September 17th
18: What then? notwithstanding,
every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein
do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice. 19: For I know that this shall turn to my
salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20:
According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be
ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be
magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. 21: For to me to live
is Christ, and to die is gain. 22: But if I live in the flesh, this is the
fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. 23: For I am in a strait
betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far
better: 24: Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. 25: And
having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for
your furtherance and joy of faith; 26: That your rejoicing may be more abundant
in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again. 27: Only let your
conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and
see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in
one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; 28:
And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token
of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. 29: For unto you it is
given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer
for his sake; 30: Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to
be in me.
Paul is confident that as a result
of their prayers and the help of the Holy Spirit he would be released from
prison. (This did in fact happen). Our prayers for other people are heard and
God acts on our behalf when we ask him. Paul was expecting and was sure that
when the time came to testify to Christ he would not be afraid and that the
Lord would give him sufficient courage to face either life or death. We may not
be required to stand before Kings of Caesars but we have to stand up and be
counted for Christ too. Paul says that his life is dedicated to Christ but that
if he does die then that is not a disaster in fact it means that it will be the
greatest gain that he has ever known. He will be immediately in the presence of
God. Paul was torn between to options. He wanted to die to meet Christ. That
would be far better. However he was still needed here and while he was still
needed here he was glad to stay even though it would mean more suffering. Paul is
convinced that for now he will remain and will work with the Believers so that
their spiritual lives will progress and that they might have the joy of faith.
And he believes that he will at this time be released and meet them again.
Note. It is almost certain that he was released and that he visited France, Spain,
Greece and Macedonia. There were assemblies in
France that maintained that
they were never participants in the Roman church and when the reformation broke
over Europe they were happy to be associated
with them. In this passage we have the only hint at a rule that is applied to
christians. Paul says that believers are to conduct themselves in a manner
worthy of the Gospel of Christ. Christians are to have a dignity about them.
They are not to be found having off days or acting in a manner unworthy of the
name of Christ. It’s interesting that Paul does not give ten rules as an
example of what he means. That would be legalism. No he states that we are to
walk (Live) worthily. In other words we are to live in a manner that is
befitting of the high calling that we are in Christ. Not in a superior attitude
but in humility and a godly manner. Of course every christian is different and
every conscience is different too. Therefore every believer is to seek to live
under the guidance of the Holy Spirit in a way that brings honour to Christ.
Paul may have been alluding to the Roman and Greek practise of linking shields
together to become an impenetrable wall. The wall is only effective if the
soldiers stand shoulder to shoulder and work in harmony. No Soldier is more
important than another, their strength is in their determination to work as one
whole unit. This means understanding each other, supporting each other and
being strong for each other. The Roman legion fought as one huge man. Unity was
their strength. That is what we are to be, supportive and protective of each
other. Confidence in the face of persecution is a sign to the persecutors that
the persecuted are saved and of the persecutors eternal doom. So let us not be
afraid but let us come with confidence before God. Paul is at pains to point
out that suffering for Christ is part of the christian life. It’s a part as
night is to day. We may be surprised when opposition comes but we must learn
that persecution and the suffering that comes in its train is something that
comes because of a faithful witness. In fact the word witness means martyr. We
are to stand up boldly for Christ and never be afraid. Of course there will be
times to face the mob and there are times to be let down in a basket. When we
suffer, if it’s for Christ and his testimony, then we stand sure but if it is
mindless men who seek an excuse to destroy us for fun! We call the police or
run away. We must remember that those who will live godly will suffer
persecution. Do you suffer? If not ask yourself, Am l living a godly life?
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