In his sermon 'Paul’s No-Lose Proposition,' Jason Dohm discusses Philippians 1:19-26, emphasizing Paul's outlook on life and death. Paul, writing from prison in Rome, views his potential outcomes—acquittal or execution—as win-win scenarios. He sees his imprisonment as furthering the Gospel, instilling boldness in fellow believers, and providing a platform to preach even to Caesar's household. Drawing parallels to Joseph's story, Dohm highlights how God can bring good from evil intentions. Paul relies on the prayers of the Philippians and the Holy Spirit for deliverance, defined as faithfulness and boldness through trials rather than escape from them. He sees living as fruitful labor for Christ and dying as a gain, being with Christ without earthly corruption. Paul anticipates continuing his ministry for the spiritual growth and joy of believers. Dohm encourages believers to adopt Paul's perspective, seeing life as an opportunity to glorify God and death as a transition to eternal fellowship with Christ.

So our sermon text this morning is Philippians chapter 1 verses 19 through 26, but I'll be starting at verse 12 for context. But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard and to all the rest that my chains are in Christ. And most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from good will. The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains, but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel.

What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached, And in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice. For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor.

Yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless, to remain in the flesh is more needful for you. In being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith that you're rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again." Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, we pray as Jason comes now to preach, we pray that you will speak through him, the Holy Spirit, we pray that we will be hearers of your word, doers of your word, and not just yours.

Please help us to find things that we can apply to our lives, and help us to apply them. In Jesus' name, Amen. The title of the sermon this morning is Paul's no-lose proposition. Paul sets before us really the two outcomes he can see from his current circumstances, life or death. And he sees this surprisingly as a proposition in which he can only win.

There's no losing for Paul in his future. We know that Philippians is a prison letter. He's probably writing this from Rome in something like AD 62, maybe a dozen years after the Gospel came to Philippi through Paul and Silvanus and Timothy. And so these people, these believers have been working with Paul and his brethren. There's been a lot of back and forth in that 12 years.

Now the Philippians have sent Epaphroditus with encouragement and with supplies, provision. Paul is writing a letter back. And he's writing in very specific circumstances with a very limited number of outcomes, life or death. That's what he puts forth with us in the text. He's in prison, again probably in Rome.

He's accused of various serious crimes. He'll either be acquitted and let go, or he'll be condemned and put to death. We might consider that and think things are really bad. He might be a whisker away from execution, but Paul is teaching us in this letter that he thinks about it differently. Paul thinks that there's no way he can lose.

There's no possible way for him to lose in the outlook that he has. This is not happy face Christianity. This is not just painting a smiley face on something that's really bad. This is actually a legitimate, godly perspective that is founded on truth. So this isn't just the power of positive thinking, trying to make death sound good.

This is the perspective that Christians have a right to. You have a right to this perspective. Paul is going to try to convince us of that in the text. I hope he is successful. So as we go to the text, Let's go to the text in prayer.

Our God, I thank you for the ultimate victory that you have purchased for us through the work of your Son Jesus Christ. In this life you have purchased for us abundant life, and in death you have purchased for us a total victory. You have totally conquered death. So that the sting of death is gone. God, let us imbibe deeply.

Let us drink deeply from your word today, so that the perspective that Paul has, we would embrace, it would become our own. I pray that your spirit would be present to help us with this in Jesus name. So I want to break our text today up into three subsections and talk about them independently. So the first one is verses 19 and 20. So I'll read it again.

Please follow along just these two verses. Philippians 1, 19 and 20. Paul writes, For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance, through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed. But with all boldness, as always so now also, Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death." Here In these two verses we have the ultimate objective, Christ being magnified. So if you're filling in blanks on the handout, the blanks are objective, magnified.

The ultimate objective, Christ being magnified. So he's either going to live or die. It is going to be one or the other. He is acquitted and lived, set free, or condemned of a serious crime and put to death. Paul, looking at these things, says, I have the same objective whether I live or I die.

