Thomas J Parlette
“Thinking Out Loud”
Philippians 1: 21-30
9/20/20
In what is arguably Shakespeare’s greatest play, we see Hamlet thinking out loud about whether it is better to suffer the tragedies of life or just end it all.
“To be or not to be…
To live, or to die? That is the question.
Is it nobler to suffer through all the terrible things
Fate throws at you, or to fight off your troubles,
And, in doing so, end them completely?
To die, to sleep – because that’s all dying is –
And by a sleep I mean an end to all the heartache
And the thousand injuries that we are vulnerable to –
That’s an end to be wished for!
To die, to sleep. To sleep, perhaps to dream – yes,
But there’s the catch. Because the kinds of
Dreams that might come in that sleep of death –
After you have left behind your mortal body –
Are something to make you anxious.
That’s the consideration that makes us suffer
The calamities of life for so long.
Because who would bear all the trials and tribulations of time –
The oppression of the powerful, the insults of arrogant men,
The pangs of unrequited love, the slowness of justice,
The disrespect of people in office,
And the general abuse of good people by bad –
When you could just settle all your debts
Using nothing more than an unsheathed dagger?
Who would bear his burdens, and grunt
And sweat through a tiring life, if they weren’t frightened
Of what might happen after death –
That the undiscovered country from which no visitor returns,
Which we wonder about and which makes us
Prefer the troubles we know rather than fly off
To face the ones we don’t? Thus the fear of
Death makes us all cowards, and our natural
Willingness to act is made weak by too much thinking.
Actions of great urgency and importance
Get thrown off course because of this sort of thinking,
And they cease to be actions at all.
But wait, here is the beautiful Ophelia!
Beauty, may you forgive all my sins in your prayers.”(1)
Paul, too, is thinking out loud today as he faces the very real possibility that he will be executed. Paul’s words here are reminiscent of Hamlets soliloquy when he says, “For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. I do not know which I prefer, I am hard pressed between the two.” Although they muse on the same topic, the two come to very different conclusions.
Philippians is the most unabashedly affectionate of Paul’s letter. There is nothing here like the frustration found in Galatians or the chiding tone in the Corinthian letters. No, the church in Philippi is clearly near and dear to Paul’s heart.
Paul has three main points he wants to communicate to he friends in Philippi. First and foremost, he wants to thank them for there are and generous support of him.
Paul also wants to encourage the Philippians to be steadfast and single-minded in their loyalty to the gospel and to each other.
And finally, Paul wants to comfort and strengthen the Philippians in the light of some kind of unknown persecution that they were facing or expected to face in the near future.(2)
It is this theme – comfort in the face of suffering and single-mindedness among believers that informs this passage for today.
Paul uses his own possible execution as a starting point. He ponders aloud if it might be better to die – and be with Jesus, than go on living and dealing with all the persecution that comes his way.
Ultimately, unlike Hamlet, who seems to end his soliloquy in a rather hopeless state, Paul comes to the conclusion that it is better to suffer his “slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” because the Philippians need him around to encourage and guide them. Paul encourages us to choose life, as the t-shirt from the 80’s used to say, which allows us to continue to witness to the power of the Resurrected Christ.
“Paul’s own afflictions,” writes Professor Morna Hooker, are not described in a negative way. Instead, they “are seen as an opportunity for the gospel: people talk about his case; therefore, they learn about the Christian faith, and other Christians are encouraged to make a similar stand.” Faced with an ending, Paul becomes stronger, more focused, more productive and more positive. As Paul muses about death, he sees new life.
The church can take comfort from Paul’s words, especially in times of struggle and persecution. “Throughout history, persecution has often strengthened the church,” writes Professor Hooker. “The amazing fact that oppression leads to growth reflects the paradox that lies at the heart of the gospel – namely, that God’s power is revealed through the weakness of the cross and that victory comes through apparent defeat.”(3)
Knowing that his on end may be near, Paul offers some advice to the Christians in Philippi, advice that is equally valuable to us today. Live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or I am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel.
Paul wants us to live in a manner worthy of the gospel, always showing the grace and love of Jesus Christ. He wants us to become stronger and more focused, standing firm in one spirit and striving side by side with one mind. Such strength and unity doesn’t often happen in good times. In fact, it usually happens in difficult times.
Arlington Presbyterian Church, west of the Pentagon in Virginia, worshiped in a beautiful stone sanctuary for more than 80 years. But over the years, the congregation had watched their numbers dwindle, and it’s aging building had become a burden. But instead of selling its 10 million dollar property and building a new sanctuary somewhere else, the congregation made a bold move, meant to benefit their surrounding community.
As you might expect, the cost of living in Arlington in extremely high – many teachers, store clerks and first responders can no longer afford to live where they work. So Arlington Presbyterian joined forces with a nonprofit group that builds affordable housing. The church sold its land to the nonprofit group, and then the group constructed a six-story building on the site of the church, with five floors of affordable housing above retail space on the first floor. On the first floor, the church now rents space for offices, meetings and worship.
The transformation of Arlington Presbyterian was not an easy process, and there was struggle both inside and outside the church. Paul’s words to the Philippians provided good advice to them – to live in such a way that you are “in no way intimidated by your opponents.” The congregation “risked it all for the sake of their neighbors,” says Ashley Goff, who became the pastor of the church after the change had begun. “It’s almost like they became curious about death, the curiosity of how to die well,” says Goff.
Fortunately, the church did not die. More than 400 people have moved into the building, and Arlington Presbyterian is now meeting in its new space. The congregation has become stronger and more focused, standing firm and striving side by side with one mind. They are experiencing new life after looking death in the face. And this, Paul would say, “is God’s doing.”(4)
This text from Philippians, Paul’s soliloquy on life and death, is an invitation to focus on hope, to find joy in the midst of all of life’s circumstances, so that God may be glorified. Gospel living is not about finding an easy way out. It is about learning to see hope and possibilities even in the darkest moments of our lives.(5)
By choosing life instead of dwelling on death, we choose to look beyond our circumstances and believe that God will show us a way through our difficult times. God will lead us out. There is no need to abandon hope; rather, we may embrace it and live.(6)
That is God’s invitation for all of us today. In the midst of whatever you are living through, choose life.
May it be so for you and for me.
May God be praised. Amen.
1. Ben Florman, www.litcharts.com, retrieved 9/10/20.
2. David Bartlett, Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p87, 89.
3. Homileticsonline, retrieved 9/8/20.
4. Ibid…
5. Gilberto Collazo, Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p88.
6. Ibid… p90.
