Christ
the Center
"I am crucified with
Christ, nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which
I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and
gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).
Not only are we in Christ,
but He lives in us. Paul told the Colossians that this is "the mystery
which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest
to his saints, to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of
this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of
glory" (Colossians 1:26-27). He prayed for the Ephesians "that Christ
may dwell in your hearts by faith."
These verses and others
reveal the closeness of the relationship that we enjoy with our sovereign Lord.
Stop and think for a moment just how amazing that is. How many people are
really close to the Queen of England or the King of Denmark?
You and I can meet with the
Lord Jesus day by day as He speaks to us through His word and we speak to Him
in prayer. He told us, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee."
Paul knew by experience that
justification could not be attained by works of the law. He had tried it; he
had gone that route and knew by experience that no one could perform perfect
obedience to it. He knew that there was no more need for the sacrifices and
purifications of the ceremonial law.
They had all been fulfilled
in Jesus Christ and had come to an end when Christ offered Himself a sacrifice
for us. He was dead to the Law so that he might live unto God.
In this verse He gives us an
excellent description of the mysterious life of the child of God. He is
crucified and yet he lives. Later in this book he goes on to say, "But God
forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom
the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" (Galatians 6:14).
He lives and yet not he.
That's a strange statement: "I live and yet not I." Actually he had
never been more alive because now he is totally alive; physically and
spiritually. But he knows that he lives by the grace and mercy of God. He has
all the comfort and power of the manifold grace of God active in his life. Yet
he knows that it is nothing of his own doing.
He saw himself in a state of
constant dependence on the Lord. Christian, never forget that. "Not that
we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves, but our
sufficiency is of God" (II Corinthians 3:5).
We live in the flesh, and to
all outward appearances we live just like other people do. Though we live in
the flesh, we do not live after the flesh.
Those of us who have placed our
faith in Christ live by that faith; a deep, abiding trust in Him who loved us
and gave Himself for us. What greater evidence of the love of Christ than the
fact that He willingly died for us that we might live!
As believers we are
identified with Christ in His death and in His resurrected life. By faith we
rely on Him to live His life in and through us.
This vital Bible verse is
just one of 60 carefully selected scriptures that are contained in the
Navigators Scripture Memory course. If you want to memorize
Scripture, but aren't sure what to memorize or how to get started, this is
exactly what you need. The Topical Memory
System includes memory verse cards in four
different Bible versions - NIV, KJV, NASB, NKJV. Topics include all of the
basics of the Christ-centered Spirit-filled life, sharing your faith, and
growing on to maturity in your walk with God. May God bless you as you
fill your life with His Word.
© Copyright 2002, LeRoy Eims