Why are you alive? I am not asking for a biological description of your existence. Nor am I asking for an explanation of how your parents found each other. But the question is more about what is central to your being. What do you live for each day? What purpose does your life serve? You might answer it with this blank, “For me, to live is __”.
This summer, we find ourselves in a sermon series on Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi. Paul is in prison and struggling. He is not sure what will happen. It is not that he gets to decide the outcome, but his honest wrestling can be helpful for those of us asking the same question. Paul puts it this way in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
So what about you? What do you live for? What drives you day in and day out? Is it your career, financial security, sports, relationships? I wonder, is it something that death can take away from you?
As we study Philippians together, we will find Paul’s answer instructive. He has been separated from the churches he loves. In prison, he is not sure if he will make it out alive. But as he wrestles with life and death, he comes to the conclusion that his life does not rest in his heartbeat. Life for Paul is all about Christ and the Gospel he has been called to proclaim. So if he lives, he will continue to find every opportunity to share the good news of Jesus. But if he dies, he knows that he will be with Christ. All that Paul lives for is something that cannot be taken away by death.
Everything we encounter this month in this letter only makes sense from this perspective. Paul sees his imprisonment as an opportunity to share the Gospel. He is willing to give up all that is comfortable in order to follow Jesus. How is he able to come to this place?
The final sermon in June (and the first sermon in July) brings us to what many know as the Christ Hymn. Paul’s posture throughout the letter and his admonition to his readers and to us come from the example of Jesus. It would be impossible for Paul to exhibit such humility, grace, and trust if it were not for Jesus’ example.
I hope you will join us in June as we continue in this challenging letter from an imprisoned apostle to a struggling church. My prayer is that we will discover the power of putting our own interests to the side and allowing God to use us in whatever way he chooses. And may we come to the place where we can say “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Worship Schedule
- June 07 - Chains and Conductors (Philippians 1:12-18)
Additional Readings: Psalm 46:1-7, Romans 8:28-39 - June 14 - Torn and Trusting (Philippians 1:19-26)
Additional Readings: Psalm 62:1-8, 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 - June 21 - Citizens of the Gospel (Philippians 1:27-2:4)
Additional Readings: Psalm 133, Ephesians 4:1-6 - June 28 - The Christ Hymn: Part 1 (Philippians 2:5-11)
Additional Readings: Psalm 22:1-11, Mark 10:35-45
