Advancement of the Gospel

For those of you who are new to the church, maybe watching at home or Zoom, my name is

Sean.

I'm one of the pastors of Trinity Cambridge Church, and it's my joy and privilege to preach

God's Word to you this evening.

Let me pray and seek God's help before we start.

Heavenly Father, we come together as Christians.

We are not called by the name of any other, but by the name of Christ, our Savior, our

Lord.

And as such, as Christians, we want to be about Christ's business.

We want to be characterized by Christ's likeness.

We want to be driven by Christ's passion, His priority.

And to that end, we need the help of your Holy Spirit.

So please help us now this evening as we incline our ears, incline our hearts toward you, toward

your Word.

Speak to us.

We are desperate to hear from you.

We need your Word.

Guide us.

Affect our hearts, our minds.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Philippians chapter 1, verses 12 to 26.

Philippians 1:12–26

I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance

the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the Holy Imperial Guard and to all the rest that

my imprisonment is for Christ.

And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more

bold to speak the Word without fear.

Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill.

The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for defense of the gospel.

The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, but thinking to afflict me in

my imprisonment.

What then?

Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in

that I rejoice.

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.

This is God's holy and authoritative word.

The name of the Midwestern state, Nebraska, comes from the Native American Oto language,

word that means flat river.

That's because there's a prominent river that runs through the state that's very shallow.

The river was named Platte River by French explorers because the French word for plat,

flat is plat.

And this is the river that was made famous by the American journalist Edgar Nye, who described

this river in 1889 as being a mile wide and an inch deep.

Since then, the expression has been used by, in a pejorative way, by many people to describe

those who seem to have only superficial knowledge about many things.

And this seems to be an apt description of our world, of the world we live in.

In the world full of, I guess, the internet and Wikipedia, many people's knowledge is a mile

wide but an inch deep.

In the world of social media, many people's relationships are a mile wide but an inch deep.

In the world of YouTube and TikTok, many people's interests are a mile wide but an inch deep.

As Christians, we too run this risk in our relationship with and service to Jesus Christ.

We can be a Christian for many years and yet have very little depth.

We can be a Christian for many years and yet have very little impact.

And how can we avoid this?

Philippians 1, 12-26 commends the example of the Apostle Paul to us and teaches us that

we should live with single-minded devotion to the advance of the gospel in and through us.

The entire book of Philippians can be outlined in terms of single-minded devotion to Christ.

Theologian Norman Geisler provides a useful outline in his popular survey of the New Testament.

Chapter 1 speaks of the philosophy of Christian living, Christ our life.

It says, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Chapter 2 speaks of the pattern of Christian living, Christ our mind.

Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus.

Chapter 3 speaks of the prize of Christian living, Christ our goal.

I press on toward the goal to win the prize of the upper call in Christ Jesus.

Chapter 4 speaks of the power of Christian living, Christ our strength.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

And in our passage today, we see how Christ was Paul's life.

In verses 12 to 18, we see how Paul lived solely for the advance of the gospel.

And in verses 18 to 26, we see how Paul lived for the Philippians' advance in the gospel.

So let's first look at how Paul lived for the advance of the gospel with single-minded devotion.

It was customary in ancient letters of friendship to begin with a greeting,

as Matt preached on verses 1 to 11 last week,

and then to address the recipients.

That happened all in the first 11 verses.

But usually what follows in letters of friendship in the ancient world,

after the greeting and the address,

is the update, the personal update.

You tell them about how you're doing, what your condition's like.

And that begins usually with this exact phrase that Paul uses at the beginning of verse 12.

I want you to know that...

So this is a very formal part of the way ancient people wrote letters.

So this is the section that deals with Paul's personal update,

which is why it's not surprising that he is telling them about his imprisonment.

But interestingly, even though that's the section he's in,

Paul mentions very little about his living conditions,

how he is doing, his needs, how the guards are treating him.

He says nothing about his health.

But he has one overriding concern in this section,

something he wants to make sure that all the Philippian believers know,

and that is this, I want you to know, brothers,

and that's brothers and sisters, because it's plural, including, inclusive.

I want you to know, brothers and sisters,

that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.

That's what Paul wants the Philippian believers to know.

Above all else, I want you to know that this has served the advance of the gospel.

