If not in my ease, then why would I think I would glorify Christ when things are not so easy for me?

To Me, to Live is Christ and to Die is Gain for His Glory and Exaltation

Philippians 1:18-26

Pastor Kerry Kinchen, Bridgeway Bible Church

Please turn to Philippians 1:18-26. As you are turning there, I want to share something that you probably already know. Even if we know it, we may not be doing it:

God wants us to consistently rejoice in our lives.

This Biblical fact is true; but I also want to point out that often Christians find reasons for rejoicing, and the reasons are not the foundation that God wants us to be basing our rejoicing upon. God wants us to rejoice in good times and bad times, realizing that every time is a time to glorify Him. In fact, God says in His word, that he wants us to rejoice in the Lord always. Always means, even the times and circumstances that the world considers rejoicing to be completely crazy. The kind of rejoicing I am talking about is not natural. It is supernatural. It comes from our salvation, according to supernatural reasons that have to do with the things of the Spirit of God. But there is a problem with us when we base our rejoicing upon the contingencies of the natural. The problem is in trying to be pleased by a slum. There is a somewhat famous quote by CS Lewis that gets across some of what I mean. Lewis said,

"Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition, when infinite joy is offered to us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea."--CS Lewis (The Agony of Deceit by Michael Horton, Editor, Moody Press, 1990, p. 49)

CS Lewis goes on to say that there are some that are far too easily pleased by the slum. But, really, in the long term, pleasure in the slum, is always fraught with disappointment. The reason is because the curse of Adam has so infected the world, that even at its best, it manifests the stink, poverty, and futility of a sin tainted slum. There are some really good insights here in this quote from CS Lewis. Think about what Lewis said. Let's ask ourselves;

Do I rejoice in desires that God thinks are weak desires?

Am I a half hearted creature in my ambitions?;

Or,

Am I seeking the glory of Christ in my life and even in my death?

Am I even recognizing this infinite joy that has been offered to me?;

Or,

Am I basing my joy on contingencies of circumstances around me that are comfortable to my flesh?

In other words,

Do I consistently complain and brood over life instead of rejoicing when my circumstances are uncomfortable?

Let's keep these questions in mind as we study God's word this morning. Be thinking about what so easily pleases us, and what so easily displeases us.

Are we content in dwelling in the slums of mediocre Christianity?

Or

Are we dwelling on the beautiful seashore of the tropical paradise of God's kingdom, where no matter what our circumstances are, our ultimate goal is that Christ will be exalted in our bodies?

Let's read, starting back in Philippians 1:12 with the flow of thought. Paul is writing from his first imprisonment in Rome. He says,

"Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the good news, 13 so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, 14 and that most of the brothers, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. 15 Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good will; 16 the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the good news; 17 the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice.

[Now here is our passage this morning,]

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 because I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, 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 But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. 23 But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; 24 yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again."

Let's prepare our hearts for the preaching of God's word; to grow, and to minister from what we learn as we glorify God with our lives. This sermon is titled,

To Me, to Live is Christ and to Die is Gain for His Glory and Exaltation

Taking a look at verse 18, coming into verse 19, we see that Paul asks a question. Then he answers it;

"18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 because I know ..." Philippians 1:18-19

Paul never says that his life is easy, but Paul sees what is happening in his imprisonment as something that is not a cause to mourn, or give up. Paul sees God's sovereignty instead. So, it is in this, (which is all that Paul just said about the blessing of his imprisonment) that he rejoices.

Who would have thought there would have been a blessing in imprisonment?

People don't think this unless they are thinking about the things of God. But then we notice that Paul immediately follows up this particular reason of Christ being proclaimed in either pretense or truth as cause for rejoicing while he is in prison, by saying yes, and then Paul goes into that second reason. It is because of something else that Paul knows with certainty will happen by prophetic revelation. In other words, Paul rejoices over his circumstances in the past and also at that very moment, but Paul also rejoices about what he knows is coming. So, let's look at this joyful knowledge of the future that Paul is assured of, where Paul says,

"I will rejoice, 19 because I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death."

