What does it mean that for “me to live is Christ”?
Orientation
Many approach the Christian life as a call to greater religious effort or self-improvement, which leads to spiritual barrenness and undermines the gospel.
- The greatest obstacle is not weakness, but self-reliance on natural strength, righteousness, or wisdom.
- This reliance contradicts the gospel, for if righteousness came by the law, Christ died in vain (Galatians 2:21).
- The result is not sanctification, but a forfeiting of the life and power of Christ.
I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. (Galatians 2:21)
— Galatians 2:21
Clarification
Living for Christ is not about your performance, but about Christ's life in you, supplied by His Spirit.
- Righteousness and sanctification are received through faith in Jesus Christ, not produced by law-keeping or works.
- The Christian's new identity is 'in Christ'; you have been crucified with Christ and He now lives in you (Galatians 2:20).
- The focus of the gospel is Christ's person and work, not your ability to maintain standing before God.
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
— Galatians 2:20
Structure
Paul's life was sustained by the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, which is the source of all Christian joy, boldness, and power.
- The cause is reliance on the Spirit's supply; the effect is boldness to magnify Christ in all circumstances.
- This same life-giving Spirit that raised Christ from the dead now dwells in every believer (Romans 8:11).
- Living by this Spirit as living water results in satisfaction and joy, making the believer a conduit of Christ's life.
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. (Romans 8:11)
— Romans 8:11
Weight-Bearing Prose
The declaration ‘For me to live is Christ’ (Philippians 1:21) is a statement of source and sustenance, not effort. Paul’s joy and boldness in suffering flowed from one cause: ‘the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ’ (Philippians 1:19). This defines the Christian life. The Spirit is the agent of life, the same power that raised Christ, now dwelling in believers. This life operates apart from the law. Righteousness and sanctification are received through faith in Christ (Romans 3:21-22; 1 Corinthians 1:30), not achieved. To rely on natural strength, wisdom, or law-keeping is to reject this supply and frustrate grace (Galatians 2:21). The result is not a lack of progress, but a fundamental disconnect from the source. The gospel centers salvation solely on Christ. Believers are new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17); the old life of self-reliance is crucified. The present life is lived by the faith of the Son of God (Galatians 2:20). Any teaching that shifts focus to human performance denies the finished work of Christ and severs the believer from the Spirit’s supply.
Integration
Your life is Christ. This is not a goal to achieve but a reality to rest in. He is your righteousness, your sanctification, your life. The Spirit who raised Jesus dwells in you, supplying all you need. There is no pressure to manufacture this life. Your part is to believe—to agree with God that Christ is everything. Your failures or successes do not define you; your new identity in Christ does. He lives in you. Let this truth anchor you. The joy and boldness Paul knew are available to you from the same source: the boundless supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Look away from your own resources. Christ is your life. He is your all.