For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. to live is Christ and to die is gain. And it's of the first portion of that text that I wish to speak this evening, for me to live is Christ. And I wonder what did Paul mean by these words. And I want to suggest to you three ways in which we may think of them. And those three ways are to live by Christ, to live in Christ and to live for Christ. Let me now take some time to explain what I mean by each of those suggestions. Whilst there is an aspect in this text which applies to our physical life, as will become apparent a little later, I think that we mustn't lose sight of the fact that Paul has chiefly in mind spiritual life. For me to live is Christ, concerning the life of the Son of God in the believer. And Paul knew that he did not have that spiritual life naturally. We were reminded of that this morning in the community. This is not something that you come into this world with. He says to the Corinthians in chapter 2 and verse 14 of 1 Corinthians, But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, because they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. And before conversion, the soul is spiritually dead. Dead as far as divine things are concerned. There is no relish in the natural man for holiness, true holiness that is. There's a lot of pretended holiness that the natural man is drawn to, showy holiness, but true holiness is something he has no relish for. There is no sense in which he feels an utter dependence upon God. He is confident in his own righteousness and in his own wisdom. This natural soul of man, in his self-sufficiency, can see nothing attractive or desirable in Christ. As Isaiah says, Who hath believed our report? To whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? He is without form or comeliness. There is no beauty. that we should desire him. He's despised and rejected of men. Not just extreme men, but the men who walk down the street at Loch Bricklin whom you meet every day, the men in your workplace, the children in your school, if they are still in their sins, that is their opinion of Christ. Now it's true that Men of the world may admire the person of Jesus Christ because they see him as a great teacher, a moral teacher, a great example of a selfless life. There are many people who will lord Christ in those aspects. When it comes to acknowledging Christ as the prophet and the priest and the king, they'll have nothing to do with Him. Because to acknowledge Him as a prophet is to bow to His teaching, to submit to it as being the Word of God. To acknowledge Him as a priest is to abandon all confidence in their own righteousness and to acknowledge that they need a mediator. to acknowledge him as a king is to submit to his rule over them and to walk according to his laws and not their own ways. No natural man will do that. This was the case with Paul before he was converted. But upon his conversion, that remarkable experience he had on the road to Damascus, a tremendous change took place in the heart of the Apostle. Then he was, as the scripture says, born again. He was brought from death to life. He was brought out of darkness into light. He was made spiritually alive, given a new nature by the grace of God. He writes again to the Corinthians in 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 17, Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things become new. Peter, in 2 Peter 1 verse 4, echoes this when he says, A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you. And I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and will give you a heart of flesh. Sorry, I'm quoting from Ezekiel there, chapter 36 and verse 26. What Peter says is this, Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these ye may be And this is an interesting phrase, partakers of the divine nature. It doesn't mean, of course, that we become gods. But the image of God that was first given to Adam is renewed in us. We become partakers of the divine nature, a new heart given to us. Having escaped, says Peter, the corruption that is in the world through lust. Well, this new life, this spiritual life, is something that is the gift of God and is absolutely necessary because without it we remain in that condition of death. It's the condition that David lamented when he said in Psalm 51, Behold, I was shapen in iniquity. And in sin did my mother conceive me. And another way we express it, the way our catechism expresses it, is we are born with original sins. The guilt of Adam's first sin, the want of original righteousness and the corruption of our whole nature. That's what original sin is. And all other sins are the emanations of that. You know, if you have a a filthy fountain, then whatever comes out of it will be filthy, won't it? And that's the condition that man is born with in this world. For because this new life is a gift from God to those who are by nature in a state of death, it is described in the scriptures as the first resurrection. In Revelation 20 verse 6 it says, Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. On such the second death hath no power. Raised to new life in Christ. And this life responds with faith in the word, and especially in Christ as he is set forth in that word, with humility and repentance towards God. That is the character of the new heart. The first resurrection gives such a disposition for