Genuine - Week 5, "Keep Pressing

Genuine faith never stops pursuing Jesus. The danger is not only walking away from Jesus. The greater danger may be getting satisfied with where faith already is, doing good things for Jesus without actually pursuing him. The question is whether schedules, spending, conversations, thoughts, and ambitions would show that Jesus is truly treasured.

Paul in Philippians 3 puts everything on the table: pedigree, religious knowledge, zeal, performance, reputation, and all the things that once gave him confidence. Paul counts it all as loss, even dung, compared with “the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus.” Those things were not necessarily bad things, but they were terrible saviors. Church attendance, baptism, serving, Bible knowledge, generosity, family background, and diplomas cannot make anybody right with God. Christ alone gives the righteousness that people cannot earn.

The fire image reveals what matters most. Fire does not create the treasure, it shows what was treasured all along. Genuine faith clings to Jesus when everything else burns away, because Jesus is not just another treasure among many. Jesus is the treasure.

Paul’s goal is not more facts, more activity, or a bigger religious resume. Paul wants to know Christ, the power of his resurrection, the fellowship of his suffering, and conformity to his death. Resurrection power is not only about life after death. The Spirit gives power right now to overcome sin, endure hard things, change from the inside out, and live differently.

Paul also refuses to say, “I’ve arrived.” The man who wrote much of the New Testament, started churches, suffered for Christ, and sat in prison still says there is more Jesus to know. Genuine faith cannot sit back and live off old victories, old failures, old wounds, or old spiritual experiences. The windshield is bigger than the rearview mirror for a reason. Paul forgets what is behind, reaches forward to what is ahead, and presses toward the prize of eternity with Christ.

The gospel is not what people do for Jesus, but what Jesus has done for them. Christ takes hold of sinners, and that grace causes them to run toward him. Repentance, surrender, baptism, forgiveness, prayer, Scripture, Christian community, and obedience become the next steps of people who refuse to settle and keep pressing toward Jesus.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus is the treasure, not success. Paul’s religious accomplishments once gave him identity and confidence, but none of them could save him. Christ gave him the righteousness he could never produce through effort. Genuine faith stops pointing at its resume and starts pointing at Jesus. [42:21]
• 2. Fire reveals what faith truly values. Hard seasons do not automatically make faith genuine. The fire shows what the heart runs toward when comfort, control, reputation, and security get burned away. Faith proves real when Jesus remains worth holding onto above everything else. [35:46]
• 3. Knowing Jesus requires ongoing pursuit. Paul had encountered Christ in dramatic ways, yet his goal remained to know him more deeply. Love does not settle for a few facts, a diploma, or an old experience. Love pays attention, seeks presence, and keeps learning the One it treasures. [48:50]
• 4. Grace moves believers forward, not backward. Paul presses forward because Christ first took hold of him. Old sin, wounds, regret, and even old spiritual victories can become rearview-mirror distractions. Christ calls his people to confess, forgive, release, and keep moving toward the upper call.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [28:58] - The Danger of Settling
• [33:59] - Genuine Faith Keeps Pursuing Jesus
• [34:49] - Treasuring Jesus Above Everything
• [35:16] - The Fire Reveals the Treasure
• [37:25] - Religious Credentials Cannot Save
• [42:21] - Jesus Gives Righteousness by Faith
• [44:52] - Knowing Jesus More Deeply
• [51:08] - The Power of His Resurrection
• [52:44] - Fellowship in Christ’s Suffering
• [55:27] - Paul Has Not Arrived
• [60:31] - Forgetting What Is Behind
• [63:21] - Repentance, Surrender, and Faith
• [67:28] - The Next Step of Obedience
• [70:29] - Run After Jesus

Bible Reading

Philippians 3:7-14
“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But 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 upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” [34:49]

1 Peter 1:6-7
“In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” [29:42]

Matthew 6:33
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” [47:17]

Observation questions

1. In Philippians 3:7-9, what kinds of things had once given Paul confidence, and what does he now say about them compared with knowing Christ? [37:25]
2. According to 1 Peter 1:6-7, what does a season of testing reveal about faith? How does the image of fire help explain that? [35:52]
3. In Philippians 3:10-11, what does Paul say is his goal, and what parts of Christ’s life and power does he want to know?
4. In Philippians 3:12-14, what does Paul say he has not yet achieved, what does he do instead, and what does he focus on? [01:00:19]

Interpretation questions

1. Paul does not say that his heritage, religious knowledge, or good works were always bad things. Why do good things become dangerous when someone depends on them to be right with God? [41:21]
2. Paul says that he presses forward because Christ Jesus first took hold of him. How does this show the difference between trying to earn God’s love and responding to grace? [58:44]
3. Paul wants to know both the power of Christ’s resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings. What might resurrection power look like in an ordinary believer’s life during temptation, hardship, or conflict? [52:05]
4. Paul tells believers to forget what is behind without pretending the past never happened. How can past failures, wounds, and even past spiritual victories keep someone from moving forward with Christ? [01:00:19]

Application questions

1. If someone looked at your schedule, spending, conversations, thoughts, and ambitions, what would they conclude you treasure most? Where do you see a gap between what you say you value and what your life shows? [31:42]
2. Are there good things—church attendance, serving, Bible knowledge, generosity, family background, or a past spiritual experience—that you are tempted to treat as proof that you are right with God? How can you more clearly rest in Christ’s righteousness instead? [43:01]
3. When life feels like a fire—when comfort, control, reputation, or security is threatened—what does your heart usually run toward first? What would it look like to cling to Jesus in that specific situation? [36:07]
4. What is one practical way you can pursue knowing Jesus this week—not merely learn more facts about him, but spend time listening, praying, obeying, and being with him? [54:45]
5. Where do you need the power of Christ’s resurrection right now: overcoming a sin pattern, enduring a difficult season, changing an attitude, or taking a step of obedience? Share one specific area so the group can encourage you. [52:12]
6. Is there something in the “rearview mirror” that is keeping you from pressing forward—an old failure, regret, wound, unforgiveness, or even an old spiritual victory? What would a faithful next step toward freedom and forward movement look like? [01:01:16]
7. Jesus calls his people forward in obedience. What is one next step you sense God may be placing before you—confession, surrender, baptism, forgiveness, returning to Scripture and prayer, or reconnecting with Christian community? [01:07:28]