimate concern is not rapidity (Am moving at the right speed?) but route (Am I moving in the right direction?). When it came to Paul’s own transformation, he did not watch the clock. Instead, he considered the compass. Even after thirty years Paul freely admits to falling short of the vision Jesus has for his character and his conduct. “If I were a clock-watcher,” Paul acknowledges, “I’d have given up. I’d have quit for my lack of quickness. My forward movement has been too snail-like to suit a clock-watcher.”
But the discrepancy between where he is and where he wants to be does not discourage Paul. Why? Because he is concentrating not on the clock but on the compass. Paul strains toward what is ahead. Paul presses on toward the goal. What matters is being on the correct course, not having an acceptable acceleration. What counts is the target before him not the ground behind him. Paul does not fret about how fast he is growing. Instead he focuses on the fact that he is growing—gradually and on an accurate bearing.
But that doesn’t mean Paul is just strolling along. Listen once more to his language:
- “I press on” (3:12);
- “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead” (3:13);
- “I press on toward the goal” (3:14).
“Press on” and “strain forward” come from the world of racing. [5] Not strolling. Not jogging. But racing. Every muscle of the body exerting itself forward. Arms pumping furiously. Legs flying passionately. Heart pounding. Eyes tearing up. Breath coming in gasps. That’s how Paul describes his approach to growth. Every day he’s on the track. Training. Pushing himself harder. Relentlessly working for this goal of knowing Christ Jesus his Lord and sharing in his sufferings.
Tim Woodroof imagines Epaphroditus alluding to this language as he stands before the Philippians, encouraging them to take Paul’s example to heart:[6]
“‘When I was a boy, I wanted to compete in the Games. I listened to the stories of the great champions and attended the processions when the athletes paraded through Philippi. I imagined myself on the fields of Olympus being honored by the judges and cheered by the crowds.’ He smiled at his listeners. ‘Every night, I put myself to sleep thinking about wearing the victor’s wreath…I wanted to run the great marathon. I saw myself eating up the miles with long , flowing strides while the maidens lined the path and swooned as I passed by…I discovered early on that I was fast on my feet. My friends and I used to mark off a course through the streets of Philippi and race each other. I always won. It was easy for me. All I did was throw back my head and let my legs do the work. But I got cocky about it–as boys sometimes do. And after each race, I would crow about winning the marathon one day and being the most famous runner in all of Greece…There was a carpenter on my street who heard me boasting. I guess he heard me more than once, because one day, he came into the street and took me by the ear. He said, ‘Young man, you can boast about being faster than your buddies, and I reckon that’s the truth. And you can brag about winning races to the agora and back, and that’s a fact too. But I’m sick of hearing you sound off about winning the marathon when you ain’t never run more than a mile in your whole life.’ And then he turned me around and pointed to Mount Pangaion and said, ‘See that mountain? When you can run all the way there without stopping, then I’ll build a little platform out in front of my shop and you can step up on it and crow to your heart’s content, and I’ll be glad to listen. But, until then, I don’t want to hear no more about what a great marathoner you’re gonna be…’ I decided right then I’d show him. The very next morning, I took off running for the mountain. I ran through the streets of Philippi and out beyond the walls and through those fields to the west…It was easy. Until I hit the hills just beyond. I started sweating. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. I couldn’t catch my breath so I slowed down–just a little. My side started to hurt, and I slowed down a little more. by this time, my feet were aching. They started to bleed. I crossed a stream and stopped, just for a moment, to cool down and get a drink. I ran up another hill with my legs cramping and knotted, but I kept running. When I got to the top of that hill, I expected to see Mount Pangaion right in front of me. I thought I was almost there. But the mountain hadn’t moved at all. It seemed just as far away as when I started. I stood there looking at it for the longest time, thinking about how easy it is to run fast and how hard it is to run long. And then I turned around and walked home…I think that was the day I decided to be a potter instead.'”
We could imagine Epaphroditus sharing that story with the Philippians as he shares Paul’s words about pressing on and straining forward. Running, truly running, is a great idea. But very few are willing to actually turn it into a reality. The same is true when it comes to the “win” of Phil. 3. If we ever hope to truly know Jesus our Lord and truly share in his sufferings, it will take more than just a quick sprint down the street. It will take a commitment to run and run and run all the way to the distant mountain’s summit.
There’s a story told about the very first marathon. [7] In 490 B.C. a man named Pheidippides ran 26 miles to warn of the impending attack of the Persians upon his country. The route began in Marathon and ended in Sparta. But soon after he reached Sparta, having run the 26 miles, Pheidippides died. Analyzing lunar records, astronomers at Texas State University believe the cause of his death was heat stroke. Their research indicates the runner may have raced in temperatures reaching 102 degrees. Researcher Russell Doescher as said, “It seems plausible that someone running for all he’s got, trying to save his fellow citizens, could keel over and die.” This is the kind of effort Paul is describing. Pressing on. Straining forward. Running for all he’s got.