those who are blessed with it. As I mentioned this in chapter 66 in verse 2, to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit and trembleth at my word. And he's not saying you've got to become like this in order that you might receive the grace of God. He's saying this is the consequence of the grace of God. This is the evidence that the work of grace has taken place. There is a contrite spirit, there is a trembling at the word of God. Paul also came to recognise and to realise that out of Christ he was reckoned dead in another sense, spiritually dead to Christ, but also dead in law. What do I mean by that? Well, in those countries that still have the death penalty, A prisoner or a criminal who has been found guilty and has been condemned to die is reckoned in law to be already dead. And as he waits on death row, he is looked upon as already a dead man in law. And Paul is saying, or teaching, the Bible teaches us that that is our condition also, outside of Christ. We are dead in law. We are under condemnation. The wrath of God abides upon us. Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them. Paul writes to the Galatians. to the Ephesians, we by nature were the children of wrath, even as others. Paul, after his conversion, knew that he had been brought out from under the sentence of death and the wrath of God. Through the imputation of Christ's righteousness, much as a debtor may be cleared of his liability by another paying his debt for him. 2 Corinthians 5 verse 19 God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them. For he hath made him to be sent for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. how the Apostle rejoiced, that grace had brought him from that spiritual death to spiritual life, from indifference to Christ to devotion to him, from under the condemnation of the law to the enjoyment of pardon, from bondage to sin to liberty, by the power of Christ, so that he could say, for me, to live is Christ. He lived by Christ. And then another aspect of this that we mentioned is Paul came to understand that he lived in Christ. What do I mean by that? He understood that the life that he now lived He lived by the grace of the Son of God within him. There's not a life he could live independently of the Son of God. In Galatians 2 verse 20 he says, I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live. Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. The life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. Paul, the apostle, the great warrior for the cause of Christ, knew that without him he could do nothing. He could do nothing. His ability to do good works to bear fruit was not at all from himself, but wholly from the Spirit of the Saviour who revealed himself to him. The Saviour who said in John 15 verses 4 and 5, Abide in me and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can ye. except ye abide in me, and I am the vine, and ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit. For without me ye can do nothing. worthwhile. Paul knew that this was an ongoing necessity. He needed fresh supplies of this grace every moment if he was to live for Christ. He wrote to the Philippians in chapter 2 verse 13, It is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure. And again to the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 3, 5, not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God. How we need to remember that as we go forth from this communion Sabbath into the world to face the world and the flesh and the devil. Are you going to do it in your strength? Or is Christ going to be in you, and you're going to look to Him to enable you. So Paul knew that the life of holiness, the life of self-denial, of taking up the cross, of mortifying the flesh, was not something he could do himself. And he gave God the glory for the strength given him to do all these things. Again writing to the Philippians in chapter 4 verse 13, he says, I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me. That was the secret behind this Apostle's remarkable career. A man who endured so much suffering, so much hardship, so much persecution, the loss of liberty, and finally a martyr's death. In the midst of his trials, he recalled, he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made perfect in witness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in mine infirmities, that the power of Christ might rest upon me. For me to live as Christ, living in Christ, He lived by Christ and he lived in Christ. And then Paul also lived for Christ. For me to live is Christ. To live for the Saviour who had done so much for him. And this is particularly relevant to us, isn't it, as we reflect on the things that we've been meditating upon today and as we've sat at the Lord's table. There is an obligation of gratitude laid upon us to live for the Saviour who loved us and gave himself for us. Paul acknowledged that for all his pious zeal as a Pharisee, he had lived for himself. The pursuit of righteousness by works, which the Pharisees, of course, but renowned for, was really to satisfy his pride, so that he could look down upon others who were not as holy as himself. Isaiah speaks of the heart of such who say, Stand by thyself, come not near me, for I am holier than thou. And we all know the parable of the saviour told of the Pharisee and the publican in the temple. How the Pharisee stood