Kelly - Philippians 3

Aaah, such a Methodist chapter! There were several key "Lutheran" verses found in Ephesians, in this chapter we find some that are central to Methodist theology.

vv. 13-14 "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."

I grew up on a faith of "going on towards perfection." God's grace is at work in us to make us perfectly what God created us to be. Which makes this Lutheran "resting in God's grace" a little bit of a foreign territory. The end effects are the same if you delve deep enough into the theology of each...but the vocabulary is so very different.

I must admit, I work better with a goal. I'm not as motivated to become all that God wants me to be by the act of being grateful for what God has done for me (which is how I see the Lutheran theology most of the time). I prefer this chapter of Paul's...going on, always pressing forward, "be all that you can be."

There are times in life, of course, when I need to rest in Grace. But for most of my daily life, my faith is fuller by pressing on.