Compelled By Love - 2 Corinthians 5:14-15

"For Christ’s love compels us, since we have reached this conclusion: If One died for all, then all died. And He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the One who died for them and was raised.

There are two ways to live a holy life, two versions of sanctification.These verses describe the right way our sanctification should be manifested or lived out in our lives.

In one version, we try to find favor with God by being good. In the other version, we are good because we have received God's favor, His mercy, His love!

Yet, there is an important yet subtle distinction between these two versions of sanctification.

The distinction is so subtle in fact, that if we're not careful we can gravitate towards legalism, moralism, and self-righteousness all the while thinking we are being good people, good Christians.

And, if that's not bad enough, we may even become entangled in the sin we are trying so hard not to commit by trying to be a good person.

I think we can all agree that there's really nothing any of us can do personally or collectively to gain right-standing with God, to receive God's favor. As good as we may try to be, we can never be good enough.

Matt Chandler wrote in his book, The Explicit Gospel, that only God saves, justifies, and sanctifies sinners through the perfect life, substitutionary death, and bodily resurrection of Jesus.

So we are all just sanctified sinners. Yet, there's a difference between sanctified sinners whose sanctification comes from trying to live right and sanctified sinners whose sanctification comes through righteous living in Christ.

While both groups may appear to be good people on the outside, there's a fundamental difference on the inside!

The difference between the two versions of sanctification in people could best be explained by the word "gratitude."

Does our sanctification manifest itself through a legalistic or moralistic adherence to God's commands or does our sanctification manifest itself through obedience to God resulting from a grateful heart?

We are compelled to live for Christ, to live righteously. We are compelled to goodness because of His love for us and in response to His mercy and grace.

Jesus died for us, so we die to ourselves to live righteously for Him.

It's just that simple!

When our righteousness is one that tries to get our self under control, then we are living out our sanctification the wrong way and for the wrong reason.

We can't control self. That's why the Apostle Paul reached the conclusion that "all died" when Jesus "died for all."  Self is out of control, out of our control, so self must die by the power of the love of Christ dwelling in us.

When we have received God's grace, then we want to live in obedience to Him. When we live for Christ, we die to self. And his love compels us to live righteously for Him. 

Not only does God extend His favor and His love to us, He actually gives us a number of tools of grace to enable our sanctification and to empower us to righteous living. These tools of grace include the blood of Christ, the Word of God (the Bible), and the indwelling Holy Spirit.

So why wouldn't we want to obey God, serve God, live for Him? Christ's love compels us!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come" (vs. 17).