A heavily booked commercial flight out of Denver was canceled, and a single agent was rebooking a long line of inconvenienced travelers. Suddenly an angry passenger pushed his way to the front and slapped his ticket down on the counter. "I have to be on this flight and it has to be first class!" he insisted. "I’m sorry, sir," the agent replied. "I’ll be happy to help you, but I have to take care of these folks first." The passenger was unimpressed. "Do you have any idea who I am?" he demanded in a voice loud enough for the passengers behind him to hear. Without hesitating, the gate agent smiled and picked up her public-address microphone. "May I have your attention, please?" she broadcast throughout the terminal. "We have a passenger here at the gate who does not know who he is. If anyone can help him find his identity, please come to the gate." As the man retreated, the people in the terminal burst into applause. (Taken from sermoncentral.com Johnny Creasong)
I think that this is a great illustration for us as Christians. While it would be great if we never acted like the man in this story the fact is we sometimes do. Before we get into our text today we are going to look back a few verses and see that even the best, as we think of the best, Christians are subject to act in ways that are unbecoming of their namesake “Christ.” Take a look at Galatians chapter 20 verses 11-19.
11 tNow when 4Peter had come to Antioch, I 5withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed; 12 for before certain men came from James, uhe would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing 6those who were of the circumcision. 13 And the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.
14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about vthe truth of the gospel, I said to Peter wbefore them all, x“If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, 7why do you compel Gentiles to live as 8Jews? 15 yWe who are Jews by nature, and not zsinners of the Gentiles, 16 aknowing that a man is not 9justified by the works of the law but bby faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not cby the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
17 “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found dsinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. 19 For I ethrough the law fdied to the law that I might glive to God.
In our illustration a man is being very rude to those around him in order to try and accommodate himself. Peter has also been rude to the gentiles at Galatia because he did not want to embarrass himself by associating with them while the Jewish Christians were around. Paul however is going to have no part of this and he corrects Peter out of love but in public. When Christian leaders in the church begin to act in a non-Christ-like manner they affect everyone around them just as Peter affected the Jews and even Barnabas. So it is sometimes necessary to correct the person who is leading people astray in public. Paul stresses to Peter that they have a new way of living because of the sacrifice that Christ has made. He points out that Peter has already stopped following the whole law so why is he trying to keep this part of the law that hurts the fellowship of the believers.
In verse eighteen Paul switches from “we” to “I”. We need to be thankful for godly leaders in the Church. Paul is ready to defend what he clearly sees and knows is wrong because of his own relationship with Christ. In verse nineteen he makes the statement that he died to the law so that he might live to God. We are going to be looking at verse twenty today and it is important to note that verse twenty is an explanation of that stament made in verse nineteen.
20 I have been hcrucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh iI live by faith in the Son of God, jwho loved me and gave Himself for me.
“I” have been crucified with Christ. Not we, or they, or the world, or Christians, but “I” have been crucified with Christ. When you think of Christianity do you think of the Church or do you think of yourself? Do you think about how the Church should be doing this or the Church should be doing that? How many people have made a statement like ‘They have taken prayer out of the school, because the Church has been silent.’ Or, ‘There is so much trash on TV because the Church watches those shows.’ I have heard many of these types of statements and I have made many of these types of statements. How many times do you think that the people that are making these statements have lifted one finger to try and make a difference? Paul says “I” have been crucified with Christ. He is proclaiming that he accepts the responsibility of baring the cross of Christ. God wants us to know today that Christianity is a relationship, a personal relationship, and we must individually be crucified in order to properly serve Him.
When we look at the phrase, “…have been crucified… “we see that he is speaking of an ongoing process. Paul is not saying that he was crucified with Christ and now he is off the cross free to do as he pleases. How often we make this mistake. We are no longer our own we have been bought with a price. Joy is an essential part of Christianity and a life devoted to Christ is a life filled with true Godly happiness, but to be devoted to Christ is to die to the flesh and live for Him. If we see our symbolic crucifixion as a onetime event then we will have no reason to serve Christ in our daily lives.
