Rejoice | Part 3 | Philippians 1:19-26 | To Live is Christ, To Die is Gain
We’re there in Philippians 1. Of course on Sunday mornings we’ve been going through this sermon series called “Rejoice” which is a Bible study through the book of Philippians. Paul is teaching us about joy and actually the joy that can be found in Jesus Christ. This is the 3rd sermon in the series and we’ve been going verse by verse and learning what the apostle Paul has to teach us. Last week we left off in verse number 18 and that’s where we’ll pick up this morning. I want to notice there in Philippians 1:18, Paul says “18 What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.”. I want you to notice that before 18, Paul has been speaking in the past and present tense but at the end of verse 18 he shifts toward the future tense. For the rest of the chapter, he will be looking at the future tense.
Go back to Philippians 1:3 “3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,”. That’s past tense. Verse number 5 “5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;”. Notice verse 12 “12 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;”. When he says the things which have happened unto me, that’s past tense. Paul’s been speaking about the past. He’s been speaking about his present. He’s been telling us about the things we learned last week, the things that have happened unto him or for the furtherance of the gospel. But then in verse 18 he shifts. He says at the last part of verse 18 “and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.”.
You say what difference does it make which tense? The interesting thing is that the Apostle Paul as we’ve been learning is waiting. He’s incarcerated. He’s imprisoned. He’s under house arrest. He’s waiting to be tried before Caesar. If you remember at the end of the Book of Acts, he appealed unto Caesar. He’s waiting to be tried before Caesar. And as a result, his future is very uncertain. Paul does not know what’s going to happen to him in the future.
Notice verse 19 & 20 “19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”. At the end of verse 20, we see the uncertainty for the future of Paul. Paul says I’m not sure how this is all going to play out. I’m not sure if I’m going to be alive or I’m going to be dead. I’m not sure what’s going to happen. He says I know that Christ will be magnified but it may be by life or by death. Paul’s future is very uncertain.
Notice at verse 27 “27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent,”. He says I’m not sure if I’m ever going to see you again. He said I’m not sure whether my ministry will continue on and my magnifying of Christ will continue either by life or death. Philippians 2:17 “17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith,”. Paul says if I’m given as a sacrifice, if my life is to be sacrificed then praise the Lord. It’s very interesting that the Apostle Paul while facing uncertainty, while facing an uncertain future, while sitting there writing to the Church at Philippi. And he’s telling them that he isn’t sure how it’s going to work out. He says that he isn’t sure if he’s ever going to see them again. But while facing this uncertainty, he says “I joy, and rejoice with you all.”. Though Paul’s future is very uncertain, he still can rejoice. Though his future has a big question mark, he’s still full of joy. He’s still content.
Have you ever felt like your future was uncertain? I think we can all recently relate to this. In 2020, we all experienced this COVID situation where the country got locked down and businesses got locked down and all sorts of things happened. And I think for a lot of people, their future was uncertain, their jobs were uncertain, they didn’t know what would happen. Sometimes one of the most difficult things is trying to help people through uncertain times that could happen in the future. It’s 1 thing to help people through trials but uncertainty in the future can be even harder to help people through it. It’s difficult when people are waiting for the results, they’re not sure how things are going to work out with their children, they’re not sure if the relationship is going to stay or their careers. Sometimes the hardest time to rejoice and to be happy in the Lord is when your future is uncertain. But Paul teaches us that you can rejoice while facing an uncertain future. He says I don’t know whether it will be life or death. I’m not sure if I will see you. I’m not sure if I’m going to be sacrificed on the altar of the service of your faith. But he says here’s what I do know, I joy and will rejoice. He says I can rejoice while facing an uncertain future.
