Series: Philippians
Sermon: “It’s a Win-Win”
Philippians 1:19-26
Pastor John Bright
Philippians 1 “19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. 24 Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you. 25 And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith, 26 that your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again.”
We live in world that is very divided. I have said many times in the last few months if you have a discussion about the virus with 3 people you will hear at least 10 different opinions. In our world – it’s right or wrong with no in between. I used to hear folks talk about win-win situations where both sides come out satisfied with the outcome. For example – Lynn wants me to do something around the house. She brings it up in such a way that I believe it was my idea because I’m more likely to do it if I think of it – right? When it gets done, it’s a win-win. Unfortunately, most of what I see going on today is a lose-lose game.
Paul continues his letter but now he looks to the future. He looks beyond his current incarceration and sees light at the end of the tunnel. No matter how the circumstances fall, Paul is secure in his relationship with God through Jesus Christ and that’s a great place to be!
PAUL REALIZES “IT’S NOT ABOUT ME”
“19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.”
Paul can rejoice because there are two outcomes here – he will be delivered from the chains of Roman bondage OR he will be delivered from this fallen world.
He put it this way in Romans 8 “18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.”
So, while Paul is in this world, he has the same things we have – folks praying for us and the Holy Spirit within us.
I can’t begin to explain how awesome is our choice to pray for others. Doing Kairos Ministry in Virginia prisons, I’ve told plenty of folks that if they have grandmothers who are believers they might as well give up running from God – those are powerful prayers! Do most of your prayers focus on others – their salvation, their deliverance from guilt and shame and fear, blessings for those who hate you and spitefully use you (Matthew 5:44). Or do most of our prayers go up to God as our “Heavenly Vending Machine” – if I pray the right words or promise to do the things He wants, then I get what I want. I always want what will make me more comfortable.
We can make it through anything if folks will pray for us and we pray for them – that’s just a basic for being a church. Then we expand our prayers for the community in which we live – praying above all other things for all to come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We will only see the world changed if folks turn to God for healing and wholeness. That’s what Jesus died for… not just for us – for the one that is the hardest to love, like the one we see on TV that makes our blood pressure go through the roof.
Paul is also relying on the Holy Spirit. He wrote this in Galatians 3:5 “Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you…” Paul’s conversion on the Damascus Road was miraculous. Paul was used by God many times in the book of Acts to perform miracle – even raising Eutychus from the dead (20:8-12). He is miraculously saved many times from sure death. It’s no surprise for him to have great confidence in the Holy Spirit. What about us? The same Holy Spirit that was in Paul, that was moving and active in the Early Church – that same Holy Spirit is in you and me – in every Believer.
Paul expects every circumstance to lead to Christ being exalted so that there will be no shame in it.
Psalm 25 “2 O my God, I trust in You;
Let me not be ashamed;
Let not my enemies triumph over me.
3 Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed;
Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.
Even death will exalt Christ – WOW! We DO NOT look at death this way. We see it as a defeat. That somehow medical science failed. That our prayers were not enough. Unless Christ returns – everyone listening to me today is going to die. I like to quote Ecclesiastes 3:1 – “To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:” The very next thing that follows is “A time to be born,
And a time to die;.” In our grandparent’s day, when someone died they were kept at the house. All the children saw the body, but today we have debates about whether or not a child is old enough to see a very life-like body that has been prepared by the Funeral Home. Death is a part of life and it comes to all – these bodies do not last forever. It’s the spirit of a human that lives forever.
That’s why PAUL ALSO REALIZES THAT DEATH IS NOT THE END.
“21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. 24 Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you. 25 And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith, 26 that your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again.”
There was a guest preacher at a church one Sunday evening. He got to preaching hard about going to heaven when you die. He said, “Raise your hand if you want to go to heaven.” At this, all the hands went up – except for one man. So, the preacher raised his voice, “Shout ‘AMEN’ if you want to go to heaven.” So, everybody – except one man – yelled amen.” Frustrated, the preacher pointed to the man and asked if he wanted to go to hell? The man replied – “No, I plan on going to heaven when I die, but I thought you were getting up a group to go right now.” 😊
Paul encouraged the house churches in Corinth with the same message – 2 Cor. 5 “6 So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.” We encourage folks with the same message today at the funeral for a believer.
There is a simple statement here that would be perfect for each of us every day – “to live is Christ.” Paul’s life is wrapped up in Christ. Christ is the reason he is under arrest. Christ is the reason he can have joy. Christ is the reason he shares the gospel message and is glad when others do the same. He makes this clear later in Philippians 3 “7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ…”
This is a hard one for folks today – you and me. We tend to see Christ as an addition to our lives. What Paul is describing is like driving a car and it is Christ. We want Christ to be the added safety feature – like the back up camera or the drift into another lane alarm. See – we can choose to ignore the added features, but you can’t ignore the whole car. The whole car is necessary for getting you from point A to point B.
This letter from a man who faces the real possibility of martyrdom, is full of confidence that what’s best for the Philippians, and the other churches Paul planted, it that he continues to bear fruit for the Lord. We will see him offer himself as an example to them later on. He’s also doing it here – speaking of the future where he will either be with them or he will be with Christ in heaven. That’s our future – working together for Christ while we are in these bodies and then then comes… “a time to die.”
Why can we have this future with sooooo much hope? Because we are not out bodies – that get broken and sick. Because we are not the sum total of all our thoughts – thank God! We are eternal spirits! Easy way to remember this one that I learned from Dr. Dale Sides:
I am a spirit being
Temporarily housed in a body
Attempting to control the soul (mind, emotions, desire)
If I don’t control the soul, the soul will control me
When we are saved, the spirit is made brand new – all stain of sin wiped away by the blood of Jesus shed on Calvary! The old man still hangs around in the mind, emotions and desires. After salvation, the believer continues in the process of sanctification which is the on-going salvation of the soul (Phil. 2:12 “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;”.) Later on, every believer will receive a new body – a glory body (Phil. 3:21 “who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.)
Yes, this is what awaits the Believer. What about the Non-Believer? Well, each of them also has an eternal spirit and that spirit ends up in eternal death. It is an unending time of pain and suffering for the spirit. Jesus described it this way – Luke 16 “22…The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’”
Are you sure which way you are going when you die – up escalator or down escalator? Are you sure?
It’s your choice – be sure – be sure today!
It’s a win-win proposition. You live today with the power of the Holy Spirit. How much power? Read the book of Acts and tell me. Then, when you have lived with all the same pain and suffering in this life that everyone experiences – then you go to worship around the throne of heaven. There will be unspeakable joy in that place and we will be joined together with Believers – all races and tribes of humanity.
Sound good? Are you sure? Don’t let another day pass you by without the assurance of Eternal Life in Jesus Christ. AMEN!
