The Best Choice Of Paul
THE BEST CHOICE OF PAUL
In Philippians 1:21 Paul says, "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." In this verse there is a contrast between Christ and gain. Some may think that the gain here refers to Christ. Although in a sense it may refer to Christ, it refers to Christ in a different way, not to the Christ we experience by living Him. In a practical way, the gain in verse 21 is the presence of Christ. When Paul said, "To die is gain," he meant that to die is to enjoy Christ's presence in a better way. In verse 23 Paul says that his desire is to depart and to be with Christ. To be with Christ is a matter of degree, not of place. While Paul was desiring to be with Christ in a higher degree, he was already with Him continually. Through his phys ical death, he would be with Christ to a fuller extent than he enjoyed in this earthly life.
When Paul was in prison, he enjoyed Christ and experienced Him in two ways. One way was to enjoy the presence of Christ, and the other way was to live Christ. There is a vast difference between enjoying the presence of Christ and living Christ. For example, I may enjoy my wife's