And we’ve got to ask this question of the Apostle Paul when facing possible death. Paul when uncertain of how all this is going to play out, Paul when you’ve appealed to the highest court of the land, Paul when you are done wrong by Festus & Felix & Agrippa, how can you rejoice? How can you rejoice when facing uncertain times? I want to answer this question this morning. I want to give you three thoughts, three statements. I encourage you to write these down. How could Paul rejoice while facing an uncertain future? How could Paul rejoice while facing possible death? How could Paul rejoice with so many question marks in his future? Paul kind of breaks this down for us in this letter.
First of all, Paul understood that there is more to life than this life. Notice verse 19. “19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation”. He’s not talking about a spiritual salvation. Paul was already spiritually saved. The word salvation in the Bible is not always about going to heaven or hell. The idea is that he would be delivered, that he would be saved, that it would all work out. He says “19 For I know…”. He doesn’t know how things will work out but he does know that this shall turn to his salvation.
The equivalent in Romans to Philippians 1:19 is Romans 8:28. This famous verse brings a lot of comfort to people when they’re not sure what’s going to happen and how things are going to work out. Romans 8:28 “28 And we know that all things work together for good”. This does not mean that all things are good. Some things are really bad actually. “28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”. So Paul who wrote these words in the Book of Romans tells us that these things work together for good. We are told by history that Paul was sitting in a prison cell under house arrest chained to a Roman Soldier. Paul was convinced that this would work together for good. You might wonder, what do you mean Paul?
Paul said “19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,”. If you remember, when Paul was in Philippi we have a very famous story of Paul being put in prison in Philippi. And while he was in prison, he’s singing songs and singing hymns unto the Lord and an earthquake happens. The doors open and he’s free. And of course he chooses not to set himself free and go free because he saw a soul winning opportunity and the Philippian jailer is ready to kill himself. Paul yells out to him to do know harm. He said we’re all here. And the Philippian jailer looks at that and trembles and says “What must I do to be saved.”. And Paul makes those famous statements of “believe on the lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved and thy house”. You say, was Paul saying in Philippians 1 that he was going to be broken out of jail? Paul preemptively answers that in verse 20.
Philippians 1:20 “20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope,…”. The Bible uses the word “hope” here. The way we use that word today is very different than in the Bible. Today if we use it then we aren’t confident. But in the Bible, when the word “hope” is used, there is a lot of confidence. In fact, Paul defines it in verse 20. He says “20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope,”. See, in the Bible, hope is an earnest expectation. Something that you have confidence will happen. Something that you are sure will happen. That’s why the Bible refers to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ as our blessed hope. We’re not hoping he’s coming. We know he’s coming. We’re not hoping he’s coming. It’s our earnest expectation.
Paul here says that while he is sitting in prison facing possible death, he knows that this shall turn to his salvation. He says “according to my earnest expectation and my hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed.”. Here’s what he’s saying. He says I’m going to win. I’m not going to be embarrassed. I’m not going to be ashamed. I’m not going to be let down. God is not going to let me down. You say what do you mean Paul? He says this “but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”. What does Paul mean? He’s saying that if he lives he wins and if he dies he wins. He doesn’t know what’s going to happen but he realizes that he wins either way.
How can Paul say that? The famous verse Philippians 1:21 “21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.”. Paul says let me be honest with you, if God asked me my choice, I’m not sure. He says “23 For I am in a strait betwixt two,”. “Strait” is a narrow passage. He says I have this hard decision. Basically a rock & a hard place. “23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:”. Let me tell you something, Paul really believed in heaven. Now how can you know Paul believed in heaven? Because while facing while facing imminent death, he understood that there is more to life than this life. He understood that whether in life or in death, I’m not really that worried about it. He says I win either way whether life or death. How can he say that? “21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”.
