Scripture References: 2 Corinthians 5:14-20

The Christian is no longer a slave of the patterns of the world and society around him but has a fresh and independent and personal moral insight: he or she wants to be more “Christlike.” Paul wrote to the Galatians that he had labored painfully for them “until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19). This gospel claim is not an option for us, as if that calling counts only for apostles or other ministries. To all believers in Philippi he addresses the sacred calling: “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13; Emphasis mine).

Paul Lived What He Preached

Paul spoke with a conviction born from a personal experience with the risen Lord Jesus. On three different occasions Paul testified that he had encountered the living Christ in a dramatic way on the road near Damascus (see Acts 9:3, 22:6, 26:12-13). That event had been the turning point for the zealous persecutor, Saul of Tarsus. Paul’s conversion then was not the result of a logical or theological conclusion, but a transforming life encounter with the risen Lord Jesus. Only through that event did Paul’s heart change and did his mind accept a new concept of God and of His plan of salvation.

The heavenly calling that Paul experienced was of such a heart-changing nature that it resulted in his permanent devotion to the Lord Jesus. His commitment would stand the test of time and conquer every opposition and threat he experienced. Standing at last before Emperor Nero himself in Rome, he did not waver or shrink back for fear of his life, but remained faithful to Christ till the last moment of his life. Paul’s commitment to Christ was so complete that he testified: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21; Emphasis mine). He explained this by saying: “That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” (Philippians 3:10-11). That is total devotion and perfect gratitude!

In his testimony to Timothy, Paul wrote from prison: “Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed” (2 Timothy 1:12). Here is the decisive issue of the gospel: do we have a personal trust and commitment to the risen Lord Jesus? Not just what we believe is important, but Whom we know and trust is of ultimate importance. Paul reminded Timothy of Who he believed in. This is the same redemptive knowledge that each believer must seek for themselves. This is more than theological clarity, it is the transforming power of knowing Christ from the heart.

Paul was a true ambassador for Christ and he calls all Christians to be the same. He wrote from his prison cell to all the Ephesians: “I . . . the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called” (Ephesians 4:1). We are all called to be representatives of God and of Jesus Christ, and to pass on the freedom we have in Christ our Lord and the blessing we have received in His fellowship. May we all demonstrate in daily life what we are in Christ!

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.