What Does “To Live Is Christ” Mean? - 9/20/2026

Well, I just want to start with a fun question this morning.

We're gonna do a little daydreaming together here.

I want you to imagine that you have won the lottery.

Congratulations.

$50 million.

It's in your bank account right now.

And I want you to dream a little bit.

What would you do?

How might that change your life?

What would you buy?

What would you do differently?

What would you stop doing?

I mean, let's just quick show of hands.

Who has already quit their job in their head uh right now in this dream?

A couple of us.

How about the opposite?

I mean, and be honest now.

Uh, this is don't don't answer this how you want to answer it.

Answer it what's real.

How many of you are keeping your job?

You're you're gonna stay in it because you just love it.

It's not about the money.

See one hand, a couple hands.

That's awesome.

I love that for you.

Uh and uh I mean, what are you gonna do?

Like, you know, maybe in your mind, like you've you're bought a house for yourself, you've bought a house for your kids, for your grandkids, for your grandkids' grandkids.

Where are you gonna travel?

What are you gonna buy?

I we had an elder meeting this week, and I asked this same question to a couple of our elders, and our our elder chairman, Jason Carter, said that he was gonna buy a Nissan leaf.

And I was like, bro, you need bigger dreams.

I don't I mean, I know as your pastor, I should be proud of you that you've like transcended material desires or whatever, but like you can do better than that.

I mean, come on.

Uh so I don't know what it is for you.

Uh, you know, I I asked this question because it it's an interesting question that reveals something about our hearts, about our souls.

Uh, you know, what the lottery question does is it it kind of narrows uh what life is about.

Life is full of all kinds of things.

You do things for a number of reasons.

Some things you do because you have to do them, some things you do because you get to do them, some things you don't do because you don't want to, and some things you don't do because you can't do them.

And what the lottery question does is it gets rid of all the have-to's and the can't do's, and it just leaves you with if you could do anything, right?

What would you choose to do?

And really that question, it's getting at a question of purpose and fulfillment.

The question is, if you could do anything, what kind of life would you build for yourself that you think would actually be satisfying and fulfilling?

We're talking about purpose this morning, and we're gonna hear on that from the apostle Paul, who's writing the book of Philippians.

We're in Philippians chapter one this morning, and uh he wants to talk about what makes life worth living.

And he's writing to us from the perspective, not of someone who has won the lottery, uh, almost the opposite.

He's kind of like won the anti-lottery.

Paul has been arrested and taken to uh trial in Rome, where he is awaiting a verdict where he could possibly be executed as a traitor against the Roman Empire.

And, you know, he's a thousand miles away from his community, from his friends, from his family, uh, his life's mission of planting churches and you know, going to people who haven't heard about Jesus and sharing Jesus around the known world, like that's on a pause.

It's been halted because of this arrest.

Like he's kind of lost like everything in his life, but from prison, chained to a Roman guard, what he's gonna tell us this morning is I actually haven't lost my life's purpose because I've found something to live for that is worth living for, even when everything else gets taken away.

What we're gonna see through the experience of the Apostle Paul and through God's word this morning is that being a part of the story of Jesus is what gives life its deepest purpose.

Paul says, I uh my life is a part of something bigger than just my life.

It's about this story of who Jesus is and what he's done for the world and what he's doing even now.

And I rejoice even today in that purpose, even when everything else has been taken from me.

This is how Paul says that.

This is Philippians chapter 1, verse 21.

Philippians 1:21

He says, For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

This is one of the most memorable things that the Apostle Paul uh ever wrote.

And maybe you're hearing it for the first time this morning, or maybe you grew up in church and you memorize this as a kid, and this is the thousandth time that you've heard it.

This was a great awana verse because it was so short.

Uh, it was just easy, you know.

Uh for me to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Give me that badge.

Uh, the the this saying it to many of us becomes quite familiar.

It's easy to miss what makes it so profound.

I just want to show you a couple things that you may or may not have ever heard about this.

Uh, one, this was a very well-crafted sentence.

This wasn't just something Paul threw out one day.

This was like a life motto.

And in the Greek, it kind of rolls off the tongue.

It's almost a rhyme.

If you look at these two Greek words, Paul says, for me to live is Christos, and to die is kerados.

What is life all about?

