There are a lot of sayings related to living and dying.
One of my favorites is from the Stephen King book and movie Shawshank Redemption, where Andy Dufresne says, “Get busy living or get busy dying.”
Mark Twain said, “The fear of death follows from the fear of life.”
In his work, Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare wrote, “Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.”
In the movie, Braveheart, William Wallace says, “Every man dies. Not every man really lives.”
Tim McGraw sang an entire song dedicated to the topic, called “Live Like You Were Dying.”
You see, as earthly creatures, we’re faced with the mortality of this life. Our lives on this earth will come to an end. Yet, those of us who are in Jesus know that death is not the end. There is something more than this life. That truth should affect the way we view life and death.
That’s our topic today, as we learn from the Apostle Paul about “A Life Worthy of the Gospel.”
Let’s pray together before we go any further in this sermon.
(prayer)
Ok, as we dive into this passage today, pay attention to three elements that teach us about how followers of Jesus should view life and death.
First, notice . . .
I. The priority for Paul.
What is the priority in your life? What is most important to you?
Let’s see what was important to Paul. Look at verses 12-19:
12 Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually advanced the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard, and to everyone else, that my imprisonment is because I am in Christ. 14 Most of the brothers have gained confidence in the Lord from my imprisonment and dare even more to speak the word, fearlessly. 15 To be sure, some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of good will. 16 These preach out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; 17 the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, thinking that they will cause me trouble in my imprisonment. 18 What does it matter? Only that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice 19 because I know this will lead to my salvation, through your prayers and help from the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
Verse 12 shows us that Paul wants the Philippians to know something as he writes to them: He wants them to know that what has happened to him has helped advance the gospel.
Well, what has happened to Paul? Of course, he addresses it in verse 13; he’s speaking of his imprisonment.
Paul wants the Philippians to know that, although they may be concerned for him, his imprisonment is helping spread the good news of Jesus Christ.
In fact, Paul said that through his imprisonment, the Roman guards (and others) are coming to know about Jesus.
Not only that, Paul says that as he is in prison, he is gaining more and more confidence to do the very thing that put him in prison: speak the word of Jesus.
The priority for Paul was the proclamation of the gospel: the good news that Jesus came to save sinners!
In verse 14, we learn that others were also gaining confidence to speak the gospel.
Think about that for a moment. Naturally, wouldn’t Paul’s imprisonment discourage him from doing that thing again? Wouldn’t it discourage others from doing that thing?
The idea of prison is to punish you so that there is a sense of justice, and so that you don’t do that thing again.
Yet, God doesn’t always work in the natural way, does He? Sometimes, God decides to do something supernatural.
You see, because Paul prioritized the preaching of the gospel, God was doing something incredible and inexplicable in his life and in the lives of others.
If you prioritize the gospel of Jesus Christ, God will do something incredible and inexplicable in your life as well.
Notice what else is happening here.
In verses 15 through 17, we discover two groups with different motivations for preaching the gospel.
One group has the right motivation, preaching the gospel out of love.
Others, it seems, had something against Paul. We’re not sure what it was. However, they were still preaching the gospel, perhaps simply because they were trying to compete with Paul.
Paul didn’t mind. He said in verse 18, “What does it matter? Only that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.”
What kind of crazy talk is that?
Those are the words of a man who prioritized the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul was so committed to Jesus that he celebrated that Jesus was proclaimed because of his own imprisonment.
Paul was so committed to Jesus that he rejoiced when others who were against him preached about Jesus.
Paul said, “Yes, and I will continue to rejoice.”
Church, the priority for Paul was the good news that Jesus saves sinners.
The priority was not safety. The priority was not freedom. The priority was not acceptance.
The priority was Jesus!
What is your priority?
Notice why Paul rejoices. Look again at verse 19.
“ . . . because I know this will lead to my salvation, through your prayers and help from the Spirit of Jesus Christ.”
Paul knew that whether he was released from prison or whether he went to be with Jesus, everything was going to be ok.
In one way or another, Paul was going to experience deliverance. In that, he rejoiced.
