Christ, My Life
A sentence from Philippians has kept changing the direction of my life: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” I come back to it again and again. I pray it has an impact on you too.
The apostle Paul wrote those words from prison. That’s important, because this is not what I would write if I were in jail.
19 Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. Philippians 1:19–20 ESV
He’s in prison, and he’s rejoicing. He’s confident in the Lord. He has full courage. Life or death, these things are still true.
And then, speaking of life and death, he says this:
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. Philippians 1:21–23 ESV
Verse 21 is the part that has been so impactful for me.
To live is Christ
It’s a strange phrase. Paul uses similar language in verse 20, and that helps us understand it: “Christ will be honored in my body.” Other translations say “exalt” or “magnify.”
Paul is saying, “I want people to look at my life and see how big Christ really is.”
So here’s the question that presses on me. If someone looked at my life, what would stand out that I am magnifying? What does my life make big? What’s the most important thing in it?
If Jesus is not the thing that your life is magnifying, then your life is meaningless. That’s a hard thing to say, and I have to say it to myself first.
“To live is Christ” means you’re living as a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). You take up your cross daily; your life is a sacrifice (Luke 9:23–25). It’s no longer you who live, but Christ lives in you (Galatians 2:20). Every thought you take captive and direct toward him (2 Corinthians 10:5).
- Is Christ the conscious center of everything I do?
- Am I making decisions with Christ in mind?
- Am I praying for his wisdom in what I do and what I decide?
Maybe you can relate.
I’m not saying we have to give up on dreams and hopes. The Bible is not calling us to live as monks. But if the things other than Christ are all we have, all we’re working for, all we’re dreaming of, then we have nothing, and our life will be a waste.
I wonder how many people who call themselves Christians will end up in hell realizing that Jesus meant nothing to them while they were alive. To them…
- To live was the fast car, the new device.
- To live was looking good in the mirror, getting the person they wanted.
- To live was doing well at work, making money, and just having fun.
- To live was progressing on some imaginary scale of success, and posting it all online so the world can see, and we can gain some kind of value.
- To live was anything but Christ.
The Bible blows all that up and reminds us, to live is Christ. This is for me. I spend far too much time focused on my own world, my own job, looking good in my career.
Life is wasted if we do not grasp the glory of the cross, cherish it for the treasure that it is, and cleave to it as the highest price of every pleasure and the deepest comfort in every pain. What was once foolishness to us—a crucified God—must become our wisdom and our power and our only boast in this world. John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life
That’s hard. How do we even begin to live this way?
You and I do a bad job of this. We make our lives about us instead of God. We reject him as the main push of our life and instead might give him a tiny bit over here.
Instead of magnifying him, we need a magnifying glass to see him.
All of that is sin. We put ourselves before our Creator, and we deserve hell for it. Jesus died for you and me to forgive us for this. And if you trust God and believe in Jesus, then you are a Christian, and we start to change as the Holy Spirit works in us. Slowly our lives actually do start to magnify Christ. Remember, he will finish what he started.
To magnify Christ is not just living perfect and holy. It’s seeing our sin and failure, and humbly resting in Jesus’ work. Christ is magnified when we trust in the hope of the gospel, and not in our own works.
It’s the most amazing thing, and it’s worth it to make Christ your life. Especially because of the second part.
To die is gain
Death is sad. The Bible even calls it an enemy (1 Corinthians 15:26). So how could it be “gain”?
Some people say that when they die, it’s all over. Blackness. That’s so sad, and certainly not gain.
The Bible says when you die, it’s just begun, because you will depart and be with Christ.
To die is gain because you will be with the one who fully knows you, fully forgives you, fully loves you, and has taken care of your every need. The Bible even says he is preparing a place for you, and you will spend eternity without pain, without suffering, without depression or sadness, without worry. You and I will spend that eternity with the Savior, Jesus.
That, that is gain.
Is that your view of death? Is that your view of Jesus?
Only if we believe that to die is gain can we live in Christ and for Jesus in this world.
I will not waste my life! I will finish my course and finish it well. I will display the Gospel of the grace of God in all I do. I will run my race to the end. John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life
If you have not been living your life for Christ, this is worth sitting with. Talk to God. Ask him to make this true of you: to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
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