It's about Christos, Christ.

It's about Jesus.

And if I were to die, well, kerados.

It would be gain.

But more than that, this is actually a bit of a play on words in Greek.

So in the Roman culture of the day, uh, there was an outlook, kind of a motto of uh of their own about what the good life was all about.

And simply in Greek it would have been this the Roman motto was zen crestos.

Living is good, or life is good.

And it was this saying about just enjoying life and all the things that make life worth living.

So you can imagine, you know, saying zen crestos, uh, when that business deal closes and you know you prosper tremendously, or with a glass of wine in your hand, looking at the sunset, you know, zen crestos, with a baby in your arms, like all the things that make life worth living.

There's this Roman motto, life is good, living is good, zen crestos.

What Paul says here is a play on that.

He says, for me, not zen crestos, but zen Christos.

Life is Christ's, living is Jesus.

My my purpose, my life.

It isn't about just all the things that I enjoy, what makes life worth living.

No, it's about Jesus and who he is and Jesus' purpose for me.

So he's speaking to this church in Philippi, this important city where people have all kinds of things going on in their life.

There's all kinds of business, there's people gaining wealth, people are trying to find their purpose and find their identity in all sorts of things, you know, it through money, through accomplishment, through sex or family or status.

And he's speaking to that church, saying, Life is about more than just all the things you can enjoy.

It's about Jesus.

And it's not a very different context than our own world, is it?

You know, our world in so many ways is different from the world that Paul was writing to.

You know, the things that we want to buy are certainly different.

The way we entertain ourselves is different, our standard of living is quite different.

But the human heart is the same.

When you look around at your world, at your friends, at your neighbors, at your co-workers, the culture around you, what you're going to find is people chasing after all kinds of things to find fulfillment and purpose.

And Paul says, for me, it is all about Jesus.

Now, if that's true, then it brings you to the second part of that statement, right?

He says, To live is Christ, to die is gain.

And the second half, it it doesn't quite sit as well with us as the first half, right?

If you're a follower of Jesus, you can get behind to live as Christ.

To die is gain.

It's it actually is a little bit troubling if you don't take it the right way.

You know, I I mean, I hope that if you had a friend who was talking this way, if you had a friend who was talking about how it might be uh actually a good thing for them to die, that you would be concerned, that you would ask some good questions, that you would figure out what's going on in your friend's life and in their mind if they need some help.

I like it's not a normal way to talk, to talk that way.

And so should we be concerned about Paul?

What's going on here?

Why does he say to die is gain?

Well, remember where he's writing from, right?

He's waiting on a trial where he could be executed.

And that possibility is clearly on his mind.

He is thinking about what might happen if he were to be killed right now.

And let's let's watch him work it out.

This is Philippians 1, 22 to 24.

With this possibility on the horizon, he says, Now, if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me.

And I don't know which one I should choose.

I am torn between the two.

I long to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.

Let's stop here and make sure we understand what he's saying.

You know, there's there's these two possibilities in front of him.

He could uh get out of this predicament he's in, he could he could live, or he could be put to death to live or to die.

And he's saying, I don't know which one of these I would prefer.

It's interesting.

I mean, it's a heavy, isn't it?

Uh I mean, and and we go like Paul, like choose life, my man.

Like better to live than to die.

But he says, actually, there's would be some significant advantages to being executed.

Because what that would mean is that I would depart this life and I would be with Christ, which is far better.

He is saying he he might personally prefer to die.

But is Paul suicidal here?

No, that that's missing the point completely.

That's not what he's talking about.

Uh, I was in the car this week with my kids, and I love it when they say something that has to do with the sermon that I'm working on.

And that was this is one of those weeks.

My kids were in the back seat, and I don't know how we even got to this point in the conversation.

It seemed like it was out of the blue.

Uh kids were quiet in the back, and then uh Thatcher, my six-year-old son, spoke up and he said, Dad, I would love to be in heaven with Jesus.

It was sweet, you know.

He he's here at church at Sunday school, he's learning about heaven, we're talking about heaven, and you know, trying to correct his theology a little bit.

I was like, Well, actually, Thatcher, heaven's gonna come here, and there's a new heaven and new earth, and you know, there's an immediate state.

I gave an NT right book, he's working it all out.