It's the ultimate objective and it's that Christ would be lifted up and exalted and loved. If I die, then the Gospel will be sealed in my blood. If I live, It will mean fruitful labor for me. In either case, the Lord Jesus Christ is lifted up and magnified. These verses begin with the words, For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance.

What is this? What will turn out for his deliverance? I believe it is simply the circumstances from the previous section, verses 12 through 18, where Paul speaks of the things which happened to me. Paul has been relating the things that have been happening to him. He has been accused of serious crimes by the Jews.

Really sedition, meaning rebellion against the Roman government. Doing things that jeopardize the law of the Romans. So he's in hot water with the Jews and he's potentially in hot water with the Romans. He's in chains. He's to be on trial before the Emperor.

So evil has been done to him. The Jews have acted wickedly knowing that this was just out of envy that They have delivered up Paul. Everyone is going after Paul. The Gospel is being received in all the world. The Jews are counteracting this and have charged him with serious crimes and now the Romans are considering it.

Now consider Genesis chapter 50 verse 20. Genesis chapter 50, this is almost at the very end of Genesis. It's really the conclusion of the story of Joseph who was acted wickedly against by his brothers. They sold him into slavery and they never should have done that. This is after Jacob.

Their father dies and the brothers think, he's been waiting until our dad is dead. And now he's going to exact his revenge. But Joseph says this in Genesis 50 verse 20 about their wicked actions against him. But as for you, brothers, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring it about as it is this day to save many people alive." This is exactly what is happening in Paul's life in Philippians as he writes this letter. There are people who have meant things for evil.

The Jews meant it for evil. The Romans mean it for evil. There's an evil emperor now, but God has meant it all for good. He has been explaining how that can be. He says, but I want you to know brethren, the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the Gospel.

The Jews were trying to stamp out the Gospel. The Romans were trying to stamp out the Gospel. And yet, now Paul has a platform to preach the Gospel to Caesar's household. And the church has been emboldened by his imprisonment. So exactly what they intended, the opposite has happened.

Just like in the life of Joseph where his brothers had a plan. His brothers had a plan to be done with Joseph. But God had another plan. God was actually working in and through even the sins and the wicked actions of his brothers to save many people's lives. To show his mercy.

And so it is in the life of Paul. God does this a lot. You might have noticed, there's a lot of wickedness in the world. There's a lot of evil in the world. Well, God isn't stopped by that.

In fact, God is pleased to glorify himself often by working in and through the wicked actions of ungodly people in order to do exactly the opposite of what they were hoping for. Praise the Lord for that. Now Paul expresses his confidence that he will be delivered as a result of two things. First, the prayers of the Philippians. Now notice, he isn't saying, pray for me.

He's saying, I know you're praying for me. It's not a request for prayer. It assumes that they are praying. It is a good assumption. We have seen that they have been laboring together as partners in the Gospel for a dozen years.

It's impossible that the Philippians are not praying for the Apostle Paul. It's impossible. They've sent Epaphroditus with encouragement and with provision for Paul. Of course they're praying for him and he knows it and he says it in his letter as a given. I am going to be delivered because of your prayers for me.

I know you are praying for me. Secondly, He is confident that he will be delivered as a result of the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Now, who is the Spirit of Jesus Christ? It's simply the Holy Spirit. In Matthew chapter 10, the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of the Father.

In Romans chapter 8 verse 9, the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of the Father. In Romans chapter 8 verse 9, the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of the Spirit of God. It is called the Spirit of Jesus, right in succession, obviously used interchangeably. So we should feel at liberty to call the Holy Spirit the Spirit of the Father, or the Spirit of Jesus Christ, because the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son. So all of those are appropriate titles for the Holy Spirit.

Paul knows that God is going to supply the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus Christ, and that it will result in His deliverance. Turn to Mark chapter 13. Mark chapter 13. I believe that Paul is drawing on what Jesus teaches in Mark chapter 13. I'll be reading Mark chapter 13 verses 9 through 11.