What has happened to Paul, of course, is his imprisonment.

Most likely in Rome, where Paul was under house arrest from 60 to 62 A.D.,

as recorded in Acts 28.

This is probably corroborated by verse 13, which mentions the imperial guard,

and also chapter 4, verse 22, where Paul relays the greetings of the Caesar's household

to the Philippian church.

So then, if he's in prison in Rome, this was a fulfillment.

Being in Rome was a fulfillment of a long-held desire of Paul's

to visit the church in Rome and minister to them.

He talked about this openly in his letter to Romans, chapter 1, 9 to 12.

Romans 1 · chapter mention

But of course, he had envisioned ministering to the Roman believers

in much different circumstances,

being able to visit the churches,

to speak in the synagogues,

to visit houses.

But instead, he is in Rome as a prisoner,

without the freedom to do any such thing.

Nevertheless, Paul reassures the Philippian brothers and sisters

that despite expectations to the contrary,

what has happened to him has meant,

has served the advance of the gospel.

This advance has happened in two ways.

First, Paul says in verse 13,

so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard

and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.

The imperial guard in charge of Paul would have been on a rotation,

which means Paul would have had access to many different guards.

And eventually, through word of mouth,

he came to be known to the entire imperial guard

and to all the rest, others who work in that area,

that Paul's imprisonment is for Christ.

At the very least, this means that everyone around Paul

came to learn that Paul was arrested

he was in serving time in prison because of his faith in Jesus

and because of his ministry on behalf of Jesus

for the sake of Christ.

But likely, Paul means something more than that also

because the literal translation of the phrase is,

my imprisonment is in Christ.

It doesn't say for Christ in the Greek.

It's literally in Christ.

And that's one of Paul's favorite expressions

that occurs numerous times in almost all of his letters

and ten times in the book of Philippians alone.

It captures the idea that a Christian is united with Christ

through faith in him,

that the church is the body of Christ,

the one body that's governed by

and follows the pattern of its head, Jesus Christ.

So later in chapter 3, verses 10 to 11,

Paul speaks of sharing Christ's sufferings,

becoming like him in his death,

that by any means possible he may attain the resurrection from the dead.

In other words, Paul sees his suffering

as following the pattern of Christ,

as a necessary part of following in the footsteps of his master.

As 1 Peter 2, 21 puts it,

For to this you have been called,

because Christ also suffered for you,

leaving you an example,

so that you might follow in his steps.

The word example refers to the alphabet stencil

that children use to learn how to write the alphabet

that the kids use.

So Christ is the stencil,

the pattern that we're supposed to,

that our lives are supposed to be written over.

And Paul sees his imprisonment,

his imprisonment as depicting

the gospel of the suffering Messiah.

And he loses no time telling the guards about it.

And Paul's not just saying this to save face

in light of an embarrassing imprisonment.

The gospel really did advance during Paul's imprisonment.

Because as I mentioned earlier,

he relays a greeting from Caesar's household

in chapter 4, verse 22.

I want us to think about that for a moment.

Because pride is endemic to humanity.

Because of that, we tend to assume

that the greatest triumphs of our lives

are when God is most active in our lives.

We tend to assume that because of our pride.

But often, the lowest moments of your life,

when you're most broken,

when you're most desperate,

when you're at the end of your rope,

when you're most humiliated,

they are precisely the moments

when God is doing His greatest work.

In the weakest parts of your life,

your illness, your infirmity,

your incapability,

God's power is made perfect.

So let's not assume that just because

we can't discern what God is doing,

that God's doing nothing.

God is at work.

He was moving in a powerful way

during Paul's imprisonment.

The human eye, I hear,

sees only about 0.0035%

of the electromagnetic spectrum.

What is true in the physical realm

is also true in the spiritual realm.

Though hidden from the view of many,

the gospel was advancing

among the imperial guard

through Paul's imprisonment.

The gospel also advanced in the second way

during Paul's imprisonment.

It says in verse 14,

And most of the brothers,

having become confident in the Lord

by my imprisonment,

are much more bold to speak the word

without fear.

Instead of cowering under persecution,

it says most of the Christian

brothers and sisters,

they grew in their confidence in the Lord,

in watching their fellow brothers suffer

for Christ's sake.

