“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”
Galatians 2:20
I think we have heard this verse way too many times. We have become desensitized to the verse, numb to the picture it should bring to our minds.
Look at those pictures, study them. That is crucifixion. That is what Jesus calls of us, to be up our cross, daily, and be crucified with Him.
Imagine the pain. Nails in your hands and feet. Beaten. Beaten. Beaten. A crown of thorns on your head. A sign above your head saying who you truly are. What would it say? You are bleeding. A rough cross rubs all the cuts, as you push on the nail in your feet to try and breathe. Suffocating. If you didn’t die quick enough, your legs are broken. If you still live for too long, a pierce in your side.
Do you get what it means yet? It is not easy. It is the hardest thing you will ever experience. But, just as Jesus was raised from this death, so will you. You will have a new life, with CHRIST in you. You can live by faith, knowing this daily dying to yourself, being crucified with Christ is worth it. Check out these verses.
Philippians 3:9-11
“…and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith–that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and share with Him in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.”
Wow. I want to know Him, do you? I want resurrection, do you? I want awakening, do you? We must share in His suffering–are we willing? We must become like Him in His death–are we willing?
