For Me, To Live is ________!

Illustration about the will to LIVE

Question - living for what?

In 1993, while fishing in St. Mary’s Glacier, Colorado, Bill Jeracki got his leg pinned under a boulder. Snow was in the forecast, and he was without a jacket, a pack, or communication. In a desperate attempt to survive, he used his flannel shirt as a tourniquet, and then used his fishing knife to cut off his own leg at the knee joint! He used hemostats from his fishing kit to clamp the bleeding arteries. He then crab-walked to his truck and drove himself to the hospital!

In 2003 Aron Ralston had a similar experience. While hiking in Utah, a boulder fell and pinned his right arm. After various attempts to get free, on the sixth day of being stuck there, he amputated his right forearm with a dull multi-tool. Exhausted and dehydrated, he then rappelled down a 60-foot cliff and hiked eight miles before finding a Dutch family who guided him to a rescue helicopter. He eventually made it to the hospital and survived. He wrote an autobiography titled Between a Rock and a Hard Place. An appropriate title!

What do these two stories teach us? One writer summarizes: Aside from providing some basic tips for adventure recreation, they teach us that humans will do remarkable things in order to live.

We will spend money on the best doctors, take up disciplined eating habits, move to particular climates, and even cut off body parts to live.

But there’s a big question we must answer: What do you live for?

Compiled by Merida, Tony. Exalting Jesus in Philippians (Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary) (pp. 61-62). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

“The verse, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (v. 21)—perhaps the most often quoted line from Philippians, stands at the spiritual center of the paragraph before us—a section in which Paul dynamically affirms his joyous confidence in God. May our consideration of Paul’s words from prison both ground and spike our confidence in Christ as we live through the difficulties of life.”

(Preaching the Word: Philippians—The Fellowship of the Gospel Chapter 6: Paul’s Joyous Confidence (Philippians 1:18b–26))

Text: Philippians 1:18b-26

verse 18b -

“...Yes, and I will rejoice,”

Philippians 1:19–26 ESV

19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 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 in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

1. REJOICING / I Will Rejoice

Philippians 1:19 ESV

19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance,

I WILL REJOICE (I choose to rejoice, based on what I know…

I know you’re praying

I know the Holy Spirit is helping

I know this will turn out for my (final) deliverance

The Message of Philippians b. The Prayers of Other Christians

The Christian, however, is not a cork on the waters, carried along by the tide of circumstances. He is a person in need of help from God if he is to sustain the pressures of life and live for Christ through them.

NOTE ABOUT REJOICING...

High Definition Commentary: Philippians 1:18–20

To rejoice you have to do more than just accept your circumstances. You have to trust and be thankful

A great litmus test for trust is THANKSGIVING.

Grumbling = Leaning on your own understanding

Proverbs 3:5–6 ESV

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

NOTE about DELIVERANCE

Paul is throwing back to some of the language Job uses in Job 13.

What deliverance is he speaking exactly of? Prison, Suffering, or his ultimate Salvation.

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2. EXPECTING

Philippians 1:20–21 ESV

20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

2. I AM HOPING / EXPECTING

Not to be ashamed

To be courageous

To honor Christ (in life or death)

HOPE -

To understand it, we must set aside our normal English usage of hope with its note of uncertainty, as in “I hope the Checkers will beat the San Francisco 49ers” or as with crossed fingers we say, “Let’s hope it won’t rain.” In contrast to this, Biblical hope brims with certainty because it is based upon the fact that “God is God and has underwritten the future” (Bockmuehl).

Preaching the Word: Philippians—The Fellowship of the Gospel Chapter 6: Paul’s Joyous Confidence (Philippians 1:18b–26)

Several weeks before Andrew Chong, a beloved physician and a former elder in the church I pastored for many years, passed away, he was taken to Northwestern Hospital in Chicago to have a stint cleared of blockage. The procedure was invasive, and after some time the surgeon came out and indicated that he could not go on because there was too much bleeding. He said, “You’d better get your family here. He may not make it through the night.” So all the children were rushed to Andrew’s bedside, where they gathered weeping and saying their good-byes.

Andrew had just come out of the anesthetic and was in intense pain and unable to speak. Seeing his family’s distress, he made a curious motion with his finger, which they finally understood as a request for a pen. Of late he had been unable to write in a straight line. But now, very slowly and with intense deliberation, he wrote twelve words in a single column.

For to me

to live

is Christ

and

to die

is gain.

Andrew anchored the column with “Hallelujah.” The writing of that last word took him a full minute as he made sure he spelled it correctly (always the precise surgeon). And then he spoke: “Nothing has changed. Nothing has changed.”

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3. READY

Philippians 1:21–25 ESV

21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith,

3. I AM READY

to live for Christ

to be with Christ for eternity

to do what’s best for His glory and mission

help you in your progress

stir you in your joy

To live is Christ?

