Christian Living: Christian Life
When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, we have begun the Christian life. Accepting Christ is only a beginning – God isn’t finished with us yet. After we come to faith, what do we do? How does faith in Christ make a difference in the way we live? What does God want to do with us? How does he want to change us? In the history of Christianity, what activities have helped believers grow toward maturity?
God’s goal in our lives
God wants each of us “to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29). We are in the process of “being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Paul worked so that Christ would be “formed” in the believers (Galatians 4:19). He described our goal in this way: “the measure of the full stature of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).
As children of God, we are to become more like the Son of God. He is not only our Savior, he is also our example, showing us what humans should be like. When we believe in Christ, we have a new identity and a new purpose for living. Our new identity is “child of God,” and we want to act like the new person that we are.
We want to be like God. What an enormous goal! We cannot make ourselves Godlike. But God can—and he is! God is changing us to be more like himself—more like Jesus, who showed us what God is like when living in the flesh.
God does not change us against our will, but only as we agree to what he is doing. And by the Holy Spirit working in our hearts and minds, he is helping us agree. “It is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).
We do not need to be like Christ in carpentry skills, cultural customs or physical appearance. Rather, we are to be like him in love and righteousness. In our love for God and in the way we live, we are to be like Jesus Christ. The purpose of the Christian life is that we grow to be more like him.
We need to be changed on the inside, in our thoughts. Paul says, “Be transformed by the renewing of the mind” (Romans 12:2). We are “being renewed in knowledge according to the image of [our] Creator” (Colossians 3:10). When we think like Christ, we will be like him.
Letting God work in us
God is the one who does the work, but we are involved. We can resist his work, or we can make it easier. In the history of Christianity, three practices stand out as particularly helpful in our transformation: prayer, Bible study and church. Millions of Christians have found that these practices (sometimes called spiritual disciplines) help us give ourselves to God for him to do his work in our hearts and minds.
In prayer, we admit our need for God. We are reminded that he is the reference point for our lives. We grow in love for God by praising his power and thanking him for his mercy. We set each day in its proper context, praising him for every good thing and being reminded of his purpose for our lives. We confess our needs and ask his help – not just for food but also for spiritual transformation.
Prayer was a constant part of Jesus’ life – and if he needed it, we need it even more. But sometimes it is difficult. We don’t always know what to say, what to ask, or how to praise. It isn’t easy to set aside time. But we need to—regularly.
In prayer, we not only talk to God, we also listen to what he says as the Holy Spirit may bring thoughts to our minds. How do we know whether those ideas are from God, or merely from our own imagination? To tell the difference, we need training in the mind of God— which we get in Bible study.
Scripture was important to Jesus. He knew it well and considered it authoritative. He used Scripture to reject the devil’s temptations (Matthew 4:1-11). He said that we should not “live by bread alone”—we also need “every word that comes from the mouth of God” (verse 4). We need the words of Scripture. God caused these books to be written for our instruction and encouragement (2 Timothy 3:16). Scripture helps change our thoughts to be more like Christ’s.
The early Christians devoted themselves to learning from the apostles (Acts 2:42). We get their teachings from the New Testament. Part of God’s plan for our transformation is the study of Scripture. He doesn’t force us to do it—it’s our choice.
It isn’t always easy—for two reasons. First, parts of the Bible are hard to understand, and sometimes the meaning is debated. There is depth in Scripture that can last a lifetime. We understand some of it the first time, a little more the second time, and a little more the third time. We can’t expect to understand it all right away. It’s helpful to focus on what we do understand, not on what we don’t.
However, for most people, the hardest part about Bible study is taking the time to do it. We need to make it a habit, a regular discipline. Many Christians find it helpful to read a small portion each day, thinking and praying about it. Devotional books can be helpful. The main thing is to form a habit.
