The Christian life is lived by him not toward him. What I mean by that, is that Christ isn’t some pattern outside of us towards which we live; instead Christ as a person, by the Holy Spirit lives in us and through us as the only source of holiness and Christlikeness. Tragically, much discipleship in the body of Christ teaches “an imitation of Christ,” seeing Jesus as a pattern outside of us that we’re to try to model, but the biblical reality is that we are in union with Christ, and therefore I’m in him and he’s in me, and it’s from that reality that we alone can be Christlike in every situation that life throws at us. We don’t behave in Christlike ways for Christ; instead we behave in Christlike ways by Christ. It’s bigger than living our life for Him. It is giving our life for Him and to Him, as His body, so that He can live His life by us, telling His story through our lives by His supernatural ability. Thus His power being made perfect, and manifest in and through my weaknesses. Rom. 11:36 says, “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever.” That word “forever” is actually in the original language “to the ages.” I personally think that means more than just the idea of “forever.” It carries the idea of forever but it also carries the idea of any age from age to age forever. In other words every age brings its own set of stresses temptations and circumstances, and that the solution no matter what age you live in, is for everything in your Christian life to have its origin from him, to be accomplished through him or by him, so that it is all for him. That’s the formula for Him receiving all the glory and helps us understand Colossians 1:27 which says Christ in us is the hope of glory, and Colossians 3:3-4, “for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ is our life is revealed then you’ll be revealed with him in glory.” As long as Jesus is the origin of his own activity in your life, and by your life then He will manifest His glory through you, and you get to participate in that. We were created, and reborn in Christ, to walk in God’s manifest glory.