When Paul says this will turn out for his deliverance, the deliverance that Paul is thinking about is the fact that he will be set free. But there is a reason for Paul's deliverance. It is not a reason that is according to any humanistic explanation. Notice that Paul mentions a this when he talks about whatever it is that will turn out for his deliverance. What is the, this? The this that Paul is talking about (which is what he knows will turn out for his deliverance) is actually two things:

1) the prayers of the Philippians,

and

2) the provision of the the Person of the Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Prayer is what you and I are supposed to do. We do it because we are seeking to get answers that we desire. When we pray to God, petitioning Him, what we pray to get is God's provision. The reason why we pray this way is because we know that God is the source of the answer to our prayers. God does not always answer your prayers the way you want Him to answer, but God always answers your prayers. When God has sovereignly determined to answer your prayer with provision according to what you are asking for in your prayer, He does so by the person of the Holy Spirit. This is what Paul is talking about when he says that his deliverance will come because of the Philippian's prayers and provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

A key principle for us to take home from God's revelation here, is that God listens to you. He is working among us. He is doing this in our day as the Holy Spirit. We know, and the Philippians know, that God answers prayer. This is why they have been praying for Paul's release. But as the Philippian's prayed, they did not know how God would answer. Keep this in mind: Knowing how God will answer doesn't matter. You pray anyway. This is what God wants. Paul knew they were praying for his deliverance. But Paul had insider information. Paul also knows the answer. Paul knows it by divine revelation. He even restates his assurance in 2:24,

"24 and I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly." Philippians 2:24

The main point is that even though the Philippians did not know how God would answer, they had a desire of their heart. We are not always assured of what God's answer will be like. But we are very much assured of what the desires of our heart are. The desire of the Philippian's heart was,

We want Paul to be free from prison.

According to Paul, God's answer follows the human request. This is the amazing essence of the prayer principle, and I think we all need to learn it very quickly. Those who learn this principle, will believe the biblical doctrine to pray without ceasing the practice of prayer, knowing that God wants to answer their prayers according to His sovereign determination of all things. People who pray regularly, see provisional answers regularly in respect to their desires aligning with God's desire. The reason they see this regularly is because they regularly pray God's desires. This happens when we are praying according to God's will, but (and this is very important) we must be praying to begin with, and that is the huge point. You've got to pray. It is simple: People who do not pray for provision never see provisional answers. They are not having faith in God's word concerning the privilege and command to pray. So, the principle is to pray in faith, asking for provision, and leave the answer up to God. If you don't ask to begin with, then you won't receive the answer for provision to end with. Further, it does not matter whether you get tired of praying. Also, we shouldn't judge each prayer based upon previous answers where you think God isn't answering. What matters is that you pray the desires of your heart that are not specifically stated as sin in God's word. This is a consistent biblical principle. Paul writes to these same Philippians who are already praying for his deliverance,

"6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6-7

Paul knows that the Philippians are praying and requesting Paul's release, but, at the same time, don't be anxious because that accomplishes nothing. Pray in everything, and don't forget to be be thankful, but let God know by your own prayer what your requests are. Of course God already knows your requests beforehand. Of course He has already determined how He is going to answer. That is not Paul's point. Paul's' point is that it is God's will that you make your requests known in a certain way, which is in prayer, even though God knows everything already.

Nevertheless, Paul had special knowledge. Paul knew, by divine revelation, that he would be delivered, and he was delivered when he was eventually set free before being arrested and imprisoned again a final time. Acts ends with Paul still in prison in this first imprisonment. But in God's sovereign deliverance that Paul knew was coming, more fruitful ministry was ordained for Paul to accomplish. This final leg of Paul's ministry continued on where Acts leaves off. We find details of Paul's activity after being released in his last epistles of Titus, 1 Timothy, and 2 Timothy. Paul went on to preach in Crete according to Titus 1:5. Paul left Titus in Crete. He left Timothy in Ephesus. Paul wrote 1 Timothy from Macedonia after he was freed. It is also possible that Paul wrote Titus from Macedonia as well. But, ultimately, Paul was arrested a final time. That is when he wrote his last epistle from Rome, which was 2 Timothy. Eusibius, the church historian who lived in the two hundreds and three hundreds, wrote about this in his Ecclesiastical History. Eusibius said,

