I want to mind the instructions. I want to make sure we listen to God, but I want to give you what's on my heart. I want to mind the Lord. I thank God for preaching. I thank God for truth. We're in a day, and I don't think any of us are unaware of the serious situation we're in. We need truth. Thank God for truth. I told our church people, I said, you need to come to this meeting. These meetings you're going to get truth. There have been things in truth and this meeting has changed my life, my family. It's helped our church and I thank God for it. And I'm afraid though we're in a day where people aren't afraid of the truth, they just don't want to do the truth. And we need to be applying the truth of the Word of God. Not just being willing to hear it, but apply it. Thank you Brother Wells for the truth that spoke to my heart. I want you to turn to Philippians chapter 3 in your Bibles. I'm just going to give you where my heart is at. I have prayed over. The Lord had pressed this upon my heart. I knew it was coming up here and I was praying this morning and just wanting to mind the Lord and be mindful of where God would have us and I do believe I'm where I need to be and you do pray for me, but I want to jump right into this. I want to be mindful. I think Brother Belly may be preaching afterwards. I want to hear what Brother Belly, God's given him, but I just... This is on my heart. I preach this to our church. We're going through this book of the Bible, the book of Philippians, and it has been a tremendous help, not only to me, but to the church. And I know these verses are going to be familiar, but just if you will, just let God speak to your heart the way God wants to. In verse 13, it says this. He says, Brethren, I count not myself to apprehended, but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before. He then said, I press toward the mark. for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. I'm interested in that word press. When we were going through here and I was beginning to study and looking at that, it stood out to me because Paul here, Paul was saying this, I'm forgetting what's behind me. Thank God for that, amen. He's saying, I'm reaching forth. I'm going for the gold, the prize of the high colony. Why, Paul? Because when God saved me, God changed me. Paul said, listen, if you go back, and I don't have time to do it, but thank God, there as he goes, and he begins to list and begin the chapter, he says, here's what I was. And then he says there, but. I mean, he lists all the accolades there, circumcised of the eight day, of the tribe of Benjamin, Hebrew of the Hebrews, touching the law. He says, that's what I was. He then says, but, and he begins to list what he is in Christ. And he said, why Paul? Why are you reaching? He says, because when Jesus saved me, He changed me. He put a new direction in my life. He put new desires in my life. He said, that's why. That's why I am. But why Paul? Because everything I thought I knew that was important, I'm willing to give up just to know Him more. But why Paul? Because, listen, God has a plan for my life and I'm reaching for that. I'm desiring that in my life where I'm to be with the Lord. But he says I have to press. I'm going to tell you something. We're in a day. as Christians. And maybe if I say we, you need to understand what I'm saying collectively here. We're in a day where many, they're not willing to press. They're happy with where they are. They thank God for what God's done. Listen, they know that God has saved them and they're thankful for that. But I'm telling you, if we're going to finish and finish well, we're going to have to press. We're going to have to press, church. We're going to have to press. Listen, we're in a day when it almost seems as if they're trying to make Christianity as easy and less exhaustive, more pleasing and palatable to carnality than ever before. And so what do they do? It's just a man of God preaching. They want to lower God. They want to lower the things of God. Now don't you know something? I don't want to be one that's going to quit on God. I don't want this church, and I thank God for what this church is, and what it's done for me in my life, and what you are, but I don't want to hear one day it's not what it used to be, and God's hand's not on it, and thank God for your man of God, but what if God calls him home? Hey, will you keep pressing, amen? What will it be in days? I don't want to quit! I don't want you to quit! But people are quitting all over. I don't want to be the kind of Christian who just gets all excited here at the meeting, but you can't get excited at work. Can't get excited around your lost family. Can't get excited when God does great things. Listen, I'm going to tell you, they say, listen, winners never quit and quitters never win. But if you're not walking with God, and you're not seeking that sweet relationship with the Lord on a daily basis, If you're not careful, things will creep your life, you may quit. There ain't a one of us in here, things haven't happened in our life, hey, that hasn't flew through our mind. Hey, we may be through discouragement or some storm. Hey, why don't you just quit? Hey, why don't you just back up? Why don't you just ease up? Hey, it