To Live is Christ, To Die is Gain

For today’s Philippians post, we’re talking about Philippians 1:21 and the following verses. I remembered writing a post about this verse on my old blog, so I decided to go dig it out. 

Sometimes when I look back at posts I wrote a long time ago (this one was published the day before my 19th birthday,) I’m amazed by how good they are. 

This is not one of those posts. 

For one thing, the writing just wasn’t that great, but for another - it’s a post about life and death and commitment and sacrifice, and there’s a lot of room for development of thought on those concepts from 19 to 26. 

So the following is loosely based on what I wrote 8 years ago, but very, very edited. 

Have you ever heard the quote about how bacon and eggs illustrate the difference between commitment and contribution? A chicken and a pig are both involved. But the chicken makes a contribution, and the pig makes a commitment. 

But if you think about it more, is that true? Or did they both make different kinds of commitments? The pig only follows through once. The chicken keeps giving its whole life. 

And I think that’s also the difference between dying for Christ and living for him. 

I grew up reading stories of great heroes of the faith, from the earliest apostles to modern day martyrs, and it always seemed like the ultimate measure of commitment to Christ was whether or not you were willing to die for your faith. But…dying for your faith happens once. And then it’s over, and you’re with Jesus forever. 

If instead you live for Christ, you have to wake up every morning and choose to continue. And let’s be honest, that scenario is much more likely for most of us reading this. I’m going to assume you’ve never been held at gunpoint and told to renounce your faith or die. 

Instead, you’re held at screenpoint and given a much more subtle choice between picking up your Bible or watching another episode. Or serving at church when you’d really rather stay home. Or speaking up for what’s right even though you know it might cost you socially. 

We sometimes romanticize the story of the apostles who died on a cross just like Jesus, but forget that Jesus asked us to take up a cross and die to ourselves - every day. 

So… what if it takes just as much commitment and faithfulness to live for Christ as to die for him?

I think this is what Paul was getting at in Philippians 1:21. Remember that when he writes this, he’s sitting in a Roman prison. He’s faced with a very real possibility of martyrdom any day, but still has every intention of being faithful until then. 

Paul says that for the Christian, life and death is a win-win. Death is nothing to fear. It’s better even, to begin your eternity with Christ than to continue the struggle here. 

When I wrote this 8 years ago someone commented that I should have pointed out this passage does not condone suicide, and I remember being a little annoyed because I thought that was obvious. But as prevalent as that issue is, I can see now that it’s worth addressing in any discussion of life and death. 

However. I still don’t think anyone ever committed suicide because of how much they were looking forward to heaven. 

Suicide happens when people lose hope; not when they are filled with hope in life after death. I can’t explain it, but the more we are full of the hope of heaven, the more energized and joyful we are for life on earth. 

If your mind and heart are full of the hope of eternity with Jesus, you know that his timing is perfect. And if you’re still here it means you still have a purpose here, one that makes life worth living. That is the paradox of the gospel; that those who have the least reason to fear death have the greatest reason to truly live. 

I can’t help but think Paul still had this in mind in Philippians 2 when he talks about having the mind of Christ, who gave up heaven to accomplish a mission on earth. He knew better than any of us what pleasures awaited him in heaven; but he had an even greater joy in being here to serve and suffer for his people. 

And so yes, to die is gain. One day we will all be called home and that is when our life will actually begin. There’s no reason to fear or flee death. 

But to live? To live is Christ. It’s to know him, to walk in his footsteps, to do as he did. To love and serve and work and enjoy the life he’s given us on this earth he created.