Listen to what Jesus says to his disciples. Mark 13 verse 9, But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for my sake for a testimony to them." Now you see the connection, right? Paul is now going to be before the emperor with an opportunity to testify to the Emperor of the Roman Empire. And the Gospel must first be preached to all the nations.

But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour speak that, for it is not you who speak but the Holy Spirit. Jesus is giving a promise, one, that they will be persecuted, two, that they will be brought before governors and kings and rulers in order to give a testimony of the gospel to the rulers of the nations. And three, that they don't have to worry about what they're going to say because the Holy Spirit is going to be present to give them boldness and words to speak what they should speak. You don't have to premeditate.

You don't have to plan out the sermon for the Emperor. The Holy Spirit is going to be present to give you just the right timely words to say in that moment as a powerful testimony to the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul is engaging Jesus' promise to his disciples here. He's saying that The supply of the Spirit, which is promised by Jesus for those who will be drug in front of kings, will give him boldness and faithfulness in the moment. When he needs boldness and faithfulness, the most, The supply of the Holy Spirit, the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, will be there to give Him what He needs in the moment that He needs it.

Paul assumes that God will work through the prayers of His people to do this. In other words, there is a connection between thing one and thing two. Thing one is the Philippians are praying. Thing two is God will supply the Spirit of Jesus Christ. One is the answer to the other.

The Philippians are praying and God is answering that prayer by fulfilling this promise to supply the Spirit to give him what he needs in the time when he needs it. And verse 20 makes it clear that deliverance doesn't mean that death is not a possibility. Did you get that? So don't think wrongly about deliverance. Verse 20 makes it clear that deliverance does not mean that death isn't a possibility.

In other words, he might still die and even so he'll be delivered. How can that be? Right, Verse 20, whether by life or by death. Here's what this means. Paul is confident that he will be delivered through the trial, not from the trial.

There's a big difference. You might go through the trial and it ends in death. That is a possibility. He says whether by life or by death. So he has not taken death off the table as a possibility here.

But he says, even so I'll be delivered. Either way I'll be delivered. I'll be delivered through the trial. I will not be ashamed of my conduct through the trial. Your prayers and the supply of the Spirit is going to mean that I will be bold, is going to mean that I will be faithful in this trial, and that is my delivery.

Faithfulness to Christ is what Paul is concerned about. Not whether he lives or dies, but whether he'll be faithful and bold as he should be. He says, I know that you're praying. I know that God will supply the Spirit, so I know I'll be bold and faithful. Being delivered through the trial is different than being delivered from the trial.

We usually are praying to be delivered from the trial. Like, get me out of here. I'm tired of the pressure cooker. I want out of the pressure cooker. Paul's perspective is a little different.

Paul is looking to be delivered through the trial. His focus is on boldness and faithfulness, not getting out of pressure. Paul has a history of being bold and remaining faithful. Even when he's beaten, even when he's beaten. Even when he's stoned, even when he's stoned.

Even when he's imprisoned, even when he's imprisoned. Even when it looks like the ship will sink and everyone else is giving up hope that they are going to survive this? Yes, even when it looks like the ship is going to sink. Paul is able to still be bold and still be faithful in all these trials. One of these cross references says that he was shipwrecked three times.

He was shipwrecked three times. Every time, he was able to maintain his boldness and faithfulness through the trial. Not from the trial, but delivered through the trial. Paul hasn't brought shame to himself in spite of all the prior trials. He hasn't brought shame to his Lord in any of these trials.

So he has a confident expectation that it won't be any different this time. This is what he's communicating in the letter. I think this trial will be like the previous trials. Your prayers and the supply of the Holy Spirit will give me what I need when I need it, so that I will still be bold and still be faithful, even though I am in the pressure cooker. To what does Paul attribute this?

His own strength? No. The prayers of the Lord's people and the supply of the Holy Spirit. Paul completely understands the source of his boldness and faithfulness. And it's not personal stick-to-it-iveness.