There’s an old story about Jack Hyles and John R. Rice. They are famous Independent Fundamental Baptist preaches from the past. This is how the story goes. There was a preaching even and there was a big crowd so they came out a back door into an alley behind the church building so that they could kind of just avoid thousands of people trying to talk to them and spending a lot of time. John R. Rice had to get going and was going to catch a flight and all of those things. They come out of this back door of the church building into this alley. As soon as they come out, a guy approaches them with a gun and he puts the gun up to Jack Hyles’ stomach and demands his money or he’ll blow his brains out. John R. Rice starts laughing and the guy looks at him and says “What are you laughing about?”. He said “Well you put your gun to his gut and you said you’ll blow his brains out.”. And the guy looked at him and pointed the gun at him. He said “You think I’m joking?”. And the story goes that John R. Rice said “Son, you can’t scare me with heaven.”. The truth is that as a Christian, if you are saved and believe in heaven and life and death, you win.
How could Paul rejoice while facing an uncertain future? You say, “Pastor, I’m not sure how things are going to work out in my marriage and I’m not sure how things are going to work out with my children. I’m not sure how things are going to work out in my career and things are changing, technology is changing and I’m not sure if I’m going to have a job next year. Things are very uncertain and I’m just not really sure how could I rejoice while facing an uncertain future?”. And Paul says you can rejoice when you understand that there is more to life than this life. Paul said if they kill me then I win and if I stay then I win. If I get another job or never work again or no matter what, I win. Paul understood this life was just a moment. It appeared for a little time and then vanished away. See, Paul knows that everything is going to work out because Paul says even if they kill me I win.
The Bible says “Fear not them which are able to kill the body but are not able to kill the soul but rather fear him that is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.”. Look, all man can do is kill me. You understand the worst thing they could do to you is take your life? You say well that sounds pretty bad. Well, if I’m on my way to heaven, if my earnest expectation and my hope is heaven, if I understand like Paul understood that there’s more to this life than this life then I can rejoice in uncertainty. I can have joy when I’m not sure how things are going to work out. See, Paul lived his life on earth for heaven.
Let me ask you a question. I want you to really answer this. Don’t answer it out loud and don’t raise your hand. I want you to answer this in your mind. Honestly take a moment to answer this question. How would it change your life, how would it change my life, if we lived on earth for heaven? How would it change what you did? How you spent your time, where you spent your money, what you did every day. If you lived on earth as if you were on a journey to heaven then how would that change your life? Let me give you a couple thoughts about that.
If we lived our lives on earth for heaven then we would stop accumulating wealth and possessions in this life. This is reality. People can get offended when you preach against covetousness and accumulation of toys & gadgets. Matthew 6:19 “19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth,”. You say wait a minute; he’s not talking to the prosperous American dream Christianity. You say “I thought this was the whole point of life. I thought the purpose was to have toys, vehicles, gadgets, clothes, as much wealth as possible.”. God says if you’re living for this earth, lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth. You say why? Here’s why. “where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:”. You know things on this earth don’t last. They break down. They rust up. They get corrupted. They even get stolen from you. Jesus says “20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:”.
Then he says in verse 21 “21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”. If we did a study of your checking account and credit card statement and checkbook, what would it reveal about your heart? Jesus said where your treasure is there will your heart be also. What would it reveal about you? What do you live for? What do you care about? Because if you lived on earth for heaven, you would stop trying to accumulate as much wealth and possessions as possible. I like that song “oh it is wonderful to be a Christian”. The third stanza says “and the hope of heaven’s glories throw me so we all live with Christ forevermore.”. What did Paul understand? How could Paul rejoice while facing an uncertain future? Here’s what Paul understood. There’s more to life than this life. The worst thing that could happen to me on this earth is they take my life. You say what would happen in the life of a Christian if they began to live on earth for heaven? If they began to live on earth like there actually was a heaven, 1 thing that would happen is they would quit the race of accumulating as much wealth as possible.