Church attendance is a third discipline that helps us grow to become more like Christ. Jesus said that God is looking for people who will worship him sincerely (John 4:23). The early Christians devoted themselves to fellowship, breaking bread and prayer (Acts 2:42). They gathered for worship. The more we worship God, the closer to him we will be. Our faith will be stronger when we are in frequent contact with others who have faith.
But the value of church is not just in showing up. We are not spectators at a show – we are part of the team. Our involvement in church ministries helps us grow, and helps others, too. We each help according to the way the Holy Spirit has gifted us – some in prayer, some in teaching, some in sharing the gospel. Each of us should also give the church financial support. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).
There are many other spiritual disciplines, or tools for spiritual growth. These include meditation, fasting, simplicity, generosity, service and others. In all these, we must remember that spiritual growth is not our own achievement. We do not become like Christ through self-discipline. Rather, the disciplines are merely a way to let God do his work with less resistance from us.
Jesus Christ as Lord
In the New Testament, one of the most common titles of Christ is kyrios, usually translated as “Lord.” This Greek word could refer to a landowner, a government official or another person of authority. It could also refer to God, as it often did in the Greek translation of the Old Testament.
When the Roman emperor wanted people to call him kyrios, he was claiming to be the lord, the supreme authority—and Christians refused. Instead of saying “Nero is Lord,” they would say “Christ is Lord,” even though it sometimes cost them their lives. They obeyed Roman laws when they could (Romans 13:1-7), but they gave complete allegiance only to Jesus. Only he has supreme authority.
As our Lord, Jesus is Protector and Boss. We are to trust him and obey him. He gave his life for us; we know he can be counted on to give us what we need. This does not mean everything we want, and it doesn’t always mean health and money. In fact, Jesus may let us go through many trials (Acts 14:22; Hebrews 12:5-11), but we need to trust that he knows what he’s doing, that it is for our good. He also promises to help us through the difficulties (1 Corinthians 10:13).
The apostle Paul had many trials, but he “learned to be content with whatever I have” (Philippians 4:11). Sometimes he was poor, sometimes he had plenty, and Christ was his strength even when he was hungry (verses 12-13). His Lord provided as much as he needed at the time. Sometimes he provided a way to escape a trial; sometimes he provided strength to endure it.
Our Lord gives commands and expects us to obey. Paul talked about the obedience that comes with faith (Romans 1:5); James said that faith without obedience is dead (James 2:17). In our actions, we show whether we trust Christ. He died for us, and in response, we live for him and serve him (2 Corinthians 5:15). We offer ourselves to God, to be used in righteousness (Romans 6:12-13). This has results in the way we interact with our families, friends, neighbors and enemies.
Christians have good behavior, but good behavior can never save us. We are not saved by what we do – we are saved so that we will do good works (Ephesians 2:8-10). Good behavior is a result of salvation, not the cause of it. We cannot boast (even to ourselves) about how good we are. All credit and praise goes to Christ.
Christian behaviors can be faked. A person doesn’t have to be a believer to pray, study, and participate in church ministries. Christ wants to change our minds and hearts, not just our actions. We must look at our own minds and hearts to see if we are letting Christ rule who we really are.
Furthermore, a person who doesn’t have all these behaviors is not necessarily an unbeliever. We each grow spiritually in different ways, and our behavior in one respect might be good while in another area it’s not so good. Our brief discussion of Christian life in this course is not a way to judge who is “in” and who is “out.” Each of us needs to “examine yourselves to see whether you are living in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
Why should we want to obey Christ?
Paul says that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). So why should we obey him? Christ won’t condemn us, so why not live however we want to?
Jesus warns us not to take his mercy for granted:
Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?” Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you who behave lawlessly.” (Matthew 7:21-23)
People who behave lawlessly are not in Christ Jesus. They have not understood who he is or what he teaches. They might do impressive things in his name, but if they behave lawlessly, they are not following Christ, and he is not in them. They have not understood that salvation is not just an “escape from judgment,” but it’s also entrance into the life of God.
