‘for to me…. to die is gain.’
Last week we looked at how the attitude and focus of our heart is so important to God. This has lead us to look at our worship to God and how it filters through our live from our hearts. Lets look at Paul’s example in Phillipians 1: 20-21 as he shares his heart with the Phillipian church:
‘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. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.’
The desire on Paul’s heart is two fold
- To not be ashamed of his testimony of the gospel
- To see Christ exalted in his life
Paul then states that he desires this ‘whether by life or death.’ This is the focus for the next two weeks. How can we see Christ exalted in our life through life and death? This week we will focus on ‘through death’ and next week we will look at ‘through life’.
Through Death
‘for to me…. to die is gain.’ Paul has an understanding that if he needed to die so that Christ would be exalted then he would see his death as gain. This is because his desire is solely focused on seeing Christ exalted.
Our application here is seen in what we need to let go of in our lives to see Christ exalted in us. What has God asked you to let go of? What has he asked you to deal with, to sort out and to hand over to Him? You need to be ready to let go of whatever you are holding onto.
Do you see this aspect of your life as something to give up in order to experience more joy as Christ is exalted in your life, or do you see this as a sacrifice.
When you give something up as a sacrifice you often give it up reluctantly, out of obligation. When you give something up because you honestly believe that God will bless you as He is exalted in your life, you give it up freely.
Which heart focus do you think God would be more pleased:
- The reluctant, obligated sacrifice or
- The joyful expectation of God’s glory
The joy that comes from a decision to see Christ exalted is so great because you will see Christ exalted.
What is God asking you to die in? Where do you need to hand over the reigns to Him? Who do you need to forgive? What do you need to stop doing? Where do you need to stop going?
Seek to see God glorified and exalted as you worship Him with your lifestyle and He will ask you to die to your self so that He may exalt Himself.
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