Comments on Philippians 1:21-30

Philippians 1:21-30

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 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. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again.

Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God. For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear to be in me.

So, last time we found Paul rejoicing as long as Christ was glorified. His Word was going out and Paul was convinced that his purpose was to magnify Christ with his life or his death. 

Paul knew Christ intimately at this point of his walk with Him and so was able to say that the most important part of his life was Christ Himself. We can look at our lives and evaluate what truly makes us feel alive. Is it Christ? That ought to be our goal. Not what service we can do for Him, though it be for the good of His kingdom, but actually the King Himself. Our fellowship with Him should be, as it was for Paul, life. The gain here Paul talks about is more of the same, and so if fellowship with Christ is life, Paul states that dying would be even more fellowship. 

Paul continues with “but if I live.” Remember, he doesn’t know what the future is going to hold for him, and so he is reminding the Philippians that if he does continue to live he will continue to minister. I am certain that Paul here, in discussing his choice, is not talking about ending his own life but rather which of the two realities he would choose. Christ’s work here on earth, or eternal fellowship with Christ in heaven. 

He is writing out his argument with himself over which is better. He knows that being with Christ would be the better option, but also knows that the needs of God’s people here on earth are great. I appreciated a quote I read from Whitefield: “I am often weary in the work, but I am never weary of it.” Paul knew that death would bring rest in Christ but knew that staying alive would be more beneficial to the Philippians.

I want to take a minute here and talk about this word in verse 23 “depart.” The Greek word here is ἀναλύω which means to unloose, or to leave. It was used by soldiers to mean taking down their tent to prepare to move on. It was used by sailors regarding the knots keeping the ship at dock and being ready to cast off. It was also used by farmers to mean unyoking the oxen after the day’s work. Paul could see death as simply a matter of moving on from this earthly tent (2 Cor. 5), of casting off from the dock of life, of laying down the yoke of work he had been given and going to rest in Christ. He didn’t fear death and we don’t need to either.

And so, with his pastor’s heart again in full view, Paul lets the Philippians know that he is sure the plan is for him to stay. Again, our word προκοπή  “furtherance” from last time is seen here. He wanted his readers to continue to grow in their own spiritual lives as his imprisonment was giving him the opportunity to share Christ in new areas. Wiersbe also noted that this same word is used in 1 Timothy 4:15 “Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all.” The goal of the Christian should be growing to be more like Christ. 

Because of the confidence he had that his next step was going to be release from prison, due to their prayers (see verse 20 that we ended last time with), he could tell them to expect the joyous news soon. They could rejoice together in Christ, and his hope was that he would be able to join them personally. 

With this expectation on his mind, he admonishes them, and we can easily apply this to ourselves as well, to “conduct [themselves] in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” He has given this same instruction in Ephesians 4:1 “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called,” and again in Colossians 1:10 “so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” He longed to hear of the churches he planted going on for the Lord. Wiersbe wrote, “The most important weapon against the enemy is not a stirring sermon or a powerful book; it is the consistent life of believers.” 

That word “conduct yourselves,” or in the KJV “let your conversation,” is the word: πολιτεύομαι from which we get our word politics. Paul likens good Christian conduct, as he does later in this letter as well, to how citizens of a country ought to behave in order to be the best ambassadors of that country they can be. So one could read “let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ” as “behave in such a way that your citizenship in heaven is evident.” Our testimonies are affected when we live in such a way that it is hard for the gospel to be seen in our lives.

He then shifts gears a little bit and uses the analogy of a sports team. “Standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.” That word “striving together” is συναθλέω is the word for together συν and the word from which we get athlete. We are all supposed to be on the same team, striving for the same goal. Not every position on any sports team gets the same recognition, but if the team cannot or will not work together then they will lose the contest. In the same way in the church, we need to work together to achieve our goal of seeing Christ glorified. We even have a rulebook to follow in the Word. And just like on a sports team, if one player decides that he needs all the glory his team will no longer want to work with him, we ought to remember to be humble with each other as we go on for the Lord.

Paul then reminds them that there will be opponents or enemies on the field, continuing with his analogy. But, the believers need not fear them, because an assembly working together in the power of God cannot be defeated. It “is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you.” As we grow and work together to further the gospel we can see our own salvation being worked out as well, which he’ll mention in the next chapter. And another reminder here that all we have is from God. It could be easily read over here, but I did want to mention that again Paul writes that salvation is from God Himself.

He next warns them that there will be suffering involved in the Christian walk. He reiterates that even the belief in Christ is granted from God, and so it has been granted to suffer for His sake as well. As Jesus said, “the slave is not greater than the master,” and so if He experienced suffering here on earth, we ought to expect it as well. Yet we can consider it a privilege to suffer when it is for Christ’s sake. This world that crucified Him and cast Him out will be His kingdom in the future and so there is hope for the believer in any suffering that happens during these days.

There is also a comfort that comes from knowing we are not in the suffering alone. Paul reminds his readers that even though they are about 800 miles apart as the crow flies, they are experiencing the same conflict as he is. That word “conflict” is actually the word from which we get agony and so Paul was not selling it short. I also appreciated another point Wiersbe made in his commentary that changing geography doesn’t change spiritual suffering because human nature doesn’t change based on location and the enemy himself is everywhere. Again however, we can take comfort in going through the suffering together, knowing that Christ suffered first and greatest, and our brothers are suffering too. The comfort comes in bringing the needs of our brothers before the throne of grace, and knowing that they are bringing our needs as well. God is gracious and we know that He answers prayers according to His will.

So, to recap, Paul recognized that the most important part of his life was Christ. He knew that rest was coming and would be grateful for it when it came, but he also knew that there was still work to do. He instructed the Philippians to live such lives that Christ would be glorified in them and that they should work together toward that goal. He then reminded them that suffering was part of this life, and encouraged them to get through it together. We see his pastor’s heart in his encouragement and admonition of this local assembly, and there are many things we ought to take in from this passage to help our own walks with Christ.