Paul may be facing the end of his days on earth. But he knows that God may choose to leave him here for a while more. Whichever may be the case, he encourages the Philippian believers to stay strong.

Take a look at this week’s passage in Philippians 1:27-28:

With these verses, Paul shifts from talking about his own circumstances and begins to exhort the Philippian believers to stand strong in unity and one spirit. The only way the gospel message could be presented effectively was through a unified stance together. The same is true today.

Paul begins this exhortation with the statement, “whatever happens.” This phrase is a very emphatic marker, bringing the reader’s attention to the next words. What does Paul state next? That the Philippians should conduct themselves “in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” Remember, this letter is addressed to the community of believers at Philippi, so Paul is not speaking of personal holiness here, although that application can certainly hover as a secondary idea from this and other Pauline passages.

Paul’s primary concern here is for the conduct of the believers as a group, as a community. Philippi was known for their pride in their Roman citizenship. And yet, as Christians, their citizenship is in heaven. Their lives should display this, especially as a community of believers, together.

Though Paul is torn in Philippians 1 about whether he should desire to stay on earth or depart to be with Christ, his way is clear, and this week’s passage explains why.

You can see Paul’s decision in Philippians 1:25-26:

In the previous passages, Paul seems to understand that his death is near, and that he may soon be a martyr for Christ. In fact, the previous verses seem to suggest strongly that Paul was not long for this world.

But in these verses, he seems to possess a new confidence, knowing that his life would continue,at least for a while longer, in order to serve more.

It is unclear where this newfound confidence comes from. Did God reveal something to Paul? Perhaps a legal decision was made in his favor for his impending trial in Rome? We simply do not know. And from Paul’s suggestion in 2:17, his expectation of continued life may not be certain.

What we do know is that Paul will continue to serve the gospel and Christ for as long as he is able. He may long for a reunion with the people of Philippi. But if that should not happen, he is standing with them “in the faith.” In the meantime, he will “continue” with them, probably a referral to his continued prayers and love for the Philippians as they serve Christ together.

Paul’s desire is that he rejoin the Philippians soon. His presence with them once again will increase their joy. The word for “joy” here can also be translated as “boasting,” or even as “glory.” Paul’s life, especially if released to return to Philippi, would bring something of all of these definitions to the Philippian believers. Their joy would increase. They would have more reason for boasting about what God has done. And they would bring glory to Christ as a result.

The previous two verses are some of the most often quoted in this letter to the Philippians. But this week’s passage shows Paul’s heart perhaps even more clearly.

Take a look for yourself in Philippians 1:23-24:

Paul is very agitated. He knows that his time on earth may be short, and he fully expects that his imprisonment may not end well. But he also realizes that to live means that he will continue to preach the Gospel, and to die is to stand in the presence of Christ himself!

He is torn, and doesn’t know which to long for more.

In fact, in this passage, he makes the statement, “I am torn between the two.” This is a word that conveys the idea of being pulled strongly in two different directions, with pressure from two equally strong desires, causing Paul great agitation and anxiety.

It is clear, that if he is forced to chose between the two, his greater desire is to depart and stand before Jesus. The word “depart” is a military term, meaning to strike camp, or a nautical term, meaning to release the moorings and set the vessel free. Paul is ready to die. In fact, this is the more preferable outcome because of the end result. He would be ushered into the presence of God finally and eternally.

While Paul’s theology on what happens at death is sketchy, whether there is a period of waiting until Christ’s triumphant return or he is in the presence of God immediately, his point here is clear. It is better to be ready for death than to be able to understand the process fully.

The letter to the Philippians is perhaps the most human of all of Paul’s writing. What I mean by that is that in this brief letter you see his heart more clearly than anywhere else. And in this week’s passage, we see it the most clearly of all.

You can find this glimpse of Paul’s heart in Philippians 1:21-22:

Paul’s letter is full of rejoicing. He loves seeing the Philippians grow in their faith. He loves knowing that they are pursuing the gospel whole-heartedly. He is excited about the levels of spiritual maturity they are displaying through their behaviors and actions. He loves seeing them grow, even from afar.

On the other hand, he longs to be with them to encourage them more as they deepen their faith. But he is hindered by prison, and he does not know if he will survive it or not.

In this passage, we see clearly how torn Paul is. He earnestly desires to stay and continue to advance the gospel, in partnership with the Philippian believers. But on the other hand, if he dies, he stands in the presence of Jesus himself! His heart is torn by the choice he faces.

Paul’s statement here refers directly back to the previous statement in verse 20. And at the same time, it is perhaps one of the greatest statements of personal conviction and devotion to the faith ever uttered.

The thought that Paul began at the beginning of this paragraph, which we looked at last week, is continued in the remainder of this passage. Last week, we saw his thoughts about those who preach from pure motives. In this passage, he turns to those whose motives are wrong.

You can see it for yourself in Philippians 1:17-18b:

Paul addressed those who preach from pure motives at the beginning of this passage. His attention now turns to those who have the wrong motives for preaching. These people are probably those who are jealous of Paul’s leadership and authority, wanting to hold such positions themselves. It is worth noting again that Paul does not condemn these people for preaching incorrect doctrine. He only addresses their motives.

These teachers and preachers were placing their own egos and their desire for recognition above the message of the gospel. They were preaching the truth, but they were doing it for the wrong reasons.

It seems as if they were doing as much as possible to stir up trouble for Paul, in whatever way that they could. Just how they were doing this is not clear. It may be that they were intentionally preaching to stir up the community, knowing that Paul was in prison. This could adversely affect his legal standing, and cause serious problems.

However, Paul’s perspective is not what they expect. Instead of attempting to stop them, Paul finds encouragement in what they are doing. After all, either way, the gospel is being preached!

The Philippians had some experience with people who preach the gospel with wrong motives. In this week’s passage, Paul addresses this, and clarifies the difference between such people and himself.

Take a look at this passage in Philippians 1:15-16:

In Paul’s experience, and apparently the Philippian believers had experienced it as well, people preached the gospel from two motives. Some preached out of envy and rivalry, while others preached the message out of goodwill and love. In Paul’s opinion, either motive resulted in Christ being preached, and thus brought joy to him.

Remember, Paul is in prison, and word has reached him that many others are preaching the message, but Paul senses that the Philippian believers are troubled by those with wrong motives. The preaching he is referring to is that mentioned in the previous verse, but not all of them are doing so appropriately.

The main concern here is the motive, and not the message. Paul doesn’t indicate that those preaching with the wrong motives are preaching the wrong message, or a heretical one. It seems that the message was correct, but the motives were not.