happens, it's real. But I'm telling you, Paul said, because of what I am now in Christ, because of the goal that's been set before me, I'm pressing toward the mark. I'm going to tell you, I want to encourage you church. I want to encourage you other Christians. Press on. Look, Paul wasn't some lucky Christian where just had it all handed to him. He knew how to reach. He understood what the Lord had done. He understood that, listen, everything I thought that the world had to offer and all the accomplishments I did, it's no more than done compared to what the Lord's done for me and what He's doing in my life. And He said, I'm going to continue through the stonings, through shepherds. I'm going to keep pressing. I'm not going to give up. I want to give you three things just quickly, and I'm going to try to maybe cut some down, but I want to be mindful and get my point across about Paul's pressing. Now when you look this up and you begin to study this, he's speaking of a press in a manner of strenuous push. like a runner. Now we know He used that example. We know in Hebrews He gives that example as well. But Paul says, when I'm saying that I'm pressing, I'm striving. He ain't talking about just jogging through life. Hey, when someone may take out of their house and say, I'm on a jog, that's one thing. But when you take a runner and they get down and they get ready to take off, hey, there's a press that takes place. Amen! Paul said, listen, this is a driven press. That means strenuous, eagerly seeking. Look, it takes drive. It's a picture of a runner. I don't know if anybody ever did track in here. I don't know that. But I know Brother Jason, our song leader, he had it one time in his life. And I had him come, and I had him get down in front of the church. I said, listen, just for illustration sake, I said, get down in that position. And he got down in that position. I'm not going to do it today. I might not get back up. But he got down that position, and he got in that correct position. And I said, look, look, he's sitting there. When you say, on your marks, they'll get down. Get set, they get up. They're ready. They're headed in a direction. They're ready to charge out. There's a press. There's a direction in that press. It's forward. It's not backwards. Hey, when they get down and they're ready to go, it's not leaning, but it's forward. They're focused on the goal and they're getting ready to go. We got too much leaning today. Well, we're not perfect, I understand that, and there are times, hey, we may mess up, but I'm telling you, if you're pressing, if you are driven, if that drive is of a pressing forward manner, even if you fall, you fall in the right direction. Amen? Can I tell you something? Do we have enough in here today that are willing to press a little bit more? I'm not saying, hey, thank God where He's brought me. I thank God, but are you just satisfied with that? Hey, we ought to be saying, I'm willing to press a little more. Push it a little bit more, amen. He's saying, I'm trying to get somewhere for God, Philippi. He's trying to encourage him. Remember, he's writing out of a prison cell, but he says, I've still got joy. I'm not going to let my circumstances affect the way that I'm living. He says, and I've learned though, I won't get to where I need to be without a press. And he uses that example, amen? He refused to allow for himself to get wrapped up in the non-essential things in his Christian life. Amen? I'm afraid we've got those today that they are exhausting themselves in the non-essential things and then still trying to live for God. They're letting the non-essential things exhaust them. And look, it's not, okay, how much can I add to my life and still kind of keep all this together up here? But hey, listen, we ought to be everything we've got in the day we're in with all the focus we have in the direction of God continuing on for His glory. Amen? It's not about leaving and setting down our ability. and what God has done for us to give it to things of less importance than the will of God. It's about letting Jesus be Lord of your life and driving you. There was that determination that was there, amen? And look, it's a good way, it would be a good way for you to determine, well, is my focus right? How easily are you distracted? I think Brother Barry Reckley said at the Jubilee, and I wrote it down, I don't have time to look at it right here, I may not find it, but if something does exist, it's a distraction, nothing more than a greater attraction. And Paul's liking this to a runner, and he's saying, listen, there has to be some drive in this prayer. You have to be heading in the right direction. I'm amazed today. We've got too many that are falling backwards. They're falling off pace. They're leaning towards the world. They're leaning towards carnality. They're leaning towards the flesh. And we can spend some time here, and I'm just going to continue on. But listen, when they fall, they fall backwards. I've yet to see it in the years I've pastored when people, if they leave the church and they're getting the right preaching and teaching and they'll give you all the excuses, but they've never left the church that's giving the Word of God, giving them truth, and they're better off