5 The Joy of Ministry— Part 2: In Spite of Death and the Flesh (Philippians 1:19–26)
for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again. (1:19–26)
Despite the trials, sorrow, and suffering Paul experienced (cf. 2 Cor. 11:23–33), his ministry was nevertheless a joyful experience for him. In this section of Philippians, he discusses four issues that might seemingly have robbed him of joy: trouble, detractors, death, and the flesh. The first two issues (trouble [Paul’s imprisonment] and detractors [those preachers who sought to elevate themselves at Paul’s expense]) were discussed in chapter 4 of this volume. The apostle now reveals that both the threat of impending death and the sorrows of living on in the flesh were also incapable of robbing him of his joy.
IN SPITE OF DEATH—
AS LONG AS THE LORD WAS GLORIFIED
For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (1:19–21)
In the last analysis, it did not really matter to Paul that he was imprisoned, maligned, and facing possible execution as long as the saving gospel of Christ was being preached. He was fully confident that, despite his negative circumstances, the Lord’s cause would triumph. Therefore, he could face death without fear. In verses 19–21 he mentions five realities on which that confidence was based: the precepts of the Lord (v. 19a); the prayers of the saints (v. 19b); the provision of the Spirit (v. 19c); the promise of Christ (v. 20a); and the plan of God (vv. 20b–21).
CONFIDENCE IN THE PRECEPTS OF THE LORD
For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance (1:19a)
Oida (know) means to know something with certainty. Paul was convinced that his present suffering at the hands of both unbelievers and believers would turn out for [his] deliverance. He quotes directly from the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament), citing Job’s reply to Zophar: “This also will be my salvation” (Job 13:16). Job correctly understood that his terrible suffering was not God’s punishment for sin. Like Job, Paul fully believed that God would one day deliver him, both from his physical afflictions and from the false accusations of those who wrongly insisted that all of his suffering was the result of iniquity.
A few years earlier Paul had assured the believers in Rome that “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28); now he applied that marvelous truth to his own life. He knew his conscience was clear (cf. Acts 23:1; 24:16; 2 Cor. 1:12; 1 Tim. 1:5; 3:9; 2 Tim. 1:3); he knew he was not being divinely chastened; and he was fully convinced that God would cause his present suffering to “work together for good.”
Deliverance is from s
t
ria, which is commonly rendered “salvation.” Some commentators therefore believe Paul was referring to his deliverance from sin and death through faith in Jesus Christ. The idea then would be that he was confident in his eternal security. Others take this deliverance to refer to his vindication before Caesar and his consequent release from prison and deliverance from execution. The primary deliverance of which he was speaking could not have been from execution, however, because in verse 20 he qualifies his expectation with the words “whether by life or by death.”
In any case, Paul knew that his present circumstances were temporary. One way or another, “by life or by death,” he would be delivered from them. Verses 21–25 indicate his confident anticipation that he would live. His salvation would be perfected when he was ushered into his Lord’s presence (v. 23). Again, like Job, he could declare, “As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:25–26).
CONFIDENCE IN THE PRAYERS OF THE SAINTS
through your prayers (1:19b)
Paul believed in the limitless sovereignty of God and had perfect confidence that God’s Word would be fulfilled and His purpose carried out. He also knew that God’s sovereign plan incorporates the prayers of His people. He especially appreciated the prayers of the beloved congregation in Philippi and expressed to them his deepest convictions and personal longings.
The apostle knew that “the effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much” (James 5:16), and he therefore not only diligently prayed himself but also continually encouraged other believers to pray diligently. Facing difficult circumstances a few years earlier, he had appealed to the church in Corinth to pray for him:
For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. . . . For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many. (2 Cor. 1:5, 8–11)
Before Paul visited the church at Rome, he had implored those believers: “Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me” (Rom. 15:30). During the same imprisonment in which he wrote Philippians he admonished the Ephesians: “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel” (Eph. 6:18–19). To the Thessalonians he pleaded, “Brethren, pray for us” (1 Thess. 5:25); and later, “Brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified, just as it did also with you” (2 Thess. 3:1).
Nothing is more encouraging to those in ministry than to know that fellow believers are holding them up before the Lord in prayer.
CONFIDENCE IN THE PROVISION OF THE SPIRIT
and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, (1:19c)
The Word of God, the prayers of the saints, and the power of the Holy Spirit always work together for the benefit of the servants of God. Jesus promised, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you” (John 14:16–17; cf. 15:26; Mark 13:11; Luke 12:12; Rom. 8:9). But it seems Paul was speaking here not so much about Christ’s provision of the Spirit to believers at salvation as of the Spirit’s provision of divine power and protection after salvation.
