Philippians 1:21-30
21 FOR TO ME, TO LIVE IS CHRIST AND TO DIE IS GAIN.
22 But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose.
23 But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better;
24 yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.
25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith,
26 so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again.
27 Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
28 in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God.
29 For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
30 experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear to be in me.
Philippians 1:21 becomes a valuable test of our lives. “For to me to live is and to die is .” Fill in the blanks yourself.
“For to me to live is money and to die is to leave it all behind.”
“For to me to live is fame and to die is to be forgotten.”
“For to me to live is power and to die is to lose it all.”
we must echo Paul’s convictions if we are going to have joy in spite of circumstances, and if we are going to share in the furtherance of the Gospel. “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain!”
The Christian life is not a playground; it is a battleground. We are sons in the family, enjoying the fellowship of the Gospel (Phil. 1:1–11); we are servants sharing in the furtherance of the Gospel (Phil. 1:12–26); but we are also soldiers defending the faith of the Gospel. And the believer with the single mind can have the joy of the Holy Spirit even in the midst of battle.
“The faith of the Gospel” is that body of divine truth given to the church. Jude calls it “the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). Paul warns in 1 Timothy 4:1 that “in the latter times some shall depart from the faith.” God committed this spiritual treasure to Paul (1 Tim. 1:11), and he in turn committed it to others, like Timothy (1 Tim. 6:20), whose responsibility was to commit this deposit to still others (2 Tim. 2:2). This is why the church must engage in a teaching ministry, so that each new generation of believers will know, appreciate, and use the great heritage of the faith.
“The faith of the Gospel” is that body of divine truth given to the church. Jude calls it “the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). Paul warns in 1 Timothy 4:1 that “in the latter times some shall depart from the faith.” God committed this spiritual treasure to Paul (1 Tim. 1:11), and he in turn committed it to others, like Timothy (1 Tim. 6:20), whose responsibility was to commit this deposit to still others (2 Tim. 2:2). This is why the church must engage in a teaching ministry, so that each new generation of believers will know, appreciate, and use the great heritage of the faith.
What we believe determines how we behave, and wrong belief ultimately means a wrong life.
Each local church is but one generation short of potential extinction. No wonder Satan attacks our young people in particular, seeking to get them away from “the faith.”
How can a group of Christians fight this enemy? “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh” (2 Cor. 10:4, NASB).
Peter took up a sword in the Garden, and Jesus rebuked him (John 18:10–11). We use spiritual weapons—the Word of God and prayer (Eph. 6:11–18; Heb. 4:12); and we must depend on the Holy Spirit to give us the power that we need.
But an army must fight together, and this is why Paul sends these admonitions to his friends at Philippi
there are three essentials for victory in the battle to protect “the faith.”
But an army must fight together, and this is why Paul sends these admonitions to his friends at Philippi
Consistency (Phil. 1:27a)
The old English word conversation, of course, means walk and not talk. “Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ” (NASB).
it is the consistent life of believers.
The verb Paul uses is related to our word politics. He is saying, “Behave the way citizens are supposed to behave.”
He brings this concept up again in Philippians 3:20. It would be a very meaningful expression to the people in Philippi because Philippi was a Roman colony, and its citizens were actually Roman citizens, protected by Roman law. The church of Jesus Christ is a colony of heaven on earth! And we ought to behave like the citizens of heaven.
“Am I conducting myself in a manner worthy of the Gospel?” is a good question for us to ask ourselves regularly. We should “walk … worthy of the calling” that we have in Christ (Eph. 4:1, NASB), which means walking “worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing” (Col. 1:10). We do not behave in order to go to heaven, as though we could be saved by our good works; but we behave because our names are already written in heaven, and our citizenship is in heaven.
It is worth remembering that the world around us knows only the Gospel that it sees in our lives.
You are writing a Gospel,
A chapter each day,
By the deeds that you do
And the words that you say.
Men read what you write,
Whether faithful or true:
Just what is the Gospel
According to you?
(source unknown)
“The Gospel” is the Good News that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again (1 Cor. 15:1–8). There is only one “Good News” of salvation; any other gospel is false (Gal. 1:6–10). The message of the Gospel is the Good News that sinners can become the children of God through faith in Jesus Christ, God’s Son (John 3:16). To add anything to the Gospel is to deprive it of its power. We are not saved from our sins by faith in Christ plus something else; we are saved by faith in Christ alone.
