Living for His glory

So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. For we live by believing and not by seeing. Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body. 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 For the Apostle Paul, the Christian life should be filled with hope and confidence because of the promise of the resurrection. The assurance of life eternal is what he is anticipating for without that sure hope, then faith to God is worthless. “If Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless” (1 Corinthians 15:14). Not only it provided him a resolve to share and preach the gospel, it gave him strength in facing the difficulties and hardships in life. This is also the reason why he has the courage to speak boldly to the church at Corinth for he does not need to hide the truth in insincere flattery. “And if there is no resurrection, “Let’s feast and drink, for tomorrow we die!” Don’t be fooled by those who say such things, for “bad company corrupts good character.” Think carefully about what is right, and stop sinning. For to your shame I say that some of you don’t know God at all” (1 Corinthians 15:32-34). He can completely give off of himself to God’s calling because he knows that God will not abandon him in death. He knows the Lord has determined a glorious purpose for his life. This is also what should motivate every child of God. From the text, Paul is looking forward for the day that he will face God. But no doubt he knew that each one will give an account of how we live the life He gave to us. “So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God” (Romans 14:10). This is what motivated Paul to strive to honor God with his life. He knew that a child of God can’t continue to ignore His Father’s quiet voice through the working of the Holy Spirit and reject His instructions. God will not force His will for us. Before Jesus Christ predicted Peter’s denial, He told Peter that He prayed for him that he will remain strong in his faith. “But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32). God forgave us of our sins when we came to surrender our lives to Him but this forgiveness does not give us the freedom to ignore Him and for us to continue to do our own selfish desires. For Paul having a sense of accountability before God gave him the freedom to be the person God wants Him to be. We can learn from Paul’s example that if our desire is to live for God’s glory, by His grace we will live to please Him.

Blessings,