Philippians 1:12-30

This is a big passage. It contains lots of phrases that sound familiar and that we have all heard in sermons… ‘preaching Christ out of envy’, ‘to live is Christ and to die is gain’, ‘conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ’… I decided that instead of trying to cover it all, we’d look at one verse that jumped out at me.

Philippians 1:23 – But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better.

Paul is writing from prison and has been talking about how he wins either way – by continuing in fruitful labor for the cause of Christ, or by dying in prison and going to be with the Lord. At least on the surface we would all agree with the thought that leaving this life and being in the presence of God is going to be a good deal… when it happens. We think of it as an eventuality, as something that is so far off, it’s not really worth thinking about. But Paul was genuinely torn.

Let’s conduct a little experiment. What’s the best thing that could happen in your life right now? Don’t hold back, don’t even be realistic – the BEST thing – the dream job, the engagement ring, the approval of a parent, a vision of a happy, healthy future… whatever it is, think on it for a minute. Let yourself feel some of the emotion that would come with the realization that the BEST thing that you could dream of has happened. Now, go back and read verse 23 – and be with Christ, for that is very much better. I like how the New American Standard even uses language that sounds like a little kid. It’s not just better, it is very much better. Yes, Paul was talking about physical death and seeing Christ face-to-face (which he had already gotten to do once on the road to Damascus), but let’s apply the concept to our daily lives. Are there things of this world that we look so forward to or work so hard on that we lose sight of what is very much better? Being with Christ ought to be the thing that just does it for us – it should move us out of bed and into His presence each morning and the effects of being with Him should motivate our actions and permeate our conversations – for HE is very much better than anything in this world.

--Natalie West, Summer Camp Director