1:23
Paul finds it very difficult to choose between the two. For in terms of his own well being, dying and going to be with the Lord is far better, for it means eternal life! Now why is Paul saying all this? For as I noted in the previous base, the decision wasn’t up to him, it was up to God. It wasn’t his choice to make. Maybe he is saying all this for the sake of the Philippians. They would naturally be worried about him. Paul wanted them to have no worries, and to see things differently. So he is taking them through his thought processes so that they can think differently. So that they can be transformed by the renewal of their minds.
1:24
While going to be with the Lord might be the best thing personally for Paul, it was “more necessary on your account” for him to “remain in the flesh”, i.e. to stay alive. Being a Christian is not just a matter of sitting around until we go to heaven! God has a purpose for us here (Eph 2:10), and what we do here matters. Could God have used someone else other than Paul? Of course He could, but that was not what God had chosen. God has a purpose for our lives, and that includes what we do in this life.
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