Sunday, February 23, 2014

Dying to Self

In Galatians 2:20 we read, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me."  What does that really mean - crucified with Christ?  It means we die with him ("I no longer live") but in what sense?  How is it that Christians no longer live?

The answer is found by including verses 19 and 21 in the mix. Verse 19 says, "I have died to the Law so that I might live for God."  No longer are we under the burden of Law Keeping in order to stand justified before God. The burden of the Law was met at Calvary and paid in full when Christ died on its cross.

Grace is no longer "set aside" (v. 21) but are free to live in the presence of God and in His glory because we are dead to the Law and the Law is dead to us. We are made alive in grace so that, being dead to the Law and to the sin it brings to life in us, we can truly live. 

To truly live, by the way, does not mean to live a life wasted on selfish pursuits and feeding our lusts. It means having the freedom to become what we were meant to be, to rise above the mundane of the flesh and live in the shadow of God's grace. It is to follow in the path of Jesus, living for God and serving mankind. It is to have purpose and a desire for true greatness as a servant of Almighty God. 

In this context, to truly die is t truly live - to truly reach the heights for which you were created. Jus' Sayn. 

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