They said to themselves,

If our brother Paul,

even under Caesar's custody in Rome,

is not cowering in fear,

but boldly declaring the gospel,

we who are free

should all the more

proclaim the gospel.

So most of the believers

became much more bold,

it says,

to speak the word

without fear.

Quite far from silencing the church,

which was probably the intention,

Paul's imprisonment spurred on

the believers

to bolder witness.

As we can see,

Paul conceives of the events

of the gospel

in terms of speaking the word.

There's a lot of speaking words

used in this passage,

speak,

preach,

proclaim,

and that's because

the gospel literally means

good news.

It is news of the person

and work of Jesus,

the messianic king.

And like all news,

it needs to be spoken.

It has to be relayed to others.

That's precisely what evangelism is.

The word evangelism

is a transliteration

of the Greek word for gospel.

And this is what Paul lived for

and died for.

Unfortunately,

in our day and age,

as Bible commentator Gordon Fee observes,

quote,

evangelism has become

something of a dirty word.

They say,

who are you to impose

your beliefs on me?

Keep your religious views

to yourself.

People say,

but these things,

but the reality is,

even in our relativistic culture,

people get downright dogmatic

when what they deem to be

a universal truth

is questioned.

Quoting Bernard Baruch,

they say,

every man has the right

to an opinion,

but no man has the right

to be wrong in his facts.

Haven't you heard that before?

This contradicted response

stems from the fact

that since the Enlightenment,

religious truth claims

have been relegated

to the realm of private opinion

rather than public fact.

But that the Son of God

took on human flesh

and was born,

that He died on the cross

for our sins,

that He was raised

on the third day

to give us eternal life.

This is not a matter

of private opinion

or personal preference.

this is a matter

of reality,

what is true.

And for that reason,

Paul devoted his life

telling others about it

unapologetically,

unabashedly.

unabashedly.

Notice all the words

related to the way

we ought to proclaim

the gospel.

Verse 14,

confident in the Lord.

Verse 14,

much more bold,

without fear.

Verse 20,

with full courage.

This is the way

we ought to proclaim

the gospel,

brothers and sisters.

Do not be ashamed

of the gospel

for it is the power

of God for salvation

for those who believe.

It's curious to me

that some evangelical Christians

who on the one hand

vehemently denounce

the prosperity gospel,

saying that that's

a false gospel,

arguing that God

does not promise

to make us healthy

and wealthy

for following Him

and being faithful to Him.

They do that on the one hand,

but then on the other hand,

they live like promoting

other people's health

and wealth

is the gospel.

That is not the gospel.

That is good work,

yes,

that every true Christian

should do,

but that's not

the good news

of Jesus Christ.

No matter how much

social justice

prevails on earth,

no matter how much

wealth is spread out

among the poor

throughout the world,

no matter how much

people's health

is improved

by advances

in medicine,

if people do not

hear and believe

the good news

of Jesus Christ,

they will perish forever.

And for us,

as Christians

who are the unique

bearers of this message,

we have a responsibility

to tell people

about this.

we should live

with the single-minded

devotion that Paul had

for the advance

of the gospel.

But as the phrase

most of the brothers

in verse 14

conveys,

not all of the brothers

were speaking the gospel

out of growing confidence

in the Lord.

Some of them

were driven

by baser motives.

And that's what Paul

addresses in verses

15 to 18.

He writes,

Some indeed

preach Christ

from envy and rivalry,

but others

from goodwill.

The latter do it

out of love,

knowing that I am put here

for the defense

of the gospel.

The former

proclaim Christ

out of selfish ambition,

not sincerely,

but thinking to afflict

me in my imprisonment.

While some of the believers

preach Christ

out of goodwill,

out of love,

in truth for Paul,

trying to pick up

his slack

while he is in prison,

other believers

preach Christ

out of envy and rivalry,

out of selfish ambition,

in pretense.

They deemed Paul's absence

to be a great opportunity

for themselves,

to elevate their own profiles,

and to enlarge

their own followings,

steal Paul's sheep,

so to speak.

And since both categories

of these people

belong to the category

of brothers,

in verse 14,

these insincere people

Paul has in mind

are not the opponents

that he speaks later of

in verses 28 to 30

and in other parts

of this letter.

