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The Gospel Truth
This sermon is about that last truth. Judgment day is coming. Only this is not the hell, fire and brimstone commentary. This one is about heaven, priorities and prizes. Read Philippians 3:14. Your "goal" or "mark" is a reflection of your priorities in life. Your priorities will determine your "prize." Today I want you to make a commitment to imitate the Apostle Paul, at least as far as this one verse is concerned. I want you to set your sights on heaven, "the upward call." I want you to set priorities, "the goal," that reflect your heavenly citizenship. And finally, I want to encourage you about "the prize" that is yours if you do. Heaven Heaven in this verse is not so much a place as it is a process. This is not to deny the existence of a literal place called heaven, for I believe it literally exists. It's just that I have not seen or experienced it, yet. What I can see or experience now, as a Christian, is what Paul referred to as "the upward call." The heavenly life is the process that begins with the sovereignty of God (Ephesians 1:4; Romans 8:28-30), is realized when a person is saved (John 3:16; Acts 2:38), and it is consummated when we see Jesus face to face in glory (1 Corinthians 13:12; 1 John 3:2). I may not look like it, and I certainly don't act like it sometimes, but I am a heavenly person enjoying a heavenly life right now as I make my way to heaven. And so are you, if you are a Christian. Christianity is not making a deal with God, it is living a life for God. It is not a transaction that punches your ticket to heaven, then in the meantime living for your own personal pleasures and plans. No, Christianity is a constant calling that orders your life around the pleasures, plans and priorities of God. This is what Paul had in mind when he penned Philippians 3:14. He had heaven on his mind, but he was not so heavenly minded that he was of no earthly good. He said "I press" (literally pursue or run with all your might) by establishing Christian priorities which reflect my prize in Christ. Priorities Paul's ultimate priority was to get to heaven, but he knew that God already had that one covered (Philippians 1:6; Romans 8:29-30). With this established, Paul apparently had another overarching "goal." What was it? This has been pondered by Bible readers and scholars for centuries. What is the great goal, the great purpose, the greatest priority of the Christian life? I think the 17th century reformers who wrote the Westminster Shorter Catechism said it best: "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever." Who do you glorify? What do you enjoy? How do your priorities reflect this? To "glorify" means to think and work in order to bring praise, honor and benefit to someone. Most people only seek to glorify themselves. Aren't you sick to death of sleazy sports superstars and other celebrities that live lives of non-stop superficial selfglory? Yet deep down inside most people in the world, and not a few in the church, would give anything to be rich and famous like them. And it shows in their priorities. They dress, talk and live in ways that glorify someone but certainly not God. To "enjoy" simply means to find your joy in someone or something. Finding joy in money is wrong (Matthew 6:24). Finding joy in the vicarious victories of some sports team is silly (1 John 2:17). Even finding joy in family and friends can be a serious spiritual mistake (Luke 14:26). Once again, priorities point to the place or person who holds our greatest joy. Let me explain Paul's "goal," which reveals how a Christian should prioritize to "glorify God and enjoy him forever." Make it a priority to know God better than you know anyone or anything else. Life is a pursuit of knowledge that some people take more seriously than others. Theology, or the knowledge of God, should be the most important pursuit of a person who claims to be a Christian. And, make it a priority to help others to know God. Tell them the good news about Jesus Christ and urge them to believe the gospel. This is called evangelism, or making disciples, which is the very mandate Christ gave to Christians before he left the earth (Matthew 28:18- 20). Most modern church members find theology boring and evangelism an unessential option. Therein lies the problem with the modern church. I tell you that only those who make theology and evangelism priorities in their lives have priorities that are pleasing to God. For without faith and faith-based priorities, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:1). And only those who please the Lord can have any expectation of receiving a prize from him. Prizes Paul had a heavenly calling that gave him an earthly lifestyle characterized by the proper priorities of knowing God and making him known.With his priorities in one eye, he had his other eye on "the prize." Just what is the prize, or what are the prizes, that await the true children of God? Heaven is a true prize for the Christian. However, heaven is the ultimate in delayed gratification. But God wants you to keep your eyes on the prize of heaven because it is true (Revelation 21:1) and it will truly make you a better person on earth (1 John 3:2). In heaven there will be rewards, true prizes for true Christians. The concept of varying rewards in heaven are spoken of often in scripture. Heavenly rewards, like heaven itself, are also based on the concept of delayed gratification. When you delay having sex until you are married in order to please the Lord, the Lord will have a special reward for you in heaven. When you delay the purchase of material items in order to obediently pour your tithes and offerings into the church, the Lord will have a special reward for you in heaven. When you delay other pursuits for money and pleasure in order to give your time to evangelizing and ministering to others, I assure you your reward in heaven will be great. So, great prizes in heaven await those who hold to proper priorities on earth. But isn't there at least one prize we can have right now? As a pastor, I'm really glad you asked. I cannot offer you health and wealth, like the charlatan television preachers offer. That's not a prize for Christians, at least not exclusively. God showers material blessings upon all men (Matthew 5:45). The truth be told, lost people often live healthier and wealthier than Christians. Happiness and happy families are not immediate prizes exclusively planned for Christians, either. People of other faiths and no faith at all have no problem being happy at home, work and play if they will just employ some common sense and common courtesy in life. There is only one prize I know of on earth that is offered exclusively to Christians. It is a place and a people where the spirit and salvation of God are most manifest. It is a sacred assembly of born again bakers and bankers, farmers and factory workers, house builders and housewives, soldiers and saleswomen come together to glorify God in worship and theological study, then go out to serve God in ministry and mission. This prize is meaningful membership in the church of Jesus Christ. Have you thought of your church lately as a prize from God? When our priorities are right, this is exactly what this is. When our priorities are right, and God and God's people are our prize, then the worship and work of the church is the closest thing to heaven on earth we will ever know.
This year, let your church be a blessing to you so that you can be a blessing to others. Gather consistently to learn more and more about God. Go and tell others about him. Make this a priority. Win the prize.
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