Philippians 3:14

Paul’s goal (Gr. skopos, lit. goal marker, the object at the end of the course on which the runner fixes his gaze) was complete knowledge of Christ. He would receive a prize when he reached that goal. He would only reach that goal when he entered the Lord’s presence and saw Him face to face (1 John 3:2-3). Nevertheless he pursued the goal while living on the earth because he wanted to get to know the Lord as well as possible before going into the Lord’s presence.

"This is a far cry from the teaching on sanctification which calls believers to ’let go and let God’. There was not much ’letting go’ about Paul, but rather an example of the truth that the regenerate believer must appropriate the sanctifying grace of God by actively obeying him." [Note: Motyer, p. 177.]

The prize would come at the end of the race, when he had attained the goal, but not before then. Therefore "the prize of the upward call" probably does not refer to the Rapture. There is another reason this is not a proper identification. The Rapture is not a reward. God will catch up (rapture) into heaven every Christian regardless of how he or she has run the race (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17). The prize probably refers to the reward faithful believers will receive at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10). God has called every believer to salvation so we may obtain that prize. However only those who run the race as Paul did, namely, to gain an ever increasing experiential knowledge of Christ, will obtain it (1 Corinthians 9:24). The TNIV translation gives the sense: "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

"Each believer is on the track; each has a special lane in which to run; and each has a goal to achieve. If we reach the goal the way God has planned, then we receive a reward. If we fail, we lose the reward, but we do not lose our citizenship." [Note: Wiersbe, The Bible . . ., 2:88.]

"In keeping with the vivid imagery drawn from the Greek games that pervades this section there is still another explanation of the ’upward call’ that seems the most reasonable explanation of all. It sees in the expression tes ano kleseos ["the upward call"] an allusion to the fact that the Olympian games, which included foot-races, were organized and presided over by agonothetes, highly respected officers called Hellenodikai. ’After each event they had a herald announce the name of the victor, his father’s name and his country, and the athlete or charioteer would come and receive a palm branch at their hands’ (G. Glotz, ’Hellenodikai,’ in C. Daremberg and E. Saglio [eds.], Dictionnaire des antiqués grecques et romaines [Paris: Hachette, 1900-1963] 3,1,60-64). This is the call to which Paul is now alluding (Collange)." [Note: Hawthorne, p. 154. Collange refers to J-F. Collange, L’épître de saidn Paul aux Philippiens.]