Living IS Christ
Philippians • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
My eager expectation and hope is that I will not be ashamed about anything, but that now as always, with all courage, Christ will be highly honored in my body, whether by life or by death.
Now if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me; and I don’t know which one I should choose.
What does Paul mean when he talks about: ‘if i live in the flesh’?
Does he mean the usual talk about flesh vs spirit? If he referring to chasing the desires of the flesh? Absolutely not! Paul is speaking about being in the FLESH, meaning his physical body, vs being released from the flesh, meaning his soul would be with Jesus in heaven. Which is why he previously stated: for me to LIVE is Christ, to DIE is GAIN!
Notice the verse as it continues:
Now if I live ON - as in continue living - if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me.
Paul says: if I continue living, I am going to continue to produce fruit. I am going to continue to preach the Gospel. I am going to continue making much of Jesus.
Paul is teaching us something here that we must grasp:
Our life is meant to be fruitful!
Our life is meant to be fruitful!
Once Paul met our Savior Jesus, and was commissioned - given a mission - Paul spent the rest of his life ON MISSION. Brothers and sisters we have been given a mission!
Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
We have our mission. Let us now forget that mission. Let us not get side tracked. Our mindset needs to constantly be reevaluated and reset as necessary.
What do I mean? We need to make sure that our focus is OUTWARD and not INWARD as a church.
It means that we need to be vigilant and aware, self-evaluating and perceptive. If the thought creeps in: how does this benefit me, or what can the church do for me - then there is an issue right there. Being fruitful means that we are always looking for opportunities to grow, serve, present the Gospel, and make much about Jesus, as a church; and as an individual it means producing fruit and bearing spiritual fruit.
Let us continue.
the verse continues: And I don’t know which one I should choose.
Now we could glass past this one. I think a lot of times we do. I think a lot of pastors would. But I want to pause for a moment and make a very real acknowledgement that we learn from Paul and his very open letters.
Now mind you, this is the WORD OF GOD. This is the BIBLE. And every single word is useful. Nothing is in here by accident.
So the Holy Spirit moved Paul to write these words, and they have been maintained for 2000 years.
And i don’t know which one I should choose.
Look, Paul’s life, since coming to know the Lord, had not been easy. He had been stoned, beaten, starved, imprisoned, the list goes on. If you study Paul, you learn quickly that he was a man that struggled with depression.
Depression is real. This is a man of God. Champion for the faith. Running the good race. None of those things protect you from flu, strep throat, cancer, or depression.
So look, if you go through periods of depression, you are in good company - AMEN.
Look here:
It does not mean your faith is weak!
It means life is hard. Hurt can be big. But you know what: Our God is good, and our God is strong, and our God is PURE, and our GOD has you in the palm of His hand, and HE WON’T NEVER LET YOU GO! AMEN!
YOU CAN TAKE THAT TO THE BANK!
I am torn between the two. I long to depart and be with Christ—which is far better—but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.
Paul says he is town between the two. Sometimes Paul wanted to die. It is written in the Bible. Paul is raw and honest. Because the Word of God is not boring, it is RELEVANT!
Paul says: Oh i long to be with Jesus, it would be so much better than being here in this wretched prison, in this wretched world.
BUT!
See Paul is man who had his mind set on doing the Will of God for the Glory of God!
I wanna be with Jesus, BUT I AM GOING TO STAY, FOR YOU!
Did you catch that:
Paul says, this is not about me!
I am going to stay for YOU!
Why?
Because for me to live is CHRIST!
For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
My life means
CHRIST IN ME!
CHRIST THROUGH ME!
CHRIST TO YOU!
and if Paul being alive meant more people would hear the Gospel and be persuaded to be strong, then Paul was going to carry on!
Since I am persuaded of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that, because of my coming to you again, your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound.
For your progress
for your joy in the faith.
so your boasting in Jesus may abound.
Paul was all about making and helping followers of Christ. It was not about what he could gain, but what he could give.
Man that sounds like someone else in the Bible. Someone who wanted for nothing, yet gave up everything. Someone who needed no salvation, yet died on a cross for salvation. Not His own, but ours.
Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel, not being frightened in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your salvation—and this is from God. For it has been granted to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.
Just one thing: as citizens of heaven.
Your birth certificate says you are a citizen of the United States of America. That grants you certain rights and privileges. Of course it also means you have a civic duty, or responsibility. There are obligations attached to said citizenship.
You have constitutional rights.
You have civic duties: complete the decade Census, Vote, etc…
You have obligations: if you are a male, you register for the draft.
You have another Birth Certificate, if you will, in heaven. You are a Citizen of heaven. Not of this world.
As a citizen of heaven
you have certain rights or privileges
you have certain duties
you have obligations
You have the right to approach your heavenly Father with boldness.
Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.
access to the throne room of the almighty!
You have an inheritance from the Father.
You have a spiritual seat with Jesus. Ephesians.
You have the armour of God.
You have duties:
sharing the Gospel.
You have obligations:
live your life worthy of the Gospel of Christ.
Paul says if you focus on living your life worthy of the Gospel of Christ, then it won’t matter if he comes or not.
If you live your life worthy of the Gospel of Christ:
you will stand firm in one spirit
you will be in one accord
you will contend TOGETHER for the faith of the gospel
you will not be frightened by your opponents!
Destruction for your opponents but salvation for you!
For it has been granted to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.
This sounds crazy doesn’t it? Who would want it to be granted to them to suffer for someone else.
Yet when you accept the free gift of salvation and become part of the family of GOD, then you will be treated different by this world.
Here is a crazy but effective comparison:
You are in this world, but not of this world. View the world like a body. If something doesn’t belong in the body, what does the body do? It has a lymphatic system that attacks foreign particles. It attacks viruses, bacteria, cancers, and anything that doesn’t belong. So when you no longer belong to the world, then you will be attacked by the world.
And see this imagery works, because you now belong to the body of Christ. And like in life saving procedures, sometimes transplants and transfusions happen. So you are OF the body of Christ, and IN the world - so that those in the world may be saved through you.
Paul says:
since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.
You are engaged in the same struggle as me.
Spiritual warefare.
