To Live is Christ, to Die is Gain

Philippians 1:12-14, 19-30
That day at the martyrdom of Stephen there was a young man in the crowd by the name of Saul who approved of his execution and stood by and watched while he died. From that day on, a great persecution of Christians began, led by that same man Saul who extended his reign of terror and persecution from Jerusalem into neighboring countries—dragging Christians off to prison. But as he was traveling to Damascus to persecute the Christians there, the risen Christ met on the road.

From that moment on his life was changed. He knew that his life with God was based upon grace rather than who he was or what he did. He knew that as great as his sins were—the forgiveness of Christ was greater still. He knew what Stephen knew as he bowed his head and gave up his spirit—that death was not the end for God’s people.
It is that same man who once persecuted Christ, who speaks these words to us today: For me, to live is Christ, to die is gain. We can say the same!

Jesus has entered into our life in no less a real way than he did Paul’s. It is Christ’s death that we were baptized into—it is his life that we were raised up in. It is Christ’s voice that we hear in the pages of Holy Scripture. It is Christ’s living presence that we encounter in Holy Communion. Our lives have been changed forever. We are God’s children—our sins are forgiven—death and the grave have no power over us.

To live is Christ, to die is gain are not just the words of a great hero of the Christian faith—they are the truth about each and every one of us, that our lives are his from beginning to end. Today we hear what that means for us as we encounter hardships and as we face death and as we live our lives until that day. Paul writes:

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 whole 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. . .

Paul wrote these words while he was imprisoned for the faith. I’m sure the irony of his situation was not lost on him—that the one who had persecuted Christians and thrown them in jail was now himself a jailed, persecuted Christian.

And I am sure that if you asked him at the beginning of his imprisonment if this was an obstacle in his mission to tell the Good News of Jesus he would have said it was. But God was in control and what happened as he was in prison is that the good news of Jesus reached people who never would have been reached otherwise.

What’s more, Paul’s fellow Christians—when they saw how God was able to strengthen and encourage Paul even while he was in prison—were encouraged and strengthened in their own faith so that they were more bold to tell of the life-changing power of Jesus.

The Gospel was advanced through the suffering of Paul in ways and to people and places that he never would have reached apart from that hardship. There is a lesson in that for us.

All of us want to avoid suffering and hardship so much so that we are tempted to avoid taking up our cross--but we forget that there is a God who works all things for our good and who desires to save the world through our witness.

That we live for Christ means that EVERY part of our life is given over to his service—including our hardships and suffering. When we’re at the doctor’s office we have an opportunity to bear witness to those around us to the real healing that Jesus gives. When we sit around the table in the co-op or a restaurant we have an opportunity to tell those around us that even in the midst of a drought, God will provide. When we suffer the loss of a loved one we can tell of the hope we have in Christ’s resurrection.

None of us would choose sickness or drought or death anymore than Paul would have chosen prison, but to live for Christ is to discover that God has a perfect plan for our lives even in hardships and that we can give these difficulties over to the Lord and trust that he will keep us strong and faithful. Paul writes:

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.

When we come to that place where we can say: to live is Christ and to die is gain—then we will know just exactly what the apostle Paul knew—that every situation in our life will work out to God’s glory and our good and the salvation of others.

Paul knew that whether he died on prison or was set free—he had an opportunity to serve God and share Jesus and strengthen his fellow believers. And so no matter what happened, he was filled with courage because he had no other desire than to honor Christ with how he lived and he could do that no matter the outcome of his imprisonment.

They say that courage is the first of all the virtues because it is the virtue that all others depend upon. We can live courageous Christian lives when we recognize that every part of our life belongs to the Lord. All of it!

Our hopes, our dreams, our children, our work, our health, our successes—all of it belongs to the Lord and when we realize that and hand it over to the Lord-- and make it our sole aim to honor the Lord with our lives—then we are blessed in our faith and a blessing to others through our witness no matter what the outcome-- and that gives us courage to be Jesus’ disciples.

Our lives are his and so he has a vested interest in us. He sets us in the church among our fellow Christians who pray for us and encourage us and he comes to our aid through Word and Sacrament so that we can have the strength and courage to meet the day no matter what it holds—even if it is our last day. Paul writes:

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.

Paul saw his imprisonment as a “win-win” situation. If the executioner led him out to be executed—he would enter into the glories of heaven--which Paul said are better by far than life on this earth because he would be with Jesus. If he was released from prison he would have more opportunities to serve Jesus. And so whether he lived or whether he died, his life was all about Jesus.

The struggle for me as I read this text—and perhaps it is for you too—is that all too often I can’t honestly say that Paul’s motto: To live is Christ, to die is gain—is really and truly my motto.

We live for all kinds of things: financial gain, success in our careers, our children and spouse—but these good things often times crowd out the one thing needful and that is to live for Christ.

We don’t really see death as gain—we view it only as loss. We’ve lost our lives—we’re separated from family—the things we wanted to do on earth come to an end. And all we can think of is that loss.

But for the Christian, death is better by far than the best life here on earth because we are with Christ, our sinful flesh is done with, and we can never fall away from faith again. Every Christian ought to have—as their highest aspiration and goal in life—to reach heaven—and when that is our hope—the lives that we live until that day will be shaped by that hope—committed to making sure that those around us also get to heaven.

That was Paul’s purpose for the rest of his life—fruitful labor in the kingdom of God. He knew what the men in Jesus’ parable did not know and what we forget—that it is no burden to serve the Lord—but it a privilege—and those who begin early are the most blessed. Paul spent years of his life on the wrong side but now he had an opportunity to live for Christ and do his will and he wasn’t going to waste it.

So it is for us. There are very, very few things that will remain from our lives here on earth—but there are some. Everything that we have done for Christ—the people that we have witnessed to—the little ones we have carried to the baptismal font—the money we have given to support the work of the kingdom—all of this will continue on when we have left this earth because it is done for Christ.

To be able to work in God’s kingdom and witness to Christ and have a part in his mission is the greatest earthly blessing the Lord gives to his church on earth and he calls us today to take our part in it. Paul writes:

Let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

From eternity the heavenly Father has chosen you to be his child. His Son Jesus Christ has shed his life’s blood on the cross for you. The Holy Spirit has worked through Baptism and preaching and Holy Communion to bring you to faith and sustain your faith in Jesus. That our lives are to be worthy of this Gospel of Christ is a very high calling indeed! How much money we should give to church and how many times a month we should worship and how much sinning can I do and still be a Christian and all such questions about the least that is required of us by God simply fall by the wayside when we hear that our manner of life is to be worthy of the Gospel of Christ.

This life, worthy of the Gospel, comes to us—not when we’re worried about the pastor checking up on us or attendance being taken or financial reports being given—a life worthy of the Gospel comes to us as we fix our eyes on Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross for us. And that vision unites all true Christians. We have the same spirit who dwells within us. We have the same view of life. And we have the same mission: to make Jesus known to others.

And yes, there will be conflict from the world around us! How can there not be! Those who live for Christ are different than those who don’t and those who have the perspective of eternity have different values than those who think that this life is all there is. Opposition and oppression were a part a life for Paul and the early Christians and they will be for us too. But the world and the devil rage in vain. Christ has already won the victory and as his people we have too. That is why we can join with Paul and say: For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Amen.