Epichorgia (provision) describes a full, bountiful, and sufficient supply of what is needed. The Holy Spirit is the believer’s sufficient resource for everything he needs. He provides guidance when believers do not know what to say. “Do not worry about how or what you are to say,” Jesus promised; “for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you” (Matt. 10:19–20). The Spirit helps believers to pray. When they are weak and “do not know how to pray as [they] should, . . . the Spirit Himself intercedes for [them] with groanings too deep for words” (Rom 8:26). The Spirit is the source of power. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,” Jesus promised just before His ascension; “and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). To the Ephesians Paul wrote that the Lord “is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us” (Eph. 3:20). Later in Philippians he said, “My God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19). The Spirit produces in the believer’s life an abundant harvest of spiritual fruit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 5:22–23).
CONFIDENCE IN THE PROMISE OF CHRIST
according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, (1:20a)
The implicit idea is that Paul’s earnest expectation and hope were grounded in the Lord’s promise, not in the apostle’s wishful thinking. Apokaradokia (earnest expectation) is a compound word that literally refers to stretching the neck. It often was used figuratively of an eager longing or expectancy, a connotation reinforced by the synonym hope. Paul was certain that, in the eyes of God, he would never truly be put to shame, whether before Caesar, the world, or the church. Ultimately, he would be vindicated. He expressed similar confidence to the Corinthians, saying, “Even if I boast somewhat further about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be put to shame” (2 Cor. 10:8).
Paul expressed his supreme joy when he wrote that Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body. Knowing that the believer’s body is “a temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19), he had presented his body as “a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which [was his] spiritual service of worship” (Rom. 12:1). He carried about in his own body “the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also [would] be manifested in [his] body” (2 Cor. 4:10). Always, including the tough situations, Paul would continue to be an instrument for exalting his Lord through faithful, holy obedience. He rejoiced greatly that, because of his faithfulness, he could testify that the churches of Judea (and throughout the empire) “were glorifying God because of me” (Gal. 1:24).
whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (1:20b–21)
Paul was not certain what God’s plan was for him, whether he would continue to serve and exalt Him through his life and ministry or through the final exaltation of death. Either way, the Lord’s will would be done; His plan would be fully accomplished.
To the elders from Ephesus, who met him on the beach near Miletus, Paul declared unequivocally, “I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). A short while later he said to the believers in Caesarea who were distressed by Agabus’s prophecy of Paul’s impending arrest: “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 21:13). He reminded the believers in Rome that “not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living” (Rom. 14:7–9). Whether he lived or died, the apostle could say now as he would to Timothy a few years later: “I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:6–7). Either way, he would be victorious and Christ would be exalted.
The Greek phrase rendered to live is Christ and to die is gain contains no verb. It literally reads “to live Christ, to die gain.” Paul knew that living is Christ, because he would continue to serve Him while he lived. He also knew that dying would be gain because then he would be in God’s presence, able to worship and serve Him in holy perfection (cf. v. 23). Paul fully understood that wealth, power, influence, possessions, prestige, social standing, good health, business or professional success, and all other such things are transitory. Many acknowledge that truth, but not many live as if it is true. Few can say with Paul’s utter sincerity to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
The apostle’s very being was wrapped up in his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He trusted, loved, served, witnessed for, and in every way was devoted to and dependent on Him. His only hope, his only purpose, his only reason to live was Christ. He traveled for Christ, preached for Christ, and was persecuted and imprisoned for Christ. Ultimately, he would die for Christ. But even death, by God’s marvelous grace, was ultimately for Paul’s eternal gain.
IN SPITE OF BEING IN THE FLESH—
AS LONG AS THE CHURCH WAS BENEFITED
But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again. (1:22–26)
Adoniram Judson was the first overseas missionary sent out from America. In the early nineteenth century, he and his first wife went to India and, a short while later, to Burma, where he labored for nearly four decades. After fourteen years, he had a handful of converts and had managed to write a Burmese grammar. During that time he suffered a horrible imprisonment for a year and a half and lost his wife and children to disease. Like Paul, he longed to be with the Lord, but, also like the apostle, he considered his work for Christ to be infinitely more important than his personal longings. He therefore prayed that God would allow him to live long enough to translate the entire Bible into Burmese and to establish a church there of at least one hundred believers. The Lord granted that request and also allowed him to compile Burmese-English and English-Burmese dictionaries, which became invaluable to the Christian workers, both foreign and Burmese, who followed him. He wrote, “If I had not felt certain that every trial was ordered by infinite love and mercy, I could not have survived my accumulated sufferings.”
