An aged Paul sits in a room accompanied by a Roman centurion. Both of them are quiet for the time being, Paul is perhaps writing some notes to himself for a letter that he will dictate later to a scribe so that the letter can be sent to Philippi. As if doodling, Paul writes out the words “gar emoi zehn Christos,” — “to live is Christ.”
Over the next few weeks, we will be following the thought lines that may have come from just such a moment as described above. Paul, reflecting on three missionary journeys, countless sermons, conversations, and beatings. By this time that zealous young Pharisee who held the coats as Stephen was stoned must have seemed such a distant memory, although in some ways, maybe it was all too present a reality for him still. He had been through quite a bit, and he was not completely sure of what was ahead of him. The one thing he did know, however, was that to live was Christ.
That great line of Paul’s, “to live is Christ,” expresses what we have been trying to communicate during this “True Presence” annual focus. Not only is God a true presence in our lives that we experience in community, Word, and sacrament, but we are also then made to be His Body – His True Presence in the world.
This is what Paul was noticing. To live wasn’t Saul. To live wasn’t even his new nickname, Paul. To live was Christ. To live was to be filled with His grace and to then become a vessel of that grace for others.
Join us starting this Sunday as we talk about what it means that we can also say “to live is Christ,” and to be His True Presence in the world around us through His grace shown to us.