That's a word that just means you stick it out. It's not that. It's not that Paul has a little more grit than you and I have, and so He can withstand the pressure a little better than we can. He knows to what he should attribute his continued boldness and his continued faithfulness in trial. It's that the Lord's people are praying and God is supplying the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

So he has all the resources he needs to be delivered through all of these trials, including the one he's in now. So Paul has one endpoint, one objective in mind for this trial, that is Lord Jesus Christ would be magnified no matter what happens, whether he lives or whether he dies. As long as Jesus is lifted up and loved and exalted and seen as great, it's okay with Paul. Listen to 1 Corinthians chapter 6 verse 20. Of course this is Paul, this is our same author and the man who is going through the trial.

1 Corinthians chapter 6 verse 20, Paul writes, For you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. I'll read that again. For you were bought at a price. You don't own yourself anymore.

Jesus Christ shed His blood. It's a tremendously high price. So you were bought lock, stock, and barrel. That means every bit of you. Therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.

You don't own the title deed anymore. Jesus bought you, He owns the title deed. So in your body and in your spirit and all of you, glorify God. If God sends you on in your life to other things, then glorify Him. If God decides this is your day, this is the day of your death, then glorify Him through that because He owns you and He can dispose of you as His property in any way that He chooses and sees fit and He is wise in it.

Next section, back to Philippians, verses 21-23. Philippians chapter 1, verses 21-23, follow along as I read. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor. Yet what I shall choose I cannot tell, for I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better." Here in verses 21-23 we have Paul assessing the options.

If you are filling in blanks on the handout, it is options. Assessing the options. Looking at and thinking through the options that are before Him. Let's consider verse 21, to live as Christ and to die as gain, as the statement of truth, and verses 22 and 23 as the explanation of the statement of truth. That's what I think Paul is doing as he writes this letter.

He asserts something, he gives you a statement of truth, to live is Christ, to die is gain, and then he explains it in verses 22 and 23. Let's start in reverse order because that starts with the easier thing and then we'll work up to the harder one. What does to die is gain mean? Well verse 23 I think explains it. I desire to depart and be with Christ, and that is better.

To die is gain. I depart this body of corruption, and I am not entangled with sin and the things that hold us back anymore, the things that create distance between us and Christ. And then I'm face to face, I depart, I'm with Christ, and that's better. To die is gain. In fact, we get some commentary on this in chapter 3.

Look over to Philippians chapter 3 verses 7 and 8. This is chapter 3 verses 7 and 8. But what things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ." Paul looks back at everything in his history and he says, all that is garbage. I'd gladly give that up to gain Christ and know Him.

So what he's saying here in chapter 1 is an extension of that. It's a precursor of that. It's making us ready for chapter 3. What's most precious to Paul? Christ.

Gaining Christ. He'll give up anything to gain Christ and know Him. Yet the knowing of Christ is so imperfect in this life. Nobody knows like Paul. We can know Christ in this life.

Praise the Lord for that. But we know Him so imperfectly now. We experience Him so imperfectly now because of the corruptions that remain in our flesh. Listen to what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter. This is the end of the love chapter.

1 Corinthians 13 verse 12, Paul writes, For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known." Paul knows that he is known completely by Christ, but he knows Christ so incompletely. That is how it is when we are in the flesh. That is how it has to be. Because of our remaining corruptions.

And so it is like looking at something through a mirror, dimly. You can see it, but there's no perfection in the seeing of it. There's no perfection in the knowing of it when you look through a mirror dimly. But Paul is acknowledging in 1 Corinthians 13, but then on the other side of life after death, then it's face to face, no longer through a mirror dimly, but nose to nose. Just as Jesus knows you now, you will know Him then.

Who can't wait for that? Who is not looking forward to that? Listen to this in 2 Corinthians 5, verses 6-8. 2 Corinthians 5 verses 6-8. Paul writes, We are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord.

So that's what you get when you're at home in the body. You get absence from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. If you are at home in the body, you are absent from the Lord.