Here’s another thing that would happen if you lived on earth for heaven. You would stop complaining about the sufferings of this world. Romans 8:18 “18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”. You know if you started living for heaven on earth then you would stop complaining about the sufferings of this life. If you sat down and thought about it, you would realize that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
2nd Corinthians 4:17 “17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;”. Paul here is referring to the afflictions of this world. Before you think that Paul is just being condescending to us and Paul doesn’t understand what we’ve gone through and Paul doesn’t understand the afflictions, remember that Paul was stoned and left for dead. This is a man who has been beaten with rods. This is a man who’s been whipped and scourged. It’s a man who’s been in prison, who’s been shipwrecked, who’s been backstabbed. I think if anybody really understands an affliction, Paul would be a candidate for that. But he called it a light affliction.
You say how can he call it a light affliction? Here’s how. He says “which is but for a moment,”. Paul knew that there was more to life than this life. This life is just a fleeting moment. This life appeareth for a moment and then vanisheth away. Most of our existence will be with God in heaven for all eternity. He says that when you understand that there is more to life than this life, you would “reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”.
If you lived on earth for heaven then you would quit accumulating as much wealth as possible. If you lived for heaven then you would quit complaining about the sufferings of this present time. Let me say this also. If lived on earth for heaven then you’d be a soul winner. If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. Paul said “the things that have happened unto me have happened unto the furtherance of the gospel.”. If you remember last week, we saw Paul’s passion. It was the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. He says I am ready to preach the gospel. He says the power of god unto salvation is the gospel. You know why you don’t show up for soulwinning? You don’t care if people die and go to hell. You know why you can’t be bothered to knock on somebody’s door that you don’t know and present the gospel to them? Because you’re living for this earth. And if you lived like there was something after this life then it would change your life.
How can Paul rejoice while facing so much uncertainty? Number 1, he realized there was more to life than this life. He was living his life for heaven so he knew things would work out. Even if they killed him he would still win. Here’s the second statement. How could Paul rejoice while facing so much uncertainty? How could Paul rejoice while facing an uncertain future? Number one he understood that there’s more to this life than this life. Number two Paul understood that we should live for something that will outlast this life. You say what did Paul understand? Here’s what he understood. That there’s more to this life than this life and because there’s more to this life than this life then we should give our life to something that will outlast this life.
Philippians 1:20 “20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”. Notice verse 21 “21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”. This is a very famous verse. Songs have been written based on this verse. We sang a song this morning “For me to live is Christ and die is gain.”. What does Paul mean by that statement? Paul understood that we should live for something that will outlast us and here’s what Paul’s saying. You will outlast your life when you live for the eternal not the temporal. Everything on this earth is temporary. It’s but for a moment. But when we live for that which is eternal, when we live for that which is eternal then our life will outlast our life. Our influence will outlast our influence. Our rewards will meet us in heaven. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.
2nd Corinthians 4:17 “17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 18 While we look not at the things which are seen,…”. Some of you are distracted looking at the things which are seen. The problem with the things that are seen is that they’ll decay. They’ll get corrupted. They’ll break down. They’ll go out of style and they’ll get stolen. “18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”. Paul said that his eyes were not on the things that are seen but the things that are not seen. His eyes were on the eternal, not the temporal. Paul said “for me to live is Christ and to die is gain”.
You say, “I don’t understand that phrase.”. I want you to take a test this morning. In your mind I want you to change those to blanks and fill them out. “For me to live is __________ and to die is ___________.”. What would your answers be? Whatever you answer will tell you something about your life. See, when you say for me to live is money and to die is loss, it shows your life is filled with covetousness. Somebody told me about the millionaire who had died and he had left instructions in his will that when he died he wanted them to bury a hole big enough and deep enough that they could put his luxury vehicle into it. And he wanted the most expensive suit that could be bought and jewelry and chains & rings and watches. One of the workers said “What a waste. He can’t take that with him.”. He wanted to show everyone his wealth. You see, if for you to live is money then dying would be loss. Because when you die, you lose all of the money.
If you want to be the most successful business owner, the most successful politician, the most successful person on social media where everybody reveres you then to die is loss. If you said your goal was physical pleasure. Just living for everything that makes you happy and feel good. Every drug, every alcohol, every song or anything you wanted then to die is loss. There will be no more physical pleasure, at least in the old man.