Ephesians–Philemon Comment

Verse 23 will describe in more detail why “to die is gain,” but what does “to live is Christ” mean? It means that Christ completely defines the meaning of life. Galatians 2:20 gives further help:

Galatians 2:20 ESV

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

All for Jesus! All for Jesus!

All my being’s ransomed powers;

All my thoughts and words and doings,

All my days and all my hours.

MARY D. JAMES, “ALL FOR JESUS,” 1889

CALL FOR “SCALE” SLIDES” (DYING VS LIVING)

Paul is having to try and decide between RIGHT and RIGHT. This is nearly impossible without walking by FAITH…Trusting and Relying on the Wisdom of God.

“SCALE” SLIDES” (DEPARTING VS REMAINING)

Going benefits Paul

Staying benefits the Church

“SCALE” SLIDES” (BEING WITH CHRIST VS WORK FOR CHRIST)

Which is better? We would take our cues from Paul here and learn to lay down our lives for:

the sake of others,

the advance of Christ’s Kingdom,

the proclamation of the Gospel,

and the glory of God!”

“SCALE” SLIDES” (NEEDS OF OTHERS)

Remember our J.O.Y. acrostic = Jesus, Others, You

IN DOING THIS We will rejoice, with confident hope, ready to glorify Christ together as a covenant community of faith.

Paul is not only a GOSPEL-FIRST man, He is an OTHERS-FIRST man! It shows up constantly throughout this letter.

4. FOR HIS GLORY

Philippians 1:26 ESV

26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

4. I AM A VESSEL

When you see me, I want you to glorify Christ!

This kind of outlook truly made Paul unstoppable! Can you imagine the frustration of his opponents:

Guards: “Hey, Paul, we don’t like you and your Messiah. We’re going to kill you.”

Paul: “That’d be great! Dying is gain! Bring it on!”

Guards: “On second thought, we’re going to allow you to live.”

Paul: “Fantastic! Living means fruitful, joyous labor!”

Guards: “Well, we’re going to let you live, but we’re going to make you suffer.”

Paul: “Hey, guys, I consider the sufferings of this present world not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed. It would fill me with joy to suffer for the Name!”

--- Just imagine how we could impact our families, shaping and molding the children of Grace Covenant Church (whether they’re yours or not) to see self-effacing, cross-bearing, others-focused, God-glorifying, risk-taking, Christianity as the norm! …with an attitude like this.

--- Just imagine how we might impact SouthEnd, your neighbors, and the nations from this little corner of South and East…with an outlook like this!

Preaching the Word: Philippians—The Fellowship of the Gospel Confident Ideal

According to the tabloids and celebrity magazines, “for to me to live is” to fornicate, to accumulate, to dine well. Or on a more prosaic level, “for to me to live is” to golf, to work, to garden, to travel, to watch TV, to ski—to shop ’til I drop. Of course, if this be our life, then death is the loss of everything. When Queen Elizabeth I, the idol of European fashion, was dying, she turned to her lady-in-waiting and said, “O my God! It is over. I have come to the end of it—the end, the end.”

But when Dr. Andrew Chong came to the end, he wrote, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Hallelujah” and confidently said, “Nothing has changed. Nothing has changed.” Now he lives in eternal gain.

What is it for you to live?

It can’t be your children

It can’t be your spouse

It can’t be your stuff

It can’t be your business

for the Christian, it is Christ Alone

In Christ alone my hope is found He is my light, my strength, my song. This Cornerstone, this solid ground Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.

What heights of love, what depths of peace When fears are stilled, when strivings cease My Comforter, my All in All Here in the love of Christ I stand.

CALL FOR MUSICIANS

As I arise today, may the strength of God pilot me, the power of God uphold me, the wisdom of God guide me. May the eye of God look before me, the ear of God hear me, the word of God speak for me. May the hand of God protect me, the way of God lie before me, the shield of God defend me, the host of God save me. May Christ shield me today. Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit, Christ when I stand, Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me. Amen.

(prayer of St. Patrick, an evangelist to Ireland, who represented and relied on Jesus in the fifth century)

MUSICIANS CLOSE IN WORSHIP

BENEDICTION

Luke 10:2 ESV

2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

Lord, we know from the Truth of your Word that there are people across the street and around the world that do not have a living relationship with you.

It’s not for lack of access that they are in this state

It’s not for lack of proximity

We are praying earnestly that the Lord would send out laborers this week into the harvest fields for the purpose of doing the work of evangelism and discipleship

Help us to rejoice in knowing that we are praying for one another in this regard

Help us to rejoice in knowing that your precious Holy Spirit will help us

Give us the confident expectation to see you move on our behalf

Help us to be ready to glorify you as we reach our neighbors and the nations this week

Amen,

Now, go be the answer to Jesus’ prayer this week!

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