The More I Live as Christ

I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Philippians 1:20-21

"To live is Christ and to die is gain." That has been one verse that I have avoided for many years. It calls me to complete surrender and because I'm not so sure what complete surrender will require of me I have avoided it. In this chapter, Paul is relating how hard it is to be a Christian, that we may have to go through a lot of suffering to be a Christian and proclaim Christ. So being a quiet Christian is so much easier, right? For a while we are deceived in thinking just that.

We can be Christian and as long as we don't rock the boat and try to be good, but when we are asked to surrender all, that is a whole new and foreign way of doing things. We've been so caught up in living in the "me generation" to surrender and kill everything we want and everything that isn't Christ first, that is just too much to ask. That request means we have to give up everything we want, we need, what we want to do, where we want to go. What about my way? We just want what we want, right? For the most part our wants and desires don't hurt anyone and they are honorable. We want to be productive citizens and make contributions to our home, family, place of work, and church. Does God really want us to surrender all of that?

Yes.

God wants us to surrender everything so that He can re-create in you and me His plan. so does that mean if we surrender everything are we supposed to walk away from everything we know? God wants you and me to surrender our will to have our own way. He will take care of the rest. Surrender does not mean to walk away from the ones we love or even our goals and dreams, He wants to give them to Him so that He can work them into His plan so that He will be glorified. He is God. He doesn't need you and me, but we do need Him, but we are so stubborn we think if we don't do it ourselves we won't get it, we wont' succeed, we won't get to do what we enjoy or what we want to do.

God is not about taking away from us, but about giving every good and perfect gift, but we can't receive anything from Him if we continue to hold on to what we know. In order to make room for all of God's goodness that He is just waiting to pour into our lives we have to open up t o Him and that means surrender. We give Him everything we have, we are, we offer to Him the rubble of our brokenness an dour meager attempts at successful living then He can give us everything. He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work in us. Ephesians 3:20

Yet we wonder why we still struggle. Ephesians 3:20 says He is able to do immeasurably more than we can imagine. While that is true, God won't do anything that we won't allow Him to do. He needs our permission to have full access to do all the things He is able to do. It's called free will. we can receive Him or we can reject Him. It's up to us. He is able, but He wants something from us first...surrender. If you can't do that all at once, give it all to Him, then just start with something. Whatever is is that you know you are holding on to give it to Him, surrender it, let Him have it and walk away from it, but whatever you do don't stop with that one thing keep going, make room for God to release His power in your life. Soon you will realize that what God has is so much greater than what you were holding on to.

Now I don't struggle so much with "to live is Christ and to die is gain." I know that God has so much more for me than I can imagine and as I surrender more and more He does more and more. What we give to God is so much less than what He gives in return how can we wait any longer to surrender? God loves us more than we and and with that truth alone we should be running to Him with everything we have and exalt His work in our lives for everyone to see.

The more I live as Christ, the less I want to live as me and get in His way to work in my life.