"Paul is said, after having defended himself, [in respect to Paul's first imprisonment as recorded in Acts] to have set forth again upon the ministry of preaching, [which occurred later after Acts was written by Luke] and to have entered the city [Rome] a second time, and to have ended his life by martyrdom. Whilst then a prisoner, he wrote the Second Epistle to Timothy, in which he both mentions his first defence, and his impending death." Eusibius, Ecclesiastical History, 2:22 326 AD

Why is all of this important? Because Bible critics want to assert that Paul never left prison the first time, and so they say that is where he died. They don't like Titus, 1 Timothy, and 2 Timothy because those epistles have church government and church order in them, so they detest those epistles. Further, the critics don't believe that Paul could have possibly known that he would be set free like he asserts here in Philippians. They say Paul was wrong. But, as usual the Bible critics are grasping for straws in their hatred for Gods word, and they are the ones who are wrong in their futile attempts at revising history. Their assertions are empty theories created in meaningless efforts to prove what has never had an ounce of proof. So, according to real recorded history, Paul predicted his deliverance through the prayers of the Philippians and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, and it happened. This leads us to consider that Paul goes on to say,

"20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death." Philippians 1:20

In asserting his confidence in what the Lord is going to do, Paul says that this is in line with surety that he will not be disgraced. To really sense where Paul is coming from at this point, just think about everything he has been experiencing. Think about his circumstances he wrote about up to this point. We know that Paul rejoices that the gospel is being advanced in a greater way now that he is in prison. So, in respect to this particular thing, Paul was not put to shame. But, Paul was in a position to be shamed on many points. One is because Paul had made a strategic move according to Roman law that could have brought his demise in Rome instead of his deliverance from Rome. What Paul did when he stood before the Roman Governor of Caesarea, Festus, was that Paul appealed to Caesar to hear his case. When Paul did this, he was immediately transferred to the higher court jurisdiction in Rome. Once there in Rome, at the mercy of Caesar, Paul could have been sentenced to death and suffered shame for what seemed to be an unnecessary appeal. Now think about this. We must understand that even King Agrippa (who had heard Paul's case) thought this was an unnecessary appeal. Paul's confidence, (that he writes about in our passage) that there would be no shame in anything, was that God was demonstrating that He was sovereign over all the events. Paul knew that God was using Paul's Roman imprisonment, and the appeal to Caesar, to further advance His kingdom in a special way; And further, to release Paul to be free to minister in the second leg of his ministry. To see how others might have thought that Paul could be disgraced in his decision, let's look at details of his initial arrest that lead up to this point. We read about it in Acts 25,

"7 After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove, 8 while Paul said in his own defense, 'I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.' 9 But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, 'Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me on these charges?' ... 10 But Paul said, 'I am standing before Caesar's tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know. 11 If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. ...

[Now right here is where Paul made the decision that protected him from Jewish assassins that were awaiting him, (cf ch. 23). This decision resulted in Paul being carried out of that area, and off to be imprisoned in Rome. Paul immediately says to Festus,]

... I appeal to Caesar.' 12 Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, 'You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.'"

It is not until the next chapter that we see the important detail that leaves Paul completely in the realm of faith in God's hand that is always working, where Paul will not be put to shame in anything. If we were to interpret what is said with eyes of the flesh, rather than eyes of the Spirit, we might be shocked. Here is the revelation that I am talking about,

"32 And Agrippa said to Festus, 'This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.'" Acts 26:32

Okay, now let's think about this: A lot of people could say,

"What a shame."

"If only Paul would not have appealed to Caesar."

By the way, a lot of people read this, and they actually do say this. Yet, in retrospect, we know that

1) Paul's appeal disrupted an assassination attempt, (that had already been providentially circumvented once, just days before cf. ch. 23), where a party of apostate Jews had bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they killed Paul. There is no shame in avoiding that. The only shame was for those Jews who apparently rejected Messiah, broke their vow, and finally ate and drank, or, they all died of starvation.

