“Keep On Keeping On!”

Philippians 3:7-14 – October 8, 2023

            I remember several wise sayings or proverbs, from when I was very young. I can’t recall where I heard them, or who brought them up, but they stick in my memory! Sayings like “A penny saved is a penny earned,” “slow but steady wins the race,” and “a stitch in time saves nine.” One wise saying that seems quite appropriate for today’s Scripture reading is “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.”

            Today’s reading from the apostle Paul in Philippians chapter 3 is filled with memorable remarks! But, when I read through this passage this time around, I focused on verses 13 and 14: “¹³ Brothers and sisters, 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, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

            When Paul wrote to his friends in Philippi, he insisted that they keep on trying! Keep on the path, press on towards the goal. Paul uses a sports analogy here. Sports were huge in Roman society! And, Philippi was a colonized Roman city. It was several hundred miles from Rome, and not even on the Italian peninsula, but that made no difference. The people of that city were very much aware of their special status as Roman citizens, and many citizens of Philippi emulated the practices of Rome very much – including being big sports fans!

            Paul wrote this letter to the Philippians from prison in Rome. “His physical movements are severely limited. He is certainly not engaged in any chariot races. Yet this is the metaphor he chooses to inspire the Philippians to press on. It is an athletic, physical, and forward-moving metaphor.” [1] But, hold on, a minute! Before Paul says all this, he hits on something important!

            Let’s backtrack a few verses. Paul gives some autobiographical details. We already know Paul is highly educated, and a former member of the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of Israel. Here, he mentions his status and achievements as a Jew by birth – a “Hebrew of Hebrews.” Paul is ticking off these prestigious honors and points of status, one after the other. A Pharisee, a former persecutor of the Church, a blameless follower of the Law of Moses. A real blue blood, and he used to be particularly proud of all these status points on his resume!

            Just imagine a child or grandchild. Some parents would want them to get all the prestigious honors, high grades, and extra-curricular activities, playing a musical instrument, and going out for the team. All the things, as the young people say! Some parents really want their kids to have so many achievements on their resume or in their scholastic record! This is what Paul is saying, here. He was a huge overachiever, as far as his resume was concerned!      

            Yet, Paul now regards all of these prestigious honors and achievements to be nothing, less than nothing – even “dung” or in colloquial language, horse manure! Instead, the very most important thing to Paul was now doing exactly what God wanted him to do! And, being exactly who God wanted him to be!

            Which brings us back to where we started in our examination of this Scripture reading. “¹³ Brothers and sisters, 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, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Paul returns to one of his favorite metaphors for the Christian life, a sports metaphor. At the end of a sports contest in the first century Roman empire, the winner would get the prize. A laurel crown, a bag of gold, some fame and repute. In other words, become a sports star! Paul is encouraging all of his readers to strive for the goal! To run the race, and win the prize!

But, this prize Paul talks about is not an earthly prize, like in the Olympics. It’s not some gold medal or silver coins, or some laurel crown that will decay and dry up. Instead, Paul encourages us all that we can never give up! We all need to press on. Not to persevere toward a sports medal, or public prestige, or a multi-million dollar contract! No! Paul wants us to persevere for our souls’ sake. Paul wants us to persevere in our walk with Christ! [2]

            Sure, we might fall down. Fall on our faces, and strive to get up again. This whole topic reminds me of a classic song and dance number from a Fred Astaire musical, where Fred sings “Pick myself up, dust myself off, and start all over again!”

            To use another (more modern) sports analogy, if in baseball a batter gets a base hit one out of four trips to the plate, he’s considered a pretty good hitter. A batting average of .250 is perfectly respectable! And, if the batter gets a base hit one out of three times at bat, he’s a really good hitter! A consistent batting average of .333 is great!

            Except – that means that two thirds or even three quarters of the time, the batter is going to strike out, fly out or ground out. That could get really disheartening! Imagine, only getting on base a quarter of the time. And yet, do baseball players get mad, or frustrated, or downright depressed just because they can’t bat 1.000 all the time? No! Sports players keep on going. They keep on keeping on. They persevere, and keep on swinging.

            Exactly what Paul would have said. He would have nodded in agreement and affirmation and said, ” this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus”

            The old Spiritual expresses this sentiment of determination and perseverance well: “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back.”

Remember the words of Paul, and remember to keep on keeping on, just like your favorite sports stars and sports personalities. And, remember to continue striving, and continue to serve God as best as you are able! Alleluia, Amen.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

[1] https://www.patheos.com/progressive-christian/keep-on-keepin-on-alyce-m-mckenzie-09-29-2014

[2] Ibid.