Accountable to Christ & Aiming to Please Him

Devotional

Day 1: The Controlling Power of Christ’s Love

The love of Christ is not a passive feeling but an active, compelling force. It is this divine love that should be the primary motivator for every decision and action in a believer's life. When we truly grasp the magnitude of Christ's sacrifice for us, our response is naturally one of surrendered devotion. This love reorients our priorities away from self-interest and toward a life that honors Him. Living under the control of this love is the essence of a cross-shaped life. [36:03]

For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.
2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (NASB)

Reflection: What specific area of your daily routine or decision-making process feels most disconnected from the motivating power of Christ’s love? How might you consciously invite His love to direct your choices in that area this week?

Day 2: Our Ultimate Ambition to Please the Lord

A life transformed by the gospel shifts its central ambition. The goal is no longer personal achievement or earthly comfort but a singular desire to be pleasing to the Lord. This ambition is not about earning favor or salvation, which is already secured by grace, but about a heartfelt response to the grace we have received. It is a daily, practical pursuit that influences our choices, words, and actions, aiming to bring glory to God in all things. [33:42]

Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.
2 Corinthians 5:9 (NASB)

Reflection: When you consider your goals and desires, which one most clearly reflects an ambition to please God? Is there one ambition you hold that might need to be re-evaluated or surrendered to align with His will?

Day 3: The Reality of Our Accountable Appearance

Every believer will one day stand before the judgment seat of Christ. This is not a judgment for sin, which has been paid for, but an evaluation of our service and faithfulness lived out in these earthly bodies. This future reality is not meant to provoke fear of punishment but to inspire purposeful and intentional living today. It is a sobering reminder that our lives have eternal significance and that we are stewards of the opportunities God gives us. [42:18]

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:10 (NASB)

Reflection: If your service for Christ were evaluated based on this past month, what would be one area of faithful stewardship and one area where you might wish you had been more available to Him?

Day 4: Embracing Our Identity as a New Creation

To be in Christ is to be fundamentally and permanently changed. The old life, dominated by sin and separation from God, has passed away. God Himself has done a new thing, creating a new identity within us that is oriented toward Him. This is a work of God's grace, not human effort. Living in this new identity means daily rejecting the patterns of the old life and embracing the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. [36:52]

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NASB)

Reflection: Where do you most often struggle to believe or live out the truth that you are a completely new creation in Christ, and what old label or identity are you sometimes tempted to wear instead?

Day 5: Our Privileged Role as Christ’s Ambassadors

God has entrusted every believer with the ministry and message of reconciliation. We are His official representatives, commissioned to carry the appeal of heaven to a broken world. This is not a task for a select few but the calling of everyone who has been reconciled to God through Christ. An ambassador’s life and message must align with the King they represent, making faithfulness and integrity their highest concern. [37:28]

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
2 Corinthians 5:20 (NASB)

Reflection: Who has God placed in your sphere of influence that He may be inviting you to gently and lovingly appeal to, as His ambassador, with the message of reconciliation?

Sermon Summary

Second Corinthians 5 supplies a clear, pastoral roadmap for living shaped by the cross. The text insists that Christians carry an ambition greater than personal comfort or cultural approval: the primary aim must be to please the Lord, motivated not by law or merit but by gratitude for Christ’s payment on the cross. The passage connects present pilgrimage with eternal destiny, reminding believers that while life in the body is temporary, an appearance before the judgment seat of Christ will evaluate deeds done for Him — not to determine salvation, but to assess faithfulness and reward.

Examples and stories underline the call to accountability: an anecdote about a public confession that stopped reckless behavior, a driving-ticket incident tied to visible faith, and the life of H. G. Spafford that produced “It Is Well With My Soul” all illustrate how Christ’s love anchors responses to hardship and shapes conduct. Paul’s language — “the love of Christ controls us” — becomes the decisive motive. That controlling love reorients identity: anyone in Christ becomes a new creation; old patterns pass away and new realities begin.

Reconciliation stands at the heart of the passage. God, in Christ, reconciled the world to Himself by not counting sinners’ trespasses against them, and then entrusted believers with the ministry and message of reconciliation. Believers exist as ambassadors, pleading on God’s behalf and persuading others to be reconciled. This calling demands courage, speech shaped by the fear of the Lord, and a sanctified life that evidences the change Christ effects.

Three practical lessons close the argument: the fear of the Lord forms the foundation for true knowledge and wise living; the motive for faithful service should be the Lord’s mercy and grace; and the ultimate ambition must remain to honor and glorify God through obedient living. The biblical summons therefore combines profound assurance with sober responsibility: salvation rests in Christ’s finished work, and daily living should reflect that redemption through controlled love, accountable witness, and active reconciliation.