The uh no, the the point though is he's using his little six-year-old imagination.

He's imagining this day that he's been told about when Jesus is gonna come back, when he's gonna wipe away every tear, where there's gonna be no sin, no suffering, no pain.

And he's saying, Man, that would be great.

I would love to see Jesus face to face.

It's a great thing.

Was I worried about his mental state?

No.

He wasn't sitting like he wasn't saying, you know, I just don't know if it's worth it to go on anymore.

I that wasn't him.

He was just saying, I can't wait for Jesus to come back and make everything new.

That's what Paul is saying.

Saying, look, if if I get hauled away and executed, don't feel bad for me.

I I will be face to face with Jesus.

It'd be far better for me to be face to face with Jesus.

But he goes on to say, I actually don't think that's what God is going to do because I have a purpose here and now.

He says it might be better for me to depart to be with Jesus, but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.

Since I am persuaded of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that because of my coming to you again, your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound.

My earthly life has a purpose, even though it's full of suffering, even though I maybe wouldn't choose to be in this situation I'm in.

God has me here for a reason.

It's to encourage you, to pour my life into you, to help you follow Jesus, to build the church.

And so because he sees that, he's confident, he says, I don't think God is done with me yet.

I think I'm gonna stay.

And what Paul says is, you know, I it means fruitful work, work that's of benefit to the kingdom.

And so I'm here, you know, and and before we go on, I just uh I want to address a reality that I know is true in a room like this, which is that there are uh some of us here, there are several of us here, who have struggled with the question, is it worth it to continue on?

Who have struggled with suicidal thoughts and ideation, and maybe you're there right now.

And I just want to say that what Paul says is true of his life is true of your life as well.

That if you're here today, God has a purpose for you in being here today.

He's the one who puts breath in your lungs, and your life is precious to him, and he's not going to waste it.

One day you will be face-to-face with Jesus, and it will be great to be face-to-face with Jesus.

But as long as there's breath in your lungs, don't ever cut short the purposes that God has for you here and now.

Paul says, I uh God's not done with me yet.

I've got work to do.

Uh and then he turns to the Philippines and he turns it on them.

And he says, if I'm gonna live for my purpose, if I'm gonna submit to what Jesus has for me, then I want you to do the same as well.

This is what he says in verse 27.

He says, just one thing.

As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ.

So here is your purpose, here's your identity.

You are a citizen of heaven.

Live your life worthy of that calling.

That that phrase, that concept of a citizen, there's a reason why Paul is using that idea here for the Philippians.

If you were here at the series intro, I told you a little bit about the city of Philippi.

This is where it is in the Roman Empire of the day.

And you can see it's a long, long ways from Rome.

I mean, especially in an ancient context.

I mean, it's days and days' journey away from Rome.

But Caesar had granted Philippi this special status.

It was an important city.

And what that status meant was that, legally speaking, if you were in Philippi, it was the same as if you were in Rome.

And here's what that meant: uh if you were born, you know, in the greater empire, in the conquered areas of Rome, then you were born into the Roman Empire, but you were not born a Roman citizen.

You were a subject.

You had to follow the Roman laws, you had to pay the Roman taxes, you had to bow the knee to Caesar, but you didn't get to claim that you were a citizen of the empire.

They conquered you.

You're not one of them.

But even though Philippi was in that conquered area, legally speaking, it was as if you were in Rome.

What was he just saying?

If you're born in Philippi, you are a citizen of Rome.

It's just like if you were born in Rome itself.

And so, what that meant is that status as citizenship, it became quite important culturally to the Philippian people.

They viewed themselves as having a calling of which they had to live a worthy life.

You know, if you were a Roman citizen in Philippi, the festivals of Rome were important to you, the meals, the religious practices, all of that.

It was because the citizenship came with its own purpose.

See, Rome had this identity of what it was doing in the world.

Okay, Rome was bringing civilization to the barbarians.

They were doing the world a favor, okay?

They were bringing the Pax Romana to the world.

And you know, the Pax Romana, the peace of Rome.

It's a little bit of a joke if you know the history, because it wasn't all that peaceful how they brought the Pax Romana, but they really believed like Caesar's reign and rule is what was good for the world, and it was their job to make it happen.

They were representative of Caesar.