when they leave. You know what you find out? They go back to the old life. They go back to the old things. They go back to the old dress. They go back to the old habits. Look, if we're going to remain faithful to church, you have to crucify the flesh. You have to stay in the Word of God. Stay on your knees. Amen? And Paul is saying, I'm like a runner. Fully engaged. Pressing forward. Moving forward. Amen? Look, we've got too many today, they've got their body in church, but their mind is somewhere else. That's not pressing. It's not what he's talking about here. Their body's in church, but their eyes are everywhere else. Their heart's everywhere else. It's not focused. It's not directed. Amen? I'm going to tell you something. Listen, you better understand something. You better be ready to press if you're going to finish this course and finish it with Joe. Here's my second thing. It was a disciplined press. Paul said, I press, look what he says, I press toward the mark. As if the finish line's right in front of him. I'll tell you what, Lord's coming. Hey, the Lord's coming. Listen, I'm going to tell you what, when a runner, you think about a runner, and when they take off, listen, and they're digging, and they get close, the closer they get to the finish line, the more they're digging, amen. Listen, we say Jesus is coming, hey, the end, hey, it's getting over, this thing's coming to a close. We ought to be pressing harder than we've ever been. You don't get to that finish line, and it's here, and you be, oh, I'll just ease up. Man, it's a strive. Is that in our life? Amen? They're leaning. They're leaning forward. They're getting ready. Amen? Where's that today in our Christian living? I'm not saying it's not, but I want to challenge you. Where's it that day in our young people? Our young adults? Thank God for those that have been in our life and they're instrumental, but what about those coming up behind us? Is there a press there? A striving? Leaning in the right direction? Amen? Listen to me. You can't expect to continue running and finish the race well if you're not disciplined. You can't do it. How disciplined have you been today? from yesterday to today, even this morning. To clean your mind, clean your heart, to get right and ready, you know you're coming. How disciplined were we last week? How disciplined were we before Sunday and getting ready for God to meet and to be in the house of God and have God move and have God work? Look, discipline. Discipline involves some sacrifice. You think about somebody, if somebody wants to take care of themselves, they've got to exercise and have the right diet. But you can't just expect to exercise and then not begin to eat right, and it's going to have no effect. I tell you something, you can have the best exercise plan all you want, but if you don't commit that to the table, then guess what? Those bad eating habits will overshadow all that exercise. Amen? You understand that? And that's important for us. I know it's just kind of a common thing here, but you need to understand that. Well, listen to me. You can't just be going through the motions. Well, I go to church. Well, yes, okay, I'm reading my Bible. But then you go out here and you live totally different throughout the week. or you're a totally different person when it comes to being around certain people. Listen, you ought to be the same wherever you are. Amen. And let me take it a step further. Just because you may play an instrument, or you may sing a special, or you may teach a Sunday school class, or you may hold a position in the church. Listen, if you're living carnally outside of the church, that's going to overshadow the things you're doing for the church. It's got to be right. It's gotta take a press. Look, too many want the medal, but they're not willing to work for it. Look, Olympics, I really could care less about them, but those people would train for four years for one event, and sometimes it's two minutes. I mean, some of those relays, it's maybe six minutes. I mean, some of those events are just minutes. for possible, I'm talking four years, they'll give four years of sacrifice and dedication and all of these things for a few minutes and not even get a medal. And if they do, it's a medal. Big deal. I'd rather kill a big buck. But listen to me. You need to understand something. Where is that drive in Christianity? Where is that commitment? Where did we ever get to the point? Why do we accept mediocrity in Christianity? It's almost as if we don't accept it anywhere else. They don't accept, and I'm not trying to magnify the world, but sports, they don't, hey, teams don't accept mediocrity. They want the best to do whatever it is they're doing. We want the best athletes. We want the best coaches. We want the best, why? That we want to win. Hey, on the job, we want the best. We do your best and learn what we're teaching you. I mean, could you imagine you hire a man and 10 years he's been at the job and you ask him a simple question and he's, well, I don't know. I mean, I got the job. I work for the company, but I don't, I've been selling road signs and pavement tape for 22 years. And I mean, could you imagine somebody calling me up and saying, hey, I've got a question. We have this