But if you are absent from the body, this is after death, then you are present with the Lord. And in 2 Corinthians 5 verses 6-8 Paul says the same thing he is saying in our text. We are well pleased to go there and be that. Be absent from the body, but to be present with the Lord. Paul actually sees this as his best case scenario.

In other words, this is the more pleasant thought. Going on, laboring, still struggling in a body of corruption, still full of trials and temptations, or to go be nose to nose with Christ and know Him as we are known by Him. This is a no brainer to Paul. The best case scenario is to go and be with Christ. He says it's far better, but the translation doesn't do it justice.

There's nothing wrong with the translation, far better is okay. But what Paul is doing in the Greek is piling up superlatives. So I'm going to give you the literal translation. First of all, it's three words, not two. There are three Greek words that have been rendered far better here.

And literally, it's many more better. It's many more better to die than it is to live and stay in this body of corruption. To go be with Christ face to face, to go know Him as we are now known by Him is many more better than to be here in this body of corruption. What does to live is Christ mean? To live is Christ.

It sounds great, but if you had to articulate exactly what it means, it gets a little trickier. Verse 22 again I think explains, if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor. So part of what it means to live in Christ is that there is fruit produced by Christ in your life for His glory. Turn to Galatians chapter 2. It's just back a little bit, a few pages.

Galatians chapter 2. Paul says something in Galatians 2.20, chapter 2 verse 20, that I believe is directly related to this phrase, to live is Christ. It explains to live is Christ. Here is what Paul says in Galatians chapter 2 verse 20. I have been crucified with Christ.

It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." You can never be the same again once you become a Christian. You can never be the same again. You are identifying with Him in His death. There is a sense in which you are participating in His death.

On the other side of that death, when you become united to Christ, it is no longer you who live, but Christ who lives in you. Does that mean that you will never sin again? No. Does that mean that you become Jesus Christ? No.

But it means that you are joined to Him, you have union with Him, and He is now living inside you, and the life which you live going forward, you live by faith in Him. So the fruit is Jesus Christ's fruit in and through Paul. That's what Galatians 2 verse 20 means for Paul's life. He was joined to Christ in his death, and so now it is no longer Paul who lives, but Christ who lives in Paul. And so the fruit is Christ's fruit in and through Paul for his people, for the benefit of his people.

Maybe the best fruit passage, because Paul is talking about fruit here in Philippians 1 verse 22. If I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor. Maybe the best fruit passage is John chapter 15, abiding in the vine. You are very familiar with this passage. I am not even going to ask you to turn there.

Jesus in John chapter 15 commands His people to abide in the vine and says his people are those who do abide in the vine. Jesus is the vine, we are the branches when we abide in the vine. We produce much fruit and Jesus keeps pruning us so we'll produce even more fruit. Paul has been doing this for a long time now. Paul's been in the Lord by 62 AD.

Paul has been in the Lord for a long time. Something like approaching 30 years in the faith. There's been a lot of abiding in the vine. There has been a lot of pruning that the Father has been doing to produce fruit. Paul taking life and sustenance as a branch.

Paul taking life and sustenance from the divine Jesus Christ, and the Father pruning away to get more and more fruit. But it's Christ's fruit. Here's what Matthew Henry says about to live as Christ. Matthew Henry says the glory of Christ ought to be the end of our life, the grace of Christ, the principle of our life, and the Word of Christ, the rule of it. The Christian life is derived from Christ and directed to Christ.

He is the principal, rule, and end of it. Meaning, Matthew Henry is saying he is the Alpha and Omega of the Christian life. He is the beginning and the end. He is the all in all. He is the centerpiece of the Christian life.

If not for Jesus Christ, if not for the vine, the branches are dead in sins and transgressions as we have been memorizing in Ephesians 2. You are dead in your sins and transgressions unless you are united with Christ. Then He becomes your life. He becomes the end and great objective of your life to glorify Him. He becomes the sustenance for the producing of fruit in your life.

Christian life is derived from Christ and directed to Christ. He is the principle rule and end of it. I think this is what it means to live as Christ. He is the centerpiece of all of it. He is the beginning of it.