They're not enemies.

They're immature believers,

motivated by selfish ambition,

but they're believers

nonetheless.

And for that reason,

Paul chooses

not to be petty,

but large-hearted

in his perspective

concerning them.

He says in verse 18,

what then?

Only that in every way,

whether in pretense

or in truth,

Christ is proclaimed,

and in that

I rejoice.

In essence,

he's saying,

so what?

So what?

That they're in it

for personal gain.

They're doing it

to kick me

when I'm down.

Sure,

but so what?

At least they're

proclaiming Christ.

At least people

are hearing the gospel

because of them.

Let's be sure

Paul's not a masochist.

He's not enjoying the pain.

I'm sure this hurts him.

It hurts him

that people

who should love him

and support him

are seeking to undermine him.

It hurts.

But nonetheless,

because Paul

is not concerned

for his own glory,

but for the glory

of Christ,

because Paul's

not looking out

for his own interest,

but for the interest

of his Savior,

he rejoices

in the fact

that Christ

is proclaimed.

It's easy for us,

brothers and sisters,

as Christians

living for the Lord,

to conflate

our personal agendas

with that of Christ.

A good indicator

that that's happening

is when we're disappointed

to see the gospel advance,

to see Christ honored

without us.

when others are used

by God,

when others have

a more prominent

place,

role

in the service

of God,

do you still

rejoice

that God

is glorified?

Paul did.

Even when people

were preaching

the gospel

and gaining followers

at his expense,

even when people

were doing this

intentionally

to spite him,

Paul rejoiced

because he had

a joy rooted

in Christ

that transcended

his ego.

And that kind

of joy

belongs only

to those

who live

with single-minded

devotion

to the advance

of the gospel.

Paul lived

like this

because he understood

that he was

a servant

of Christ Jesus,

which is the way

he identified himself

at the beginning

of this letter.

the translation

servant

moderates the word

a little bit

because the actual

word is slave.

Paul calls himself

a slave

of Christ.

While it's true

that in the New

Testament times

the slavery

differed greatly

from modern

translating slavery

in important ways,

one thing

that they had

in common

was that a slave

was someone

whose person

and service

belonged wholly

to another.

that's the way

a slave

is defined

in the book,

a New Testament

metaphor,

slave of Christ,

a New Testament

metaphor for total

devotion to Christ.

Some might say

that that's too

demeaning,

but for Paul

it was an honor

that he wore

proudly.

Bible scholar

Murray Harris

in his book

that I just

mentioned

analyzes

all the texts

describing the slave

using the metaphor

of the slave

and he comes up

with three

characteristics

of a slave,

in particular

slave of Christ.

Humble submission

to the person

of Christ.

This involves,

I'm reading

from the quote

here,

this involves

an acknowledgement

that a supreme

Lord,

he has absolute

and exclusive

rights to the

will and affections

and energy

now and forever.

It is the case

of the devotion

of the whole person

for the whole life.

Second,

unquestioning obedience

to the master's will.

Slavery,

we say,

involves subjection

to another's will,

voluntarily or

involuntarily.

The faithful slave

is basically

the obedient slave,

just as the first

requirement for

commendable military

service is compliance

with commands.

Third,

an exclusive

preoccupation

with pleasing

Christ.

Believers

give satisfaction

to their master

not only by obeying

him,

but also by devising

innovative ways

of pleasing him.

We make it

our ambition,

says Paul,

to be constantly

pleasing to him.

This was Paul's

magnificent obsession,

an obsession

that had the effect

of expelling

inferior

albeit legitimate

pursuits.

Brothers and sisters,

that is what

we are,

slaves of Christ.

What honor.

Yes,

we're more than

slaves.

Jesus called us

his friends.

Yes,

we are adopted

children of God.

They are all true.

But those truths

do not negate

this truth

that we are

slaves of Christ.

Paul says

in 1 Corinthians 7,

22-23

that a Christian

is a slave

of Christ.

The same word

used here.

He continues,

you are bought

with a price.

Do not become

slaves of men.

Brothers and sisters,

we have been

bought with the

precious blood

of Jesus.

We belong

wholly to him

because he paid

the price.

And so we cannot

belong to another.