See, Paul said I’m living for the eternal. I’m not living for that which is temporary. Because if to live is money or to live is success or to live is pleasure, then to die is loss. Paul said “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”. How could Paul face uncertainty? If they killed him then that is ok because he was living for something that will outlast him anyway. Now for this test, maybe we should ask your husband or your wife or your kids what the answer should be. For some of you it might be to live is sports. For some of you maybe fishing, hunting, hiking, business success, etc….When we live for that which is temporal, it’s lost. But Paul says “for me to live is Christ.”. Paul lost out on a lot of things on earth by living for heaven but he says later on in Philippians that he counts them as dung. If you can honestly say that Christ is your life, if they kill you then it is gain. When you live for that which is eternal, you will outlast your life.
How do we live for Christ? Philippians 1:20 “20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body,…”. When you live for that which is eternal, Christ is magnified in your body. Think of a magnifying glass. What’s the purpose of a magnifying glass? The purpose is to take something that is hard to see, maybe it is small of far away and the magnifying glass allows you us to see it bigger and clearer. Paul says Christ shall be magnified in my body. See your life could be a magnifying glass that makes Christ bigger and clearer for those around you. Let me ask you something. Is your life a magnifying glass for Christ? As a result of your life and your testimony and the way you live your life and what comes out of your mouth and the places you go, do people see Christ more clearly and bigger? Is your life magnifying Christ? Or is it magnifying self?
The Bible says that if we do good works, if we live our lives in a way that is pleasing to the Lord them our light will shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our father in Heaven. The Bible says that we should live our life in such a way that our lives are a magnifying glass of the Lord Jesus Christ, that our lives magnify him. The goal is that people will see Christ more clearly. How can we outlive our life? When we live in a way that people don’t see us but they see Christ in you. When your life is simply a tool to magnify and bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul said I can rejoice in uncertainty because I understand that there is more to life than this life. Paul said I can rejoice in uncertainty because I understand that we should live for something that will outlast this life. Let me give you a third statement this morning.
Go back to Philippians 1. Philippians 1:22-23 “22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. 23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:”. Paul said going to heaven is better but he understood that there was more to do on earth. We talk about heaven and how we love heaven and want to go to heaven. We talk about the glories of heaven and the praises in heaven and the beauty of heaven. But you know there’s some things you can’t do in heaven that you can do on earth. You know you can’t win a soul in heaven. When you go to heaven, there’s no more soul winning. I love soul winning. I’m going to go solo in heaven. They’re all saved. You can’t invest in people in heaven. You can’t invest in the lives of someone. You say why? They’re all physically dead. They’re in their glorified bodies. It’s done. See, Paul said I really want to go to heaven but I understand that there are some things that I can’t do in heaven that I can do on earth. He said “22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.”.
You know that you can’t earn rewards for heaven in heaven. The Bible says we should live our lives for the judgment seat of Christ. I’m not trying to hurt your feelings or upset you but if it takes upsetting you then you can be mad at me. That’s okay. I’ll still love you. Here’s the point. If you go to the judgment seat of Christ and all of your work is burnt up then you will be ashamed and embarrassed. It would prove that you’ve been living for yourself. That’s why the Bible speaks about a goal of not wanting to be ashamed at the judgment seat of Christ. If God takes everything that you’ve accomplished and says that it is selfish and it’s burnt up and had no real value, that will be a sad day. The Bible says that’s going to happen to some people. The Bible says that they’ll be saved but so as by fire. They’re still saved. They’re still on their way to heaven. But they will be ashamed that they lived their lives for themselves. Paul said I want to go to heaven but if I live in the flesh then this is the fruit of my labor. He said I know that I can still earn rewards.