There is no life outside of Christ. Not for anybody. Not ever. But even to continue requires Christ. He is the great objective of the Christian life.

It is all Christ. To live is Christ. So this is how Paul assesses his options. Death is gain. Life is Christ.

And he says, I am hard pressed between the two. When I first read that, hard pressed between the two, I thought oh he is between a rock and a hard place. But as I think about that, I don't think that's true. When we think about a rock and a hard place, we think about two hard options. Like you might get crushed between the two hard options.

I'm between a rock and a hard place. I think this is between a pillow and a marshmallow. Like Between two desirable, wonderful, soft options. Not a rock and a hard place. Both pleasant.

A rock and a hard place, as we normally think of it, I don't want either one of those options. No, in this Paul wants them both. How can I get both at the same time? I don't even know which one to choose because they're so pleasant to think about either. Living a fruitful life for the Lord Jesus Christ so that He is glorified through my life, or dying and going to be face to face with Him.

How do I between those two things? This is how believers not just the Apostle Paul should view even our greatest trials. This is the important point of the sermon where we talk about how this applies to us. We get out of the classroom and start applying this. This isn't just a mentality for martyr apostles.

This is a mentality for everyday Christians like me and you. We have a right to see life through these lenses. It's good. This is a gift. This is a blessing from God to us.

Not just a blessing for the Apostle Paul, but it is for me as much as it is for the Apostle Paul. It is for you as much as it is for the Apostle Paul. Even in our greatest trials we can see ourselves as between these two great options. Either we live and through our lives we can bring glory to Jesus our King who is redeemed with His blood. Or if we die, then we are free from this body of death and corruption.

We are done with sin and we get to know Jesus Christ as He knows us. Sign me up. If I have a right to that, I want to grab a hold of that. I want it. If Jesus has purchased this for me, I want it, every day, all day.

Now think of how it is exactly opposite for the unbeliever. I'm saying, Paul is teaching us that the believer has the right to see things this way. Life is a great option because we can glorify God, fruitfully labor for Him, and death is a great option because then we get to go not see through a mirror darkly anymore, but face to face. It is exactly the opposite for the unbeliever. There is emptiness in life.

There are only cheap thrills in this life, and they get cheaper and cheaper. And the more you do for the cheap thrills, the less it yields over time. Meaning, there's less thrill. It's cheaper and there's less thrill. And the cheap thrills that used to satisfy can never satisfy out in the future.

This is how it works. This is how the devil grinds you into powder. This is how the world crushes the life out of unbelievers. By offering things that never really deliver. The cheap thrills get cheaper and cheaper, and the thrills get less and less, until there's no life left in you.

You're left stripped of it all. Emptiness in life and total loss at death. That is between a rock and a hard place. Where the joys of life that you used to at least be able to grab on to a little giddy happiness through the cheap thrills that the world offers, but then you have to pay more and more to get less and less, and more and more, and less and less, and then death, And it's total loss at death, total separation. No time left to repent.

So as believers should come to this text and rejoice in the Lord and what our options are even in the greatest trials the unbeliever should come to this text too and see the mirror image of this and to see the emptiness of life and then What death means to the unbeliever. Joel Osteen has written a book, Your Best Life Now. Listen, if your best life is now, you are not going to heaven. Christians don't think that way. Our best Life is then when we get to be face to face with Jesus, unencumbered by our corruptions.

Back to Philippians, verses 24-26. Philippians 1, 24-26. Nevertheless, to remain in the flesh is more needful for you. And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith. That your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again." Here in this section Paul is predicting the outcome.

You're taking notes on the handout and filling in blanks, it's outcome. Predicting the outcome. I don't think he's speaking prophetically here. I think He thinks he knows the mind of God on the matter because he knows if there's something that's good for his people, he doesn't hold it back. He thinks him continuing is good for his people.

Paul knows what's best for him to depart and be with Christ. He's already said that's many much better. Many more better. I think that's what I said. Far better.

