From Coasting to Chasing

Holy Father, we come together in this moment for you to speak to us through Your Word. We pray that You would teach us. We pray that You would motivate us. We pray that you would change us. We want to know Christ and grow in Christ. May that happen even now as we look to the Scriptures. By the power of Your Spirit, Lord, do it. We ask it that Christ might be glorified in us, Amen. Open your Bible to . Once you have located that place, please stand for the reading of God’s Word.

Today I want to talk about something I call coasting in the Christian life. You’re coasting when your Christian life is comfortable and casual. You’re not really all that concerned about growing in the knowledge of Christ. You’re not actively fighting to be rid of the sin that remains in your life. You know you don’t witness or pray like you should, but you’ve just accepted that as reality and aren’t really trying to change. You’re just coasting along, not putting any real effort or energy into knowing Christ and growing more like Him.

I hope it’s obvious to you that this is not the way we should be living our lives as Christians. But the reality is some of us are. Paul is writing to the Philippians and in he tells them that he has counted everything in his life as loss in order to gain Christ, to know Him. But how does that affect his life and the way he lives it? In our text for today he will tell us.

Specifically we’ll learn three things: 1. Why we shouldn’t coast, 2. What we should do instead, 3. How we are able to do it.

What do I mean by coasting in the Christian

Paul has just finished talking about his desire to know Christ, to gain Christ, to have His righteousness. His goal was to reach the point where he knew Christ fully. He wanted to be completely conformed to His image. He wanted his relationship with Christ to be everything it possibly could be. But he knew this would only fully and finally become a reality at the last day when the dead in Christ rise to be with Him forever. That’s why he said in verse 11 that he wanted to attain the resurrection from the dead.

But here in verse 12 Paul says, “I haven’t obtained it yet.” In other words, “I don’t yet know Christ fully.” He goes on to say, “I haven’t yet become perfect.” He’s saying, “I am not yet fully conformed to His image.” Paul’s relationship with Christ was not yet everything it could be. What Paul most longed for had not yet become a reality. And here’s the thing. It hasn’t become a reality for you or me yet either. We don’t know Christ fully, in knowledge or experience. We don’t experience the complete fullness of what it means to be in a relationship with Him. We still fall so far short of His likeness in so many ways. In verse 13 Paul says, “I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet.” Paul realizes that fully knowing Christ is a reality that is still beyond his grasp. The same is true for us.

That being the case, why would we just coast along in our Christian life? And the answer is, we shouldn’t. We don’t coast in the Christian life because the goal of our salvation, the ultimate aim of our existence is still beyond our grasp. We’re not there yet. We only know Christ in part. We’re only like Him to a small extent. The joy of belong in relationship with Him isn’t even close to full. This isn’t a time to rest and relax in our faith. Why would you slow down before the finish line?

I’ve been on quite a few trips overseas, anywhere from ten days to two weeks. Most of these trips I made without Angela. I remember going to Africa in 2011. When our return flight finally landed in Jackson. I couldn’t wait to see my wife. I wasn’t thinking about luggage. I wasn’t thinking about getting something to eat. I wasn’t casually strolling along window shopping. I didn’t pause to tie my shoe. No sir! I made a beeline for my wife. I wasn’t thinking, “There’s no hurry I’ll see her eventually.” None of that. The closer we got to home the more anxious I was to see her. Listen Christian, you’re on the way to see the One your soul loves. This is supposed to be what you long for more than anything. This is no time to stroll along, being distracted by everything you see.

Our goal as believers is to know Christ fully and perfectly. But we’re not there yet, so we shouldn’t coast.

Paul said, “I haven’t obtained it yet, but I press on so I may obtain it”. So, we don’t coast in our Christian life. We press on. He says it again in verse 14, “I press on.” This is a verb used in hunting, meaning to pursue. It is also used of foot racing, meaning running hard with all your might toward the finish line. That’s the idea here.

This pictures a runner with his eyes fixed on the finish line, his hand stretching out towards it, and his body bent forward as he draws near the end of the race. This is a picture of intense desire and utmost effort in pursuing Christ.