The apostle Paul also says that Christ doesn’t want to live with people who think they can completely ignore his commands:
The works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21; see also 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 and Ephesians 5:5)
People don’t have to be perfect – the believers in Corinth were far from perfect – but people should at least want to obey the commands of Jesus and his apostles. It makes no sense for people to want to live forever with Jesus while at the same time wanting to ignore what he says; it makes no sense to want to live in an eternity of love while at the same time wanting to live selfishly right now.
God is generous with grace, but he’s not stupid. People who follow the desires of the flesh are opposed to the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-17) and opposed to Christ as well. God is giving us a life that lasts forever, but this gift comes with two additional descriptions: it’s a life with Father, Son and Spirit, and it is a life of love. People will enjoy eternal life only if they want to do what Christ says.
Faith, hope and love
Grace is essential to Christianity. We are saved by grace, not by what we do. We cannot earn eternal life; we cannot claim it as a right, as if God has a duty to give it to us. Obedience cannot save us. So why is it important?
We can look at this question from three angles: faith, love, and hope.
Faith
The commands Christ gives us are good. We are convinced that:
- God is good and has our best interests at heart.
- He is really smart. He has the wisdom to know how we should live, what works best in our relationships and what leads to the most happiness in the long run.
- He will give us commands that help us, rather than give us rules we don’t need. We are not always smart enough to know what is good, so God gives us some instructions.
- He makes sure that we can get these instructions. We trust that God inspired the Bible, and it tells us what a good God wants us to do. We have faith that Scripture is his word.
There will be a judgment according to what we do, and God promises rewards in addition to salvation (Ephesians 6:8; 1 Corinthians 3:14-15). These rewards help motivate us. The greatest reward is not material things, but our relationship with God. God’s purpose in rescuing us is that he wants to live with us (Revelation 21:3). The better our relationship is now, the more rewarding our relationship with God will be.
Love
We obey out of love for God. We are not like employees who obey only if we are given enough pay —we obey as part of our worship. He has created us and purchased us. Both of those give him rights over us, and both of those are reasons for us to love him. It is our duty, and our delight, to obey him.
We are thankful to God and give him our complete loyalty. Nothing is more important to us than him.
Here’s another way that love can motivate obedience: We have faith that biblical commands are not only for our good, but others will also benefit from what we do. Our self-restraint can help others, and a lack of restraint can hurt them.
A third way that love can motivate us is that we consider the effect our behavior has on the gospel. A bad example can reduce the effectiveness of the gospel (Titus 2:5). On the other hand, a good example can help people be interested in the gospel. Our love for God means that we want to bring him favorable publicity (giving him “glory”), so that others will come to love him, too.
Our cheerful obedience tells others that God is great and good and wise, and we adore him. Obedience says that God is important, that he is valuable, and that he deserves our loyalty.
Hope
Last, we might consider hope, especially our vision for the future. We have been invited into the life of the Triune God for all eternity. We look forward to a kingdom in which everyone is faithful, honest, respectful, kind, and loving. Eternal life will be enjoyable because our relationships will be based on love. If it is good for life in the future, it is good for life right now. We live in the way that we want everyone else to live in eternity. We live “as citizens of heaven” (Philippians 1:27, CSB).
God wants us share in his love. He does not force this on us, but we participate in his life by choice, as we respond to his love. We bring the lifestyle of the future into the present as we let God live in us, and are led by the Spirit.
Do we need rules?
What is the place for rules? The Father, Son, and Spirit do not need rules to guide their interactions with one another. But if we could see their interactions, we’d see predictable patterns, as if they did follow rules. There would be no deception, no betrayal, no jealousy, and no arrogance.
In the natural world, the “laws of nature” are descriptive rather than prescriptive. No one needs to tell nature what it can or cannot do, but the physical interactions are predictable. Similarly, the “laws” that we see the Triune God keeping are descriptive, not rules that tell the divine Persons what they have to do.