But what is more necessary for the Philippians and for the other fledgling churches, the Thessalonians and the Colossians and the Ephesians and the Corinthians and the Laodiceans and on and on, A lot of churches got planted. What's more necessary for them is for Paul to keep working. Paul to keep laboring fruitfully. His concern is for his brothers and sisters. Listen to this.

In 2 Corinthians 11 verse 28, Paul In the lead up to 2 Corinthians 11, 28, there are many verses where he itemizes all of his perils that he's been through. A long list of perils. Shipwrecks, beatings, stonings, and imprisonments. Then he says this at the end of the long list of perils in 2 Corinthians 11.28. Besides the other things, what comes upon me daily?

My deep concern for all the churches. My deep concern for all the churches. In other words, here are the things I've been contending with. Beatings, stonings, and imprisonments, and shipwrecks, and hunger, and long nights, no sleep, cold. He just piles up the deprivations and he says, and besides these things, my deep concern for the churches.

So what we are seeing in Philippians is just part and parcel of Paul. It is way down deep in Paul. It is right in his fabric. The deep concern for the churches. So when he looks at the options for the future life or death, He has this deep concern for the churches, the Philippian church and the others, that causes him to want to continue laboring for their good and for their welfare.

God did that in him. God gave him a love for the people of God that has him thinking this way. Since Paul believes this is what is most necessary for Jesus' people, he is confident that that's what God will do. Keep him alive for the benefit of his people. I am now entering the realm of speculation.

So we are exiting Bible world for a second, which is much more trustworthy. Entering the realm of speculation. Just consider what the Expositors Bible commentary says here. Among the early fathers, the early church fathers, would be the men who were discipled by the disciples. Jesus discipled the twelve, and then the eleven plus one, after they replaced Judas, discipled other men, men like Eusebius and Clement and Ignatius.

These are names of men that are known in history to have been discipled by the disciples. So that's who's in view here. Among the early fathers, considerable testimony is found for Paul's release from the first Roman imprisonment. And then a bunch of sources are listed from the early church fathers. In other words, the early church fathers, those who were discipled by the disciples, repeatedly said in their writings that Paul was released from this first imprisonment in Rome.

So You don't have that on Bible authority. It's the general view, it's the majority view among Bible scholars that there were two imprisonments of Paul in Rome. The first he was released and the second ended in his martyrdom. But at least there are historical accounts that say he was indeed released from this first imprisonment. He did indeed continue to live and labor fruitfully and encourage the churches and write letters.

Now what are Paul's objectives assuming that he can continue and labor? He has two. Their progress. If I get to live, if I get to come back there, I've got two things in mind. The first is you making progress.

The second is your joy of faith. We see again, Paul's concern goes beyond the justification of his converts to the sanctification of his converts. Paul's concern goes beyond the salvation of his converts to the growth and maturity of his converts. He's not just a roving evangelist who preaches never to return, preaches the gospel never to return, hoping that somebody believes and is saved, and then whatever happens after that happens after that. Now he's a letter writer and a disciple maker, and he keeps going back through the same places to encourage the brethren for these reasons.

They make progress. Yes, God is glorified in the salvation of sinners, but He is more visibly glorified in the conformity of those sinners into the image of His Son Jesus. Did you get that? I think it's worth saying again, because it was long. Not because it's especially valuable, but because you might have missed it on the first time.

Yes, God is glorified in the salvation of sinners. Amen. But He's more visibly glorified, meaning people can see it better, in the conformity of those sinners into Jesus' image. So there is joy in heaven when one's sinner repents. Amen to that.

God receives the glory from that. But when they begin to be transformed in their life, then their neighbors and their coworkers can see, wow, look what God did there. There must be a God doing something there. He's more visibly glorified when we are conformed into the image of Jesus Christ. Listen to Matthew chapter 5.

You know these verses. Matthew 5 verses 14-16. You are the light of the world, a city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden, nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. As We become conformed into the image of Christ.

Our light is shining brighter and brighter. We are doing more good works. We are obeying the will of God. People are seeing it and glorifying God. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." Paul is after that.