Rather than coasting, we should be chasing, chasing Christ. That involves two things we see in verse 13. It involves forgetting and reaching. He is not primarily thinking about his past sinful life. Rather, his past progress in Christ and accomplishments in ministry. Focusing on those things might cause him to relax his pursuit of knowing Christ fully. And this is an ongoing forgetting. It’s a constant refusal to focus on what’s behind, good or bad. So, we’re forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. This pictures a runner with his eyes fixed on the finish line, his hand stretching out towards it, and his body bent forward as he draws near the end of the race. This is a picture of intense desire and utmost effort in pursuing Christ. Paul sees himself as a runner and Christ as the finish line.

We shouldn’t be coasting in our Christian life. We should be chasing Christ. Not looking back over our shoulders. That will only slow us down. Instead we pour all our energy and effort into striving forward to lay hold of Christ.

I believe part of the problem is a misunderstanding of one particular area of Baptist doctrine. Specifically, eternal security, often referred to as once saved always saved. It is often thought that we believe that once a person makes a profession of faith, they are good to go. Their ticket is punched and they’re on the way to heaven no matter what. But that’s not actually what the doctrine of eternal security teaches. The doctrine of eternal security teaches that once a person is truly born again they will persevere faithfully as followers of Christ until the day they die, and therefore they will be saved. In other words, Christians don’t make a profession of faith and then just coast along until they die.

Hebrews 12:1–2 NASB95

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

What we’re running for is seen in verse 14. Paul calls it “the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” We could say “the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” The prize is all that God promises to those who are saved. Paul is saying, “I press on so that I can lay hold of all that God promised me when He saved me.” We press on, striving ever forward to lay hold of all that is to be ours in Christ.

I believe part of the problem is a misunderstanding of one particular area of Baptist doctrine. Specifically, eternal security, often referred to as once saved always saved. It is often thought that we believe that once a person makes a profession of faith, they are good to go. Their ticket is punched and they’re on the way to heaven no matter what. But that’s not actually what the doctrine of eternal security teaches. The doctrine of eternal security teaches that once a person is truly born again they will persevere faithfully as followers of Christ until the day they die, and therefore they will be saved. In other words, Christians don’t make a profession of faith and then just coast along until they die.

I believe part of the problem is a misunderstanding of one particular area of Baptist doctrine. Specifically, eternal security, often referred to as once saved always saved. It is often thought that we believe that once a person makes a profession of faith, they are good to go. Their ticket is punched and they’re on the way to heaven no matter what. But that’s not actually what the doctrine of eternal security teaches. The doctrine of eternal security teaches that once a person is truly born again they will persevere faithfully as followers of Christ until the day they die, and therefore they will be saved. In other words, Christians don’t make a profession of faith and then just coast along until they die. No! We spend the rest of our lives seeking to know Christ and grow in Him. We don’t always put in the energy and effort we should. We my have short seasons where we are guilty of coasting. But the pattern of our lives should be marked by pressing forward to know Christ and grow in Him.

Hebrews 12:1–2 NASB95

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

As Christians we shouldn’t be coasting. We should be chasing Christ. Forgetting what lies behind. Reaching forward to what lies ahead. But how are we supposed to do that? We are so easily distracted by lesser things. Our will and energy seem to be so weak sometimes. How can we pursue Christ in the way that Paul speaks of?

How can we chase Christ rather than just coasting. The short answer is Christ. In verse 12 Paul said, “I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.” This is a play on words. “I’m trying to get a hold of what Christ got a hold of me for.” Here’s the point. Christ got a hold of Paul so that Paul could get a hold of Him. Christ saved Paul on the Damascus Road with the ultimate goal that Paul would know Him and be like Him. Listen believer. Christ saved you to give you Himself. “I thought Christ died to give me eternal life?” He did, but eternal life is in Him. Eternal peace is in Him. Eternal joy is in Him. Eternal hope is in Him. Christ saved you to give you Himself.

