📖 SERMON TITLE: "If I'm Still Here…"
- Terry W. Bailey
- Jul 19
- 3 min read
✝️ Text: Philippians 1:20–21
“According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness… Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
🗣️ Introduction – From My Heart to Yours
My beloved friends, I come before you today not as a preacher behind a pulpit or a theologian hidden in books, but as a man fully dependent on God, supported entirely by the government, and kept alive by oxygen and a feeding tube. If the day comes — and I believe it’s near — that a government-mandated digital economy requires me to choose between compliance or survival, let me tell you where I stand.
I stand with Jesus.
Not because I want to die. Not because I’m brave. But because I have assurance from the Word of God that whether I live or die, I belong to the Lord.
📖 Point 1: We May Still Be Here — And That’s Biblical
Some of my brothers and sisters believe we’ll be raptured before it gets bad. I pray that’s true. But Scripture does not guarantee that we’ll escape all tribulation.
🔹 John 16:33 – “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
🔹 2 Thessalonians 2:3 – “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first…”
🔹 Revelation 13:7 – The beast was given power “to make war with the saints, and to overcome them…”
The early church suffered. Many died. Others endured persecution and famine. So, if we find ourselves still here during a cashless, controlled society, that’s not proof God failed. That’s proof, He warned us ahead of time.
📖 Point 2: God Will Sustain Us — Even Without the System
Let me be clear. If I can’t buy or sell without compromising my soul, I won’t. Even if my oxygen gets cut off… even if my food runs dry… even if my very breath is threatened — a machine does not sustain my life, but by my Master.
🔹 Matthew 6:25–33 – “Take no thought… what ye shall eat… your heavenly Father knoweth ye have need of these things.”
🔹 Psalm 37:25 – “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.”
🔹 Isaiah 33:16 – “Bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.”
And if I perish?
Then Philippians 1:21 becomes my anthem: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
📖 Point 3: This Message is for Saints and Sinners Alike
To the Christian who’s comfortable — wake up. To the unbeliever who’s not ready, repent. To the fearful who think they won’t make it — God is faithful.
Whether we’re still here to face the system, or taken home in glory — the truth remains:
🔹 Romans 14:8 – “Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”
This is not the time for lukewarm faith. This is the time for a Daniel-like resolve, an Esther-like courage, and a Jesus-centered endurance.
🕊️ Conclusion – My Commitment, Your Choice
Friends, I say this with all the love in my heart:
If they turn off my oxygen, they can’t turn off my Savior.
If they cut off my tube, they can’t cut off my testimony.
If they cancel my payments, they can’t cancel His promises.
I don’t know what tomorrow holds. But I know Who holds me. Jesus.
And I know this world is passing away. But His Kingdom is eternal.
🙏 Invitation
If you’ve never surrendered your life to Jesus, do it now. If you’re a Christian living in compromise, come home. If you're discouraged, take courage — the Lord is with us in the fire.
📖 Revelation 2:10 – “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.”
💬 "If they find me dead with no food or breath left in me, let it be said I refused the mark, but I kept the faith."
🚨 What if the Rapture doesn’t come before the storm?
Can you still stand if your money, medicine, or very life is threatened?
“I will not bow to the beast.”
✝️ Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
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