and prayed with himself, God, I thank thee that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week. I give tithes of all that I possess. And I paraphrase, aren't I just And Paul was a Pharisee. And even his persecution of the sect of the Nazarenes, as the early Christians were called, that was motivated by the desire to preserve the status quo with the Pharisees, who were accorded so much honour and privilege in Jewish society. And there was a great threat to that honour and dignity if this new sect was to gain popularity. It was all about himself. But after Paul's conversion, the things which he prided himself upon beforehand, he now cast off as worthless. And we read there in Philippians 3 what things were gained to me, those I counted lost for Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss, for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but done, that I may win Christ. was to live to the glory of the Lord who had redeemed him. God forbid, he says to the Galatians, that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world. Like John the Baptist, Paul could say of Christ He must increase and I must decrease. What a complete revolution in the character of this Pharisee, the grace of Christ wrought. And he knew that in living for Christ, he must, by grace, die to sin mortify the flesh and its lusts, all those affections of the natural man. He writes to the Galatians again in chapter 5 verse 24, they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. He writes to the Colossians in chapter 3 verses 5 and 6, mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth, fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence and covetousness, which is idolatry. For which thing's sake the wrath of God comes upon the children of disobedience? And don't let us fall into the trap of saying, oh, but that doesn't apply to me. Can any of you say you've never coveted? That means you're an idolater. He writes to the Romans in chapter 8 verse 13, if ye live after the flesh ye shall die, but if ye through the spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. To live for Christ means dying to yourself. The great goal of Paul in his renewed life was to run well the race that was set before I press toward the mark, he says, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. And this meant laying aside all the hindrances that might keep him from gaining that prize. Everything must be subservient to that one great end. He speaks of those who run in a race, but one receiveth the prize. We're to run that we might obtain Every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. They do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, he says, not as uncertainty, so fight I, not as one that beateth the air, but I keep under my body and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. There's a sense in which he's talking about self-discipline, isn't he? That's a dirty word today, isn't it? A Christian should live a disciplined life, by the grace of God. We're to remember that we're called to run in a race, but it's not a sprint. It's a marathon. It's a marathon. And when you run a marathon, you have to do as the writer to the Hebrews, who I believe was Paul, says in chapter 12, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience, with patience, the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, of the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. If you're to run a race with patience, that means you're in it for the long haul. It means that you're going to persevere when the first burst of energy has evaporated and the legs are tired and you're thirsty and you've got a stitch in your side. And every part of you is crying out to stop. But you run with patience. You persevere to the end. Because your eye is on the prize. And so Paul professed to live by Christ, to live in Christ, and to live for Christ. For me to live. is Christ. Now I want to conclude by putting a question to you. Can you so, with Paul, for me to live as Christ? And I want you to consider an allied text which Paul wrote to the Colossians in chapter 3, verses 1 to 3. If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on the things on earth, for ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. Now, the believer is said to be risen with Christ and we saw already, this refers to his first resurrection, brought from death to life, being born again But what this text goes on to tell us is that those who are risen with Christ will find that their affections are realigned. They are now to be set on things above and not on the things on the earth. Before conversion, the soul of the natural man, his affections are all for temporary things. Carnal ambition, seeking the praise of men, sensual pleasures, fleeting vain excitements, coveting material prosperity, worldly comforts and luxuries. This is the goal, this is the all-consuming interest of such a man. His affections are set on the things below. Now, if you've asked him, Don't you want to go to heaven? Yes, I want to be in heaven, he says. But his concept of heaven is like a lot of people's view of retirement. Retirement is the time when you can stop doing the things that you don't particularly enjoy and you can indulge your hobbies, your sports, all those pleasures that you had to postpone. And that's the way the natural man thinks of heaven. You hear people talking