LIVING FOR JESUS
BREAD
14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (NIV)
20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 (NIV)
1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin– 7 because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Romans 6:1-7 (NIV)
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. Romans 6:8-14 (NIV)
5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; 7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. 9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. 12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation–but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, 14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Romans 8:5-14 (NIV)
1 Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. 2 As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. 3 For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do–living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 4 They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you. 5 But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 1 Peter 4:1-5 (NIV)
3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. 4 The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:3-6 (NIV)
BUTTER
“The true Christian cannot be hid, he cannot escape notice. A man truly living and functioning as a Christian will stand out. He will be like salt; he will be like a city set on a hill, a candle set upon a candlestick. But we can also add this further word. The true Christian does not even desire to hide his light. He sees how ridiculous it is to claim to be a Christian and yet deliberately to try to hide the fact. A man who truly realizes what it means to be a Christian, who realizes all that the grace of God has meant to him and done for him, and understands that, ultimately, God has done this in order that he may influence others, is a man who cannot conceal it. Not only that; he does not desire to conceal it, because he argues thus, ‘Ultimately the object and purpose of it all is that I might be functioning in this way’.” Martin Lloyd-Jones
“Faith, as Paul saw it, was a living, flaming thing leading to surrender and obedience to the commandments of Christ.” A.W. Tozer
“There is no other method of living piously and justly than that of depending upon God.” John Calvin
“A baptism of holiness, a demonstration of godly living is the crying need of our day.” Duncan Campbell
“Maturity is for ministry! We grow up in order to give out. It is not enough to keep learning more and more. We must act on what we know and practice what we claim to believe. Impression without expression causes depression. Study without service leads to spiritual stagnation. Most of the time we’re more interested in ‘serve us’ than service. We say, ‘I’m looking for a church that meets my needs and blesses me,’ not ‘I’m looking for a place to serve and be a blessing.’ We expect others to serve us, not vice versa. But as we mature in Christ, the focus of our lives should increasingly shift to living a life of service. The mature follower of Jesus stops asking, ‘Who’s going to meet my needs?’ and starts asking, ‘Whose needs can I meet?’” Pastor Rick Warren
“A concern for the glory of God is the ultimate motive for Christian living.” Anonymous
“Ask me not where I live or what I like to eat…Ask me what I am living for and what I think is keeping me from living fully for that.” Thomas Merton
“The man who has been born again, and who has the divine nature within him, is a man who is righteous, and his righteousness does exceed that of the …Pharisees. He is no longer living for self and his own attainments, he is no longer self-righteous and self-satisfied. He has become poor in spirit, meek and merciful. He hungers and thirsts after righteousness…He loves God, yes, unworthily, alas, but he loves Him and longs for His glory…(this) is a righteousness that far exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees.” D. Martin Lloyd-Jones
“Never be apathetic in living for Jesus. Be committed.” Anne Graham Lotz
“One thing that Jesus brings to our attention is the importance of living in this world with our eyes fixed upon what is above. A follower of the Lord experiences eternal realities while he lives in a temporal world–he sees things that others do not see; he hears things that others do not hear; he knows things that others do not know. A follower of the Lord walks with his feet upon the ground, while his eyes are fixed upon heaven. He knows that all the things around him are passing away, and that all that is before him will last forever.” Roy Lessin
“From God, great and small, rich and poor, draw living water from a living spring, and those who serve Him freely and gladly will receive grace answering to grace.” Thomas a Kempis
“You were made to make more than a living. You were made to make a difference.” Ann Voskamp
“Lukewarm living and claiming Christ’s name simultaneously is utterly disgusting to God.” Francis Chan
HEART SAVOR
• In Christ, we are new creatures – the old has gone the new has come therefore we are to honor God with our bodies.
• If we died with Christ, we will also live with Him and for Him.
• If we claim to live in Him, we must live as Jesus did – through His power – for His glory – for our good.
Beth Yoe's Sharing Bread 