I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
– Galatians 2:20
The Christian life begins at the cross but the cross is not only Christ’s cross for us, but it is also our cross with Him. “I have been crucified with Christ” means that the self that once ruled from the throne of the heart has died, and in its place lives Christ Himself. To live out Christ, therefore, means that self-interest, self-assertion, and self-preservation must continually give way to the life of faith in the Son of God. The “I” that demanded control has been displaced by the indwelling Christ.
This does not mean the erasure of our personality. Instead, the unique individuality of each believer becomes a vessel through which God’s attributes are made visible. Living out Christ, then, is not a matter of trying harder to be holy, but of daily surrendering to His life within us. The crucified self gives way for the resurrected Lord to act, love, and serve through us. The more the “I” is surrendered, the more the “Christ who lives in me” is revealed to the world.
Prayer
Holy Spirit, fill me anew today. Let every part of my being come under Your sovereign presence. Teach me to yield to Your promptings and to let Christ live freely through me. Amen.
Meditation
What areas of my life have I not yet surrendered to the Spirit’s control, and how might Christ’s life become more visible if I yield them to Him?