Let me out of prison. That's what I'm going for when I get out of prison. I'm coming back to Philippi and I'm going to try to get your light to burn brighter, so that they see your good works and glorify God who is in heaven. And just as important, Paul wants to labor for an increase in their joy of faith. If I get out of prison, I'm coming back to Philippi and I'm going to be working so that you have more joy of faith, and more joy of faith, and more joy of faith.

Here's a question for us. Do we think of joy, right, Philippians is the letter of joy, joy, joy, joy, rejoice, rejoice, rejoice, everywhere, all through the letter, do we think of joy as a byproduct of faith? Paul is teaching us here that joy is a byproduct of faith. Meaning, Joy should be flowing out of your faith. Joy of proceeding from faith.

Joy of faith. We have faith in God. We are trusting fully in God. We are depending completely upon God. That should make you happy.

That should make you happy. If you are really trusting fully in God, just depending on Him for everything, the byproduct of that is joy. The deeper your faith is, the more joy you have. This is true, and it is true. So the objective is not just that we come to maturity, but that we come to joyful maturity.

To joyful maturity. Paul does want maturing converts, growing converts, but he wants a certain kind of growing converts, joyful ones. Faith, Joy is flowing out of their faith and they're growing these things together. Verse 26. Paul closes this section, this thought, by expressing how his coming to the Philippians again will result in rejoicing in Jesus.

In other words, if your prayers and the supply of the Spirit results in me getting out of jail and I come back. The result of that is going to be you are going to be rejoicing in Jesus. When you look at verse 26, The rejoicing is for Paul, but the rejoicing is in Jesus. Look at the verse. Rejoicing for Paul.

We're rejoicing that you're back, but the rejoicing is in Jesus as an acknowledgement that Jesus is the source of that. Applications four. Quick and obvious. Application number one. Paul's no-lose proposition should be our no-lose proposition.

You have a right to it. Claim it. Lay claim to your rights. Paul's no-lose proposition viewing life and death this way As between a pillow and a marshmallow, that's a terrible analogy. That should die a death and never be resurrected.

I couldn't figure out what the opposite of rockin' a hard place was, so that's the best I got. Paul's no-lose proposition should be our no-lose proposition. We should view life this way as an opportunity to labor fruitfully to bring glory to Jesus who bought us with His blood. And death is better still. Many more better.

Number two. Here's a question for me and you. To what extent am I abiding in the vine? John 15. To what extent?

If you're not abiding in the vine, you're not a branch, and you're not even a believer. So I'm assuming that hopefully I'm preaching to mostly believers and we should ask ourselves this question, To what extent? There are extents there. You know it if you've been in Christ for a while. There is more or less abiding in the vine.

To what extent? Fruitful labor requires abiding in the vine. Robustly, vigorously abiding in the vine. Connected all the way to the vine. To what extent am I abiding in the vine?

Because It is possible to continue in life and not labor very fruitfully at all. We have to be abiding in the vine, and God has to be pruning us for more fruitfulness. This is what we should desire. Number three, am I bold and faithful even in my trials? Am I bold and faithful especially in my trials?

Our trials shouldn't make us shrink. Our trials should make us puff up to be the Lord's and to know that people are praying for us and that God is supplying the Spirit of Jesus Christ, which gives us what we need when we need it so we can be bold and faithful, even in the greatest trials. Do you shrink in your trials or are you bold and faithful in your trials? Fourthly and lastly, how are you doing in growing into joyful maturity? I like that phrase, joyful maturity.

If it's not joyful maturity, we should wonder if it's maturity at all. It's joy of faith. If our faith is deepening, our joy should be deepening. It's a great litmus test for how we're doing. Just hold yourself up to that standard.

Is there joyful maturity that is on the increase here? God, I thank you for this text. How precious and good your Word is. How much we need it. How our minds are changed every time we drink deeply of it.

Thank you for this great deposit. Pray now that you would bless us with continued insight into the text, continued teaching. In Jesus' name, Amen.