And

2) Paul's appeal ended up advancing the gospel. There is no shame in that either.

Instead of shame, there was blessing and glory to God. Further, Paul is not being put to shame in prison even by those who are proclaiming Christ to try and cause him distress. Such mocking actions were meant to shame Paul, but it backfired. The opposite occurred, and those people ended up furthering the gospel and glorifying God instead. So, in his arrest, Paul is not put to shame in anything. Christianity is not put to shame. God is not put to shame. Paul also expects not to be put to shame in anything else as he looks forward to his coming release. So these are immediate things that we need to consider about Paul's recognition of God's sovereign hand at work. But there is more. Paul also wants to be completely and utterly bold as a Christian tool in God's hand, and he does not want to be shamed in this either. This is something we all long after. I hunger for this daily. Don't we all want to be completely and utterly bold as Christian tools in God's hand?

Let's consider Paul. Paul has seen that he is typically bold in his service to Christ. But, now as always, whether in life or death he wants to continue to be bold. Paul wants Jesus Himself to be exalted in his body. He wants this at all times, in any way. Paul wants Christ to get all the glory, both in living now and through further years of ministry, and finally in his death. In all ways, Paul's hope is that Christ will be exalted. This should be the ambition of all of us. We should hunger to glorify Christ in our bodies throughout our everyday lives, and even in our deaths. It is shameful to be called a Christian, and to be a part of the body of Christ, but to live in such a way that when others look at our lives they do not see Christ being glorified. Instead, they see self glorification in sin. The irony is that this self glory that people desire is really shame they are bringing upon themselves. It is the way of the unsaved. The unsaved glory in their shame. Later in chapter 3, Paul speaks of such people. He says,

"18 For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, 19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things." Philippians 3:18-19

Folks, we are God's creations meant to shine the light of Christ. We don't want to be shameful Christians. What do you think of when you think of a shameful Christian? I think of Christians who show very little hunger for the things of God in comparison to their hunger for the futile pursuits of the world. They set their minds on earthly things. I think of Christians who don't treat others as they want to be treated, Luke 6:31.

We all know that there is a shameless way to serve God in the work place, at school, and in our families. It is where we bring glory to Him in manifesting the fruits of the Spirit in true Christian integrity. But, there are those shameful ways too. We also know what they are. It is a shame when Christians eclipse God's glory with greediness, dishonesty, or unfair dealings with others. You know, God doesn't want us to hang Christ's royal law of love on a coat rack at the office door, or at the classroom door, or in our closet. He doesn't quit being Lord of our lives just because we are doing something to make a living, or we are being educated, or we are around our family. It is shameful for Christians to act like there is another code of ethics in the workplace that replaces Christ's code, but a lot of people act like work, school, sports, and certain friendships are in another world with another set of rules for life and conduct. It is a shame.

Then there is our ambition. Paul says that godliness is of great gain. He also says that we should work to earn and provide for needs, but chasing riches for one's own selfish pleasures, muddies us with the shame of selfish self glory. James says it is a snare that many of us fall headlong into. Hobbies, and entertainment can be like this. Some hobbies are self consuming replacements for discipleship, worship, prayer, and yes--even fellowship. Hobbies can turn people into islands; God's pattern for fellowship gets ignored. Families even get ignored by entertainment and hobbies. But, people can glorify Christ in their hobbies. God never says,

"Thou shalt not have hobbies."

or

"Thou shalt not be entertained."

What I am saying is that we can turn the glory on its head and shame ourselves when we begin to spend all of our extra time in worshipful devotion to hobbies and entertainment. Or, we spend all our extra money on these things when the money is needed somewhere else, like paying bills, or to fulfill Christ's law of bearing one another's burdens. But there is one other thing about hobbies, and work, and any endeavor, that we need to be careful about. It is a subtle area. I am talking about personal pride and self exaltation. It is easy to fall into the snare of always needing to have the best, and it is because of pride. When I believe I have to have the most expensive, the most beautiful, the most quantity, the most this, and the most that, then I am in the snare. So, the danger that I am talking about is when we go from glorifying God in our bodies, to glorifying ourselves in our pursuits. That is when we are put to shame in our Christian walk. Relationships with people are the same way. There are healthy God-glorifying relationships. There are also unhealthy shameful self-glorifying relationships. It is where people are always wanting to build themselves up by using others. Relationships of immoral sexual involvement are also self-glorifying sin.

