To Live is Christ, To Die is Gain

These are the notes from the lesson at Impact on February 10, 2010.

Luke 4:1-2/Philippians 1:12-30

I had a lesson written for tonight, and we will look at it next week. Last night and this morning I just really had an aching in my soul. I really felt like the Spirit was moving me to share something else. There is this feeling in my soul that many of us are dealing with distraction, apathy, selfishness, and an overall lack of importance for the Gospel and Kingdom of God. One thing that is difficult for many, especially ministers, is the realization that we cannot actually change anyone or install a paradigm in someone like software. The LORD is the only one who can truly change someone’s heart. Tonight the Word of God, the Bible, will speak to us about something that Jesus did and how that caused Paul to live in an incredible way for Jesus Christ.

1. Jesus Endured On Purpose (vv.1-2) – In Luke we see here that Jesus is starting His public ministry. Right after His baptism, Luke describes Jesus as full of the Holy Spirit and is led by the Spirit into the wilderness. A mistake we can make about this passage is to think that Jesus goes to the desert to fast and pray and the devil ambushes Jesus with temptation. The truth is that Jesus goes into the desert with a purpose of taking on Satan. This is not a chance encounter. Jesus went to show Satan and all of evil that He was here to save the world. He also came to endure these temptations on our behalf. Hebrews chapters 2 and 4 both discuss how Jesus’ temptations were to bring us closer to Him and to show us that through the power of Christ, temptations can be overcome. Hebrews 4:14-16 shows us a glimpse of this. Jesus Christ did something incredible for us during this time in Luke 4, and it’s this type of living that spurs Paul on to live an extraordinary life. Paul writes some amazing words in Philippians chapter one.

2. For Paul, Everything Is About Christ, In Life and In Death (vv. 12-26) – Question: What gives Paul the motivation to live a life such as this? Paul sees every aspect of his life as part of spreading the Gospel: work, prison, punishment, suffering, life, and death. What leads him to live life like this? He knows what Jesus has done for him – how Jesus rescued Him from his sin and brought him into life. Paul knows what kind of life Jesus lived to serve the Kingdom. Jesus is a hero, and Paul is living in that same way. For Paul, the most important thing in his life is Jesus Christ and the Good News about God’s Kingdom. Everything he does fits into that and pursues that goal. Question: What does my/your life pursue? What are our lives being lived for?

3. We Need to “Man Up” (vv. 27-30) – Paul urges the Philippians and us to live the same life – a life totally committed to following Christ. We need to stop letting everything else in life take the place of God in our hearts and live like Him. All throughout the Bible the principle is taught that everything in life pales in comparison to God. All the things we think are so important are vanity compared to the Kingdom of God. We need to be heroes like Jesus is. It’s time for us to “man up” and engage in winning the world for Christ. Question: Have you ever met someone who just inspired you to live a certain way? That’s what happened with Paul when he got to know Jesus more and more, and that’s my prayer for you and me. As we know Christ more and more, I pray that the Spirit of God would ignite in us a passion to live like Him more and more. If you are hearing or reading this and do not know Christ, then you are missing out on the most incredible life. Jesus Christ gives like meaning and fulfillment. Everything else may fill, but it does not ultimately satisfy. Today is a day that you can start your journey with him. We can talk to you more about what that means if you want.

Let’s not waste our lives anymore. Let’s be heroes.


Discussion/Application Questions

1. Is the Gospel something important enough to you to share with others?

2. Do you really know God and the love He has for you?

3. Are you living in the purpose that God has for your life? Are you even looking for it?

4. What is the most important thing in your life?