Part of spiritual greatness is to know Christ intimately and to long to be with Him. But spiritual greatness also includes being totally committed to the advancement of the kingdom and serving Christ on earth. Every believer lives in such tension. Paul clearly did not escape that dilemma, which he expressed so beautifully and poignantly in verses 22–26. He longed to be with the Lord, but if it was God’s will for him to live on in the flesh, he rejoiced. He knew that would mean fruitful labor for him to the glory of God. The flesh does not refer here to the seat of sinfulness, as in other passages (cf. Rom. 6:19; 7:5,18; 8:5; 2 Cor. 7:1; 10:2; Gal. 3:3), but to physical life (cf. Rom. 1:3; 9:3; 1 Cor. 6:16; 2 Cor. 10:3; Gal. 2:20; 1 Peter 4:1–2).
Fruitful labor is the work of the Lord, which the Holy Spirit always blesses. When “the word of truth, the gospel” is faithfully proclaimed it will be “constantly bearing fruit and increasing” (Col. 1:5–6; cf. Phil. 1:15–18). Paul is not, of course, speaking of good works by which men vainly hope to redeem themselves. All human works are powerless to save and actually vitiate the gracious, redeeming work of Christ (Rom. 3:20–22, 28; 4:1–5; Gal. 2:16–21; Eph. 2:7–9). He is rather speaking of the Spirit-empowered fruitful labor for which we are “created in Christ Jesus, [the] good works which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). It is the fruit of “God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). Spiritual fruit encompasses the Spirit-directed and Spirit-empowered motives and behavior built on the foundation of Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 3:11). It can be divided into several categories. Attitudinal fruit includes the “fruit of the Spirit” (Gal. 5:22–23); action fruit consists of righteous deeds (cf. Phil. 1:11); fruit also includes converts (cf. Rom. 1:13).
Paul was in a quandary about his life and death, confessing, I do not know which to choose. Gnriz (know) is used twenty-seven times in the New Testament, over half of those times by Paul. It is used of revealing something that was previously unknown, whether by the Lord to men (as in Luke 2:15; John 15:15; Rom. 9:22–23) or by men to other men (as in Acts 7:13; 2 Cor. 8:1; Eph. 6:19, 21). Paul’s point seems to be that he had not yet decided which to choose because the Lord had not yet made it known to him which to choose. Because he was not sure of the Lord’s will in the matter, he was not sure of his own.
It was not that Paul opposed the Lord’s will or wanted to be in heaven if God wanted him to continue his ministry on earth. He wanted to do both, and the two desires were equally strong and proper. It is like the dilemma of a wife whose husband has been working far from home for many months and asks her to visit him for a while. Though she loves him deeply and longs to be with him, she also loves her children and wants to stay near them.
Consequently, Paul said I am hard-pressed from both directions. Sunech (hard-pressed) literally means “to hold together.” It was often used of being hemmed in from both sides, as when walking through a narrow gorge. Luke used the word to describe the multitude in Galilee who were “pressing in on” Jesus (Luke 8:45) and of the Lord’s warning, “For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side” (Luke 19:43).
On the one hand, Paul explained that he had the desire to depart and be with Christ. To depart is from analu, which means “to unloose,” like a boat’s being untied from its moorings when it is ready to set sail. The word was sometimes used of a prisoner’s being freed from his bonds, of an animal’s being freed of its burden, or of a military detachment’s breaking camp. Paul alluded to the latter figure in 2 Corinthians 5:1: “We know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” For Christians, death is simply breaking their temporary earthly camp and moving on to their eternal heavenly home. The related noun analusis was often used as a euphemism for death, which Paul had in mind in the present text. In his second letter to Timothy a few years later, he told his beloved son in the faith, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure [analusis] has come” (2 Tim. 4:6).
Philippians 1:23 refutes the false doctrine of soul sleep, the teaching that the dead exist in a state of unconsciousness until their resurrection. When believers die, they immediately depart to be with Christ, like the penitent thief on the cross, to whom Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43; cf. 2 Cor. 5:8). Moses and Elijah’s appearance at the Transfiguration (Matt. 17:3) and the fully conscious martyred Tribulation believers (Rev. 6:9–11) also refute soul sleep. The New Testament uses sleep as a metaphor for death. Stephen “called on the Lord and said, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!’ Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them!’ Having said this, he fell asleep” (Acts 7:59–60; cf. John 11:11–14; 1 Cor. 11:30; 15:20,51; 1 Thess. 4:13–15; 5:10).