application we need. It's going to be on concrete. Do we need a primer? Can we get away without it? What about the temperature of the application? Well, I don't know. I mean, you do what you think's best. Well, don't you know something? Well, yeah, I mean, I work for the company. They'd say, you're fired. You ought to know some more than that. You've been at this thing for 22 years. Why do we? Well, I'm saved. Thank God you're saved. I thank God you're saved. I'm not downplaying salvation, but what about the press? What about the tribe? What about the growth? Amen. Hey, can you say thank God? Amen. Hey, the Lord's done this in my heart and the Lord's doing this in my family. Amen. I thank God we got rid of that or we got that right. Amen. I'm better off now. Why do we accept mediocrity in that? It's okay. Just be the way you are. Amen. That's not good. It's not healthy. Let me show you something. I want to just take time to do this. Go to Hebrews chapter 12. I want to apply this. I want to show you something. This is where a lot of people are. Hebrews chapter 12 verse 1. I know it's a familiar verse, but pay attention to this. Everybody there? Wherefore, seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay... Look here. I know we know it. People can quote it. Pay attention. Let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that's set before us. It's awful hard to run your race watching some of the things you watch. It's going to be awful hard for you to run your race effectively listening to some of the things you listen to. Hanging with some of the people you hang with. He's saying, listen, I'm telling you, this race we're running, it's for a purpose, it's for a prize. Hey, I'm telling you, you've got to run, live this life the best you can for the glory of God. You've got to have some drive. You've got to have some dedication. But you're going to have to shed the weight. Why? Because it's going to affect the way you perform. Now look, if I had one of those weighted vests, and maybe you're familiar with them, and I were to put them on, somebody would say, hey, go run now. Hey, they couldn't run nearly as effectively with a weighted vest as they could if they didn't have it on. Amen? Right? You're not going to perform the way you need to perform. And when I say perform, I mean live your life for the Lord. and run this race successfully with weights. Amen. And look what he says here. Let us lay aside every weight. And then that next word, and. Look, the Word of God, the precious Word of God, the sin, two things here you better understand because here's where people are today. It's what the preacher preached. Well, show me in the Bible. Well, there's principle. Amen. There's principles all through the Word of God. Well, it's not a sin. Yeah, it may not be a sin, but it may be a weight. He's saying, let us lay aside both. What is he saying, preacher? I'll tell you what he's saying. He said, listen, I'm talking, you're going to have to get down, and you're going to have to run this race, and you're going to have to learn how to press if you're going to finish and finish well. If you're going to make a difference, if you're going to please the Lord, and I'm telling you right now, you've got to lay aside every weight and the sin, because if not, it's going to affect you. Amen. We've got too many people Hey, look, they're taking care of the sin, but you've got weights. Weights. Hey, we've got people that are afraid to get all in. They're satisfied, hey, I like the church, I like to worship, I like to preach, but they're not willing to commit all the way, Brother Bailey, because they've got weights, and they know, Brother Rose, if I jump all in, I'll drown because I'm unwilling to let go of the weights. Amen. I'm talking to you right now. You better hear me. I'm talking. Hey, it's not just sin but weights. Amen. What things are in your life? Well, it's not a sin, yeah, but if you're not careful, it could turn into one. Well, I know that's not a sin. Hey, I know that's not. Look, all the time you get, preacher, I understand, but I tell you what, I've got it under control. You better be careful. It could be a weight that's weighing you down. Amen. And the problem we've got is this. Here's what happens to it. I'm trying to move. I'm trying to move. But here's what you need to understand. We've got people too, hey, the man of God will preach and they'll come and hey, thank God for the preaching we've heard thus far. Hey, the Lord will speak to our hearts and they'll have weights. They'll have weights and the Holy Spirit of God convicts them and they come and they go to the altar and you know what they do? They lay them weights down and I'm going to tell you, glory to God, it feels better. Get it right with God. Let go of the weight. That's what you're supposed to do. Service is over. I can't make the door. Why is that? I'll tell you something. Hey, the day you lay down the weights, oh glory to God, you'll be able to run a whole lot better. If you get rid of the weight, you're going to find it's just slowing you down. Amen. Get rid of it. But you got to be willing to leave it there. Amen. Too many people, the whole preacher, hey, that's exactly what I needed. Listen, I'm talking about this meeting. If you'll