Misquoting Philippians Pt. 1
Today we begin a three-part series entitled, “Misquoting Philippians.” Philippians is a short, but powerful letter, and happens to be one of my favorite books of the Bible—Mark being first and Revelation second, in case you were wondering. It’s not unusual for Philippians to end up on someone’s favorite Bible book list. I mean, think about it, the book has some of our favorite verses. You know, the really well-known verses that end up on Christian T-shirts, Christian artwork, Christian websites, Christian schools, athlete’s shoes, and everyone’s favorite, Christian bodies. What better way to declare to the world how I feel about Christianity than to have, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” tattooed on my back, ribs, or biceps? Feel free to insert sarcasm right there.
I think we misquote parts of Philippians because the letter seems to lack a consistent flow of thought. So, we come to these great, powerful verses and take them out of their context because we struggle to nail down exactly the point Paul is trying to get across. That’s what the next couple of posts are for–we are going to look at some of Philippians’ most misquoted verses and find out what they actually say and mean, and how their message applies to us today.
I don’t know about you, but anytime I come to a book in scripture I ask myself, “How did we get here?” Essentially, what I am asking myself is, what circumstances did God sovereignly superintend to bring about the writing of this book? As it relates to Philippians, why did the Spirit lead Paul to write to the Christians at Philippi? To answer that question, we have to go back in time to Acts 16. Consider Luke's account:
Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days.
As we can see. Paul and his crew set out to take the gospel to Asia and Bithynia, and the Holy Spirit forbade them. Why? We don’t know, but I’ll let you wrestle with that one. Paul then receives a vision, and after a few stops, he and company arrive at Philippi gospel ready. If Luke was trying to tell us how the church in Philippi started, he did a good job. Because in the remaining verses of Acts 16, we read that Lydia and her household came to faith, followed by the slave girl, and then finally the Philippian jailer. Talk about a diverse group of people. By the time Paul and Silas left for Thessalonica, a group of believers were already meeting in Lydia’s house.
When we finally arrive at Philippians, Paul is writing to them from a jail cell. From Acts 16 to the opening of Philippians, it is clear that a deep friendship formed between Paul and that church. So much so, that it is not an exaggeration to say that the Philippian church is Paul’s favorite. He says it himself, they are his joy and crown (4:1). But what is Philippians about exactly? I’ve tried to figure that out myself for a while, and it wasn’t until some years ago that I got it. As I’ve studied Philippians, I noticed that most scholars go two ways on the question of what the book is about. They either say it’s about unity or joy.
So, I would read Philippians with those two themes in mind and wrestled with the tension that they cannot both be the main theme, right? I mean, one has to stand above the other as Paul’s main concern. Then it finally hit me. I spent a couple of months rereading Philippians and got it. The book is about the joy that comes from gospel partnership and gospel progress. And it’s right there to see in chapter 1, specifically, verses 3-20.
Paul’s joy springs up from gospel partnership and gospel progress. It is those things that inform Philippians 1:21. The rest of this post will attempt to answer, “What does Philippians 1:21 mean and how do we quote it properly?” In answering that question, we will cover the themes of suffering, joy, shame, honor, life, and death.
Gospel Unbound
The Philippians heard Paul was thrown in prison and they were distressed by the news. So, after Paul’s prayer in verses 3-11, he does what any good friend does–he fills them in on his present circumstances. He begins verse twelve with, “I want you to know, brothers.” Then things take an unexpected turn. Instead of telling them how he is doing, Paul tells them how the gospel is doing.
It's as if he says, “Guys, I know this looks bad, but what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel.” The whole palace guard and everyone else has heard and realized that Paul is in chains for Christ. Paul was bound, but the gospel was unbound.
This reminds me of an article I came across some years ago. Back in April 2015, a story was released about an ex-drug lord on death row in Indonesia named Andrew Chan. This guy was bad news. So bad, that Indonesian authorities had to keep him in solitary confinement. But it was there, in the loneliest jail cell imaginable where Andrew met God, and his conversion was radical. After he came to faith, Andrew studied for six years to become a pastor. He taught Bible classes, ran a cooking school, and was featured in an antidrug documentary for students during his decade in jail.
But the verdict was passed and Andrew would face execution via firing squad. He stood, along with six other prisoners, before the firing squad on that fateful April afternoon singing “Amazing Grace” and “Bless the Lord, O My Soul.” Andrew was bound, even executed, but the gospel went froth unbound.