Key Takeaways

1. Ambition to please Christ An ambition shaped by the cross turns ambition from self-promotion into a pursuit of pleasing God. This reorders priorities so opportunities, time, and talents get invested for eternal significance rather than temporal applause. Ambition becomes a spiritual discipline: daily choices measured against the question, “Will this honor the One who died for me?” [33:42]
2. Love of Christ controls us Christ’s love functions as an inner governor that realigns desires and limits self-centered impulses. When love—not guilt or external pressure—drives obedience, service flows from gratitude and not performance. That controlling affection sustains endurance in suffering and fuels sacrificial ministry. [36:03]
3. Believers will face Christ’s judgment The judgment seat evaluates deeds done in the body, not salvation itself, calling believers to steward opportunities faithfully. Anticipation of that review reframes daily choices: missed chances to encourage, share the gospel, or serve gain eternal weight. Living with that awareness cultivates integrity and urgent stewardship. [42:18]
4. Ambassadors called to reconcile others Reconciliation is both a divine act and a delegated ministry and requires gospel clarity, courage, and compassion. Ambassadorship means persuading with the fear of the Lord and the humility of one reconciled, carrying God’s appeal into relationships and communities. The work presses beyond comfort into active, personal outreach for eternity’s sake. [54:58]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[21:59] - Local notes and cultural observations
[24:55] - Cross-shaped living theme introduced
[25:22] - Opening prayer
[27:32] - Chuck Swindoll illustration
[33:13] - Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:6–21
[36:03] - “The love of Christ controls us”
[42:18] - Explaining the judgment seat of Christ
[50:39] - New creation identity in Christ
[54:58] - Ambassadors and the ministry of reconciliation
[1:00:04] - Three life lessons and application
[1:07:44] - Benediction and invitation

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
2 Corinthians 5:6–21 (ESV)

6 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. 12 We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. 13 For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Observation questions

According to 2 Corinthians 5:9, what is the primary ambition for those who follow Christ?
What does it mean that "the love of Christ controls us" (v. 14)? [36:03]
What role do believers play according to verse 20?
How does the passage describe the change that happens when someone is "in Christ" (v. 17)?

Interpretation questions

Why is the judgment seat of Christ (v. 10) only for believers, and how does it differ from the final judgment? [42:18]
How does the truth that "one has died for all, therefore all have died" (v. 14) shape the way a person lives? [46:18]
In what ways does being an "ambassador for Christ" (v. 20) affect how we speak and act in our daily relationships? [54:58]
What does it mean that God was "not counting their trespasses against them" (v. 19), and how should that truth impact how we view ourselves and others?

Application questions

What is one area of your life where you find it difficult to live with the ambition to please Christ rather than yourself or others? How can you reorient that area toward eternal significance? [33:42]
When was a time you felt controlled by Christ’s love in a decision or action, rather than by guilt or pressure? How can you cultivate more of that motivation in your daily choices? [36:03]
How does the reality of standing before the judgment seat of Christ affect the way you steward your time, talents, and opportunities this week? [42:18]
Who in your life needs to hear the message of reconciliation, and what is one practical step you can take this week to lovingly share Christ with them? [54:58]
In what relationship or situation do you need to rely more fully on your identity as a "new creation" (v. 17) rather than falling back into old patterns?
How can you encourage someone else this week to live with greater accountability to Christ and his calling? [32:13]
What is one way you can intentionally represent Christ as his ambassador in your workplace, neighborhood, or family this week?

Sermon Clips

31s

#PleasingJesus

“But the ambition that we ought to have is to please the lord Jesus Christ. To please god. Not so that we earn our salvation, not that we say, okay. I'm good enough now. I've got my good outweighing my bad, and I I I'm good enough to go to heaven. No. The ambition is to please him. Why? Because of what he's done for us. What he's done for us is something that is so far beyond our comprehension. Sometimes I don't even think we're able to conceive of what it really means that Jesus Christ took the place of each one of us by dying on the cross.”

34s

#ShareTheGospelNow

“Did you see the opportunity to share the Lord Jesus Christ with somebody that needed to hear about the gospel? Did you see the opportunities to encourage families that are I I hear the two surgeries that are going on this week. I'm certain that this church probably and in fact, as I look at y'all and see what you do, on a Sunday, I'm sure that you have ministries that are gonna minister to these folks. Now that's that's a blessing, but do we take advantage of these opportunities? Do we take advantages to do that? Cause those are things that Jesus is gonna say, hey, well done my faithful servant.”

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Accountable to Christ & Aiming to Please Him | 3/22/26