April 24 – Philippians 1:18b-26
“Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted 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 go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 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, so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me. “
As much as I get annoyed with Paul (it happens a lot when I’m reading some of his other letters), I fall in love with him throughout Philippians. He challenges me, to be sure, but his passion and love for his Lord overshadows everything else about him. I would love to be known as someone who lives that way, but alas, my humanity cuts me down pretty quickly.
Paul rejoices because he knows that whatever happens will either lead to his deliverance into the hands of Jesus in heaven, or release from prison. And what is it that supports him through this? The prayers of the people in Philippi and help from the Holy Spirit. That’s what he desires.
When we were children, we knew that everyone paid attention to our actions and those reflected on Dad in the community. We really did our best to never give him anything to be ashamed of. Sure, he had to deal with our antics on a fairly regular basis, but we were quite conscious of the fact that we had that responsibility.
Paul goes so much further than that. Not only did he want to show courage so that he wasn’t ashamed of his actions, but he wanted to exalt Jesus Christ. In all of the trials Paul faced, he wanted to ensure that people saw his response as pointing towards Jesus. If he dies, fine … he’ll be with Jesus. If he lives, fine … he’ll continue to preach the Gospel.
How can he choose between those two options? Personally, Paul would have given everything to die and finally be with Jesus – that is better by far, he says. But, because the people of Philippi and every other church that he supported with his ministry needed him, he understood he would remain on earth, whether it was in chains or as a free man to encourage people in their faith.
AS strong as he was, his humility is stronger. We want to stay alive so that we can do things that we haven’t done yet. We hate the idea of death because we will miss out on so much. Paul preferred death because it would allow him to be closer to Jesus. He chose life to ensure that many more people would get that chance.
“Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted 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 go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 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, so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me. “
As much as I get annoyed with Paul (it happens a lot when I’m reading some of his other letters), I fall in love with him throughout Philippians. He challenges me, to be sure, but his passion and love for his Lord overshadows everything else about him. I would love to be known as someone who lives that way, but alas, my humanity cuts me down pretty quickly.
Paul rejoices because he knows that whatever happens will either lead to his deliverance into the hands of Jesus in heaven, or release from prison. And what is it that supports him through this? The prayers of the people in Philippi and help from the Holy Spirit. That’s what he desires.
When we were children, we knew that everyone paid attention to our actions and those reflected on Dad in the community. We really did our best to never give him anything to be ashamed of. Sure, he had to deal with our antics on a fairly regular basis, but we were quite conscious of the fact that we had that responsibility.
Paul goes so much further than that. Not only did he want to show courage so that he wasn’t ashamed of his actions, but he wanted to exalt Jesus Christ. In all of the trials Paul faced, he wanted to ensure that people saw his response as pointing towards Jesus. If he dies, fine … he’ll be with Jesus. If he lives, fine … he’ll continue to preach the Gospel.
How can he choose between those two options? Personally, Paul would have given everything to die and finally be with Jesus – that is better by far, he says. But, because the people of Philippi and every other church that he supported with his ministry needed him, he understood he would remain on earth, whether it was in chains or as a free man to encourage people in their faith.
AS strong as he was, his humility is stronger. We want to stay alive so that we can do things that we haven’t done yet. We hate the idea of death because we will miss out on so much. Paul preferred death because it would allow him to be closer to Jesus. He chose life to ensure that many more people would get that chance.
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