"Pressing on Toward the Goal of the Heavenly Call", April 6, 2025

“Pressing on Toward the Goal of the Heavenly Call”

(“Keep Your Eyes on the Prize”) Luke 4:1-13 & Philippians 3:10-14

Pastor Deb Troester, STHPC, April 6, 2025

We’ve been studying the Fruits of the Spirit, listed in Galatians, Chapter Five. This morning we discuss the fruit of self-control. Often what comes to mind on this topic is people who drink too much. That was the case with a certain pastor who was stopped for drunk driving. The policeman found a wine bottle in the car. “What’s this?” he asked the inebriated minister. “Oh, that just had water in it,” he replied. “Well, it looks like there’s some wine here,” said the cop, holding it up. “Praise the Lord! He’s done it again!” shouted the pastor.

On September 2, 2013, Diana Nyad, age 64, emerged from the ocean in Key West Florida, the first person to have swum over 100 miles from Cuba to the U.S. Excited crowds greeted her as she stumbled, exhausted, onto the beach after 53 hours of swimming. This was not her first try. In 1978, at age 28, she had attempted the same swim and failed. It remained her dream for decades, until at the age of 60, she decided to try it again. She finally succeeded on her fifth attempt,

after four years of trying and failing. You might have seen the Netflix movie, Nyad, about her inspiring achievement.

Probably any world-class athlete could tell a similar story of self-sacrifice, hard work, endless hours of practice, and, yes, self-control. Whether a long-distance swimmer, marathon runner, or traditional wrestler, such as the Bakweri of Southwest Cameroon, excelling in a sport takes a lot of work. Even 2000 years ago, the Apostle Paul recognized as much, when he wrote: “Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.” Paul is referring to the wreath of laurel leaves placed on the head of the winner of a race – the gold medal of his day. He says that a crown of glory awaits us in heaven, if we finish well.

Our culture focuses on instant gratification. Among all the fruits of the Spirit, the least popular is “self-control.”

It conjures up images of suffering, fasting, and a kind of Pharisee-like self-denial, practiced in order to feel one is better than others. Among the other fruits of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, kindness, it seems like the ugly duckling. Who really wants to be self-controlled? It sounds like we’re missing out on a lot of fun!

Yet, if we look at the lives of people like Diana Nyad, Simone Biles, Steph Curry, and others who have achieved Olympic Gold status, we know it could not have been done without self-control. Or, we could look at it another way – they kept their eyes on the prize; they pressed on toward the goal they had set for themselves; they focused on what they wanted to accomplish and they succeeded.

This focus on the goal is essential to success not only in sports, but also in life. This week I read in the Mercury about a couple who have been married for 75 years. They live right here in the Villages – Nancy and Jerry Kettman. Maybe some of you know them. When asked how they had stayed together so long, Nancy answered, “I think our secret was when we got married we had goals,

and we have always looked to the future…But you have to have tenacity. We were always there for each other, but we had some rocky times, too. You learn to see the best in the other person. Everybody has faults, but you learn you don’t have to win an argument. You really don’t need to do that. You have to adapt to each other.”

That is excellent advice for any married couple, or anyone thinking about getting married. They had goals, and they had tenacity – stick-to-itive-ness. Maybe they were tempted to infidelity at some point, but thought, no, my goal is a good marriage, so I don’t want to do anything to ruin it. Does winning every argument really contribute to a good, long-lasting marriage? Maybe talking things over in a kind, calm, respectful way is better. A few weeks ago we discussed patience, another fruit of the Spirit. Patience helps us not to react angrily every time things don’t go our way. Self-control helps us to pause and think how to react wisely, in a way that will further our goals.

In Hebrews 12 we read: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,

let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus was a master of self-control. After fasting in the desert for 40 days, he was famished. The devil tempted him, saying, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” How did Jesus answer?” He quoted Deuteronomy 8:3, “One does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

When the Devil offers to give Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, if he would bow down and worship him, Jesus again answers with scripture: “Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” The first of the Ten Commandments forbids us to worship anyone or anything instead of God.

Finally the Devil led Jesus to the pinnacle of the Temple and tempted him to throw himself down,

saying that angels would protect him, but again, Jesus responds with Deuteronomy 6:16, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

Jesus knew that God had sent him to be the savior of the world, that he was not meant to be an earthly leader. While it might have been tempting to turn stones into bread, it would not help him achieve his goal. People might have paid attention to him if he jumped off the pinnacle of the Temple and was unharmed, but would they be following him for the right reasons or just in hopes of seeing another spectacle? Jesus kept his eyes on the prize – even if that led him to the cross.

Of course, we are not Christ. Yet our goal is following him, becoming more like him, drawing nearer to God through a relationship with Jesus, our Savior. If we are to achieve this goal, we must keep our eyes on Jesus. If we do, we will find self-control a bit easier, since we will not want to do things that will distance us from God or damage our relationship with Christ.

While we are not Olympic athletes, as Christians, we have more tools at our disposal than they do.

First, we have the support and companionship of the Holy Spirit. In John 14:26, Jesus promises his disciples that “the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have said to you.” We may not always sense the Spirit’s presence with us, but Jesus promised that the Spirit would be there. All we have to do is reach out and ask for help.

That brings us to the next tool we have to help us be self-controlled: prayer. If we feel tempted to take our eyes off of the “goal of the heavenly call” all we need do is ask for God to strengthen us, to send us some help, to remind us of our reward in heaven and all that Jesus has done for us so that we might someday be in God’s presence for eternity.

Jesus also showed us another way to withstand temptation: scripture is our ever-present friend. That is why it is important to study the Bible, to familiarize ourselves with its words. If you have a besetting sin – something that often tempts you or gets you to take your eyes off the prize – look for a verse in the Bible that will help. A good all-purpose verse that helped me a lot when I was young is James 4:7: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” If we take just a moment to resist, think about the consequences, and ask God for help to follow him, often the temptation will pass.

Finally, we Christians have each other to lean on. Do not underestimate the power of mutual support. If you have a friend who will pray for you, someone you can call in a moment of weakness who will come to your aid, more than half the battle is already over. Alcoholics Anonymous has a “buddy” system, where newer members partner up with a more experienced member. If they feel tempted to drink, they can call that person. From what I understand, these sponsors will often drop what they are doing to come help the newer member.

In the church, we are not all members of AA, but we are all members of SA – Sinners anonymous. This is why we confess our sins and ask for God’s forgiveness every Sunday. Of course, we believe in God’s grace and forgiveness, yet we know we need God’s help to be all that God created us to be, and we need each other’s encouragement as well. After finishing her 110 mile swim from Cuba to Key West,

Diana Nyad commented, “This may look like a solitary sport, but it takes a team.”

Self-control is one of the gifts of the Spirit that is hardest to nurture in our lives, yet if we keep our eyes on the goal, the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus, it will be easier to attain. Then at the end of our lives, we can say, together with the Apostle Paul, “I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.” To quote Diana Nyad, “Never give up. Never give up. Never give up.” Amen.