We are in the sixth week this morning of a sermon series through the New Testament book known as Philippians, which I am calling “To live is Christ and to die is gain.” a line from last week’s passage. Philippians is a letter written by the Apostle Paul sometime between 60-64 AD to a church in Philippi that he had a deep affection for, which he had started about 10-15 years earlier. This morning we will be in verses 27-30 of chapter 1, but I want to set the context first. Paul has expressed his affection for this church, prayed that they would have a wise and discerning love, and let them know that even though he is in prison unjustly, that God is doing good things, and for this he rejoices. Let’s pick it up in verse 20:
Philippians 1:20-30 - 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. 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 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! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 25 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, 26 so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me. 27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, striving as one for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved-- and that by God. 29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.
Paul is in prison, unjustly persecuted by the Romans. He isn’t sure if he will get out, and so in verses 20-26 he is considering the possibilities of what it will mean to live or die, and concludes that even though death would mean gain, for he would be with Jesus, the one he has been living for, he knows that as long as he is here, he will continue to love and serve the Philippian church. He continues in verse 27 to say that no matter what happens, he wants them to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. What does this mean?
In order to answer that question, we first need to answer the question, what is the gospel of Christ? The best place to go to answer that is 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul defines it:
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 - Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep....