Okay, now think with me a moment about something--looking at all of this, we know how bad it is, but we notice something else too; don't we?

We know that all of us do some of these self glorifying kinds of things as a matter of our human condition.

Now, we know we are made perfect in the Perfect One in salvation--right? Well, you need to know this. God sees all us of who are born again as being perfect in His perfect Son, where the righteousness of Perfect God in Perfect Christ is imputed to us. But, the point is that we also know that we are not perfect in our condition. We know that we don't always think and act perfectly. This is a problem we have in our condition, and so we know that we are all in danger of being ensnared in these things. But, this leads us to consider something that is very important:

Paul was not perfect either.

Yes, Paul dealt with the same defeats; the same pain; the same mistakes; the same pride issues, and lust, and areas of sin that all imperfect Christians do in their condition. But Paul knows we can not give up and have a pity party about it. We need to move forward and take hold of the fact that for all of us, our high standard to keep our eyes on, even when we fail, is to live is Christ and to die is gain for His glory and exaltation, where we are trying to be acting out the perfection we were made into in the Perfect One in our salvation. This is why Paul urges us to press in, and press on, in our ambition to glorify God. Paul also tells us how, by telling us how he does it. Paul says in the next chapter that his ambition is that he,

"9 ... may be found in Him [Christ], not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, ..."

Paul knows he is perfect, but only in one sense. It is in the sense of having the righteousness that comes from God, solely on the basis of faith. It is God's imputed perfection. But then Paul goes on with the pressing in, and pressing on that we need to do in our condition. He explains how, in Christ, our desire should be to reach for that same perfection in our thoughts and actions while alive on earth that we know is the perfection we will fully see in the afterlife, in our eternal glorified state, where Paul says,

11 in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

[Paul wants to attain living like a resurrected man right now. This is the way we should all want to live. So Paul says,]

12 Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 brothers, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,

[Paul knows that he is not yet perfect like a resurrected, glorified, man where there is no more sin. Yet, doing all to the glory of God requires reaching forward; pressing forward. Put the past behind you. Repent, and go on. Rest in the cross, AND the resurrected Christ, who is in you as your hope of glory, but run the race while you rest. Your citizenship is in heaven, so citizenize down here on earth. Then Paul says,]

14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you; 16 however, let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained." Philippians 3:11

What Paul is saying is,

All of us Christians need to live in such a way that we make it our ambition to glorify God in every action--whether alive, or dead.

This is our upward call folks. It should be our time consuming endeavor as those who are made perfect in Christ through the cross and resurrection. Even when we fail, let's live giving glory to God under His New Covenant of grace. Let's live knowing that we are forgiven and that God is completely sovereign over everything. Paul says I glory in the cross of Christ. Let's glory in Christ who forgave us on the cross already. Let's glorify Christ who convicts us of our sin supernaturally. Let's be humble, recognizing that Christ is our all in all whenever we fail. Let's not only live glorifying Christ, let's make it our ambition to die this way.