And Paul is challenging us to take up the same effort. He writes, “join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us (Phil. 3:17).” We should keep our eyes not only on Jesus, but also on those around us who are running this race with passion and abandon. Their example should inspire us to run similarly. As we watch others press on and strain forward to know Jesus and to share in his sufferings, we are inspired to do the same. This is one reason we travel this journey in pack. We run with others. We participate in churches and classes and small groups. We need to be able to see people who are straining and pressing toward the goal. Because their example inspires and informs us.[8] Paul urges us to work together (3:15). To not lose ground (3:16). But to strive as a community toward the goal. We do not run alone. We run as a team. And while we may have differences along the way (3:15), we agree on one thing–the ultimate goal and our shared commitment to run toward it with abandon. [9]
Paul’s urging us to consider the effort we put into growth and mission. Do we invest as much time in spiritual formation as we do in fishing and hunting? Do we spend as much time in spiritual training as we spend at the gym? Are we working as hard to climb the spiritual ladder to maturity as we are climbing the corporate ladder to “success?” Do we focus as intently on this goal as we do on the goal of raising a family?
Many of us put more effort into binge-watching the latest TV series than we do in chasing our life’s true goal–and then we wonder why we can’t seem to make any progress with our character, why our kids are repeating our own ingrained mistakes, and why our lives don’t seem to have much adventure. We invest more energy in our recreation (snow boarding, water skiing, fly fishing, reading, watching football and basketball) than in our formation–and then we complain about how God seems so far away and this spiritual thing just doesn’t seem to be working for us.
But if we truly want to reach the goal of which Paul writes, it’s going to demand top priority. It’s going to take relentless effort. It’s going to require more time, energy and resources that anything else in life.
But the good news is this: there is an end to this race. This race has a finish line. We don’t have to run forever. We don’t have to labor without end. N. D. Wilson encourages us with this good news: [10]
Imagine being your flawed self without time. Stop shielding your inadequacies from observation, take a full beat, and dedicate a few of your precious seconds to giving the worst of your sinful impulses a two-eyed, unblinking stare. (I don’t encourage people to do this often.) Think about your temper. Your resentfulness. Your lust. Your lies. Your selfishness. Your despair. Think about all the trouble you have on the inside. Think about the weight of that burden. I hope that it’s a burden you fight, not a burden that has already conquered you. I hope it is a war, an advance, a struggle. Now remove time. There is no end to this race. There is no finish line. There is no final round to this brawl. There is no clock counting down. You must struggle with that temper always. Forever. You will be seven hundred years old, still a lusting lecher weeping with guilt. A thousand-year-old woman who can’t stop her poisonous tongue. When young athletes train hard, a good coach is there. When they push themselves to dizziness, to vomiting, a coach is counting down. You can do it. Just three more. Just five more minutes. Two more laps. You can do this. And we find that we can. That we can push harder than we ever knew. Because once we have, we will be done. Imagine running and running and running until your throat burns with welling acid from your gut and constricts with the sharp bursts of cold breaths that your screaming lungs grab and grab and grab to keep your body moving. Your coach is on the side. He shouts. “It won’t ever stop! You will never be done. Just keep going.” Me? I drop right there. Without a finish line, I quit. In the ancient myths, Tartarus is where the rebel Titans were tortured forever, where they struggled to complete tasks with any end, without any completion. Without death, without mortal time, this earth would be Tartarus. Mortality is a consequence of sin. But it is also a gift. A mercy. A kindness. Death is grace. A fallen and corrupt human race with no end? Dark burdens with no finish? Because of death, we can run the good race. We can fight the good fight. Completion exists.
This is not the Tartarus torture. Paul writes of Jesus returning and bringing us across that finish line (3:20-21). Earlier, he inspired confidence by reminding us “that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:6). What we’ve started, will be finished. On the day Jesus returns, this race will be over. The finish line will be crossed. The goal will be reached.
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[1] http://mrscwhite.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/calvinball1.gif; http://freewebs.com/calhobbes/verysorry.jpg
[2] N. T. Wright concludes, “In verses 20 and 21…he speaks not of our going up to heaven, but of the Lord, king Jesus himself, coming from heaven to earth, in order to transform the world and change our bodies so that they are like his own resurrected and glorified body. Living in ‘heaven’ isn’t the goal we are aiming at; rather, it’s living in God’s new world with our new bodies. So the ‘upward call’ seems to be the resurrection life itself.” N. T. Wright Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters (Westminster John Knox, 2004), 123.
