"Pulled in Two Directions"

Our sermon for today was taken from Philippians 1:21-30. "Pulled in Two Directions." Again the pastor delivered a soul searching message. Paul is talking to the Philippians through a letter he has written while in jail. Paul was troubled by the opposition of other Christian workers toward him and was distressed by false teaching in the church at Philippi. Paul is spending a lot of time in prison because of his teaching of Jesus Christ. In this letter Paul is trying to encourage the Philippian Christians and reassure them that they must have  courage and confidence in spite of all his troubles and their own as well. In verse 21 Paul is telling the Christians that for him to live is Christ. Death would bring him more joy, but he says, "if I continue to live I can do more worthwhile work, then I am not sure which I should choose." v.23 "I am pulled in two directions. I want very much to leave this life and be with Christ, which is a far better thing; but for your sake it is much more important that I remain alive." Paul says, "I am sure I will stay with you." v.28 Don't be afraid of your enemies; always be courageous, and this will prove to them that they will lose and that you will win, because it is God who gives you the victory. v.29-30 For you have been given the privilege of serving Christ, not only by believing in him, but also by suffering for him. Now you can take part with me in the battle. It is the same battle you saw me fighting in the past, and as you hear, the one I am fighting still.
Dear friend and loved ones, like Paul, at one time in my life I thought it more blessed to die than to live. I don't mean that I had so many problem that I wanted to die; I mean that Jesus became so real to me that I just wanted to be with Him. Then He spoke to me saying, "I am not through with you on earth you must suffer many tribulations before you come to be with me." That was many years ago and believe me I have suffered a lot. I still do and I will till Jesus takes me home. But one thing for sure, there is no victory without a battle. To those of you who may be at your ropes end, just admit that you have been a failure because you would not give it all to Jesus. It is never too late to unload all you troubles on Him. That is what He begs you to do every day of your life. It hurts Him to see you suffer more than it hurts you. He will give you peace that you never thought was possible.
God bless
Myrtle Jean Sharp