In my past, I knew of a man who died while being immoral with a prostitute where I worked. He was on a business trip away from home. He died in a hotel room in the very act. He died in shame, glorifying sin. On the other hand, there are people who are martyred on our planet every day who give their lives to glorify Christ. Many of them are barely recognized by the church at large, but they are servants who glorify their true Hero in their deaths. This has been the case all through history. Last week a missionary friend of mine, sent out a prayer request for two missionaries (Mr. Hadi, and Miss Mizell) that had been kidnapped by Muslims while on the mission field. The next day, he received news that they had both been killed for their faith. They spent their lives glorifying God. They gave their lives glorifying God. They were murdered by people serving a false god, yet they were martyred for the true Messiah. I think of these two, and I reflect upon two women in our Christian roots. Some of you here have heard me mention them before. I studied about them in my Christian history class in seminary. They are Perpetua, and Felicitas. They were both with a man named Saturus, along with a larger group of Christians. All of them glorified the Lord in life, and in death. The story is not beautiful like a fairy tale. It is a somber lesson from history on what Paul was talking about. In that respect, there is a certain kind of beauty there that only the body of Christ understands and appreciates. They all lived in the first century. Perpetua, Felicitas, Saturus, and the others, were arrested and sentenced to die because they followed Christ. Viva Perpetua was a daughter of a highly respected nobleman. He was wealthy and well known. She was a 22 year old mother of a newborn infant. Felicitas was another young lady who was eight months pregnant. Perpetua nursed her son while in prison awaiting execution. While in prison, her friends and family came and literally beg her to renounce her faith in Christ. Even though she had anxiety over her baby, she refused. She knew she would be leaving her child with the care of others after she died, but it was not an easy decision. In the remaining time before the execution, the group of Christians that were to be killed, met for prayer in the prison. They shared a final meal together. On the day of the killings, the men of the group were taken to an arena to be tortured for the entertainment of the spectators. The animals used to maul them were a bear, a boar, and a leopard. On the way to the arena, Saturus spoke with the prison warden who's name was Pudens. Saturus was sharing the gospel in his last moments on earth. Saturus was glorifying Christ in his life, and in his death. Pudens the prison warden, later received Christ and became a martyr himself--glorifying God in his own death. In the meantime, Saturus was taken to the arena. It was a horrifying scene. He was so mangled by the animals that his body was soaked red with his blood. The spectators mocked him. They referred to his blood soaked state as the baptism he deserved. Then, Perpetua and Felicitas, were brought into the arena with the humiliation of having their clothes stripped off their bodies. Exposed naked, the two young Christian women were attacked by an enraged bull. The grizzly torture of getting gored and thrashed over and over again by the animal was so disturbing that even the violence hardened pagan crowd started shouting for the officials to stop it. Finally, the two young women were brought to an executioner to finish them off. Perpetua yelled out some last words of encouragement to any Christians who could hear her. An eyewitness recorded what she said;

"Give out the word to the brothers and sisters; stand fast in the faith; love one another; and don't let our suffering become a stumbling block to you." --Viva Perpetua

She had been glorifying God in her life. She was continuing to glorify God in her death by exhorting the rest of her Christian brothers and sisters to glorify God with their own lives. The executioner's first swing of the sword was not very accurate. He hacked Perpetua with his bad aim. She cried out in excruciating pain. Then the man finally cut her throat and it was over. Perpetua glorified God in her death. Felicitas and the rest of the group were also executed, except for one man who died later in prison.

The legacy of the saints to glorify Christ in our bodies goes back to the beginning--to our roots. It has been calculated by Christian researchers that there have been between 50 million martyrs, (as a conservative estimate) to 70 million Christian martyrs over the last 2000 years. A martyr is defined in the dictionary as:

1. One who chooses to suffer death rather than renounce religious principles.

For us it is to experience death for our Lord.

2. One who makes great sacrifices or suffers much in order to further a belief, cause, or principle.

For us it is the sacrifice and suffering for the true God of the universe.

Please listen to what I am saying: For the most part, we have it pretty easy as Christians in our time and our particular culture. Unlike the missionary lives of Mr. Hadi, and Miss Mizell, most of us suffer very, very little for our Lord. In fact few of us make great sacrifices or suffer much in order to further the beliefs, cause, and principles of Christ. The probing question that we should all ask ourselves is,

Am I at least doing the easy thing of glorifying Christ in my ease?

Think about it. If we are not, then;

Why would I think I would glorify Christ when things are not so easy for me?