And so Paul takes this cultural idea of Roman citizenship and the Roman purpose, and he says, Okay, you are a citizen, and I want you to live worthy of being a citizen, but not a citizen of Rome, a citizen of heaven, a citizen of the kingdom of God.

See, you have a purpose.

You are supposed to be bringing the rule and reign of your king to the world, but it's King Jesus, it's it's Jesus' peace, the shalom of God that he accomplished on the cross.

And your calling is to live a life worthy of that reality, that you are a citizen of God's kingdom because Jesus has brought you in.

And so Paul goes on to unpack that a little bit of what it looks like to be citizens of heaven, some marks of our heavenly citizenship.

And the first one he says is okay, if if we live this way together, then it's going to look like unity.

If we recognize as followers of Jesus that we have the same citizenship, the same identity, the same purpose, then we're going to be unified in that.

The rest of 27 says this with it says, then whether I come and see you or am absence, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one accord, continue together for the faith of the gospel.

Says, this is what I want to see in your community, in your church, in your family, one spirit, one accord, continue together for the faith of the gospel.

See, this citizenship, it gives you a calling, it gives you a purpose.

God has you where he has you, so that you can represent Jesus to the world and that you can bring about the rule and reign of God, the kingdom of God.

And that calling, that purpose, it has to be higher than all the other things that could divide you.

You know, this heart, it's behind some of what we've been doing at Alderwood the last couple of years, as we revised our doctrinal statement and some of our position papers and all of that.

And it was to make clear what unites all of us together is the faith of the gospel.

It is who Jesus is.

It is the Orthodox Christian faith that goes back to the early church.

If you're if you're a member of Alderwood, then this is what we hold to tightly.

And at the same time, it was to say, and we don't want to let things that don't matter as much divide us.

We don't want to let our disagreements get in the way of the calling and the mission that Jesus has given us here and now.

He has important work for us to do.

It is an outpost of the kingdom.

To live as citizens is to link arms together and to love this community around us as one in the name of Jesus.

Paul says, look, if you see your heavenly citizenship, it's going to give you unity.

And secondly, he says, it's also going to give you confidence.

This is what he says next.

So I want you to live as a citizen, a life worthy, not being frightened in any way by your opponents.

This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your salvation.

And this is from God.

So I don't want you to be frightened.

I want you to be confident.

The Philippian church was experiencing persecution.

You know, the message that there is this king named Jesus, who is the king of kings, that was not a welcome message in the Roman culture.

You were supposed to bow the knee to Caesar, not to talk about kings greater than Caesar.

And so the church had been uh had been under attack, and even their very lives had been threatened.

And no one knows that better than Paul himself.

And yet what he says is, I don't want you to be afraid.

See, when you when you see the greater reality, the bigger story of Jesus, then you also know how it ends.

You know that Jesus reigns on the throne, that he is victorious, and that he is going to save you at the end of the day.

And he says this interesting thing says, your confidence, you not being frightened, it's a sign of destruction for them, but of your salvation.

What does that mean?

Well, if you don't believe in the story of Jesus, if you don't believe in him being victorious, if you think, for instance, that this life is all there is, that you know you live your 80 years or however long, and then you die, and that's it, then if someone threatens your life, I mean, uh that is worth being frightened of.

If someone threatens to take away from you the only thing you have, like it is worth being scared about that.

And so if you can stand confidently when facing that kind of persecution, it is this sign that you know a bigger story, that you know something that they don't.

That you know that your life is safe in Jesus' hands, and even if your earthly life is taken from you, he will raise you to life again.

It's a sign that there's something bigger going on than the here and now.

So Paul says, if you know your heavenly citizenship, you're gonna have confidence, not fear.

And lastly, he points to this as the last mark of heavenly citizenship.

You're gonna have unity, you're gonna have confidence, and you're gonna have purpose.

If you see yourself as a part of the story of Jesus in this world, you're gonna have a different purpose than other people.

He says it in a really interesting way.

It doesn't quite resonate with us at first.

This is verses 29 and 30.

He says, for it has been granted to you on Christ's behalf, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.

So he's talking about their purpose.

He's talking about this struggle, okay, this calling to preach the gospel, to represent Jesus and the persecution they're facing because of it.

But I want to look at how he says the first part of this concept here.