“‘We are citizens of heaven,’ Paul declares in verse 20. At once many modern Christians misunderstand what he means. We naturally suppose he means ‘and so we’re waiting until we can go and live in heaven where we belong.’ But that’s not what he says, and it’s certainly not what he means. If someone in Philippi said, ‘We are citizens of Rome, ‘ they certainly wouldn’t mean ‘so we’re looking forward to going to live there.’ Being a colony works the other way round. The last thing the emperors wanted was a whole lot of colonists coming back to Rome. The capital was already overcrowded and underemployed. No: the task of the roman citizen in a place like Philippi was to bring Roman culture and rule to northern Greece, to expand Roman influence there. But supposing things go difficult for the Roman colonists in Philippi. supposing there was a local rebellion, or an attack by the ‘barbarian’ tribes to the north. How would they cope? Their best hope would be that the emperor himself, who after all was called ‘saviour’, ‘rescuer,’ would come from Rome to Philippi to change their present somewhat defenceless situation, defeat their enemies, and establish them as firmly and gloriously as Rome itself. The emperor, of course, was the ruler of the whole world, so he had the power to make all this happen under his authority. That is the picture Paul has in mind in verse 20 and 21. The church is at present a colony of heaven, with the responsibility (as we say in the Lord’s Prayer) for bringing the life and rule of heaven to bear on earth. We are not, of course, very good at doing this; we often find ourselves weak and helpless, and our physical bodies themselves are growing old and tired, decaying and ready to die. But our hope is that the true saviour, the true Lord, King Jesus himself will come from heaven and change all that. He is going to transform the entire world so that it is full of his glory, full of the life and power of heaven. And, as part of that, he is going to transform our bodies so that they are like his glorious body, the body which was itself transformed after his cruel death so that it became wonderfully alive again with a life that death and decay could never touch again.” N. T. Wright Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters (Westminster John Knox, 2004), 126-127
[3] From Chris Altrock Ten Minute Transformation (Chalice, 2013)
[4] The verb dioko, translated here and in verse 14 press on, is a hunting word meaning ‘I pursue’; it is also used of foot-racing. It is a strong expression for active and earnest endeavour. It is correlative with take hold in a number of passages (Rom. 9:30; cf. Exod. 15:9; 2 Clement 18:2) in the sense of ‘pursue and overtake’, ‘chase and capture’. This gives an excellent sense. The apostle presses forward in his Christian course in the full recognition that he is not yet perfect, but lives in confidence of ultimate salvation. If the attainment of perfection is denied, there is equally no quietism or indifferent acquiescence in his present experience. He is concerned to strain every nerve to pursue the ideal before him, and at last to capture the coveted prize (v. 14). Martin, R. P. (1987). Philippians: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 11, pp. 159–160). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
straining forward … I press on. Here is the runner in the games, ‘extended’ in every fibre of his being—‘the eye outstrips and draws on the hand, and the hand the foot’—everything is at a stretch to breast the tape. Motyer, J. A. (1984). The message of Philippians (pp. 176–177). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
[5] Tim Woodroof A Distant Presence (NavPress, 2001), 313-315.
[6] “What killed the Marathon Man?” The WEEK (8-6-03) p. 24.
[7] This doesn’t mean Paul never stopped. Just like his Lord, Paul understood the need for Sabbath, for solitude, for rest and reflection. Scott Cacciola writes about Bernard Lagat. “Lagat, a Kenyan-born citizen of the U.S., is a four-time Olympian. He owns seven American records, ranging from the 1,500 to the 5,000 meters. In the 2012 London Olympics he finished fourth in the 5,000 meters. Although long-distance running is a hard on the joints and muscles, 37-year-old Lagat shows no signs of slowing down. But even in the midst of his rigorous training schedule, every fall Lagat does something that is completely foreign to most elite runners around the globe: he takes a five-week break—just like he’s done every fall since 1999. According to an article in The New York Times, “He will toss his sneakers into a closet and pig out for five weeks. No running. No sit-ups, no heavy-lifting, except for a fork.” He will also coach his son’s soccer team. Peter Thompson, a longtime running coach and track and field official, claims that Lagat’s approach is unique. Thompson said, “In the U.S., runners are very obsessive about not letting go of training.” But Lagat stands by his need for sustained rest. Lagat said that every athlete is different, but his schedule has been very effective. “My runs are very hard,” he said. “Everything I do is hard …. [But] the body is tired. You’re not a machine. Rest is a good thing.” Scott Cacciola, “The Secret to Running: Not Running,” The New York Times (12-20-12)
