In Hot Pursuit

“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” (Philippians 3:12).

“Who are those guys?!?” No matter what Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid tried to do, they couldn’t shake the posse on their tail. It’s one of my favorite scenes from one of my favorite movies. Lawman Joe Lefors and a native American tracker named Lord Baltimore are in hot pursuit. They’re relentless. They’re aggressive. Nothing will stop them. A few centuries before Paul Newman and Robert Redford made the the Hole and the Wall Gang a household name, a man named Paul spent his life in hot pursuit. In his younger days, his name was Saul and he hunted down Jesus’ followers to arrest and kill them. After his conversion, he used that same intensity to chase after Jesus Himself to experience a deeper relationship with Him. Funny thing. The apostle puts the pedal to the metal to chase after the Savior who hunted him down in the first place. Paul is in hot pursuit because he’s been hotly pursued.

Let’s step back and get a little perspective to what’s happening here. A quick check of the calendar tells us it’s around 61-62 AD. The Apostle Paul is in Caesar’s Supermax in Rome waiting for the emperor to hear his appeal. He fires off a letter to some of his favorite people on the planet, a group of believers in the Macedonian seaport of Philippi. Paul and his travel team first visited the city about ten years back. They brought the amazing message of Jesus to Philippi and things got crazy. God used the man from Tarsus and his crew to turn the joint upside down. It would be very easy for these Philippian friends to put Paul on a pedestal. And why not? The dude sure seems to have his stuff together. Is there any doubt he has everything figured out? In the words of the great theologian Lee Corso, “Not so fast, my friend!” The apostle lets these disciples know in no uncertain terms that the only thing he’s really figured out is he’s desperate for more of Jesus. He’s anything but cocky. He’s far from finished. He’s simply a beggar who’s been shown where to find the Bread. 

Paul has just written how he wasted a lot of his life piling up accomplishments and awards for his religious resume (Phil 3:4-6). It turns out God wasn’t going to be impressed one stinking bit by his credentials. No matter how many trophies he put on the shelf or how many plaques he hung on the wall, it wasn’t going to be enough. As a matter of fact, they were no better than a big steaming pile compared to a personal relationship with Jesus (Phil 3:7-8). As a result, the apostle chucks it all in order to know Jesus and truly experience all that He has accomplished on his behalf. It’s not about Paul’s feeble attempt at self-salvation through his own goodness but Jesus’ complete and total perfection (Phil 3:9). The apostle puts the hammer down and races after Christ, “the power of His resurrection” (Phil 3:10), and the “resurrection from the dead” (Phil 3:11). He’s not there yet. Not even close. But he’s headed in the right direction in a very big hurry. He’s in hot pursuit of Jesus and His resurrection.

You’d think if Jesus tapped you on the shoulder as the primo apostle to non-Jews around the world, you’d have things all buttoned up and nailed down. Not our man Paul. “Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect” (v12). The deeper he gets in his relationship with Christ, the more he realizes he’s just in the kiddie pool. He doesn’t have it all figured out. As a matter of fact, a quick look at Paul’s life in Scripture reveals how his humility and desperation grow through the years. In one of his letters to the Corinthian church written around 55 AD, he describes himself as the “least of the apostles” (1Cor 15:9). A few years later (probably 61 AD), he demotes himself to the Ephesians as the “least of all the saints” (Eph 3:8). And just a couple of years later (circa 63 AD), Paul puts himself at the back of a very long line. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost” (1Tim 1:15). 

Let’s review Paul’s journey. First, he’s least of the apostles. Then least of of the saints. Finally, chief of sinners. I don’t know about you, but shouldn’t he be moving in the opposite direction? But it actually makes perfect sense. The more he grows in his relationship with Jesus, the more he realizes his desperation. The more it becomes glaringly apparent he has not “already obtained this” (v12). The more is crystal clear he’s not “already perfect” (v12). Becoming more spiritually mature is actually acknowledging our absolute and utter need for more of Jesus each and every moment of each and every day. How about you? Do you think you’ve got it figured out? Do you believe you’ve got your stuff in one bag with a handy twist tie? Just stop it. Stop trying to fool people into thinking you’ve got it all together! If Paul didn’t, who in the heck do you think you are?!? For Pete’s sake, the dude wrote most of the New Testament. People don’t need you to stand there with an “S” on your chest and your cape blowing in the wind for Jesus. They need to know you struggle just like they do. The only difference is an eternity changing relationship with the resurrected Rabbi from Nazareth.

The more he understands his own great need, Paul wastes no time hightailing after it. “I press on to make it my own” (v12). He uses a Greek verb (Gr. dioko) that means to run after, pursue, or chase after something. This is no casual stroll down the primrose path. This is an all out sprint. The term paints a picture of relentlessness, intensity, singular focus, and aggression. It’s such a power-packed word that a couple of Gospel writers use it when talking about the intense persecution (Mt 23:34; Jn 5:16). Earlier in his life, Paul was in hot pursuit of Jesus and His followers. In fact, when the risen Christ blindsided the apostle formerly known as Saul outside Damascus, He asked him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting (Gr. dioko) Me?” (Acts 9:4). The former Pharisee pulled no punches in his hunting down of Christ’s disciples. “I persecuted (Gr. dioko) this Way to the death” (Acts 22:4). But after his initial encounter with Jesus, everything changed. Paul is still intensely chasing, but now it’s after more of Christ, more of His grace, more of His mercy, more of His love. He’s in hot pursuit.

The apostle’s relentless quest is all “because Christ Jesus has made me His own” (v12). Paul belongs to the Lord because our Savior hunted him down first. An English poet by the name of Francis Thompson wrote a little called “The Hound of Heaven.” It’s all about God’s unrelenting hunt to find and save the lost. He unleashes His pack of bloodhounds to chase you and me down. There’s no escaping Him. Nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide. Jesus caught up with Paul just before he took the exit for Damascus. Christ got a grip on him and never let him go. Has our Savior made you His own? If so, take a tip from the apostle. Paul is in hot pursuit because he’s been hotly pursued. Has Christ not caught up with you? If not, you may want to take a peek over your shoulder. The Hound of Heaven is hot pursuit.