Reflection on 2Cor 5:14-15
“For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.”
Chapter 5 begins with the words: “For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” Verse 10 speaks about judgment: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due to him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” At the end of the chapter, the Apostle calls for reconciliation with God: “Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (in Christ).” (v. 20-21)
In this Lenten time, we will repeat the following words of verses 14-15: “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died…” These verses speak about the mystery of Christ’s death which is connected with our baptism and our faith in this mystery. We are still physically alive. When Jesus, the Only-Begotten Son of God, became man out of love for us and died for us, we also died in His death to evil and sin. We see, however, that sin continues to work in our life. But we forget that it does not work in Christ’s death; it is overcome. If in a particular moment I unite with Christ and His death in faith and self-surrender, the power of sin is ineffective, dead.
Next, it is written: “…and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” (v.15) The mystery of union with Christ’s death is expressed here as follows: “that we should live no longer for ourselves”. Original sin or human nature corrupted by original sin, the so-called old self, turns our life into egocentrism where everything revolves around our ego. In earlier times, people believed our Earth to be the centre of the universe. And that was called geocentrism. Later on, the Earth was discovered to revolve around the Sun, and it was called heliocentrism. The opposite of our inherited egocentrism should be Theocentrism (Theo = God), or Christocentrism. Christ, and not our ego, should be the centre of our life! We should live, suffer, make sacrifices and even die for the sake of Christ. He alone is worthy of love. Being the Son of God, He died on the cross for both you and me to open for us the way to eternal happiness in heaven through His death. So each one’s earthly house will be destroyed, and each of us will appear before the judgment seat. If we have received Jesus and lived for His sake, He will give us all that belongs to Him. He has already shed His Blood on the cross for your sake, died out of love for you and for you. He rose again, reigns in heaven and has prepared for you the crown of eternal salvation. Jesus is the way for you. If you abandon it, return as soon as possible through repentance. In Jesus you have everything; in Him you have eternal life. Do not live for yourself! Live for Jesus! He lived and died for you!
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