For The Love Of Christ Controls Us
“For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.”
2 Corinthians 5:14–15
What if the One True Gospel of Jesus Christ changed you so much, that you no longer lived for yourself? What if the Saving Work of Jesus Christ—the Perfect Atonement for your sins—changed you so much, that you no longer desired to live like the world? What if the Love of Christ controlled you so much that you were compelled to persuade others to follow Jesus?
It should. Your life should be transformed by the power of the Gospel. This verse is your testimony.
“You have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer you who live, but Christ who lives in you. And the life you now live in the flesh you live by faith in the Son of God, who loved you and gave himself for you.”
Galatians 2:20 (substituted “I” for “you”)
Jesus Christ died for you, so that you might live for Him.
A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ has three distinguishing characteristics, that we can take away:
1) You die to yourself. A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ has died to himself.
Your sinful desires are put away. Your desire to be like the world is gone. All of your selfishness is crucified. If you are selfish in your marriage, you need to die to yourself. If you are selfish at work, you need to die to yourself. If you are selfish with your relationships, you need to die to yourself. To die to yourself is to see everything in your life as secondary to what God commands for us to obey in His Word. You must die to yourself.
2) A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ lives for Christ.
Not only have you died to yourself, but you are living for Christ. There are some people who think that dying to yourself is causing yourself to have the worst life possible at all time. Sacrifice yourself in every way possible. Force yourself to have a terrible life. No. Along with dying, you are to live for Christ. You seek what He wants for your life. You desire what He has called for you! You find JOY in the things of God! Living for Christ is living by the Spirit of God. Look at Galatians 5:16–25, because God has already given us an understanding of what our lives should look like:
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”
A life controlled by the Love of Christ is SOLD OUT and lives for Christ.
3) A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ persuades others.
We cannot miss the purpose of Paul’s ministry. His purpose is to preach the Gospel. His purpose is to represent the King as an Ambassador for Christ. And the same should be true for us. Our desire should be that the world around us might know that Jesus Christ is Lord of all. And your life should reflect this desire. Have you told your kids? Have you told your parents? Have you told your friends? Have you told your co-workers? Have you told your neighbors?
We must follow Paul’s example and live in such a way which persuades others to put their trust in the Truth of the Word of God.
It should. Your life should be transformed by the power of the Gospel. This verse is your testimony.
“You have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer you who live, but Christ who lives in you. And the life you now live in the flesh you live by faith in the Son of God, who loved you and gave himself for you.”
Galatians 2:20 (substituted “I” for “you”)
Jesus Christ died for you, so that you might live for Him.
A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ has three distinguishing characteristics, that we can take away:
1) You die to yourself. A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ has died to himself.
Your sinful desires are put away. Your desire to be like the world is gone. All of your selfishness is crucified. If you are selfish in your marriage, you need to die to yourself. If you are selfish at work, you need to die to yourself. If you are selfish with your relationships, you need to die to yourself. To die to yourself is to see everything in your life as secondary to what God commands for us to obey in His Word. You must die to yourself.
2) A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ lives for Christ.
Not only have you died to yourself, but you are living for Christ. There are some people who think that dying to yourself is causing yourself to have the worst life possible at all time. Sacrifice yourself in every way possible. Force yourself to have a terrible life. No. Along with dying, you are to live for Christ. You seek what He wants for your life. You desire what He has called for you! You find JOY in the things of God! Living for Christ is living by the Spirit of God. Look at Galatians 5:16–25, because God has already given us an understanding of what our lives should look like:
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”
A life controlled by the Love of Christ is SOLD OUT and lives for Christ.
3) A life that is controlled by the Love of Christ persuades others.
We cannot miss the purpose of Paul’s ministry. His purpose is to preach the Gospel. His purpose is to represent the King as an Ambassador for Christ. And the same should be true for us. Our desire should be that the world around us might know that Jesus Christ is Lord of all. And your life should reflect this desire. Have you told your kids? Have you told your parents? Have you told your friends? Have you told your co-workers? Have you told your neighbors?
We must follow Paul’s example and live in such a way which persuades others to put their trust in the Truth of the Word of God.
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The Transformative Power, Profundity and Promise of the Simple Gospel, part 1The Transformative Power, Profundity and Promise of the Simple Gospel, part 2The Transformative Power, Profundity and Promise of the Simple Gospel, part 3The Transformative Power, Profundity and Promise of the Simple Gospel, part 4
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