The believer’s supreme hope is to be with Christ throughout all eternity, and to depart to be with Him begins that blissful experience. Very much better translates a double comparative in Greek, expressing the highest superlative. Therefore, as far as believers’ personal satisfaction and joy are concerned, going to heaven is obviously very much better than staying on earth.
Like Paul, all believers should “prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8). Then they will be freed from the pain, sorrow, and suffering of this present life and ushered into the Lord’s glorious presence. There they will experience the marvelous freedom of eternal righteousness and glory and
serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them. They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes. (Rev. 7:15–17)
Believers will no longer need to walk by faith, but by sight (cf. 2 Cor. 5:7). They will no longer see God through “a mirror dimly, but . . . face to face,” no longer know “in part, but . . . fully just as [they] also have been fully known” (1 Cor. 13:12; cf. 1 Cor. 8:3). Because they “are children of God, . . . [they] will [then] be like Him, because [they] will see Him just as He is” (1 John 3:2). Job’s confidence will be theirs: “Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God; whom I myself shall behold, and whom my eyes will see and not another” (Job 19:26–27; cf. Pss. 16:10–11; 17:15; 49:15).
Paul’s longing for heaven was not his only concern, however. To the Corinthians he wrote, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home [in heaven with Christ] or absent [continuing to serve Him on earth], to be pleasing to Him” (2 Cor. 5:9). Thus he could say to the Philippians, To remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. As long as the Lord had work for him to do on earth, that is where Paul wanted to be. The apostle applied to himself the admonition he had given to the believers in Corinth: “My beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). Although there was great “daily pressure on [him] of concern for all the churches” (2 Cor. 11:28), he did not consider that responsibility a burden to be alleviated but a joyful opportunity to serve the Lord through serving them.
Later in this epistle, Paul admonished the Philippians: “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others” (2:3–4). They were to
have this attitude in [themselves] which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (vv. 5–8)
Their following Christ’s example would also make Paul’s “joy complete by [their] being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose” (v. 2). It was because he considered the Philippian believers to be better than himself that he could say to them, To remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. Paul would gladly postpone his heavenly blessings for the sake of continuing to serve earthly saints.
Convinced of this need to finish his earthly work, Paul gave his readers the assurance, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again. The apostle knew that the Philippians still needed him. It was not that he considered himself indispensable, but rather that he was convinced that his ministry to them was not yet complete. Because he had just expressed uncertainty about whether he would live or die (1:22–24), it seems that his being convinced reflects his personal conviction rather than a revelation from God. Had God told him he would not die until he had finished his work in the Philippian church, his living or dying would not have been an issue for discussion.
Paul was convinced that the church still needed his instruction and leadership. Despite their maturity, love, and gentleness of spirit, the Philippians needed to exemplify more of their Lord’s humility (2:1–8). They needed to be on guard against false teachers (3:2), to observe and follow Paul’s example, and to oppose the “enemies of the cross of Christ” (3:17–18). At least two members in the congregation needed to learn “to live in harmony in the Lord” (4:2–3). Some, perhaps many, were troubled by anxiety and needed to “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let [their] requests be made known to God” (4:6). In addition to those things, they needed to keep their focus continually on “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute” (4:8).
Paul hoped to remain and continue with the Philippians to promote both their progress and [their] joy in the faith. Earlier he had spoken of the general “progress of the gospel” (1:12). Using the same word (prokop), he speaks here of the particular progress of the Philippian believers, first in their joy and then in the faith. As noted under the discussion of 1:12, prokop has the idea of advancing against obstacles, of facing continual resistance. When Paul and Barnabas “returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith,” they warned that “through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:21–22). Although progress . . . in the faith does not come without a price, it is always accompanied by progress in joy.
So that translates hina, which, when used with a subjunctive verb, introduces a purpose clause. Paul’s continuing to serve the Philippian church would be for the purpose of causing their proud confidence in him to abound in Christ Jesus through his coming to them again. In the Greek text, the phrase in Christ Jesus precedes the phrase in me, and that is the order Paul must have had in mind, the idea being: “in order that your proud confidence may abound in Christ Jesus, as He is seen in me.” In chapter 3 of Philippians he makes it clear that, despite his impeccable religious credentials (vv. 4–6),
whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.(vv. 7–9)
He then goes on to confess: “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet” (vv. 12–13).
Paul had cautioned the Corinthians, “Let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God” (1 Cor. 3:21–23). Thus, it was Christ Jesus working in him that would cause the Philippian believers’ proud confidence to abound.
No circumstances, however severe, could steal Paul’s joy. Nothing could diminish his enthusiasm for the ministry. Nothing could keep him from “always abounding in the work of the Lord, [because he knew] that [his] toil [was] not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58).