Sermon for September 20, 2020 ?? Minutes

This morning I'll be reading Philippians 1 verses 21 through 30.

I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible.

Philippians 1:21–30

Paul has made sure that everything that he has done since his Damascus Road encounter with Christ,,, has been to do everything that he can to bring Jesus Christ glory. In these verses he spends time talking about what it means to live or die for Christ!

Philippians 1:21–30

21 For me, living is Christ and dying is gain. 22 Now if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me; and I don’t know which one I should choose. 23 I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with Christ —which is far better — 24 but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. 25 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, 26 so that, because of me, your confidence may grow in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

27 Just one thing: Live your life in a manner 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, with one mind, working side by side for the faith that comes from the gospel, 28 not being frightened in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your deliverance —and this is from God. 29 For it has been given to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for Him, 30 having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.

God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning.

Let us pray:

Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen.

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When I read these verses this week,,, I was immediately hit with the question,,, do we have this same enthusiasm for Christ?

Paul was intent on doing everything that he could for Christ.

And he did it through some terrible situations.

Even now as he is writing this letter to the Philippians he is in jail.

This is one of the most amazing transformations of character to me,,, the fact that Paul was prosecuting Christians and doing everything that he could to stop the spread of Christianity,,, then,,, after his encounter with Christ on the Damascus Road,,, turned around and with that same intensity,,, or maybe even more so,,, began doing everything that he could,,, to spread the love of Christ everywhere!

Lets look at these verses this week and see how they can help us in our walk with God this week.

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Verse 21 says: 21 For me, living is Christ and dying is gain.

As long as he is alive,,, Paul's only concern is taking care of whatever Jesus has for him to do,,, he cannot think of anything else!

And if Paul dies,,, then he will be relieved of his suffering and dwell with Christ.

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Verses 22 and 23 say: 22 Now if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me; and I don’t know which one I should choose. 23 I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with Christ —which is far better —

My Bible Knowledge Commentary reminds us that Paul doesn't really get to make this choice anyway!

Even though,,, from these two verses,,, Paul appears to be undecided.

He knows that if he continues to live,,, that he can do more work for Christ,,, but he has the desire to depart and be with Christ,,, which as he says,,, will be far better!

Do any of you ever say,,, "Sure beats dying!" Or,,, "Beats the alternative!" Or,,, "Better late than never!"

And when I say "better late than never",,, I'm talking about "really" driving careful and not ending up in a wreck and not ever making it there,,, not just using it as my "normal" excuse for being late!

But,,, seriously,,, are these sayings really true for those of us that are Christians?

We want to stay here for our loved ones,,, sure,,, but have you ever really thought about what awaits us in heaven?

Revelation 21:4 says, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”

That sounds like a much better place than here doesn't it?

Of course,,, we not only have our loved ones here that we don't want to leave,,, but,,, if we are still here,,, then God has something left for us to do!

That's kinda what Paul decides in the next verses.

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Verses 24 and 25 say: 24 but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. 25 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,

Paul figures out that apparently he isn't finished with his work yet,,, even though he was acting undecided!

Paul knew that the Philippians needed him.

For their benefit,,, it was better for him to remain in the "flesh" or stay alive!

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Verse 26 says: 26 so that, because of me, your confidence may grow in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

John Wesley's Commentary says that Paul must have been convinced that he would be released so that he could visit them.

It also says that there is evidence that Paul was released,,, and did visit the Philippians later.

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Verses 27 and 28 say: 27 Just one thing: Live your life in a manner 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, with one mind, working side by side for the faith that comes from the gospel, 28 not being frightened in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your deliverance —and this is from God.

Regardless of what would happen to him,,, whether he was released from prison,,, or,,, killed for serving the Lord,,, he wanted them to honor and glorify Christ.

To live in a way that is worthy of the gospel of Christ is something that is required of all of us that are Christians.

And that's what Paul wanted the Philippians to do.

Paul wanted his readers to live courageously for Christ in the midst of opposition and persecution.

They were facing severe persecution at that time,,, but this should not frighten them in any way.

Instead,,, this was to remind them that their own victorious Christian response,,, would be a sign that the ones persecuting them,,, would eventually be destroyed.

At the same time it would be a sign that they would be delivered by God Himself.

This assurance would surely be,,, the Holy Spirit working in their hearts.

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Verses 29 and 30 say: 29 For it has been given to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for Him, 30 having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.

Paul is reminding them that they will probably face persecution,,, and by believing in Christ,,, they also must suffer for Him.

And,,, according to my Bible Knowledge Commentary,,, suffering for Christ was not to be considered accidental or a divine punishment.

Paul referred to a kind of suffering that was really a sign of God’s favor.

Believing on Christ and suffering for Him are both associated with God’s grace.

Since Paul and his readers shared a similar struggle,,, in this verse,,, verse 30,,, he encouraged them,,, as they had encouraged him.

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I believe that we can all agree that Paul was obsessed with living his life in a way that brought glory to God!

We need to use his life as an example of the way that we should live.

We should strive to do everything that we can,,, to do the job that God put us here to do.

Of course,,, to do that,,, you must figure out what your job is first.

That was the hard for me to figure out,,, and then once I did figure it out,,, it was hard to admit to!

But the way that I've been blessed by all of you and the relief that I've felt by obeying instead of running,,, is indescribable!

So what took so long for me to figure out what God put me here to do?

My first mistake was just going through the motions of having a relationship with God.

I went to church,,, led the singing like I was supposed to do,,, prayed like I was supposed to,,, everything that seemed perfect if you were just looking,,, I did,,, but I never had a response from God,,, until I truly began to seek a relationship with Him!

Spending my time in prayer and being sure that I really spent time waiting and listening for His voice,,, that you will hear,,, if you are quiet enough!

My problem was that I was praying but never being quiet so that I could hear an answer!

Don't make that same mistake!

Be sure that you take the time to truly listen and get your directions,,, you will never regret it!

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In the devotion that Kaye read Thursday,,, it said that an aged Scotsman,,, while dying,,, was asked what he thought of death.

He replied, "It matters little to me whether I live or die. If I die,,, I will be with Jesus,,, and if I live,,, Jesus will be with me!

It's so easy for us to get caught up in our day to day routines.

But what makes life worth living,,, is our hope in Jesus Christ!

Our Christian life is a commitment that always looks forward to eternity.

One of the greatest joys that we have as Christians is our relationship with God.

Celebrate this joy by sharing this good news with others!

By being a living example of the hope we have in Christ,,, we are able to reach out to others with His amazing love.

So,,, whether you die at the end of this day,,, or you live,,, just like with the aged Scotsman,,, Jesus will be with you!

Everyone must face death,,, but we,,, as Christians,,, can face it with Jesus at our side.

We must focus on the future of eternity with Jesus,,, so that every day that we are alive is a reflection of Him!

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So as we begin our new week,,, hopefully we will remember these words of Paul,,, and remember that whether we live or die,,, we must do it for the glory of God.

And remember the aged Scotsman who said that whether he dies,,, he will be with Christ,,, or if he lives,,, Christ will be with him.

I just thought that was a beautiful way to look at life,,, and it's something that we need to remember,,, because through the Holy Spirit,,, God is always with us,,, no matter what we are going through!