Real Mature (W2D4) To Live Is Christ

Week 2. Thursday: To Live is Christ

PRAY: Ask God to speak to you from His Word.

READ: Philippians 1:21-24

21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

UNDERSTAND: get a deeper understanding of the key words

1. Begin by underlining nouns with a single line, double underline verbs, and circle descriptive words.

2. Make a list of the key words/phrases and think about what they mean.

Snapshot: In this passage Paul reveals his perspective on life. Being in prison, he was in a life or death situation. So for Paul, to go on living is for Christ. He understood that his life was not about himself. Paul lived for Christ and seeing people come to know Christ. Death, in Paul’s view, was personal gain. To die is to be with Christ. Therefore, Paul was torn between the two. If he died, he saw it as personal gain. If he lived, he saw it as a benefit to others.

Takeaway: A life lived for Christ is a life lived for others.

APPLY: What is this passage calling me to do?

Who would you say that you live your life for?

How should knowing that our lives are not just about us change the way we live?

PRAY: Ask God to help you live for more than yourself.