He says “23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: 24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.”. Don’t miss it. There is 1 thing that you can do on earth that you can’t do in heaven. It’s invest into the lives of others with the gospel, discipling a new believer in Christ. These are things that you will not be able to do in heaven. In heaven the race is over. In heaven the game is done. In heaven we’re done. He says “25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide…”. He says I don’t know if I’m going to survive this or not but here’s what I know, if I abide and God leaves me here then it is for 1 purpose. “and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;”. He’s saying that if God doesn’t kill me then this is the reason. He’s confident that his purpose on earth is to reach people with the gospel and disciple people.
Go to Acts 13. When you think of David in the Bible, he accomplished a lot. He killed Goliath, was the sweet Psalmist of the Lord. David did all sorts of things for God and the Bible records many of them. It’s interesting because when David’s people remembered David, do you know how they remembered him? Acts 13:36 “36 For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:”. This is David after writing so many beautiful psalms and fighting great battles by the will of God. All of those are good things but the way his people remember him is that he “served his own generation.”. After everything David did, he was remembered by those he served as someone who invested into others. He was somebody who outlived himself. Acts 13:36 “36 For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:”.
I have a leadership class that I teach once a month and I recently told all the guys in our leadership class “When it comes to those we lead, they will not remember what we said or what we did but they will remember how we made them feel.”. David was a great leader because hundreds and thousands of years later they’re saying that guy served us, that guy helped us, that guy invested in us. See, here’s the truth. When you live your life for self, in the end all you will have left is yourself. We should live for the judgment seat of Christ.
But here’s another thought to help your perspective. You need to live for your funeral. My goal after I have passed away is that when they’re holding my funeral casket, people would come and testify and say that I invested in them. That people will say that I was someone who loved them and prayed for them. They shouldn’t say “He had nice cars. His kids hated him but he had nice cars. He was divorced 8 times but he had a nice house.”. Wouldn’t it be terrible to have a funeral and nobody comes because you haven’t invested into anybody? The only way to outlive your life is to invest your life into others. The result will be rewards follow you to heaven. How do you do that? By living your life in such a way that when your life is over, your influence continues. See, our job is to invest in others.
2nd Timothy 2:2 “2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.”. The only thing that matters is how you invested into the lives of others. That’s it. Let me talk to some of you single moms that are struggling and beating yourself up. Obviously we live in a fallen world and sometimes because of sin and decisions people make, we find ourselves in situations that are not the best situation. And you might be sitting there and beating yourself up and saying “Well I can’t provide financially for my kids like someone else can and I can’t do this and I can’t buy them that and I can’t go there and I can’t do that.”. Let me tell you something. The most important thing you could do in somebody’s life is invest in their life. Let me talk to some of you moms and dads. Maybe you have many kids and it is difficult. Life is expensive and you can’t provide some things that others can. At the end of the day, no one cares where you live or what you drive. Your kids will grow up one day and remember whether or not you cared about them. See, Paul understood that the only way to outlive your life is to invest it in others. Because the truth is this, when you live for yourself, at the end when you live for yourself, at the end all you will have left is yourself. And that’s a very lonely place to be.
Was Paul crazy? How could he rejoice? He could rejoice because he realized there is more to life than this life. He could rejoice because he was living to outlive his life. He could rejoice because he wasn’t wasting his life but investing it in to other people. Philippians 1:26 “26 That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.”. Paul said, if they give me another day to live, I’ll invest it into others. That was his bucket list. He said if I get out of jail, my goal is to rejoice with you.
Let me ask you something. Who are you living for? What are you living for? Sometimes life is uncertain. Sometimes we’re not sure how it’s going to play out. Back in 2016, we had a very uncertain season with our church. We had to find a building and we couldn’t find a building and we weren’t sure where we were going to go, what we were going to do. We weren’t sure how things were going to continue. It was a very uncertain time. But you know, during those times we learned that there’s more to life than buildings. There’s more to life than this life. And when we know that we should live for something that’ll outlast this life and the only way to do that is to invest in others, then “21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”.
Let’s pray.