When we wake up every morning and pray, “God, be magnified in my life today,” we are desiring that people look at us and see how great our God is. That is why we were created. That is the reason why we exist. And it is no doubt our earnest hope when we pray every morning.
In a sense, we want to be a telescope for people to see God. For what does a telescope do? It makes something that is big, and yet appears small in our eyes, look big again. That is the need for the world today. It is not as if we need to try to make God appear any greater than what he is. We simply need to magnify how great he is when he has become small in the eyes of so many. That is our purpose. That is our prayer.
Now, with that said, wouldn’t you like to be able to say with certainty that Christ is going to be magnified in your life? Wouldn’t you like to know for certain that every day you are carrying out the purpose for which you were created?
Well, in this first chapter of Philippians, Paul says that he knows that “Christ shall even now [as Paul is in prison], as always be exalted in [his] body, whether by life or by death” (1:20). He is assured of it.
But how can he be so sure? What is he doing? I mean, don’t we often get to the end of the day and feel unsure about whether we can say, “Today Christ was exalted in my life”? What was Paul doing? Was there a way that he did things, or lived, or viewed things in a way that we do not that allowed him to be able to say that with surety?
The answer to that question is “yes.” Paul lived a certain way and had a certain view that enabled him to say that while many of us cannot.
What was it?
He gives the answer in verse 21, saying, “For [that is to say, “This is the reason Christ is exalted by my life or death”] to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” The reason Paul could say with complete assurance that Christ would be exalted in his life or his death is because to Paul, to live was Christ, and to die was gain.
Now, how does that work? This is the kind of thing that we need to stop and think about considerably. We shouldn’t just blow over statements like this, but stop and figure them out.
I want to try to unfold it this morning by taking one side of the statement at a time. First, let’s deal with the side of the statement about Paul’s life. That is to say, Paul’s statement that Christ is exalted in his life because to live is Christ.
How does this work? What does he mean? In order to find out, lets first see his thoughts in his present situation.
Most likely, Paul is in prison in Rome. And he is in prison there because he appealed to the Emperor. Do you remember the story in Acts 26? Paul had been arrested and was now stating his defense before Agrippa. Paul spoke of his testimony and Agrippa was beginning to be moved. However, Paul had already appealed to the Emperor, therefore, in some sense, Agrippa could do nothing but pass him along to Caesar. Such is why we read in Acts 26:32, “And Agrippa said to Festus, ‘This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.’”
Therefore, if Paul is in Rome, some could say that he is there of he own doing. Even brothers and sisters in Christ are probably doubting Paul’s move here. They are probably saying among themselves, “He is always running into situations that could be avoided with a little cautious thought” or “What is he trying to do? He should have known to stay away from Jerusalem.”
But Paul wants the Philippians to know that his “circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel” (1:12). In other words, his concern is not that he would live an easy life, avoid prison, or receive the praise of men. He only wants the gospel of Jesus Christ to be furthered.
And it was happening. He gives two ways. First, Paul says that the whole Praetorian guard knows that he is there for the cause of Christ (1:13). History tells us that this number could have been around 9,000 men. Paul’s cause of proclaiming the risen Christ was circulating around all the prison. Also, because of Paul’s imprisonment, many of the Christians in that area were growing bolder in their preaching of the gospel (1:14). They were able to see Paul’s situation and think, “Why are we afraid? He is giving his life for the cause.” And they were speaking with much more courage.
Of these men, Paul does point out that some of them are preaching Christ out of envy and strife. Maybe these were some men who had been Paul’s critics. Maybe they were preaching the gospel in one breath and speaking badly about Paul in the next, being driven by envy and strife and trying “to cause [Paul] distress in [his] imprisonment (1:17). But none of this mattered to Paul. His take was, “Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed” (1:18). In fact, he rejoiced in it (1:18). He was not about men respecting him. He was about the gospel being advanced. He was not living for himself. He was truly living for the glory of Christ, alone.
He would have sat in prison his entire life if only it meant that the gospel was being advanced and men were glorying in Jesus Christ, his Lord. He lived for Christ. If he were in prison, his passion would be Christ. If he were out of prison, his passion would be Christ.
He had a single passion. Sure he did many things other than preaching, but everything he did combined to uphold and further his purpose of passion—exalting Christ.
That is why he can say for sure that if he lives, Christ will be magnified. It is because Paul has made (and would continue to make) his entire life about Jesus Christ. When that is your mindset, goal, purpose, and way you live your life, you can say with certainty, “Christ is exalted in my life.” He is exalted when the world can look at your life and see that Jesus Christ is your passion and priority. He is exalted when you treasure him so much that you make your whole life about him.
I wonder how many of us can say that is our life.
You will not have joy in the advancement of the gospel while you are in prison until you can say that Christ is your utmost treasure. For many of us, I fear that we would have to say, “For me to live is Christ and a number of other things.” I wonder what would happen in this pluralistic world if they could look at the people of God and see this singular passion of Christ? It would be astounding.
But we not only need this for the sake of the world seeing Christ, we need this for our families to see the importance of Christ. D.A. Carson has written of a summary of one of his co-workers’ description of the Mennonite faith. He writes, “One generation of Mennonites believed the gospel and held as well that there were certain social, economic, and political entailments. The next generation assumed the gospel, but identified with the entailments. The following generation denied the gospel: the “entailments” became everything” (see note 1).
This is no doubt a simplistic representation of what has really happened over the years. Nonetheless, it sheds light on dangers of which we need to be aware. For if this pattern holds true in your family and if your children do not see in you that your utmost passion is Christ and advancing his gospel in the church and in the world, then there is a good chance that they and their children will deny the gospel and place their own passions with everything you put in front (or alongside) of Christ and the gospel.
Paul’s passion was Christ. For him to live was for him to strive to exalt Christ. We need that singular passion.
But what about his death? The second part of the statement would be, “Christ is exalted in my death, for to me, to die is gain.”
The reason Paul could say that Christ would be magnified in his death is because Paul considered death as gain. He says in verse 23 that to “depart … is very much better.” Why would Paul say that?
I think there is only one solution. Paul treasured and loved Jesus Christ so much that he considered anything that would bring him more intimately into his presence as something that is to be sought after. He would consider it gain. And because death is something that would do that very thing, he considered death as gain.
He treasured God so much that he ached to go and be with him more. Does that convict your heart like it does mine? He says that he has the “desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better” (1:23). Therefore, Christ is magnified in his death because Paul treasures God so much that he considers death as gain.
When we are so gripped by Christ and treasure him to such a degree that our hearts groans to be more intimately in his presence, we can know that Christ is magnified in our death.
God is magnified in our life when he is our single passion, and he is magnified in our death when we long after him so much that we would consider death as gain.
Do you love him like that? And are you longing for others to love him like that?
For if your passion is to magnify Christ and he is magnified when individuals love him like that, then you must long for others to love him as well. That is why the church exists. That is the reason Paul decides that God will have him remain alive, that he might “continue with [them] for [their] progress and joy in the faith, so that [lit.] [their] grounds for glorying will overflow in Jesus Christ in [Paul]” (1:25-26 - see note 2).
As Paul comes to them, they will overflow in joy and delight in God, and God will be magnified. This is what Paul lives for. This is what he will die for. And because of this, he can know whether he lives or dies, Christ will be magnified. For to him, to live is Christ and death is counted as gain.
O that we might make our passion singular and treasure our Lord’s presence. May he lavish upon us grace for that very thing. Amen.