For to Me to Live Is Christ
Philippians 1:21–30 | Paul’s Greatest Hits
The Sermon
Today is our second Sunday of listening to the Apostle Paul’s greatest hits. Two weeks ago, we enjoyed the classic verse, “Let no debt remain outstanding except the debt to love one another”. This week’s verse is probably one of the most popular verses he ever penned. This could be your life verse. It is found in Philippians the first chapter and the twenty first verse. It reads: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Like always, let’s read the rest of the passage so we can gain its context. Hear the word of the Lord from Philippians 1:21-30. This will be another participatory sermon where we ask three questions and then we will be done.
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; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me. 27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. 29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.
“Tired! Worn Out!” The Apostle Paul had every reason to feel this way when he wrote the Philippians. He had been through a lot. Our best estimates are that he is now in his fifties. He had been following Jesus and preaching the gospel for two decades. Several years earlier when writing to the Corinthians, Paul gave a list of suffering he had to endure. He had repeatedly been put into prison, numerous beatings, 5 Jewish floggings of 39 lashes, one stoning that left him unconscious and almost dead, three shipwrecks, sometimes he was hungry and thirsty, often not properly clothed for the weather. And now he was under house arrest with a soldier chained to him. Simply put, the Apostle Paul was homesick. But his home was not of this world. He wanted to be with Jesus.
Hearing all that Paul had to go through leads me to our first question. “Why do you think God allows good people to suffer so much?” I realize you probably need more than one minute to answer this question, but that is all that we have time for, so let’s talk this over with our friends who are sitting near you.
From the original sermon presentation · Slide 4
Pastor’s preparation / possible responses: These are great answers. My thoughts are similar. God allows suffering because we live in a fallen world; good can come of it; people have free will;
But it needs to be said that not all suffering has the same explanation. Some suffering comes because we live in a broken world. Some come from our own choices. Some come from the choices of others. Some come specifically because we follow Jesus. And sometimes we simply don’t know why. But Paul knows something else: suffering does not get the final word. God does! And Paul knew someday he would take his last breath and be with Jesus. And he couldn’t wait.
I have known people who have wanted to go home and be with the Lord. Like Paul, they were tired and worn out. The most recent example of this was Doug Yandle’s mother, Betty. She was ready and waiting to be with Jesus. She was in her nineties and all of her friends were on the other side of glory. Don’t get me wrong, she loved her sons, their spouses and the grandchildren. But she was ready to go and often questioned why God had left her here so long. The beautiful part of her story, like Paul, for her to live was Christ. Everyday she was on this earth especially in the later years, she wanted God to use her. When she was in the rehab facility, she was a witness to those who were getting her back on her feet. When she became bedridden, she continued to have spiritual conversations with her family and the aides that would care for her. Mrs. Yandle truly believed that to die was gain, but as long as she had breath in her lungs, she was going to allow Christ to live through her. The same should be said of us. If this morning you are tired and worn out and find yourself longing for heaven, remember this: as long as God gives you breath, Christ can still live through you.
Paul mentions the benefits of living a life of surrender to Jesus. Verse 22 reads, “If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me.” I love this about the Lord. There is no retirement plan for those who follow Jesus. No matter the circumstances God will produce fruit through us as long as we keep connected to the vine. The late Nazarene evangelist Stephen Manley preached this idea so well when he would say, “Do you know how fruit comes on the vine? It just happens. One day nothing is there and the next, boom, it’s a grape. Branches just produce fruit because they are connected to the vine. If we allow Christ to live through us each day, He will produce fruit in our lives. People will see that we are different. They will experience God’s love and they will be curious. For Christ to live through us means a fruitful and meaningful life.
The other benefit Paul mentions is the joy of discipleship. Look at verse 25. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith. You see, Paul understood that as long as he had breath in his lungs, there was someone that he needed to disciple. There was someone he was to mentor. There was someone who he got the privilege to walk with them as they grew in the relationship with Jesus. In fact, this letter was part of his discipleship method. The Philippians and we are formed by them.
One of the greatest privileges of being a pastor is seeing people grow in their faith. I don’t normally do this, but I want to highlight the progress Dan Felix has made over the years. I remember when I married Dan and Claire down in the family life center which at that time was our worship building. He was sweating like a hog before the ceremony but it was one of his best decisions he ever made. At that time, Dan wasn’t very spiritual. But over time, God began to work on Dan and it is amazing how far he has come. And I am glad I have gotten to be a small part of that development. It really is a joy to disciple people. As long as we are here, God has someone for us to disciple. Even in our suffering, we can be fruitful and disciple others.