If we had the mind of Christ perfectly, we would not need a “law” telling us to tell the truth. But since we all have serious mental problems, we need help.
Since we want to become more like God, the “laws” that are descriptive of God become prescriptive for us: Don’t deceive, don’t betray, don’t be jealous, don’t be arrogant, etc. In these commands, God is describing for us what his life is like.
God has placed us in his kingdom, in his family; the question now is whether we will live like the people God has declared us to be. He invites us to participate in what he is: perfect love. The better we see that and live it, the more rewarding it will be.
When the New Testament gives us commands, it is describing for us the kind of life that God is giving us, the life of the age to come. Grace says: I am giving you a never-ending life of joy, a life characterized by love. The commands say: This is the way that will help you live in that love and joy.
If selfishness is the kind of life we like, then we are not going to enjoy the next life very much, because the next life is based on loving other people rather than being selfish. God is offering us not just a never-ending life on our own terms, but life in his kingdom, life that will be like his life, life that is based on love and generosity rather than selfishness. That’s the way that produces eternal joy.
In a metaphor, a parable, we might say that God is standing at the gateway to his kingdom. You are welcome to come in, he says, where there is no more pain or sorrow or lying or cheating or selfishness. Before you can enter, you need to pass through a device that will re-wire your brain to remove all the selfishness.
Some people may not want this “brainwashing.” They might say, “I’d like to have ‘no more pain,’ but can’t I keep my selfishness? That’s part of who I am.” God replies, “No, selfishness causes pain. If you walk through this gate, I will remove the selfishness, so you don’t cause pain for yourself or anyone else. If you think that selfishness is part of your identity, you won’t enjoy life in here.”
If we want the results of love, then we need to have a life of love. If we want that kind of life for all eternity, then we will want it now. We will want to live the way that life will be lived in the future age; we will want to be like God is; we will want to be like him, made in his image.
That is why the New Testament tells us not only about the grace of God, but also gives us commands about how we should live. Even in times of persecution, at the threat of death, our loyalty to Christ means that we want to be true to the life of the age to come – so much that we are willing to let go of the life of the present evil age.
It is not our “goodness” that makes such a choice – it is the goodness of God living in us. We are seeking not life on our own terms, but life on the terms that God gives us, trusting that he gives us the life we need.
Sanctification
Much of what we have been discussing comes under the theological term sanctification, which means “making holy.” Through his death on the cross, Christ has already sanctified us (Hebrews 10:10). That means he has set us apart for himself, for his use. We are holy, and Scripture frequently calls us “saints” – which means “holy ones.” We are dedicated to God.
In another sense, we are still in the process of being made holy (verse 14). The work is not yet done. Our behavior isn’t always what it ought to be. In the process of sanctification, our thoughts and behaviors are being brought into conformity with what they should be. We are holy children of God, and we should live like it.
Although God enables and energizes this process, Christians have a part in it. We are repeatedly told to think, speak and act in certain ways. “Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose” (Philippians 2:12).
God “has saved us and called us to a holy life” (2 Timothy 1:9). Paul exhorts us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices, doing the will of God (Romans 12:1-2). He encourages us to “live a life worthy of the Lord” and to “please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10).
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified …that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable…. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life” (1 Thessalonians 4:3-7). “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).
To be like Jesus, to live like Jesus – this may seem like an unrealistic goal. But it is our goal nonetheless, for God is the one doing the work in us. Despite our inabilities, we can be confident that he will finish the work in us (Philippians 1:6). Although our progress may seem slow, we trust in Christ, not in ourselves.
Paul expressed an excellent attitude: “Not that I…have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” (Philippians 3:12). Christ has taken hold of us for his purpose, which is that we are to be conformed into his image. So we press onward, confident in him, striving to do his will.
“One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (verses 13-14).
Press onward!
updated 2026
Author: Michael Morrison