By Paul not touching on his own specific and personal circumstances, he is essentially telling the Philippians, “Don’t worry about me, the important thing is the progress of the gospel.” Paul’s imprisonment should have put a pause on gospel progress, but it did the opposite. People only became more confident and bold in their proclamation, and preached the gospel out of love and good will. But others chose to afflict Paul by using his imprisonment as an occasion to preach the gospel out of rivalry and envy.
Suffering, joy, shame, and honor
When we arrive at verse eighteen, Paul takes account of his present circumstance and says, “So what?” Why? Because the gospel is progressing, Christ is being proclaimed, and whether that is happening from false motives or true, Christ is preached and this gives Paul joy. Isn't that amazing? And I think we can learn several things from Paul here. First, God works in and through suffering. Our present circumstances, our various forms of suffering are the means God uses to evangelize the deep regions of unbelief in our hearts.
I know that stings, it stings me too. But I can tell you with the utmost confidence that God is not wasting our suffering, he is using it to advance the gospel in our lives or in the lives of others. Second, when our joy is tied to the gospel and not our physical condition or the affirmation, approval, or acceptance of others, it can withstand even the worst storms in life. Third and finally, we can learn that suffering and joy are two-sides of the same coin.
To quote on author:
[T]he nature of joy…is not the self-satisfied delight that everything is going our way, but the settled peace that arises from making the gospel the focus of life and from understanding that God is able to advance the gospel under the most difficult circumstances.
If our joy is tied to anything but the gospel, all it proves is that our happiness is nothing more than a feather in a hurricane. Here today gone tomorrow. Joy is not just a feeling, it’s a quality of life that proclaims Christ is the solid rock on which we stand and all other ground is sinking sand.
We shift gears now because Paul does. In verses 12-18, he speaks about his present circumstances, but from the second half of verse eighteen to the end of the chapter, Paul speaks of his future circumstances. And what surrounds his circumstances is uncertainty and certainty. What do I mean by that? Paul is uncertain about the outcome of his impending trial, but at the same time, he is certain that whether by life or by death Christ will be honored.
Think about that for a moment. Paul is uncertain about whether he is going to get out of jail dead or alive, but he is completely certain that whether by life or death, Christ will be honored. That’s simultaneously incredible and interesting to me. There is, I’m sure, a significant amount of shame that comes with being imprisoned. The shame of being cut off from society because you break the rules. The shame of feeling guilt or failure for not measuring up to people’s standards. The shame of losing acceptance and approval. The shame of not living an honorable life. But not for Paul.
The opposite of shame for Paul was not his being honored, but Christ being honored. He is saying, “I might be in prison, but I’m prison for Christ’s sake; I may be bound, but the gospel is not bound; I am not at all ashamed, and my mind is made up, let the future bring what it will, Christ will be honored in my life or my death.”
The meaning of Philippians 1:21
That’s how Paul can say, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Paul’s single passion in his life, and I hope it is the same for us, is that Christ will be honored; that Christ will be made to look great; that he will be made to look like the supreme treasure he is. That’s why Paul can say later on in Philippians 3:
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
When you take Philippians 1:21 and Philippians 3:7-11, and put them together, the meaning of Philippians 1:21 becomes clear. “To live is Christ” means living out of your justification; it means living out of your union and communion with Christ; it means living as if Christ is your single passion, pursuit, treasure, pleasure, Lord and Savior. It means living Christ-centered.
I think that's why we misquote Philippians 1:21. We take “To live is Christ” to mean living for Christ instead of living from Christ. If we take Philippians 1:21 as living for Christ and not from Christ, death is not gain, it’s a threat. It’s a threat to your plans, your pursuits, your pleasures, your life, and your kingdom.
But when life is lived from Christ, you can look at all the losses that death will cost you and say, “Add them up. Add up the losses of family, friends, dreams, comforts, and pleasures.” Then look at Christ and say, “gain!”
By having Christ, we have everything–every spiritual blessing (Eph. 1:3) and everything that pertains to life and godliness (2 Pet. 1:3). Christ is our life. Death is only gain when living from Christ is a vibrant reality. Living from Christ means you don’t have to live for approval, you can live from approval. You don’t have to live for acceptance, you can live from acceptance. You don’t love for an identity; you can live from an identity. You don’t have to live for love, you can live from love.
