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 ESV)
One of the great hindrances to acceptance of God’s free gift of grace is the idea that without fear, guilt and reward (all three of which do not exist in the gospel truth) we are out of control. If I can do nothing to please God then I assume that I will do whatever I want or nothing at all. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
When we are motivated by guilt, fear and reward we are bound up in stress all the time. We do things because we ‘have to’. We go to church, give, witness and behave kindly toward others because we ‘have to’. The problem is that human beings are not designed to live life on the basis of ‘have to’ and as a result, we end up burned out and exhausted at best and physically ill at worst. Through all of this we seldom realize that the reason we do these things is to gain acceptance either from God or our fellow man. We can work ourselves into the grave seeking to be loved and accepted.
Paul says that it is the love of Christ that controls those who have concluded that he died for them. In Christ, we find the love and acceptance that we yearn for given as a gift without condition – not only do we not have to earn it, but we can’t. Our search for those things ends, and we stop living for ourselves (seeking love and acceptance by any and all means) and begin to live as free creatures in him. In him we find what we are longing for, so our longing stops and living truly begins.
Be certain that Paul is speaking here of his love for us, not ours for him. Our love is incredibly faulty and fickle – it will love someone else (even God) so long as that someone else is making us happy. It is the knowledge of how much he loves us that controls us, and that knowledge comes in the form of the gospel. It is good news that announces “one has died for all, therefore all have died…” We are dead to ‘have to’ and rose again to live in Christ; our compelling desire for acceptance does not change, but in Christ it is totally satiated. The trick is to come to the conclusion that God accepts you constantly – to expose yourself to and preach the gospel to yourself daily and hourly. When we fail to do so, we quickly forget his acceptance and fall back into our old ways.
If you are afraid that letting go of the law will lead you to lawlessness – that being outside the law is scary because there seems to be no mechanism which controls you – rest assured. Christ controls those who live according to the gospel truth not through fear, guilt or reward but by completely acceptancing and loving us despite our many flaws.
God Bless
When we are motivated by guilt, fear and reward we are bound up in stress all the time. We do things because we ‘have to’. We go to church, give, witness and behave kindly toward others because we ‘have to’. The problem is that human beings are not designed to live life on the basis of ‘have to’ and as a result, we end up burned out and exhausted at best and physically ill at worst. Through all of this we seldom realize that the reason we do these things is to gain acceptance either from God or our fellow man. We can work ourselves into the grave seeking to be loved and accepted.
Paul says that it is the love of Christ that controls those who have concluded that he died for them. In Christ, we find the love and acceptance that we yearn for given as a gift without condition – not only do we not have to earn it, but we can’t. Our search for those things ends, and we stop living for ourselves (seeking love and acceptance by any and all means) and begin to live as free creatures in him. In him we find what we are longing for, so our longing stops and living truly begins.
Be certain that Paul is speaking here of his love for us, not ours for him. Our love is incredibly faulty and fickle – it will love someone else (even God) so long as that someone else is making us happy. It is the knowledge of how much he loves us that controls us, and that knowledge comes in the form of the gospel. It is good news that announces “one has died for all, therefore all have died…” We are dead to ‘have to’ and rose again to live in Christ; our compelling desire for acceptance does not change, but in Christ it is totally satiated. The trick is to come to the conclusion that God accepts you constantly – to expose yourself to and preach the gospel to yourself daily and hourly. When we fail to do so, we quickly forget his acceptance and fall back into our old ways.
If you are afraid that letting go of the law will lead you to lawlessness – that being outside the law is scary because there seems to be no mechanism which controls you – rest assured. Christ controls those who live according to the gospel truth not through fear, guilt or reward but by completely acceptancing and loving us despite our many flaws.
God Bless
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