The second question is this, “What is the hardest part about being a Christian?” Paul says in verse 27, “whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ”. What makes this command difficult? One minute to discuss it.
Pastor’s preparation / possible responses: Great answers. Here are some of mine. Not relapsing to our old way of life! Getting along with obnoxious people! Not being sarcastic to the point of leaving a mark.
Paul gives a couple of keys to conducting ourselves in a worthy manner. The first is to stay connected to each other. Look at the later part of verse 27. I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel. We don’t talk about this enough but when Paul wrote his letters he always addressed them in the plural or as we say in the South, “You all”. Paul certainly understood that each person must respond to Christ, but he never pictured the Christian life as something we live alone. Following Jesus was a communal journey. We grow together. Over these many years in ministry, I have discovered how true his thinking is. We are to grow together. We need each other so that we can develop our faith. We can’t live in isolation and expect Christian growth. I think Paul would say, “we can’t conduct ourselves in a worthy manner without our brothers and sisters in Christ”. If you are retreating from the body of Christ, you are retreating from your faith in Jesus.
Another key to conducting ourselves in a worthy manner is to be courageous. Look at verse 28. “without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you”. There is no doubt that when we allow Jesus to live through us not everyone is going to be happy. What will be surprising are the ones who will oppose us the most. It won’t be the mean guy at work or the neighbor who gossips about everyone in the subdivision. No, sometimes the hardest opposition doesn’t come from strangers. It comes from people we love. Spouses, parents, children and other relatives may demand our full allegiance. They may not understand why we give so much time to the Lord and the church. Now I personally find it easier to tell a stranger or an acquaintance that I can’t do something because God wants me to do this but if it is my spouse that is a different type of pressure. I don’t want to have an argument. I don’t want them to be upset. And I can’t even imagine what it is like if you have grandchildren. We are going to have to be courageous to stand up to those who will want to keep us from conducting ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel. Let’s be bold and courageous even if it upsets the ones we love.
Last question and we will be done. What does it mean to suffer for Christ? Not to just suffer in general, but particularly for our Savior. One minute to discover an answer.
Pastor’s preparation / possible responses: That was a tough question but those were good answers. It really depends where you live. For Christians in some parts of the world, the suffering they will endure could cost them their lives. Others, their families will no longer speak to them. They could be excluded from their tribe. For us in America, it probably means being excluded. Sometimes it could mean being isolated. Sometimes it is being the butt of jokes. And maybe exclusion from a job or a promotion.
Suffering for Jesus is a privilege. At least that is the way Paul viewed it. When they beat him, imprisoned him, chained him and spread rumors about him, Paul understood that suffering for Christ identified him with Christ. Later in this same letter he writes, ‘I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings.’ Paul wanted all of Jesus—not simply resurrection power, but fellowship with Christ even when following Him hurt. May we, like Paul, consider it an honor when obedience to Jesus costs us something.
Suffering for Jesus is transformational. Paul said it best in Romans, “Suffering produces perseverance. Perseverance character. And character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us because God is pouring out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” When we get mistreated because we love Jesus, something occurs deep inside our being. When someone makes a snide comment because we shared our faith, it is an honor not a curse. When we don’t get that promotion because we will not work the overtime that keeps us away from church, something will happen inside of us that is really good. When we stand up for what is right, when doing the honest thing costs us a promotion, when refusing to compromise our Christian convictions cost us an opportunity, something transformational will occur in our being that is so much better than the temporary gain. Let us not be afraid of suffering for Jesus. Sometimes the cost of following Him simply reminds us whose we are. We are His. And He is ours.
Suffering for Jesus can be a common occurrence in Paul’s opinion. Look at verse 30 “since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.” I realize that all of us want to be loved and accepted. We want to be part of the group. But as long as we are following Jesus, we will not fit in with the world. Our language is different. Our attitude is different. And there will be occasions when they are not going to want us around. Our lives may sometimes make people uncomfortable—not because we are trying to make them uncomfortable, but because following Jesus means we won’t always go along with the crowd. Our suffering reminds us that we are still in the game. Nothing worse than to be sitting on the bench. God doesn’t have any benchwarmers. He will always keep us in the action until our last breath as long as we allow Christ to live through us.
So the final question is, “Will ‘For me to live is Christ” be our song? Most couples have a song. What’s the song you sing to God? I hope ours will be one of Paul’s greatest hit: “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Because if Christ lives in us, then get ready for the most exciting life we could ever imagine. There will be fruit to bear; there will have people to disciple; there will be a church family to stand beside, and we will be moments when following Jesus costs us something. And someday, when our work here is finished, there will be Jesus waiting for us. Until then- to live is Christ. And to die is gain. Is that your song? Let’s stand.
