Crucified With Christ

"I have been crucified with Christ..."--Galatians 2:20

"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."--Galatians 2:20.  In context (Galatians 2:11-21), Paul speaks of how he opposed Peter when Peter "stood condemned" (Galatians 2:11) because he would mingle with the Gentiles but when "certain men" came around, he withdrew from the Gentiles because he feared these men.  Other Jewish Christians, even Barnabas, followed suit. Peter's problem? An unwillingness to put aside his old life in the face of potential adversity. Paul, he was crucified with Christ.

Crucified with Christ.  Let us return to the cross.  The old law along with all the sins of mankind was nailed to the cross with Christ. Your sins and my sins were nailed on that cross.  Peter put it best in Acts 2:36 (Scroll over the passage to read).  What does this mean one should do in response to having crucified Christ as a result of our sin? Acts 2:38 is the answer. After we have done this, we must "live by faith in the Son of God." Why? Because we have been crucified with Christ.

Crucified with Christ.  If we have given your life to Jesus per Acts 2:38 (Among other passages), our sins are on that cross PERMANENTLY.  Because Jesus has taken that punishment that He did not deserve in any way shape or form, we need to live our life by faith in Him and completely turn away from our old way of life.  We can't be "Sunday Christians." We need to be 24/7 Christians.  I used to think being a Christian meant trying not to sin but knowing that God's grace covers us when we do. But I now know it's so much more than that. God's grace does cover us but trying not to sin is dependent on our own effort. As Paul says in Galatians 2:21 "Christ died needlessly" if following God was dependent on our own effort.  Every Christian MUST follow Christ every day and in every way by completely putting away our old life. Living by faith in the Son of God involves the DAILY choice to do so.  Why is this true?  BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST! DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!