Galatians
2:19, 20 For through
the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20 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.
Paul
says it is impossible for a person who has been justified through faith in
Christ to return to his old sinful lifestyle.
It is not merely his standing with God that has been changed. He
has been changed! He has been united
with Christ by the work of the Holy Spirit.
He now has new life. His faith is
Christ is a result of the work of God
through the Son and the Spirit.
Paul explains this new life through
his own experience. He describes it in
two ways in verses 19, 20. “I died to the law, so that I might live to
God.” “I have been crucified with
Christ. It is no longer I who live but
Christ who lives in me.” This is why
Christians cannot continue to live in their sin! Through faith in the work of Christ we have joined,
by faith, in his crucifixion. Day by day
we die to sin and the old way of living.
Every day we die to our pride and our confidence in good works. We have been united with Christ and through
his Spirit he now lives in us, putting sin to death and clothing us with his
righteousness. We are being shaped into
the image of Christ through death to sin and new life in Christ. Our lives are no longer our own to live any
way we please. Christ lives in us and
our lives are his to do with as he pleases. Paul says he lives like this because Jesus “loved me and gave himself for me.” Christ changes us spiritually. We no longer desire to live the old way. He puts a passion for holiness in us. We are moving in a completely new direction,
away from the old life toward God. By
grace through faith he changed us!