That leads nicely to our second element from this passage:
II. The prize for dying.
Dying usually doesn’t sound good, does it? Yet, for the Christian, there is a prize with dying; there is a reward; there is gain.
Let’s see what Paul says. Look at verses 20-26:
20 My eager expectation and hope is that I will not be ashamed about anything, but that now as always, with all courage, Christ will be highly honored in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For me, to live is Christ and to die 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 torn between the two. I long to depart and be with Christ—which is far better—24 but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. 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 my coming to you again, your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound.
In verse 20, Paul echoes the theme of Jesus as his priority. Then, he addresses the idea of the real possibility of his death.
You see, due to the reality of being in prison, Paul could, indeed, face death; he’s not sure what will happen.
Then, Paul says this familiar verse (verse 21):
“For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
What does this statement mean?
“To live is Christ” means that all of life is devoted to Jesus.
Nothing is more important than Jesus; Jesus is everything.
“To die is gain” means that there is a reward that comes with death; we gain something with death.
Well, what do we gain with death? Paul answers that question.
In verse 23, Paul says: “I long to depart and be with Christ—which is far better . . . ”
For the Christian, the prize for death is to be in heaven with Jesus.
Paul longed to be with Jesus, as all of us who love Jesus should.
Brothers and sisters, death is not the end. In fact, death brings a prize for us; it brings heaven for us; it brings Jesus for us.
So, Paul is torn. He wants the prize; he wants the gain.
Yet, Paul knew that there was still ministry for him on this earth. God had a mission for him still.
Church, let me just state this plainly for all of you: The only reason God leaves any of His children on the earth is that He has a mission for them. The only reason you are here is that God has a mission for you.
That mission is the reason that we don’t immediately go to heaven when we receive Jesus; God still has work for us.
Paul said in verses 24 and 25, “ . . . to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. 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 believed he had more ministry with the Philippians, and he believed he had more ministry elsewhere.
Yet, Paul longed for the prize of death.
Finally, we see . . .
III. The path for living.
I love how this next passage starts off. It’s almost like when you call someone to tell them something important. You might say, “Just one thing . . . ”
Let’s look at what Paul says in verses 27-30:
27 Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life 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, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel, 28 not being frightened in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your salvation—and this is from God. 29 For it has been granted to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.
The one thing that Paul wants them to hear is this: “As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ.”
Everything that follows is a result of them living their lives worthy of the gospel:
They will be able to stand firm.
They will be able to be one in spirit, in one accord.
They will be able to contend for the faith.
They will not be frightened by their opponents.
They will suffer with Christ.
Listen, church: Our path as Christians is to live lives worthy of the gospel.
Here’s what that means: Because Jesus has saved us from our sins and given us new life, we ought to live our lives totally committed to Him.
This world is not our home; we belong to heaven!
We ought to be devoted to the King of Heaven, Jesus Christ!
Every part of our life ought to be devoted to Jesus and His ways; this is the path of life for the Christian.
By the way, it’s worth noting again that we see this theme of suffering, which comes up much in Paul’s writings.
Paul says in verses 29 and 30: “For it has been granted to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.”
Church, suffering is part of what it means to be a follower of Jesus.
Jesus said in Luke 9:23:
“If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
Paul said in Romans 8:17:
“ . . . if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.”
James mentions in James 1:2:
“Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials . . . ”
Suffering as a Christian is part of the path for living for the people of God.
That brings us to our bottom line:
Bottom Line: Our living and our dying should be Jesus-glorifying.
In our lives and our deaths, Jesus should be lifted up. We belong to Him.
“All to Jesus, I surrender. All to Him I freely give.”
Think about your life. Do you glorify Jesus in all that you do?
Think about your death that is coming someday. Are you prepared to be with God?
To live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Weekly Challenge: Proclaim Jesus.
Part of the way that we can live a life worthy of the gospel is to proclaim Jesus.
Paul said that he rejoiced in the proclamation of the gospel. So should we.
Challenge yourself to proclaim the gospel this week and beyond.
(Gospel presentation)
(closing prayer)
(Benediction)
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