listen to the Word of God and you'll let the Holy Spirit of God speak to your heart, God will do things for you. And if it's weights, if it's things you need to get right and you're willing to lay them down, you can't just take them out. A week from now, they pick them back up. Well, I'm struggling again. Why? You pick back up the weight. Amen? Amen? It's true. I'm going to move. I'm going to jump on down here. But you better understand something. We've got too many weights in people's lives today. He says the weights and the sin. You better evaluate yourself. Well, I'm just struggling, preacher. I'm just struggling. Well, maybe you've got a bunch of weights that you need to let go of. Or maybe it's just one weight. But one weight will slow it up. You take a runner, if they go to a race, they could come in a big old jacket. It's not the jacket's illegal. Why would they not run in a big old jacket or a big old pair of heavy boots they try to get the lightest shoe they can? Why? It's not that it's illegal, it's that it'll slow them down and make them less effective to achieving the goal that they're after. Right? So why do we think we can live this Christian life and carry weights and not deal with those things when we need to? Amen? Paul had a driven run, he had a disciplined run, but here's the last thing, it was a determined run. Amen? If that finish line is there, all right, and you're getting ready to run the race, and you line up, and everything you're focusing on is here, you're never gonna reach the goal. We've got too many people, they're heading in the wrong direction, trying to achieve the mark that God set forth this way. Amen. That's why Paul said, forgetting those things. Hey, reaching forth and forgetting. I'm going to tell you what, you've got to forget. You've got to move on. And I'm saying that's not just a bad, but that's a good too. Forget what's done in the past. Hey, move on for the glory of God. Amen. Quit looking back. Amen. Amen? Heading in the right direction. Look, it's the right running posture. Why? I'll just give you these. Because of the finishing point. Because of the finishing point. Go back to our text, what he said here. Look what he said. I pressed toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God. Amen? I'm going to tell you what, there's a finish line, praise God. We're headed somewhere, amen. Not just living this life, just half-past eleven. We're heading somewhere, amen. Praise God for the glory of God, amen. I'm saying to you today, run, amen. Press. Don't give up. There's a mark, that finishing prize. Amen. Keep on keeping on in this Christian life. Why? The fuller picture here. The high calling of God. You're going to see Him one day. Our faith's going to be turned to sight. And Paul was determined. He was determined. I'm going to get to that finish line. By the help of God, I'm going to get to that finish line. I'm going to hit the mark. I'm going to see the Lord. And I want to hear, Job well done, thou good and faithful servant. Amen. Look, thank God we're checking out of here. Thank God. Listen, hey, this world isn't my home. I'm just a passing through. Praise God. Amen. And listen, what a privilege it's going to be to be able to have the Lord and see Him and be in His presence. I thank God. Amen. That day's coming. But how are you running the race? Are you willing to press? I'm asking you, Church of Ridgeback Church, are you willing to press? Boy, there's a lot of things I could cover here and spend a little bit of time. But listen, don't you want to finish? Don't you want to finish? Don't you want to finish well? Paul was writing a book to the church of Philippi from prison and emphasizing all throughout it joy. Joy. And then we've got so many today who claim to be saved but no joy. I'll tell you what, this is the greatest life to live. We serve the greatest Savior in all the world. Amen. Well, how is that? How is it? I'm going to tell you what. You're not going to get joy doing it your way. You've got to do it God's way. And Paul gave some insight there to say, listen to me. I want to encourage you, Philippi. I'm reaching forward. I'm pressing toward the mark. Are you willing to press? How about it, young people? Listen, the days we're seeing, the days we're in, you're going to have to be willing to press. Amen? You willing to step it up? What more does God have to do for us? To just press a little bit more? Try a little bit harder? Be a little more dedicated? Sacrifice a little bit more? Listen, what more does He have to do? He's done it all! Amen! You just got the purpose in your heart. That want to, it's got to come from the Lord. You can have a good desire, but that want to is gonna come from the Lord. And it all started with Paul way back there when he said, listen, here's what I was before, here's what I am now. What's the difference, what was the change? One word, Jesus. Jesus starts at salvation. But I'm telling you, you better listen to me. In the day we're in, every church that is represented here, not just Church of Redeems Baptist Church, all the churches, the men of God are here. We better be ready to press We're not gonna finish and finish well if we're not willing to press. My encouragement to you today is press on. Press on.