… so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord …
Summary: Why does Paul feel it is important to live a life “worthy of the Lord?” The answer to that question is why Paul spends so much time teaching us how to live as Christians.
What do you think of when you read today’s passage?
First of all, it is part of a much larger sentence. Paul has a way of stringing together words that is humbling to watch. The entire sentence is almost one hundred words long! This little tidbit is only one little slice of a much larger pie. And yet, it is important.
The Gospel message is simple. Jesus himself put it this way:
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24)
So why does it always sound so complicated?
The reason I ask this question is that Paul’s letters are full of admonitions to behave a certain way. Many times, when I finished reading one of Paul’s letters, I wondered how Christianity was different from Judaism in all its laws.
The reason is in today’s passage.
When Paul advocates for Christians to act a certain way or avoid particular behaviors, he teaches us how to live a life worthy of the Lord.
“Why,” you might ask, “do I want to be ‘worthy of the Lord?’”
The answer to that question is gratitude.
Paul assumes that a normal, healthy human being will feel grateful for being saved from eternal hell. Paul knows that the gift of the Holy Spirit comes at a cost and is worth more than any amount of gold or silver. Paul also knows the cost that Jesus paid to save us. He is especially aware of his own sin and the price Jesus paid to redeem him. It is his keen awareness of his own sin (1 Corinthians 15:9-10; Romans 7:18, 24; Ephesians 3:8) that is the motivating force behind his intense gratitude.
If everyone who had ever heard the Gospel reacted like Paul, there would be no Pauline letters in the New Testament. We wouldn’t need them.
The reason Paul wrote them is to guide our appreciation for what God has done for us. He wants us to live a life “worthy of the Lord.”
Even if we don’t fully understand our need for Jesus, we can live like we do, thanks to Paul.
Application: Live a life that makes Jesus proud.
Food for Thought: At what point in our lives as Christians do we really discover the importance of living for Jesus?
Hopefully when we come to Christ. I realize that we grow in Christ to be more like Him in a sanctification process (Philippians 1: 6; 2 Corinthians 3: 18), but when we come to Christ we are new creations no longer living for ourselves, but for Him. Hopefully the importance of living for Christ comes with this new creation and indwelling of the Holy Spirit, then we grow in Him throughout our lives.
2 Corinthians 5: 14 – 17: For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: a The old has gone, the new is here!
Galatians 2: 19 – 20: For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Thank you, Rich.
My prayer for all believers and those who will be believers is that they do just what you say; come to know the importance of living for Jesus when they come to Christ. That knowledge is special and adds so much joy to life!
At what point in our lives as Christians do we really discover the importance of living for Jesus?
Agree with Rich.
1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The believer’s sanctification is threefold:
Positional, referring to God’s calling apart a sinner to Himself.
Galatians 1:6
Progressive, referring to the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer, conforming him or her to the image of Christ.
2 Corinthians 3:18; Colossians 3:10
Ultimate glorification, referring to the day when the believer’s standing and present state become one, being completely holy on that day in glory. 1 John 3:2; 1 1 Thessalian’s 5:23
Thanks Ron!
Your summation of sanctification is well stated!
At what point in our lives as Christians do we really discover the importance of living for Jesus?
I agree that when we first come to Christ, confess Him as Lord of our life, we recognize that we are a new creation in Him. And so the importance of living for Him is instilled in our hearts.
Romans 10:9-10 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
And I do agree that in sanctification the importance grows. I read your question and two words that jump out to me are “point” and “really discover.” The initial “point” is when we make Him Lord of or life, but the “really discover,” well that grows in measure to our increasing faith. At least that has been my experience. I find Christ in more and more of my life everyday, as I give more and more of my life to Him. The importance of living for Him becomes stronger, more foundational. I keep discovering the “really discover.”
Luke 6:37-38
“Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you”.
Mark 4:24
“By what measure you measure, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you”.
Thank you, Chris!
All three comments today are well stated and accurate. There is no conflict that I see here. That said, I like how you draw a distinction between “point” and process.
I know in my own life that the point has been smudged and blurred but that the process has been ongoing, always bringing me closer to the Light.