Paul may be referring to his death here and called it "poured out like a drink offering;" maybe it's a beheading.
Now, something that was supposed to be gruesome, sad, and emotionally damaging has been turned on its head by Paul, just like the image of the cross, which was supposed to be something shameful to the highest order, has now become a symbol of blessing of the highest order.
Paul said Jesus hanging on a tree means he bore the curse of the law for us because cursed is everyone who was hanged on a tree (Galatians 3:13). He became curse so that we might be blessed (Ephesians 1:3), he became sin so that we can become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Now, Paul had helped this church start in the faith. He went there by revelation after someone in a dream said Come and help us (Acts 16:9-10). So he has a special affinity for this church and he is saying in this verse that even if what he was going to get from it on this side of eternity was death, he rejoices and his happy, because even if it ended in his death, he does not want their mind to just be filled with sadness but for them to reflect on the fact of his sacrifice and service he has done in their midst which he is hopeful would result in praise at the coming of the Lord Jesus.
In the focus verse, he was contrasting two things: the possibility of Jesus Christ coming back before his death, with that not happening before he put off the outer garment (his body).
It takes the eyes of faith to see the dead in Christ and say this person is with Christ, and see beyond the lifeless body.
Paul said that our spiritual reality means we should not mourn as those who do not have hope, and that if on this earth only we have hope we are of all men most miserable, because we actually suffer affliction because of Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:13, 1 Corinthians 15:19). This earth's existence Paul called momentary when compared with what he called the eternal weight of glory (2 Corinthians 4:17).
If you doubt the afterlife, ask yourself the question: where is Jesus now? The one who rose from the dead and ascended into heaven in the view of many?
Remember this verse follows Paul's mentioning of the Day of the Lord (Jesus' return) in the previous verse. So whether Jesus comes back while Paul is still here or after he is poured out, it's all good because of his work, which he called sacrifice, service. In the previous verse, he used the words running and labor.
Service communicates action done for the benefit of others, and labor and running communicate the coming reward. And it's not labor for your own sake, rather for the sake of others.
To be poured out means the life is poured out, his time on earth is ended, but he is not ended.
I am glad and rejoice with you.
This is a life poured out on behalf of others, so to stand before Christ and boast on behalf of the church in Philippians, of the labour he has done, must be really cool, either while he was in the flesh or not.
Somewhere else, Paul described the work of the kingdom as farming, athletics, and soldiering, the single-minded pursuit of the good of others for the cause of Christ with all vigor, and all with a reward-end in view (2 Timothy 2:3-6). And not focused on the temporary pain or box as one beating the air (1 Corinthians 9:26-27).
His motivation is clear, his calling is clear, his pursuit is clear, he has fruit to show for it in the changed lives, and in the knowledge of the true Christ that the people have embraced.
And don't blame Paul for his strong emphasis on the knowledge of Christ, rather than just moral change.
He himself said that when it comes to the observance of the law, he was perfect, but in that he was as lost as lost can be (Philippians 3:4-9). He was a first-class Pharisee in devotion, adherence, and zeal, but he lacked the true knowledge of Christ that saves. That is why he devoted his life to preaching Christ, the true knowledge of Christ, rather than just behavior change or appearance change, or pleasing humans, etc.
He wrote to one church, I don't want to know anything among you except Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 2:2).
He is laser-focused on faith, on the true knowledge of Christ, on righteousness, not from the law but by faith. That is why he said that whatever he may have because of his natural heritage, his pedigree, his adherence to the law, it is something that is noxious to him, and Christ is all in all (Colossians 3:11).
From Addiction to Freedom by Favour Oyinloye