This is where our sin gets exposed. Tell me what you’re living for and I’ll tell you what you’re living from. You want to do great things for God? Good, you should want to. But you can live for Christ and not live from him. To quote John Piper: “You can’t commend what you don’t cherish. You can’t proclaim what you don’t prize.”
You can miss the Giver for the gift. Don’t let that be you.
I think we misquote parts of Philippians because the letter seems to lack a consistent flow of thought. So, we come to these great, powerful verses and take them out of their context because we struggle to nail down exactly the point Paul is trying to get across. That’s what the next couple of posts are for–we are going to look at some of Philippians’ most misquoted verses and find out what they actually say and mean, and how their message applies to us today.
I don’t know about you, but anytime I come to a book in scripture I ask myself, “How did we get here?” Essentially, what I am asking myself is, what circumstances did God sovereignly superintend to bring about the writing of this book? As it relates to Philippians, why did the Spirit lead Paul to write to the Christians at Philippi? To answer that question, we have to go back in time to Acts 16. Consider Luke's account:
Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days.
As we can see. Paul and his crew set out to take the gospel to Asia and Bithynia, and the Holy Spirit forbade them. Why? We don’t know, but I’ll let you wrestle with that one. Paul then receives a vision, and after a few stops, he and company arrive at Philippi gospel ready. If Luke was trying to tell us how the church in Philippi started, he did a good job. Because in the remaining verses of Acts 16, we read that Lydia and her household came to faith, followed by the slave girl, and then finally the Philippian jailer. Talk about a diverse group of people. By the time Paul and Silas left for Thessalonica, a group of believers were already meeting in Lydia’s house.
When we finally arrive at Philippians, Paul is writing to them from a jail cell. From Acts 16 to the opening of Philippians, it is clear that a deep friendship formed between Paul and that church. So much so, that it is not an exaggeration to say that the Philippian church is Paul’s favorite. He says it himself, they are his joy and crown (4:1). But what is Philippians about exactly? I’ve tried to figure that out myself for a while, and it wasn’t until some years ago that I got it. As I’ve studied Philippians, I noticed that most scholars go two ways on the question of what the book is about. They either say it’s about unity or joy.
So, I would read Philippians with those two themes in mind and wrestled with the tension that they cannot both be the main theme, right? I mean, one has to stand above the other as Paul’s main concern. Then it finally hit me. I spent a couple of months rereading Philippians and got it. The book is about the joy that comes from gospel partnership and gospel progress. And it’s right there to see in chapter 1, specifically, verses 3-20.
Paul’s joy springs up from gospel partnership and gospel progress. It is those things that inform Philippians 1:21. The rest of this post will attempt to answer, “What does Philippians 1:21 mean and how do we quote it properly?” In answering that question, we will cover the themes of suffering, joy, shame, honor, life, and death.
Gospel Unbound
The Philippians heard Paul was thrown in prison and they were distressed by the news. So, after Paul’s prayer in verses 3-11, he does what any good friend does–he fills them in on his present circumstances. He begins verse twelve with, “I want you to know, brothers.” Then things take an unexpected turn. Instead of telling them how he is doing, Paul tells them how the gospel is doing.
It's as if he says, “Guys, I know this looks bad, but what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel.” The whole palace guard and everyone else has heard and realized that Paul is in chains for Christ. Paul was bound, but the gospel was unbound.
This reminds me of an article I came across some years ago. Back in April 2015, a story was released about an ex-drug lord on death row in Indonesia named Andrew Chan. This guy was bad news. So bad, that Indonesian authorities had to keep him in solitary confinement. But it was there, in the loneliest jail cell imaginable where Andrew met God, and his conversion was radical. After he came to faith, Andrew studied for six years to become a pastor. He taught Bible classes, ran a cooking school, and was featured in an antidrug documentary for students during his decade in jail.
But the verdict was passed and Andrew would face execution via firing squad. He stood, along with six other prisoners, before the firing squad on that fateful April afternoon singing “Amazing Grace” and “Bless the Lord, O My Soul.” Andrew was bound, even executed, but the gospel went froth unbound.
By Paul not touching on his own specific and personal circumstances, he is essentially telling the Philippians, “Don’t worry about me, the important thing is the progress of the gospel.” Paul’s imprisonment should have put a pause on gospel progress, but it did the opposite. People only became more confident and bold in their proclamation, and preached the gospel out of love and good will. But others chose to afflict Paul by using his imprisonment as an occasion to preach the gospel out of rivalry and envy.
