Crucified
with Christ
When Christ died on the cross the work of salvation was completed and
Christ provided access for all believers into God’s holy presence. Therefore,
salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone.
God is a real person and our relationship with Him can be cultivated
as with any other relationship. We have been saved to live in fellowship with Him. We can
enjoy the riches of the Christian life only as we grow in intimacy with Christ. The
presence of our Lord in our lives brings this intimacy and these riches in glory with Him.
If there is no peace, joy, longsuffering, patience,
live, etc., it may well be that we are out of fellowship with Him, or
that we have not come into a living relationship with Him. We must spend
time in His presence everyday. It is terribly easy to get our minds set
on a thousand good things, but not on Christ. No religious activities or
feelings can substitute for the cultivation of the presence of God in
our lives.
“I have been crucified with
Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me .
. ." (Galatians 2:20 NET).
“When Christ bids us come and follow, He bids us come and
die,” said Bonhoeffer.
The victory in the Christian's life comes as we die
to selfishness and follow Him.
The apostle Paul wrote, “To me, to live is Christ and to die is
gain” (Phil. 1:20). Again he wrote, “The life I live in the body, I live by
faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). Paul can
write this because he has been crucified with Christ.
The Christian life is impossible to live if you do not know Christ as
your Savior. It is impossible if you have never put your faith in Christ. Nothing in the
unsaved person’s life can satisfy God’s righteousness. God will not accept our
self-righteousness in the slightest degree. Self-crucifixion by a lost person will not
save you.
It is only after an individual has put his faith in Christ and been
born again that God brings a person to self-crucifixion so Christ will be magnified.
Have you made a commitment to Jesus Christ as your personal Savior?
Have you trusted in His saving grace at the cross? Have you put your faith in His death
and His blood to cover all your sins? If you never have, you need to do so right now.
When we are crucified with Christ we allow Him to strip away
everything that keeps us from having an intimate fellowship with Him. It is like letting
Him strip off all our old worn out clothing and letting Him robe us in His perfect
righteousness. Anything that would keep us from following into the fullness of His life
needs to be nailed to the cross daily.
Selah!
Message by Wil Pounds (c) 2006
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