Date: 6/2/18
Lesson # 6
Title: Whether He Lives Or Dies, It Will Be A Blessing
Scripture: (Philippians 1:21-23, NIV)
21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far;
Introduction:
Since Paul was in prison awaiting trial, he had to face the fact that it was quite uncertain whether he would live or die; and to him it made no difference.
“Living,” he said is, in his great phrase, “is Christ to me.” For Paul, Christ had been the beginning of life, for on that day on the Damascus road it was as if he had begun life all over again. Christ had been the continuing of life; after meeting Christ, there had never been a day when Paul had not lived in His presence, and in the frightening moments Christ had been there to bid him to be of good cheer (Acts 18:9, 10).
Lesson
21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Paul’s willingness to die if necessary for Christ was not necessarily an evil alternative. In this memorable statement, which is in many respects the key verse of the epistle, he states the alternatives. “For to Paul to live is Christ.” By this he means that his life is wrapped up in Christ, in witnessing of Christ, in fellowship with Christ, in the goal to make his life a channel through which others might come to know Christ?if Christ were taken out of his life, there would be nothing left. For others, life may be different. Here’s a saying that can go along with the words of Paul. “Life for the merchant may be wealth; for the slave, toil and suffering; for the philosopher, knowledge; for the soldier, fame; for the emperor, an empire.”
But to die is not to give up Christ, but rather it is to “gain.” To die would be freedom from the chains, deliverance from self, the end of suffering, the curtain on strife, the beginning of a new life of freedom and abundance, the experience of being completely like Christ. Since Paul was in prison awaiting trial, he had to face the fact that it was quite uncertain whether he would live or die; and to him it made no difference. “Living,” he says in his great phrase, “is Christ to me.” For Paul, Christ had been the beginning of life, for on that day long ago on the Damascus road it was as if he had begun life all over again. Christ had been the continuing of life; since his Damascus road experience, there had never been a day when Paul had not lived in His presence, and in the frightening moments Christ had been there to bid him be of good cheer (Acts 18:9, 10; see note 1).
“For me,” said Paul, “to die is gain”. Death was entrance into Christ’s nearer presence. There are passages in which Paul seems to regard death as a sleep, from which all men at some future general resurrection shall be awakened (1 Corinthians 16: 51, 52; 1 Thessalonians 4:14, 16); but at the moment when his breath was on him Paul thought of death not as a falling asleep but as an immediate entry into the presence of his Lord. If we believe in Jesus Christ, death for us is union and reunion, union with Him and reunion with those whom we have loved and lost for awhile.
Paul is certain that he will be with Christ, although he believes that he will live since he believes that the Philippians need his guidance in order to progress in the faith. Paul explains this understanding of his destiny through a series of contrasts between death and life and the results of each. Thus life is Christ, but death is gain. Living in the flesh means fruitful labor, but death is “better by far” since it is a departure to be with Christ. Life, however, is more necessary for the Philippians. It seemed in every way desirable that for their sakes his life should be continued. No one felt this more keenly than himself, though he was assured that if that life was prematurely terminated the cause of the gospel was safe in the hands of God.
The apostle viewed life as an opportunity for setting forth and manifesting Christ and this is done by carefully copying His example. It is a wonderful thing for us to have a perfect life for our example. And we cannot vary a hair-breadth from that example without injuring our lives.
The Christian’s Life and Death.
