Reading 2, Philippians 1:20c-24, 271
“all in accordance with my most confident hope and trust that I shall never have to admit defeat, but with complete fearlessness I shall go on, so that now, as always, Christ will be glorified in my body, whether by my life or my death. Life to me, of course, is Christ, but then death would be a positive gain. On the other hand again, if to be alive in the body gives me an opportunity for fruitful work, I do not know which I should choose. I am caught in this dilemma: I want to be gone and to be with Christ, and this is by far the stronger desire-and yet for your sake to stay alive in this body is a more urgent need.
But you must always behave in a way that is worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come to you and see for myself or whether I only hear all about you from a distance, I shall find that you are standing firm and united in spirit, battling, as a team with a single aim, for the faith of the gospel.
Do you want to live? Or, do you want to die? That is the question! Fortunately the timing is not up to us. If we are a believer, we know in our minds, and in our hearts, that with death comes Life. As stated above, in death we gain. The rub is that we leave behind all that we love here on earth.
Because we do not choose the timing, we are capable of viewing life and death in more spiritual terms. While the timing is not ours, the choice of life or death is. We live to become the Christ in us and to share Him with others. Our life should point towards Christ not only for our own salvation, but also for the salvation of others.
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