The point I am trying to make is that the ambition should be no different for us here today in our culture and circumstances than it has been throughout the generations of the body of Christ. As it is, many Christians glory in their shame instead. Paul states his ambition here in Philippians. Paul stated his ambition to glorify Christ in life or death, in pain and suffering, or in comfort in 2 Corinthians. He says,

"8 we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

[This is how Paul is glorifying Christ when things are not so easy. Paul goes on,]

11 For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh." 2 Corinthian 4:8-11

This is the hope that we should all have. It is the only hope that Perpetua, Felicitas, Saturus, Pudens, Mr. Hadi, and Miss Mizell and all the millions of our brothers and sisters have had and are having while giving everything for the upward call. Instead of the shame of having our ambition to glorify ourselves in our mortal flesh where we always manifest me, myself, and I, we should be craving the life of Jesus to be manifested in our mortal flesh so that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, gets all the glory.

Now there are reasons that Paul gives in the flow of our passage for what he means for how he thinks of Christ being exalted in His body in representing Christ on earth. It is one of the most important doctrinal principles we will ever learn. Paul says,

"21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. 23 But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better;" Philippians 1:21-23

What Paul starts out saying here is really the way we should all be thinking. For us, to live really is Christ, or it should be Christ, and to die really is gain. This is why we need to be careful not to get so consumed with the world while we live. We must be aware that we can very easily begin acting like fruitless pursuits will last forever. There are moments where the world draws us in like this. I find that sometimes I get drawn in by the fruitless pursuits of the world. I start acting like the little thing that I think is a big thing is going to last forever. I know that it isn't going to last, but sometimes I don't act like what I know. And then on the other hand, there are those who consistently act every moment like what they are doing will just go on through all eternity. They are consumed with it. But then there is another category; There are other Christians who get so tired of this world that they want to give up. They want to throw in the towel. They say that to die is what would really be the only gain. After all, Paul says it is much better to die and be with the Lord. I think we realize that to be done with this short cursed world existence and to be in perfect glory would be much better--right? But, there is a balance. The balance for all of this comes when we recognize that to live is Christ is something that is ALSO gain for us right now, but it is a certain kind of gain. What I mean is that when we are focused upon God's kingdom now, rather than solely on God's kingdom in the future, the gain of fruitful labor as His children in the kingdom should be just as desirable to us as leaving this cursed world behind to be with Christ in our future state of glory. This is Paul's tension. So, like Paul, instead of choosing one over the other, we should say, (if given the choice), we do not know which to choose. We should be hard pressed from both directions--the heavenly and the earthly. Why? Because, either way, we want to glorify Christ. That is it! That is all this sermon is about! So, in the meantime, we must consider our short life spans, and then make the most of our time in this world. James reminds us that when we get all caught up in our plans that,

"You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." James 4:14

Knowing this fact, Paul urges us,

"... be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time ..." Ephesians 5:15 and 16

There is way too much wasting of time going on among Christians in the distractions of the world. But as we realize that we are just a vapor here, then we see how precious the little bit of time is that we have left. To realize this, and to act on God's word is to walk as wise men--not fools. We should be making the most of our time serving God in our families, our church, and everywhere else.

This leads us to Paul's final comments in this section as we finish up. At this time in his ministry, Paul sees the Philippian church as a major concern of why He must continue on in earthly service unto the Lord. This is a big point in Paul's prophetic certainty that God is going to free him. Paul say it was a necessity,

"24 yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again." Philippians 1:24-26

There is no other reason to give glory for Paul's prophesied deliverance, other than Christ Jesus. Paul's miraculous freedom is ample cause for the Philippians to glory in Christ, but what I have been wanting to edify all of us with this morning, is that this has been Paul's big theme all along that needs to be our big theme all the time--

To Me, to Live is Christ and to Die is Gain for His Glory and Exaltation

We need to be about glorying in Christ Jesus in whatever He is doing. In this case, it is in His deliverance of Paul and Paul's visit to the church at Philippi once again. The big point is that whether God takes us home in death, or God keeps us here another day, all glory goes to Christ in whatever happens.

I urge all of us here to be making it our ambition to be hungering for the main thing in the midst of all the other things we are involved with in this world. Whether in life or in death, be recognizing God in the details. Whether in life or in death keep God and the Kingdom of His Son at the forefront.

For us to Live is Christ in everything!

For us to Die is Gain for His Glory and Exaltation!

As I close, I want to leave us with the same urging that Paul made to the Corinthian church. It will be our doxology, where Paul urges,