I. The Christian’s life.—
A. It is a life in Christ.—
1. Begun in regeneration.
2. Realized by faith.
3. Sustained and increased by divine knowledge.
B. It is a life for Christ.—
1. The example of Christ is its model.
2. The will of Christ is its laws.
3. The Glory of Christ is its end.
II. The Christian’s death.—
A. The Christians death is a gain by being deprived of something.
1. Deprived of the sinful body.
2. Freed from temptation.
3. Freed from his enemies.
4. Freed from suffering.
5. Freed from death.
B. The Christians death is a gain by acquiring something.?
1. Accelerated liberty to worship God.
2. The ultimate addition of the glorified body with its exalted form and powers.
3. The blessed reunion and fellowship with departed friends.
4. The presence and companionship of Christ forever.
(Note 1) (Acts 18:9, 10) “Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city. Paul was encouraged not only by the presence of the Lord, but also by His promises. Jesus assured Paul that no one would hurt him, that he would bring many sinners to the Savior, and that He would never leave him nor forsake him (see Hebrews 13:5). He made Paul a promise; “For I am with thee.” Do not let the businessmen or the politicians, the wealthy or the prominent, frighten you into silence. They cannot hurt you; they can only prove you are right. Do not be afraid of running out of anything. The reservoirs of God are inexhaustible.
22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know!
The alternate claims of life and the glorious prospect of life after death conflict sharply in the mind of Paul. If he continues to live in the flesh, there would be fruit for his labor. There is obviously an abbreviation in his thought process. Probably he did not question whether to continue living would have produced fruit. There seems to have been assurance that he would live on.
However, Paul finds himself on the horns of a dilemma; which to choose, life or death. Each result is so desirable that he doesn’t know which to choose. He finally decides that although dying and being with Christ would be “better by far,” (v. 23), the Philippians’ “progress and joy in the faith” would be better served by his continued work among them, therefore, that becomes his “choice” (v. 25). The best use of life is to employ it in working for God. Work done for Him will remain when the worker is forgotten. Paul was the pioneer and founder of Christianity among the Gentiles and the young churches look to him for leadership and counsel.
The most important statement in this series of contrasts is the first: To Paul, life means Christ (v. 21a). Statements like this are common in Paul’s letters. Everything that might have usurped the place of Christ in Paul’s life he has considered rubbish that he might gain Christ (3:8; see note 2). Paul has been buried together with Christ so that just as Christ was raised, Paul might live a new life (Romans 6:4, see note 3; 6:8, 11; 14:7-9; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; one Thessalonians 5:10). He has been crucified with Christ so that Christ lives in him (Galatians 2:20; see note 4). His life is Christ (Colossians 3:4). Such statements can only mean that Paul’s relationship with Christ was so close that his entire existence derived its meaning from his Lord.
Paul’s account of his circumstances prior to verse 21 and his perspective on the future after this verse both demonstrate what his close relationship with Christ means in practical terms. Prior to verse 21, even imprisonment by the unbelieving authorities and ill will from fellow believers could not dampen the joyful character of Paul’s life, for God was advancing the gospel of Jesus Christ through these hardships (1:12-18a). After verse 21, Paul looks ahead and comments that death is gain, for it will mean the closest possible union with Christ. In the same way, continued life is fruitful labor because it means that Paul will be able both to preach the Gospel (1:7) and strengthen the Philippians faith (1:25). Such a perspective on the hardships of the present and the possibilities of the future is possible for Paul only because Christ lives within him and gives him strength.
(note 2) (Philippians 3:8) “What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage that I may gain Christ.”
(note 3) (Romans 6:4) “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”“Even so we also should walk in newness of life.” To walk in newness of life refers to our day-by-day living in the ordinary routines of life. If our old life, which is now dead and buried with Christ, was totally sinful, the new life which we rise to with the Savior, must be all together a holy life.
(note 4) (Galatians 2:20) “I am Crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live ; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” In Romans 6 we are told that we have been buried with Christ by baptism, by identification. We have been raised with him in newness of life, and are now joined to the living Christ. Paul says we do not know Him any longer after the flesh. He is not the Man of Galilee walking around the Sea of Galilee. He is at God’s right hand. He is the glorified Christ.
23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far;
“I am torn between the two,” he said; we would say, “I am torn in two directions.” His thought is simple; if I do live on and produce fruit, would this be better than to die? Paul finds himself torn between the alternatives, perhaps preferring, if left to his own wishes, “to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.”