Here’s why that’s important. Christ is working in us to bring about the same thing we are striving after. He is working to give us what we are working to get a hold of. We are not chasing after Christ in our own strength. That would be a hopeless cause.

Philippians 1:6 NASB95

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:6 NASB95

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 2:12–13 NASB95

So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

We are not chasing after Christ in our own strength. That would be a hopeless cause.

Christ is at work on the inside of every believer to give us both the desire and the energy to pursue Him. Christ in us is what enables us to faithfully seek after Him all our days. We should be chasing Christ with all of our energy, not coasting. But Paul was smart enough to know that not everyone in the church would feel that way. Notice verse 15. All believers who are spiritually mature should think the same way that Paul did. We are to pursue Christ with all our effort and energy, forgetting what lies behind and counting everything else as loss.

But notice what Paul says. “If any of you have a different attitude, if you don’t think this way, God will reveal that to you.” Now notice verse 16. It is important that we live up to whatever truth we have attained. Even if we are not spiritually mature enough that we share Paul’s attitude about pursuing Christlikeness, if we will be faithful at the level of spiritual maturity we have attained, God will open our eyes to see that what Paul is saying is true. We really should forsake everything to pursue Christ. It may be through the Bible that He reveals it to you. It may be through the prayers of other believers. It may be through discipline. The point is this. If your attitude about chasing after Christ is less that it should be, if you’re truly a believer God will adjust your attitude.

How will you be able to stop coasting and chase Christ? Christ in you. That’s how. He will adjust your attitude if necessary. He will work in you to give you the desire to pursue Him. And He will empower you to pursue Him.

You shouldn’t coast in your Christian life. You should pursue Christlikeness. And Christ in you will enable you to do it.

Soon after the publication of John Stott's 1971 revised edition of Basic Christianity, he received a letter that read:

Dear John,

Thank you for writing Basic Christianity. It led me to make a new commitment of my life to Christ. I am old now—nearly 78—but not too old to make a new beginning.

I rejoice in all the grand work you are doing.

Yours sincerely,

Leslie Weatherhead

Leslie Weatherhead was one of the most respected and influential Christian leaders in the United Kingdom. Thousands heard him preach at City Temple, his books were read widely, he pioneered in the field of pastoral counseling, and he was president of the Methodist Conference. Yet at 78-years-old he was not too proud or too worn out to make a fresh commitment of his life.

Maybe today what you need is a fresh commitment to stop coasting in your Christian life and start chasing after Christ. I pray that today you won’t be too proud to admit you’ve been coasting and make that fresh start.

Study Guide

If you had to pick one thing, what would you say is your priority in life? How do your choices reinforce that priority?

What are the priorities of people living in our culture today?

What is Paul’s motivation to press on?

How do our culture’s priorities compare with the church’s?What is Paul’s motivation to press on?

Why must things be left behind, regardless of how “good” they are?

What does it mean to be Christlike (v. 14)? What does that look like in everyday life in the family, at work, or around the neighborhood?

In these verses, what other biblical truth does Paul give to motivate us forward?

Read . How do these verses encourage you in your pursuit of Christ?

When you think about Christ Jesus making you His own, what response does that evoke inside of you?

In these verses, what other biblical truth does Paul give to motivate us forward?

We have a prize awaiting us: we get to be with Jesus forever. How does this eternal perspective help us when we feel as if we are starting to coast in our Christian walk?

In these verses, what other biblical truth does Paul give to motivate us forward?

We have a prize awaiting us: we get to be with Jesus forever. How does this eternal perspective help us when we feel as if we are starting to coast in our Christian walk?

Why do you think the Holy Spirit led Paul to equate maturity to “have this attitude” ?

What does verse 16 have to do with “pressing on”?

From Coasting to Chasing

I. Why we shouldn’t coast

I. Why we shouldn’t coast

I. Why we shouldn’t coast

II. What we should do instead

III. How we are able to do it

Big Idea: The Christian should spend his life chasing Christ.