Suffering, joy, shame, and honor
When we arrive at verse eighteen, Paul takes account of his present circumstance and says, “So what?” Why? Because the gospel is progressing, Christ is being proclaimed, and whether that is happening from false motives or true, Christ is preached and this gives Paul joy. Isn't that amazing? And I think we can learn several things from Paul here. First, God works in and through suffering. Our present circumstances, our various forms of suffering are the means God uses to evangelize the deep regions of unbelief in our hearts.
I know that stings, it stings me too. But I can tell you with the utmost confidence that God is not wasting our suffering, he is using it to advance the gospel in our lives or in the lives of others. Second, when our joy is tied to the gospel and not our physical condition or the affirmation, approval, or acceptance of others, it can withstand even the worst storms in life. Third and finally, we can learn that suffering and joy are two-sides of the same coin.
To quote on author:
[T]he nature of joy…is not the self-satisfied delight that everything is going our way, but the settled peace that arises from making the gospel the focus of life and from understanding that God is able to advance the gospel under the most difficult circumstances.
If our joy is tied to anything but the gospel, all it proves is that our happiness is nothing more than a feather in a hurricane. Here today gone tomorrow. Joy is not just a feeling, it’s a quality of life that proclaims Christ is the solid rock on which we stand and all other ground is sinking sand.
We shift gears now because Paul does. In verses 12-18, he speaks about his present circumstances, but from the second half of verse eighteen to the end of the chapter, Paul speaks of his future circumstances. And what surrounds his circumstances is uncertainty and certainty. What do I mean by that? Paul is uncertain about the outcome of his impending trial, but at the same time, he is certain that whether by life or by death Christ will be honored.
Think about that for a moment. Paul is uncertain about whether he is going to get out of jail dead or alive, but he is completely certain that whether by life or death, Christ will be honored. That’s simultaneously incredible and interesting to me. There is, I’m sure, a significant amount of shame that comes with being imprisoned. The shame of being cut off from society because you break the rules. The shame of feeling guilt or failure for not measuring up to people’s standards. The shame of losing acceptance and approval. The shame of not living an honorable life. But not for Paul.
The opposite of shame for Paul was not his being honored, but Christ being honored. He is saying, “I might be in prison, but I’m prison for Christ’s sake; I may be bound, but the gospel is not bound; I am not at all ashamed, and my mind is made up, let the future bring what it will, Christ will be honored in my life or my death.”
The meaning of Philippians 1:21
That’s how Paul can say, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Paul’s single passion in his life, and I hope it is the same for us, is that Christ will be honored; that Christ will be made to look great; that he will be made to look like the supreme treasure he is. That’s why Paul can say later on in Philippians 3:
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
When you take Philippians 1:21 and Philippians 3:7-11, and put them together, the meaning of Philippians 1:21 becomes clear. “To live is Christ” means living out of your justification; it means living out of your union and communion with Christ; it means living as if Christ is your single passion, pursuit, treasure, pleasure, Lord and Savior. It means living Christ-centered.
I think that's why we misquote Philippians 1:21. We take “To live is Christ” to mean living for Christ instead of living from Christ. If we take Philippians 1:21 as living for Christ and not from Christ, death is not gain, it’s a threat. It’s a threat to your plans, your pursuits, your pleasures, your life, and your kingdom.
But when life is lived from Christ, you can look at all the losses that death will cost you and say, “Add them up. Add up the losses of family, friends, dreams, comforts, and pleasures.” Then look at Christ and say, “gain!”
By having Christ, we have everything–every spiritual blessing (Eph. 1:3) and everything that pertains to life and godliness (2 Pet. 1:3). Christ is our life. Death is only gain when living from Christ is a vibrant reality. Living from Christ means you don’t have to live for approval, you can live from approval. You don’t have to live for acceptance, you can live from acceptance. You don’t love for an identity; you can live from an identity. You don’t have to live for love, you can live from love.
This is where our sin gets exposed. Tell me what you’re living for and I’ll tell you what you’re living from. You want to do great things for God? Good, you should want to. But you can live for Christ and not live from him. To quote John Piper: “You can’t commend what you don’t cherish. You can’t proclaim what you don’t prize.”
You can miss the Giver for the gift. Don’t let that be you.
Rev. Mike Hernandez serves as the senior pastor of Crossroads Presbyterian Church. He is a graduate of Trinity International University (B.A.), Knox Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) at Reformed Theological Seminary Orlando. He has written for Gospel-Centered Discipleship and is a member of the National Association of Scholars.
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