He says that something has been granted to you.

A word granted, it means to show favor.

So, like in our English language today, you know, we talk about uh earning grants or like seeking grants.

You know, if you're a researcher at the University of Washington, you apply for grants and you want the federal government to give you money so that you can do the work that you do.

That's what a grant is.

It's a gift.

And so Paul says here, uh, look, God has given you some things.

He's giving you a couple of gifts.

And what's the first one?

Well, the first gift is that you believe in Jesus.

He's given you your faith.

The ability to follow Jesus and to believe in him is a gift from God.

Praise him for that.

And then there's a second gift.

What's the second gift?

Well, the second gift is the opportunity to suffer for him.

Well, that's interesting.

Uh thank you, Jesus, for that gift.

Uh, you shouldn't have, you know.

Um have you ever been given a gift that you don't like very much?

I mean, this is kind of what that is.

I remember uh clear as day, this moment as an eight-year-old when my uh aunt brought this gift over to my house and it was wrapped and had a bow on it and the whole thing.

And you know, I'm eight, I like can't wait to open any gift.

I'm imagining Legos or Pokemon cards or whatever.

And I open it, and inside is dress clothes.

And I'm like, huh, and I like lift them up to see if like the real gift is underneath, or you know, or whatever.

But nope, that was it.

And the reason I remember it is because it was one of those moments where I was just old enough to put together that I'm not allowed to be disappointed, that I have to be grateful and smile and say thank you and all that.

So I I do all that and then I run away and play with my toys or whatever, you know.

I mean, this is kind of that.

Like, oh, thank you.

Uh I get to suffer.

Uh so what's up with that?

I I mean, do you see suffering as a gift?

I don't.

Uh I mean, uh, what's going on?

Uh here's a hot take for the morning, okay?

Suffering is bad.

Uh, it's actually not good.

And you know, uh that's that's real.

Like God does not delight in your suffering.

Suffering is not a part of God's good plan for this creation in the new heavens and the new earth.

There's gonna be no more suffering.

Suffering's bad.

So if suffering is bad, how can it also be a gift?

And I think the only possible answer to that it comes down to purpose.

See what Paul has said here is that for me, to live is Christ.

Life is about Jesus.

And Paul has walked through some significant suffering because of his faith.

That's the kind of suffering he's talking about here.

He's talking about the suffering that comes because of your faithfulness to Jesus.

And he's talking to the Philippians who are experiencing that too.

And having gone through what Paul's gone through, apparently, he has seen that his suffering has actually brought him closer to Jesus.

And from being chained up because of preaching the gospel, you know, he has had to learn to trust Jesus more.

He's had to learn to rely on Jesus, to let Jesus be enough for him.

See, often what suffering does is it strips away from our lives the other things that we think can fulfill us, the things we chase after.

And at a certain point, you might be left only with Jesus.

That's really where Paul is when he writes this.

He says, there's worse things than being left only with Jesus.

One of the things he says is, you know, he counts it a privilege to be counted worthy to suffer with Jesus.

He sees the way that Jesus suffered because he was obedient to his father.

He went to the cross and suffered out of obedience.

And and Paul will say, look, if God counts me worthy to live the same kind of life as Jesus, then I'll thank him for that.

It's an amazing thing.

I'll be honest with you.

I mean, I'm I'm telling you what the Bible says.

I don't necessarily hold that conviction, honestly.

I mean, I I haven't suffered a lot for my faith.

I don't want to suffer.

I I mean, I I don't totally get this.

But what I can tell you is that if Paul from prison can say, it's worth it, my life is on the line, and it's worth it to me because Jesus is enough.

It's Jesus is so valuable to me that I'll even count suffering a gift.

What I can tell you is I want that kind of faith.

I I want that kind of relationship with Jesus.

I don't get it, but I want it.

And I hope you do too.

And that's why I started with this question about the lottery in the beginning.

Uh and you might think, you know, the point of that was here at the end to be able to say, like, it's a trick question, and the answer is Jesus, and you should have given all the money away because Jesus is enough for all of us, you know.

Gotcha.

Uh but no, that's not my point.

My point is just for us to recognize that in this world, our hearts are going to be pulled all kinds of different directions.

