One Way to Live

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. – Galatians 2:20

There is a phenomenal quote from the movie “Braveheart” that says, “Every man dies, but not every man truly lives.” There is so much truth in this statement, because the vast majority of people who live on this earth will live and die in slavery and bondage – in bondage to lust, pornography, jealousy, anger, bitterness, pride, or arrogance. In Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he talks about how to be free – free from sin, free from self, and free from shame. He explains that this kind of freedom can only be found in Christ, saying, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me,” (Galatians 2:20).

Simply put, Paul is saying the only way to live is to die, but when you die, you really live. In Galatians 2:20, we learn something that, once believed and acted upon as if they are true, we will experience the only way to live, and that is to die to yourself and your past.

Two people had to die in order for an unbeliever to become a believer. Jesus had to die for you, but then you have to die to you as well. This happens when you surrender your life to Christ. Everything you were, everything you used to be, everything in your past, every sin, every failure, every mistake, and every regret died with Jesus on the cross. The reason why all of that dies is because the old you died when you choose to become a follower of Jesus.

Have you died to yourself and to your past? Or are you still holding onto sins and behaviors that are keeping you from living in the fullness of Christ? My prayer is that if you haven’t completely died to yourself, that you would ask the Lord to forgive you and free you from your past so you can move forward into the future He has for you.

Dear Lord, thank you for offering me freedom from all of my sin and past mistakes. Help me to live in the freedom that can only be found in a relationship with you and help me to no longer cling to my past. Amen.