Philippians 1:20

According to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing shall I be put to shame, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether by life, or by death.

The great truth evident in this verse was concisely stated by Boice: "Christ must be magnified in the bodies of those who believe in him, or he will not be magnified at all.[38] God is not magnified in political movements, earthly cathedrals, temples or church houses, but in the bodies of Christians. "Ye are the temple of the Holy Spirit?' God did not dwell even in the temple of Solomon (Acts 7:47,48). "Solomon in the prayer of dedication acknowledged that heaven and earth could not contain God, much less a building he had constructed.[39] As Boice stressed:

Throughout history this truth has been perverted over and over. Men have often made the mistake of identifying the hand of God with the development of Reformation churches, the cause of democracy, the movement for prohibition, pacifism, or even rights. But God is not magnified in these ... God's hand is seen only in the lives of men who honor God.[40]

Paul's determination that whether he lived or died he would honor Christ provoked the Great Soliloquy in the next few verses.

[38] James Montgomery Boice, op. cit., p. 80.

[39] Ibid., p. 81.

[40] Ibid., p. 80.