Section 7
the saints and the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. According to verse 20, we see that the salvation Paul expected to experience was that instead of being put to shame, in everything Christ would be magnified in him with all bold ness. Thus, for Paul's environment to turn out to be for his salvation means that it would turn out for the magnification of Christ in him. Hence, salvation here is actually Christ magnified in him. The words, "To me to live is Christ" in verse 21 are an explanation of what it means to magnify Christ. To magnify Christ is to live Him. On the negative side, Paul expected that he would not be put to shame; on the positive side, he ex pected Christ to be magnified in him.
According to the context of these verses, sal vation here is not salvation from hell. Instead, it is salvation from being put to shame. If Paul had been sorrowful and downcast when he was in prison, that would have been a shame. Suppose Timothy came to visit Paul and found him weep ing over his difficult situation. What a shame that would have been to Paul! But suppose Paul rejoiced in the Lord and sang praises to Him. Then Christ truly would have been magnified in his body, even though he was a prisoner in Rome. This is the salvation spoken of here.