Week 3: Chapter 3 — Magnifying Christ Through Pain and Death

1.Piper's goal, drawn directly from Philippians 1:20, is to magnify Christ 'whether by life or by death.' Why is death the supreme test of whether God is truly our treasure? What would it reveal about a person's true values if they faced death without peace?

2.He argues that Paul's willingness to die was not rooted in stoic detachment or fatalism, but in confident expectation — 'to die is gain' (Philippians 1:21). What exactly would be gained at death for the person who is truly satisfied in God? Why doesn't this logic work for someone whose treasure is in this world?

3.Piper examines how Paul responds to his own imprisonments and suffering in Philippians — not with bitterness but with joy, because the circumstances advanced the gospel (Phil. 1:12). Have you ever experienced a situation where what felt like a setback became an unexpected avenue for Gospel witness? What happened?