“We have some neighbors who believe a false gospel,” a church member told his pastor. “Do you have some literature I can give them?”
The pastor opened his Bible to 2 Corinthians 3:2, “You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men” (NASB). He said, “The best literature in the world is no substitute for your own life. Let them see Christ in your behavior and this will open up opportunities to share Christ’s Gospel with them.”
The greatest weapon against the devil is a godly life. And a local church that practices the truth, that “behaves what it believes,” is going to defeat the enemy. This is the first essential for victory in this battle.
Cooperation (Phil. 1:27b)
Paul now changes the illustration from politics to athletics. The word translated “striving together” gives us our English word “athletics.” Paul pictures the church as a team, and he reminds them that it is teamwork that wins victories.
For one thing, two women were not getting along with each other (Phil. 4:2).
Apparently the members of the fellowship were taking sides, as is often the case, and the resulting division was hindering the work of the church. The enemy is always happy to see internal divisions in a local ministry. “Divide and conquer!” is his motto, and too often he has his way. It is only as believers stand together that they can overcome the wicked one.
emphasize the importance of unity. In the Greek language, the prefix sun- means “with, together,” and when used with different words, strengthens the idea of unity. (It is somewhat like our prefix co-.) At least sixteen times, Paul uses this prefix in Philippians, and his readers could not have missed the message! In Philippians 1:27, the Greek word is sunathleo—“striving together as athletes.”
Confidence (Phil. 1:28–30)
“Don’t be alarmed by your opponents!” The word Paul uses pictures a horse shying away from battle. To be sure, nobody blindly runs into a fight; but then, no true believer should deliberately avoid facing the enemy. In these verses, Paul gives us several encouragements that give us confidence in the battle.
First, these battles prove that we are saved (Phil. 1:29). We not only believe on Christ but also suffer for Christ.
emphasize the importance of unity. In the Greek language, the prefix sun- means “with, together,” and when used with different words, strengthens the idea of unity. (It is somewhat like our prefix co-.) At least sixteen times, Paul uses this prefix in Philippians, and his readers could not have missed the message! In Philippians 1:27, the Greek word is sunathleo—“striving together as athletes.”
But the presence of conflict is a privilege; we suffer “for His sake.” In fact, Paul tells us that this conflict is “granted” to us—it is a gift! If we were suffering for ourselves, it would be no privilege; but because we are suffering for and with Christ, it is a high and holy honor.
A third encouragement is this: others are experiencing the same conflict (Phil. 1:30). Satan wants us to think we are alone in the battle, that our difficulties are unique, but such is not the case.
Paul reminds the Philippians that he is going through the same difficulties they are experiencing hundreds of miles from Rome! A change in geography is usually no solution to spiritual problems, because human nature is the same wherever you go, and the enemy is everywhere. Knowing that my fellow believers are also sharing in the battle is an encouragement for me to keep going and to pray for them as I pray for myself.
Actually, going through spiritual conflict is one way we have to grow in Christ.
Cooperation (Phil. 1:27b)
Paul now changes the illustration from politics to athletics. The word translated “striving together” gives us our English word “athletics.” Paul pictures the church as a team, and he reminds them that it is teamwork that wins victories.
On the surface this notion seems contradictory to Paul’s teaching in his earlier letters (1 Thess. 4:13–5:10; 1 Cor. 15:35–55; 2 Cor. 5:1–10; Rom. 8:18–25) that Christians who die remain in a state of sleep until the Advent of Christ, who will then raise them to eternal life, give them a “new body,” transforming their mortal nature into immortality. Expositors have strained to provide a solution to this apparent contradiction.
We live in the certainty of Paul: “to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
politeuomai. By derivation it means “to exercise the rights and duties of a citizen.” Paul was saying, “Live your citizen-life.” You are a Christian; your citizenship is in heaven (see Phil. 3:20).
Every Roman colony was a little of Rome planted in distant settings throughout the world. A Roman citizen, no matter where he was, never forgot that he was a Roman. So the Philippian Christian understood Paul’s word. There are common principles and actions that are to characterize our life as citizens of the kingdom.