We cannot serve

another.

We cannot be

slaves to another.

We only have

one master.

What is the

ultimate aim

of your life?

Whom do you

seek to

please

with your

life?

Is it

yourself?

Your spouse?

Your boyfriend?

Girlfriend?

Your boss?

We should live

with single-minded

devotion

to the advance

of the gospel.

Paul gave

his life

for this

and he also

sought

the Philippian

believers'

advance

in the gospel

as well.

That's what we

see in the

rest of the

passage.

Paul just

said in the

first half of

verse 18

that he rejoices

in the fact

that Christ

is proclaimed.

And then he

says again,

yes,

and I will

rejoice

anticipating the

future.

And then he

gives the

reason for his

future rejoicing

in verses 19

to 20.

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.

The word

deliverance

is the

same word

that's often

translated

salvation

which makes

the meaning

of this

verse a

little bit

ambiguous.

Is Paul

speaking of

deliverance

from prison

or is he

speaking of

his eternal

salvation?

Is Paul

anticipating

that he

will be

declared

innocent

and released

from prison

or is he

speaking of

his ultimate

salvation

after

bearing

faithful

witness

to Jesus

whether it

ends in

his

acquittal

or execution?

I think

the answer

is both.

I think

Paul left

that

ambiguous

intentionally

because there

is a

tension

that runs

through

verses 19

to 26

all throughout

between

Paul's

anticipation

of his

release

and

his

the

possibility

of execution.