A lady was walking down the street in Atlanta when a man grabbed her purse and ran away. She was terrified. She was from a small town in Alabama and had never even known anyone that had something like this happen to them. Much to her relief a police officer was heading her way. When he got close to her she frantically began to beg for help. “Officer that man took my purse can you please go and catch him?” “No. Sorry miss, I can’t do that. “ He said. “Well, she said, then can you get on your radio and call someone who can?” “Oh this, he said, no sorry it is not working.” “ What kind of policeman are you if you cannot chase a crook or call for help?” He replied, “Well I showed up to the police academy ten years ago and got this uniform but I have not been back.”
We not only do not have a reason to serve Christ in our daily lives if we see our crucifixion as a onetime event we also will not be prepared to serve Him in any situation if we are not daily crucified.
“It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
If Paul believes himself to be hanging on the cross then who is it that people see when they see him still walking around on the earth? It is Jesus Christ. This statement cannot be taken too seriously and it is often not taken seriously enough. I no longer have to worry about what men think of me! Paul is shouting. The law has no power over me! He is dead, Christ is alive. You may think to yourself that this cannot be true because you know that you are a Christian yet you have sinned. Christ is not capable of sin therefore it cannot be Him who lives through you. Hear what Paul is saying! You are dead. The penalty for sin is death. Your penalty has been paid. That is why you, if you are saved, must remain on the cross. If salvation took away all temptation and failure then we would be free to jump from the cross and live our own lives. Remain on the cross daily and allow Christ to live for you. If we die with Him then we will be resurrected with Him!
and the life which I now live in the flesh iI live by faith in the Son of God,
Here Paul tells how he accomplishes this living while dead that confuses so many of us today. Faith, it is that simple, and why shouldn’t it be. Hebrews chapter eleven verse one tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen. How wonderfully that definition fits into the explanation of this passage. Do you want to know if you are living for Christ and not your old self? What is the substance or to make it simple what is the gist of your life? When you boil it all down is it about Christ and Him crucified or is it about pleasing the part of you that is hanging on the cross? What evidence is there that Christ is ruling your life? Would it make it easier to understand if in this verse Paul said the life I now live in the flesh I live by substance and evidence in the Son of God?
Have you ever heard the term the proof is in the pudding? It actually comes from the phrase "the proof of the pudding is in the eating." It means that the true value or quality of something can only be judged when it’s put to use. The meaning is often summed up as "results are what count." (From ASK Yahoo)
When Paul uses the term faith here it is not some vague idea. Faith equals results.
jwho loved me and gave Himself for me
So that we would correctly understand this verse we looked at the verse proceeding it to see why Paul was saying what He was saying. It is also important to look at the next verse in order to fully understand the last part of verse twenty. In verse twenty one Paul says, “21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.” “Who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Paul is saying that Christ died and He died for a reason. That reason was “me.” Why should I obey the commands of Jesus Christ? Because He died for me. Why should I give Him my life? Because He died for me. And if He died for me then I will gladly give my life to Him.
Paul was stuck blind the first time he heard the voice of Jesus. He not only did not want to serve Christ he wanted to destroy all those who followed Christ. Now he has come to a realization that millions of people after him would come to. Christ loves me. Christ died for me.
Do you know that must take up your cross and be an example for everyone instead of waiting for the church to do it?
Do you realize that you must be daily crucified with Christ instead of acting as if it were a onetime event?
Have you recognized that the world no longer has a hold on you because Christ is alive and your sinful nature is dead?
Can you see the results of faith in your life?
Have you recognized that Christ not only loves you but that He freely gave Himself for you?
We cannot have one without the other. Paul makes all of these truths clear when he is speaking of his own personal experience in this verse. If you are not living a life that reflects Galatians Chapter two verse twenty then repent and ask God to open your eyes to these truths. If you are thinking that all of this sounds good but you have no idea what it all means then ask God to make Himself real to you today.