[8] What would our churches be like if we saw ourselves as apprentices trying to learn new skills and better ways of doing things from those who have had long experience in the ways of prayer, tithing, joyful living, and trust in God? What if we recognized that we also stand as “masters” before apprentices, that our actions should demonstrate a Spirit-filled walk? I wonder if we in the U.S. shy away from thinking about ourselves as “masters” to apprentices because it places greater responsibility on us to behave in a manner worthy of the gospel. Conversely, perhaps we rebel against considering ourselves apprentices, for we’d rather go our own way, find our own path, do it ourselves. Cohick, Lynn H. (2013-10-29). Philippians (The Story of God Bible Commentary) (Kindle Locations 4473-4480). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
There are some, we must beware, who are not worthy of imitating (3:18-19): “The practical conduct of Paul and his fellow-workers is the Philippians’ goal and aim. But let them turn away from another example set by many professing Christians whose lives are a disgrace to the name they claim to bear, and a source of pain to the apostle himself. The persons here referred to are evidently professed believers, as Kennedy has convincingly demonstrated,22 but whether they are Jewish or Gentile it is hard to decide. If they were Jewish Christians and are, therefore, the same group as Paul describes in 3:2ff., a number of allusions are explained. Their enmity to the cross of Christ is shown by their adherence to the law as an agent of salvation, thus subverting the necessity for and saving significance of the sacrifice of Calvary as the only means of redemption (cf. Gal. 2:21, RSV). Their destiny is destruction, which means that, cutting themselves off from the only hope of salvation in Christ alone (Gal. 5:4), they have no prospect except the doom which awaits unsaved humanity (e.g. Rom. 9:22). Their god is their stomach will then be a reference to their distinctions between clean and unclean foods, a characteristic trait of Jewish Christianity (see Acts 15; Rom. 14; 16:18; 1 Cor. 8–10; Col. 2:16). Another feature of the Jewish Christians’ creed was circumcision (cf. 3:2, 5) and the apostle may be making a caustic allusion to this in the phrase, their glory is in their shame. Glory here is almost the equivalent of ‘God’, as in Psalm 106:20; and the Hebrew word for shame, b?šet, is used in the Old Testament as a devastating caricature of the false gods, ba‘al, b?‘?l?m which the Jews idolatrously worshipped (see, for example, Jer. 11:13). If Paul has trust in circumcision in mind, the shame will be that of the nakedness of the human body which was required for the rite to be performed (cf. Gen. 2:25; 3:7, 10–11; Ezek. 16:8; Rev. 3:18). Nakedness and shame are placed side by side in parallelism in Micah 1:11 and Nahum 3:5. Their mind, phronountes, is centred upon earthly things because their confidence is built upon prescriptions and rituals which are obsolete with the coming of Christ and the adequacy of his gospel to meet the need of sinful people.” Martin, R. P. (1987). Philippians: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 11, pp. 164–165). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
[9] “Paul acknowledges in the second half of 3: 15 that perhaps some may think otherwise. How likely was it for the Philippians to dissent from Paul? It is difficult to tell, but his overall stress on unity suggests that at the least, they were given to different opinions with frustrating regularity. What might they question? Paul uses the demonstrative pronoun “this” (NIV translates “such a view of things”), which likely points back to the previous several verses. While they might disagree “on some point” (i.e., on minor issues that can be solved through friends talking together), Paul would insist that his gospel is not up for debate, though earnest seekers after Christ may vary in their methods for attaining a deeper relationship. Paul is not worried about the content of the Philippians’ differences of thought, because these questions deal with minor issues. But he is concerned that they manage these differences by turning to God for guidance. Paul declares that God will inform them of his will through revelation. Herein lies the foundation for unity — corporate prayer seeking God’s guidance. How often are we content with a church vote, or do we instead participate in behind-the-scenes machinations to shape our local church to fit our agendas? Do we hold a passive aggressive posture that nods agreement to a decision, but deeply resents it and harbors ill will? Paul stresses that when everyone in the community lays their ideas, hopes, and convictions before God openly, God’s will can be discerned. Perhaps Paul imagines this will happen in their gatherings as he notes to the Corinthians: “When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up” (1 Cor 14: 26). Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians sounds a similar note: “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you [plural] the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better” (Eph 1: 17). Paul’s concern in 3: 16 is that the Philippians might take a few steps back in their faith journey. He pleads with them to hold onto what they already have and continue in their current trajectory. He asks them not to abandon what they “have already attained” in their lives of faith. Paul uses this verb elsewhere, always with the idea of future hope (e.g., 1 Thess 4: 15). He goes on to ask them to stay the general course, to “live up to” what they know is true; he uses the same verb as in Galatians 5: 25, where he instructs the Galatians to “keep in step” with the Spirit. Cohick, Lynn H. (2013-10-29). Philippians (The Story of God Bible Commentary) (Kindle Locations 4400-4419). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
[10] N D Wilson “Living by Dying” (2013), 111-112.