He

expects

to be

released

for the

good of

the

Philippians

but he

knows

that his

death

will mean

ultimate

gain

his

ultimate

salvation

and so

basically

Paul's

saying

hey

it's a

win-win

situation

for me

whether

I am

vindicated

or executed

I expect

salvation

in saying

this

he's also

echoing

Job 13

15

to 16

in the

Greek

translation

of the

Old Testament

which Paul

would have

been familiar

with

the phrase

this will

turn out

for my

deliverance

is found

in its

exact

form

in Job

13

16

where Job

says

this

though

he slay

me

I will

hope

in him

yet

I will

argue

my ways

to his

face

this

will

turn

out

for

my

salvation

that

the

godless

shall

not

come

before

him

Job

in the

midst

of his

suffering

which he

knows

is happening

under God's

sovereign

jurisdiction

nonetheless

entrusts

himself

to God

his

righteous

judgment

and he

anticipates

that when

he does

he will

ultimately

be

vindicated

the

language

of his

hope

not

being

ashamed

also

echoes

Romans

5

5

which

says

hope

in the

glory

of God

does

not

put

us

to

shame

because

God's

love

has been

poured

out

into

our

hearts

through

the

Holy

Spirit

who

has

been

given

to

us

if

Paul

had

been

hoping

merely

for

acquittal

and

survival

then

this

hope

could

easily

have

been

disappointed

but

that's

not

what

Paul

was

hoping

for

his

hope

was

that

he

would

bear

faithful

witness

to

Jesus

till

the

end

with

full

courage

and

so

that

always

Christ

will

be

honored

in

his

body

whether

by

life

or

by

death

and

this

hope

for

Christ

honor

which

will

end

in

Paul's

salvation

whether

in

life

or

death

will

not

be

disappointed

the

word

honor

means

to

magnify

something

here

to

enlarge

something

Paul

once

whatever

happens

to

him

whether

it's

vindication

or

execution

to

serve

as

a

magnifying

glass

that

enlarges

God

in

the

view

of

his

observers

that

is

once

again

Paul's

all

consuming

desire

to

glorify

God

to

bring

attention

to

God

even

at

the

expense

of

his

own

life

and

Paul's

confident

of

this

outcome

not

because

he

has

such

a

high

view

of

himself

not

because

he

trusts

so

much

in

his

willpower

or

resolve

or

in

his

eloquence

but

because

he

trusts

in

the

Lord

he

says

in

verse

19

for

I

know

that

through

your

prayers

and

the

help

of

the

spirit

of

Jesus

Christ

this

will

turn

out

for

my

deliverance

Paul

understood

well

the

connection

between

prayer

and

the

power

of

the

Holy

Spirit

because

it

was

when

Ananias

prayed

for

him

that

he

was

filled

with

the

Holy

Spirit

in

Acts

Acts 9 · chapter mention

chapter

9

we

see

this

connection

over

and

over

again

throughout

scripture

Acts

4

it

was

when

the

believers

raised

their

voices

together

in

prayer

to

God

it

says

they

were

all

filled

with

the

Holy

Spirit

and

spoke

the

word

of

God

boldly

Paul

knew

that

Jesus

had

promised

in

Luke

12

to

send

the

Holy

Spirit

to

teach

him

what

to

speak

when

they

are

under

trial

by

authorities

in

summary

then

Paul

anticipates

that

through

the

prayers

of

the

Philippian

believers

God

will

supply

the

Spirit

of

Jesus

Christ

his

helper

so

that

with

full

courage

now

as

always

Christ

will

be

honored

in

his

body

if

you

want

the

help

of

the

Spirit

of

Jesus

Christ

that

Paul

was

banking

on

you

must

pray

you

need

others

to

pray

for

you

I'm

so

grateful

to

God

that

we

have

many

people

in

our

church

who

are

eager

to

pray

and

desires

to

see

our

church

pray

more

in

Ephesians

6

18

to

20

Paul

asks

the

Ephesian

church

pray

also

for

me

that

words

may

be

given

to

me

in

opening

my

mouth

boldly

to

proclaim

the

mystery

of

the

gospel

for

which

I

am

an

ambassador

in

chains

that

I

may

declare

it

boldly

as

I

ought

to

speak

if

you

want

powerful

preaching

from

the

pulpit

you

must

pray

if

you

want

to

see

the

power

of

the

Holy

Spirit

active

in

our

church

you

must

pray

all

powerless

lives

are

prayerless

lives

19th

century

Anglican

pastor

J.C.

Ryle

writes in

his book

A Call

to Prayer

Tell

me

one

of

all

the

goodly

fellowship

of

saints

and

martyrs

who

has

not

had

this

mark

most

prominently

he

was

a

man

of

prayer

depend

upon

it

prayer

is

power

prayer

obtains

fresh

and

continued

outpourings

of the

spirit

he

alone

begins

the

work

of

grace

in

a

man's

heart

he

alone

can

carry

it

forward

and

make

it

prosper

but

the

good

spirit

loves

to

be

entreated

and

those

who

ask

most

will

have

most

of

his

influence

if

you

struggle

in

your

prayer

life

join

up

with

others

to

pray

come

to

our

midweek

prayer

service

join

via

zoom

if

you

want

come

to

pray

before

our

Sunday

service

pray

stay

to

pray

after

pray

in

the

morning

pray

at

night

pray

in

your

bed

pray

when

you're

driving

pray

without

ceasing

Jesus

promises

us

how

much

more

will

your

heavenly

father

who

loves

you

give

the

holy

spirit

to

those

who

ask

him

and

then

in

verses

21

to

24

Paul

explains

why

he

is

in

a

win

win

situation

and

why

he

expects

deliverance

he

says

in

verse

21

for

to

me

to

live

is

Christ

and

to

die

is

gain

that's

a

beautiful

verse

I'm

not a

I'm

not a

tattooing

man

but if

I were

that's

what I

would

tattoo

on

my

body

to

live

Christ

to

die

gain

he

unpacks

it

in

verses

22

to

24

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

and

be

with

Christ

for

that

is

far

better

but

to

remain

in

the

flesh

is

more

necessary

on

your

account

this

dilemma

is

hypothetical

of

course

Paul

is

a

prisoner

and

he

has

no

choice

in

the

matter

of

what's

going

to

happen

to

him

he

is

totally

disposed

to

the

will

of

another

but

he

is

still

going

through

this

mental

exercise

whether

or

not

he

will

be

acquitted

or

executed

what

he

would

choose

if

he

had

a

choice

and

he

has

two

genuinely

good

options

before

him

because

he

is

not

a

man

fearing

for

his

life

and

pleading

desperately

for

his

release

on the

one

hand

if

he

is

executed

he

will

get

to

depart

and

be

with

Christ

which

is

far

better

on the

other

hand

if

he

is

released

he

will

get

to

continue

in

fruitful

labor

for

Christ

which

is

more

necessary

this

passage

is so

instructive