Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 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.
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.
Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have. (ESV)
If you are new to this reading plan, follow the instructions on the right side of this page or click here to read the "Why Just One Letter" introduction article.
Throughout each month, we will post short articles to give some depth of understanding regarding our text (see the archive links on the lower right of this page for review). Today we will discuss...
What Does "To Live Is Christ" Mean?
From this point on, through the end of chapter two, Paul begins circling around ONE BIG IDEA and it starts here in verse 21: "For to me to live is Christ..."
To live is Christ, may more easily be understood as to live AS Christ. Not to live as a messiah or a savior, but in a way that follows in the footsteps of the humility and the selflessness and the service and the love that we see in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
Paul will unpack this idea from many different angles. First in his role as a leader of the early church. Then in the life of an individual Christian, then in the life of the Church as a people, then in the living examples of two servants of the Church, Timothy and Epaphroditus.
Since we will see the idea fleshed out in all those different ways, today we will simply look at a couple of summary statements. Don't just read these as information, though. The heart of Paul, which he instructs the Philippians to imitate is the heart of Jesus himself. When we were baptized in faith we publicly proclaimed that we DIED to our old self and to our old way of life and were born again into a new life with Jesus.
These statements are nothing less than a template to reorient our lives to match up with. When we do radically reorient around this kind of heart for others we find freedom from many of the distractions and temptations of this world and we find a usefulness and purpose in our life.
The first reason that Paul says, "To live is Christ" is that:
"If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me."
While Paul would much rather be done with all of the struggles and trials of this life, he understands that his life is part of the Great, Glorious, Good and Gracious plan of God. Paul sees that he is alive because God wants to include Paul as a partner in that plan.
Paul's purpose in life is to labor or WORK to bring the not-yet-believers to faith by proclaiming the Gospel and to labor or WORK to build up the church and train the church to live on mission and protect themselves from false teaching.
But, THIS IS IMPORTANT, we know from other things that Paul has written, that he knows his job is to WORK, but to trust God for the RESULTS.
And in Ephesians 2:10, Paul writes that
In other words, we are here to do work for the Kingdom, and we should be faithful in the calling God has placed on our lives. But, we can work boldly and confidently because we are not working alone, we are walking in a path Jesus has already trail blazed for us and we are reaching people whom the Holy Spirit has already begun working on.
This should be good news because the burden on ministry is not on your shoulders and it should be humbling because we cannot take credit, but instead - should point all of the praise and thanks to God alone who gives the growth.
So first, "To Live is Christ" means to be faithful while God determines how fruitful you will be. Is that how Jesus lived? Yes.
Jesus labored for the lost and left the fruitfulness to the will of the Father. Jesus said it this way:
Then, Jesus said the same relationship between His work and the Father's will would be true for our relationship to Jesus:
To live is Christ: You walk in faith, God produces the fruit.
Secondly, Paul writes that:
"to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account."
But, Oh! How we hate to think of our loved ones, especially those who rely on us, if and when we leave this life. Anyone with children still at home or older parents in their care know this feeling.
Paul looks at the churches that he has helped to plant as kind of a spiritual family - like his children in the faith, as he calls Timothy in 2:22. And with that heart, Paul says, without any resentment to them, I will stay. For you.
And again, this is the same heart that Jesus had when He looked out over His people.
To live is Christ: Dying to self, to live for others.
Faithful, self-less living. In what areas of your life do you already see this? In what areas could you grow in this?
As homework this week, please thank those people in your life and acknowledge when you see this "To live is Christ" faithful selflessness.
To live is Christ, may more easily be understood as to live AS Christ. Not to live as a messiah or a savior, but in a way that follows in the footsteps of the humility and the selflessness and the service and the love that we see in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
Paul will unpack this idea from many different angles. First in his role as a leader of the early church. Then in the life of an individual Christian, then in the life of the Church as a people, then in the living examples of two servants of the Church, Timothy and Epaphroditus.
Since we will see the idea fleshed out in all those different ways, today we will simply look at a couple of summary statements. Don't just read these as information, though. The heart of Paul, which he instructs the Philippians to imitate is the heart of Jesus himself. When we were baptized in faith we publicly proclaimed that we DIED to our old self and to our old way of life and were born again into a new life with Jesus.
These statements are nothing less than a template to reorient our lives to match up with. When we do radically reorient around this kind of heart for others we find freedom from many of the distractions and temptations of this world and we find a usefulness and purpose in our life.
The first reason that Paul says, "To live is Christ" is that:
"If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me."
While Paul would much rather be done with all of the struggles and trials of this life, he understands that his life is part of the Great, Glorious, Good and Gracious plan of God. Paul sees that he is alive because God wants to include Paul as a partner in that plan.
Paul's purpose in life is to labor or WORK to bring the not-yet-believers to faith by proclaiming the Gospel and to labor or WORK to build up the church and train the church to live on mission and protect themselves from false teaching.
But, THIS IS IMPORTANT, we know from other things that Paul has written, that he knows his job is to WORK, but to trust God for the RESULTS.
In 1 Corinthians, Paul tells the church in Corinth not to hang their faith on particular leaders, because, "I planted (evangelized), Apollos watered (preached, taught and pastored), BUT GOD GAVE THE GROWTH. So, neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth." (1 Corinthians 3:6-7)
And in Ephesians 2:10, Paul writes that
"We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, WHICH GOD PREPARED BEFOREHAND, THAT WE SHOULD WALK IN THEM."
This should be good news because the burden on ministry is not on your shoulders and it should be humbling because we cannot take credit, but instead - should point all of the praise and thanks to God alone who gives the growth.
So first, "To Live is Christ" means to be faithful while God determines how fruitful you will be. Is that how Jesus lived? Yes.
Jesus labored for the lost and left the fruitfulness to the will of the Father. Jesus said it this way:
"...The son can do nothing of His own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing." (John 5:19) and "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him..." (John 6:44)
Then, Jesus said the same relationship between His work and the Father's will would be true for our relationship to Jesus:
"I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING." (John 15:5)
To live is Christ: You walk in faith, God produces the fruit.
Secondly, Paul writes that:
"to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account."
What Paul demonstrates here is that living here means dying to SELF here. We will look at the other half of these verses next time, but to tease it out a bit, Paul is CLEAR, he would rather be with Jesus.
And, while many of us are fearful of the moment of death, nearly any Christian who has suffered on this Earth with sickness, physical pain, loss, heartache, financial woes and the rest - Any Christian who is secure in their faith can give a resounding AMEN! to Paul's preference of death and reunion with Jesus.
But, Oh! How we hate to think of our loved ones, especially those who rely on us, if and when we leave this life. Anyone with children still at home or older parents in their care know this feeling.
Paul looks at the churches that he has helped to plant as kind of a spiritual family - like his children in the faith, as he calls Timothy in 2:22. And with that heart, Paul says, without any resentment to them, I will stay. For you.
And again, this is the same heart that Jesus had when He looked out over His people.
"When He saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:36)
To live is Christ: Dying to self, to live for others.
Faithful, self-less living. In what areas of your life do you already see this? In what areas could you grow in this?
As homework this week, please thank those people in your life and acknowledge when you see this "To live is Christ" faithful selflessness.
