Bible Study: January 21, 2026

Prayer

Has God answered any of our prayers since last week? Has anything great happened that you'd like to let us know about? After, is there anything we can pray for concerning you or someone close to you whom you love?

Praise

Crown Him with Many Crowns

Crown him with many crowns,

the Lamb upon his throne.

Hark! how the heavenly anthem drowns

all music but its own.

Awake, my soul, and sing

of him who died for thee,

and hail him as thy matchless king

through all eternity.

Crown him the Lord of life,

who triumphed o'er the grave,

and rose victorious in the strife

for those he came to save;

his glories now we sing

who died and rose on high,

who died eternal life to bring,

and lives that death may die.

Crown him the Lord of love;

behold his hands and side,

rich wounds, yet visible above,

in beauty glorified;

no angels in the sky

can fully bear that sight,

but downward bends their burning eye

at mysteries so bright.

Crown him the Lord of years,

the potentate of time,

creator of the rolling spheres,

ineffably sublime.

All hail, Redeemer, hail!

for thou hast died for me;

thy praise shall never, never fail

throughout eternity.

Passage:

Philippians 3:12-20

¹² Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal, but I press on to lay hold of that for which Christ has laid hold of me. ¹³ Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have laid hold of it, but one thing I have laid hold of: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal, toward the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. ¹⁵ Let those of us, then, who are mature think this way, and if you think differently about anything, this, too, God will reveal to you. ¹⁶ Only let us hold fast to what we have attained.¹⁷ Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. ¹⁸ For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. ¹⁹ Their end is destruction, their god is the belly, and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. ²⁰ But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ponder

1. What is these biblical verses or lyrics warms your heart--and why?

2. In verse 16, Paul says we should "live up to [hold fast to] what we have already attained." But...what have we already attained? And how do we "live up to it?"

3. Per verses 13-14, Paul instructs to “forget what lies behind” and “strain forward to what lies ahead”? What can we leave behind in order to "strain forward"?

4. How do you think your life changes regarding your goals and identity when you are viewing life as a “heavenly call” (verse 14)?

5. In verse 15, Paul links maturity with a mindset. If you were speaking to someone else who is unfamiliar with Paul's letters, how would you describe that idea to them?

6. How do we live to proclaim that “our citizenship is in heaven” in our everyday lives?

Purposeful Prayer

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