To Live Is Christ; To Die Is Gain

In Philippians 1:21, Paul said, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." The assumption is that Paul was in prison because of his faith when he wrote this verse. He was awaiting trial and he had to face the fact that it was uncertain whether he would live or die. However, to him the matter made little difference. His indifference was not because he did not care about living. Paul enjoyed life as much as anyone. However, he saw living and dying all within the loving arms of God.

For Paul, living gained meaning through Christ. For him, living was Christ, and life could not be separated from his Lord. Hence the statement, "For to me, to live is Christ" (v. 21a). For Paul, Christ had been the beginning of his life. He was born again on the Damascus road where he first encountered the risen Christ. Life had literally begun all over for him.

From that moment on, Christ had become the sustaining element of his life. There had never been a day since that experience when Paul had not lived under His presence. Christ had become the reason for his existence. Christ was the one who had made him an apostle and had sent him out as an evangelist to the Gentiles.

Even more so, Christ was the reward of Paul's life. The only thing that made life totally worth living was the thought that all of his life would ultimately result in Christ Himself. If Christ were to be taken from the life of Paul, there would be nothing left. To him, Christ was nothing less than life itself.

Paul’s dependency upon Christ did not end with his days of living. He made the statement, "To die is gain" (v. 21b). Over the years, this statement has frequently been misunderstood, taken out of context, and misused in an attempt to say that somehow it revealed a weakness in Paul. This statement was not the result of any weakness on the part of Paul, but instead it was the result of strength.

Paul knew that, prior to Christ's coming to gather all of His people unto Himself, the only entrance into the presence of Christ was through death. For Paul, death was not just falling asleep but an immediate entry into the presence of the Lord. For if you believe in Christ, Paul believed very strongly that death delivers you into an immediate union with Christ and with those whom we have loved and lost.

How does Paul's description of "death as gain" affect us today? To make such a statement is not just some idealistic thought. Such a position is the result of a deep-rooted belief in the Lord of Life.

First, death is gain because it removes us from the pain and suffering of life. Jesus said that in this life there will be tribulation. No one is immune. We all must face those days of suffering and heartache. But when death occurs for a believer, suffering comes to an end. Death removes us from all of life's pain and suffering, and ushers us into the abiding presence of Christ where there shall never again be pain. Life includes pain and suffering. Nowhere are we promised an existence that is free from pain. The good news is that it is all a temporary condition.

Second, death is gain because it removes us from the evils and struggles of this life. We are limited creatures. Life is most definitely a battleground between the forces of good and evil, and we are constantly caught up in that battle. We are weak and sin fills our lives, even in the best of us. There is a battle of conscience that wages itself constantly in our lives and in the lives of all believers. In fact, it is not pessimistic at all to believe that life is a long series of struggles. We grow as a result of these struggles, but they have their price. Death sees the end of life's struggles.

Third, death is gain because it secures for us those things that are unfailing. Life has many disappointments. We work and strive for those things that thieves can steal, storms can destroy, and time can take away. Much of life seems to surround things that are failing. However, once we are ushered into the divine presence of Christ, all things become unfailing. For our reward shall be gifts from Christ that shall never tarnish, nor can they be taken away. They become our gifts for eternity.

Fourth, death is gain because death alone can bring us into the presence of Christ. All men and women should seek to follow the example of Paul who made Christ his ultimate goal. Christ was not only Paul's beginning, his sustaining element in life, but the end for which all of life should be lived. Christ should be our ultimate goal. To be ushered into the presence of Christ solves everything. All the problems, struggles, and pain will be done away. The Good Shepherd of life and death will care for us in such a way that is beyond our own imagination.

There is pain, grief, and suffering in this life. But let us not forget the hope that surrounds us and sustains us. With the apostle Paul, we can individually and collectively acknowledge our faith in a Lord who is in control of all of life. We recognize that death is simply the passage from one stage of life to another. Without death, our own resurrection would never be possible. Paul really was correct when he said, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain" (v. 21).

May God grant us the strength and courage to so embrace our faith that we may see that all of life is in His hands. Amen.