about, oh, he's gone now to the great golf course in the sky. As if that's what heaven is. Indulgence of the things that the affections were set upon on earth. That's the Islamic view of heaven, isn't it? has been converted, his affections are set on things above. It's what Jonathan Edwards calls the expulsive power of a new affection. All those base affections are now driven out by a new all-consuming affection for the glory of God, to be in the presence of Christ. to have him say to me, well done, good and faithful servant, to receive that prize that the apostle was pursuing. Those things that he desires, though not seen, are apprehended by faith, according to the promise in the divine word. And the affection lays hold of upon that promise. And they're willing to forgo temple comforts, temple benefits, if those things should hinder the attainment of that promise. Like Moses, who esteemed the reproach of Christ's greater riches than the treasures in Egypt, for he had respect unto the recompense of the world. And then the apostle goes on and says, for ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. In what sense does he say to them, ye are dead? In Christ, you are dead to the law. You're reckoned as having paid the penalty the law demands through your union with the person of the redeemed. Can you say that? Do you know yourself to be united to Christ by faith and so dead to the law? The law has no more claim upon you. Not dead to the law as a rule of life, but as a rule for obtaining justification. But you're also dead if you're in Christ to the world, to the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. Augustine, the great church father, said this, No one longs for eternal, incorruptible and immortal life unless he be wearied of this temporal, corruptible and mortal life. Yet simple, isn't it? Let me read it to you again. No one longs for eternal, incorruptible, and immortal life unless he be wearied of this temporal, corruptible, and mortal life. There's another thing that is encompassed in these words, but ye are dead. And that is that the old man has received his mortal wound. He's received his mortal wound. And he's dead in process, if I can put it that way, even though he's still in his death throes. He's dead in process, but he's still in his death throes. And if you're a true believer, you know exactly what I mean when I say that. And then he says, the life of the saints is now hid with Christ in God. I'm going to be very brief. Hid with Christ in God. Four ways in which we might understand it. Firstly, it is hid in that it is secure with Christ in heaven. The perseverance of the saints. Your life, if you are a Christian, is hid with Christ in God. It is also hid. whilst you're in this world, because the life that is in us is often shrouded in present humiliation and miseries and afflictions. And the people of the world look at you and they see you tried and burdened and afflicted with sickness, with sadness, with all sorts of troubles. And they say, is that what it is to live in Christ, but your life is hid with Christ in God. That's why John writes, The world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be. But we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. It's hidden to the world. It's hidden as to its source also. This is the third point. The world cannot see the source of your life in Christ. But let it be true that they recognise that there is some life there by the fruits that are there. The fruits indicate that the tree is alive, don't they? And finally, your life can be hid with Christ in God as a believer because of present sin and infirmity so that you may want the assurance of hope. It's hid to you. when you are indulging the flesh. One would hope, as we have sat around the Lord's table today, that that final form of hiding would be something that we would dread. And that our affections might be taken off from the things of this world, the deceitful lusts of this world and lift it up to heaven, and that we will be able to say with the Apostle, for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. Amen. Let us pray. O gracious Saviour, how we often read these words of the Apostle, for me to live is Christ and to die is Cain. Yet we do not always meditate on what that means and how it applies to us. We have been reminded, O Lord, that this life of which the Apostle speaks is one that is not natural to us. It is a spiritual life. It is something that the Spirit of Christ must work. in regeneration. Lord, may it please Thee, if there be some here this evening who are yet in death, spiritual death, that they might know the operation of that Spirit of Christ in them. And then, Father, we've thought of how this life is in Christ. It is Christ in the believer. giving them the strength to live for Him, for me to live as Christ, because without Him I can do nothing. Lord, may we who profess to know and to believe in Thee, look to Thee for that strength. And we've also been thinking of how for me to live as Christ in the sense of to live for Him. to die unto sin, to live unto righteousness, to know that expulsive power of a new affection, whereby our affections are set upon the things that are above and not on those that are of the earth. O Lord, be merciful to us, we pray, and bless us as we go forth from this place, to be able to say with the Apostle, for me to live. is Christ.