4. In aim.—That of the one is to advance, it may be, a lifeless Church; that of the other to propel the Gospel of Christ.

5. In the depth and accuracy of conviction.—The one “supposing to add affliction to my bonds”; the other “knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.”—Lay Preacher.

MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Verses 19–26.

The Noble Attitude of a Sufferer for the Truth.

I. The hostility of false brethren tends to the enlargement of the truth, whatever may be the fate of the sufferer.—1. He is assured of personal blessing from the Spirit through prayer. “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ” (ver. 19). The apostle already sees how his troubles and suffering may develop his own spiritual life and be a pathway to the glories of heaven. By the prayers of God’s people he looks for an abundant supply of the Spirit, by whose agency his salvation will be perfected. The enemies of the good man cannot rob him of his interest in Christ, and suffering only adds new lustre to every Christian grace. The Port Royalist exclaimed, “Let us labour and suffer; we have all eternity to rest in.” Paul, who, fighting with wild beasts, was a spectacle to angels and men, could reckon that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us.”

2. The greatness of Christ is set forth by the courage given to the sufferer, though uncertain of what awaits him.—“According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but . . . Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death” (ver. 20). With the earnest expectation and hope of future glory, the apostle had no need to be ashamed of his work for God or of God’s work in him; but he regarded his sufferings, not as a setting forth of his own goodness, but of the glory of Jesus, who gave him strength and fortitude to endure. It is in tribulation that the grace of Christ is most conspicuous. The Redeemer was perfected through suffering; so are His followers.

II. The alternative of life or death presents a problem the sufferer is unable to solve.—“What I shall choose I wot not. For I am in a strait betwixt two” (vers. 22, 23).

1. Life has great attractions.—(1) Christ may be further exalted. “For to me to live is Christ” (ver. 21). Life is an opportunity for setting forth Christ, and this is done by carefully copying His example. “As I stood beside one of the wonderful Aubusson tapestries,” says Eugene Stock, “I said to the gentleman in charge, ‘How is this done?’ He showed me a small loom with a partly finished web upon it, and said that the weaver stands behind his work, with his materials by his side, and above him the picture he is to copy, exactly thread for thread and colour for colour. He cannot vary a thread or a shade without marring his picture.” It is a glorious thing for us to have a perfect life for example by which to form our lives. And we cannot vary a hair-breadth from that example without injuring our lives. (2) More results of Christian work may be gathered. “But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour” (ver. 22). The best use of life is to employ it in working for God. Work done for Him will remain when the worker is forgotten. In ministerial work we may garner the most precious fruits. (3) Help may be afforded to others. “Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you” (ver. 24). Paul was the pioneer and founder of Christianity among the Gentiles, and the young Churches looked to him for leadership and counsel. It seemed every way desirable that for their sakes his life should be continued. No one felt this more keenly than himself, though he was assured that if that life was prematurely terminated the cause of the Gospel was safe in the hands of God.

2. Death admits to superior advantages.—“To die is gain” (ver. 21). Even by his death Christ would be glorified, and the apostle admitted not to shame or loss, as his enemies supposed, but to a state of blessed reward.

"Sorrow vanquished, labour ended,
Jordan past."