There are all kinds of shiny objects and promises made and ideas of what might possibly be fulfilling in this world.

And it's okay to recognize that your heart is drawn towards those things.

So, so often, what that is, is those are good gifts that God has given us that we ought to enjoy, that we ought to praise Him for.

You know, if you have any kind of financial security, if you have a roof over your head, that's a gift from God, and praise God for that, it's a great thing to enjoy.

If you get to go on a vacation this year and, you know, enjoy something amazing with your family, like praise God, that's an amazing gift.

You ever get to go out to a nice meal with great people and enjoy a moment, like praise God for that.

Often the problem comes when we take those good gifts from God and we try to turn them into the end all be all of life, the thing that can actually satisfy us and fulfill us and be our purpose.

And that will always leave us lacking because there is only one purpose in the world that can actually bear the weight of your soul.

And that is Jesus.

That is being reunited to your creator, because all of the desires of your heart, every longing you have, everything you want, they were put there to draw you to him.

He's the only thing that can satisfy all of that.

And so Paul, having sat in this cell and had everything taken from him, says, I want you to know, for me, to live is Christ.

It's about Jesus.

It's not about anything else.

Jesus is the only purpose that can be enough in the times of plenty when you have everything else that you might want.

And he can also be enough in the times of want when everything else has been taken from you.

For me to live is Christ.

That's what Paul says.

And I want to leave you with this question.

For Paul, the purpose of life is Jesus.

What is the purpose of life for you?

And maybe you're here this morning and you're not yet a follower of Jesus.

And I just want you to hear this invitation from him.

You know, Jesus is extending his hand.

He's extending you the forgiveness of God that he accomplished at the cross.

He's extending to you a life with God that you could never earn or receive on your own.

He is extending to you the opportunity to return to your creator who made you and loves you and wants to give you a hope and a future.

And I hope you'll receive that this morning.

But if you're a follower of Jesus already, then you know the answer to this question.

You know the right answer.

We're here, we're here in church.

The answer is Jesus.

Uh, what is the purpose of life for you?

It should be Jesus.

Uh and if you're a follower of Jesus, then I just want you to recognize this morning that knowing what the right answer should be is actually not quite enough to live a life that's actually founded on that truth.

See, our hearts, they're a little bit more complicated than that.

They're not quite as easy to control as just telling our hearts what to love.

Uh, it doesn't work that way.

You know, often our hearts are shaped more by our relationships, they're shaped more by our habits, they're shaped more by how we spend our time and what we bring into our life than they are just what we know in our head.

And so my question for you this morning is, you know, if you want the answer to that question to be Jesus, if you say, Okay, I want to love Jesus more than I love anything else, I want my life to be about Jesus, then more than just knowing that answer in your head, what are the things that you're bringing into your life right now that God is going to use to actually shape your heart, to give you new desires, to turn you more in to the kind of person that Jesus made you to be that loves him more than anything else in this world?

You know, this is one of those things right now.

Here we are.

We're at church and we come to church to worship.

But I hope as you come in here every Sunday that you come with open hands asking God, God, would you shape me?

Would you use the word this morning?

Would you use our time of worship?

Would you turn me in more and more to the person that Jesus created me to be?

If we need more than just a Sunday a month or a Sunday, even every week, you know, what are the relationships in your life that are pointing you that direction, that are bringing you back to Jesus?

What are the habits, the time in the Word, in the quiet, asking the Spirit to speak to you?

That's what these habits of following Jesus are all about.

Habits of generosity and habits of service and community and all of that.

These are these things where we say, okay, I know the answer in my head.

Jesus, I know that you're enough for me.

I want my heart to believe that too.

So, God, use these things to give me a new heart, to give me a new desire, to breathe new life into me and help me love what you love.

I know I want that.

I hope you do too.

Let's ask Jesus to work in our lives that way together.

God, we come before you this morning in the name of Jesus, and we come with gratitude.

Gratitude that you love us, that you have saved us, that you have a purpose for our lives here and now.

And we confess that there's just so many ways that our hearts want to go astray.

So many things that we're tempted to believe can be enough for us, even though we know they can't.

And so we ask this morning that your spirit would shape us and give us new desires and new loves that remind us of the truth, that we could live lives worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

It's in Jesus' name that we pray.

Amen.