5:14-17
"For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 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.
16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."
What powerful verses. It would take two and a half books to fully touch on all of the truths in these verses, but I just want to share what jumped out at me when I was studying them. We're going to go in reverse order here... the first thing that really sticks out to me is in verse 16- "we regard no one according to the flesh." How many of us regard people according to the flesh? According to worldly standards?
I find myself very often making rapid-fire assumptions from a first appearance, be it good or bad. James 2 speaks vehemently against favoritism... and yet that's a first-reaction many times. I'm guessing I'm not the only one who struggles with this, but the key is what we DO with that first reaction. Do we let it remain and affect the way we treat people? Or do we "regard no one according to the flesh... [any] longer"?
In your daily encounters with people, do your best to see them as Christ does- not making assumptions but seeking to get to know them and love them. "Do not be conformed to the patterns of this world" Paul writes in Romans 12, "but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Don't judge them as the world does (on how good looking, talented, athletic, immodest, etc., you think they are), but pray for the Lord to open your eyes to see them as He does.
More prominently, though, is the idea found in verse 14: "For the love of Christ controls us..." I challenge you to take a moment to think about how life would be different if we were really controlled by the love of Christ. But not only controlled, like a master controls his robot. Another version translates it "For the love of Christ compels us..." so it's not just controlling but compelling, or "to force or drive, esp. to a course of action" (dictionary.com). So it's more of a controlling motivation, a passion that "controls" you and affects every decision that you make.
It's been said that the believers didn't call themselves Christians, but were called Christians because of how differently they were living (in giving, relationships, etc- Acts 11:19-26). If we were living a Christ's-love controlled (and compelled) life, this would be our situation, as well. We would be different:
In the way we spend our money- we would be much more concerned about the poor and needy around the world as well as our brothers and sisters worldwide who need help, and much less concerned about material things that will burn at the end of time. Christ loved the poor and needy and if His love controlled our lives, we would "give generously", as we're encouraged to (2 Corinthians 9:6-15), especially because we know that even when we have nothing, we "possess everything" (2 Cor. 6:10).
In the way we spend our time- we would waste less time with trivial things and spend much more time doing the things that mattered- Christ spent a large part of His time teaching and discipling, but also knew the value of getting alone with His Father (Mark 1:35). We would look for people to disciple and spend time memorizing that which will endure- the words of God. Christ loved His Heavenly Father and His disciples and spent His time with them.
In our relationships- the love of Christ might be most evident in our relationships, for instead of being self-centered, self-seeking people (looking out for our own interests), we would be seeking to build others up (1 Thess. 5:11), to encourage each other (Eph 4:29), considering them more significant than ourselves (Phil 2:3-4) and loving them sincerely, from our heart (1 Peter 1:22).
I've recently come across two striking examples of people who were compelled by the love of Christ:
Gladys Staines: she and her husband, Graham, were Australian missionaries (along with their three kids) to the poor and needy in India. They sought to care for the lepers and show the love of Christ to them through their work. But one night in 1999, Graham and their two sons were burned while they slept in their car. But this tragedy didn't deter Gladys and her daughter from the Lord or His love- at the public trial, she made clear that she had "forgiven" her family's murderers. Wow. Not only that, though, but if I read correctly, she and her daughter returned to the village in which their family was murdered and completed the task that had been in progress- the building of a hospital. Many MANY people have come to know the love of Christ because of His love shining through the two of them...
Thomas More: while I don't believe in a lot of what the 16th century author, statesman, and politician stood for most of his career, his display of the love of Christ at his death is undeniable. In the book of martyrs, "Jesus Freaks Vol. II", More's story is recorded as such:
'More was tried and condemned to death on the testimony of false witnesses and his unwillingness to take the oath of allegiance (he opposed King Henry's takeover of the church). In response to his sentence, he said, "I have nothing more to say, my lords, but that just as the blessed Apostle St. Paul, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles, was present and consented to the death of St. Stephen, ...and yet they are both together holy saints in heaven and shall continue to be friends there forever, so I truly trust, and shall right heartily pray, that though your lordships have now here on earth been my condemning judges, we may hereafter meet right merrily together in heaven and enjoy our everlasting salvations together."' After being sentenced to death, Thomas More prayed that his judges would be with him forevermore in heaven as friends, rejoicing in the Lord together. Nothing other than Christ's love could have compelled More to say that with sincerity.
So that challenge, friends, is to live a Christ's-love compelled life. Read and study how Jesus loved people and how God calls us through the authors of the Bible to love. And then don't let it remain as head knowledge- live it out for His greatest glory.
Striving for the sake of His Name...
Luke
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