Team Not-Living S6e9 Gal2:20

As if the call to be on "Team Crucifixion" wasn't impossible enough, Paul now calls the Galatians to be on "Team Not-Living".  It too is impossible without the critical ingredient: FAITH.

He's telling them that they are now Christians and here is what it means.  This is how you should be acting in the here and now.  He is here to help us with the lives we are ACTUALLY living, by living-as-if-we-are-dead, and trusting God by faith.  

Listen 7 minutes as we work through how 2 impossible things (being currently crucified and being currently not-living) are actually possible spiritually. If you have real needs, then this is the real answer to be helping you.  This is the most famous verse in Galatians! Let's figure out why together.  Then subscribe for tomorrows challenge at bewithme.us

Transcript

Michael Smith: 0:00

Good morning, my brothers and sisters, welcome to episode nine and be with me in the book of Galatians. We're finishing the most famous I think, verse in Galatians. It's Galatians chapter two, verse 20. And yesterday, we talked about being on Team crucified, that is, our faith in the crucifixion of Christ solves some certain problems, and we need to ride on his coattails, and have been associated with Christ's crucifixion, which helps us with the sin problem and helps us with the death problem. So that's an impossible thing, because I haven't been crucified. And he says, You know, I am crucified with Christ, that's impossible. The second impossible thing is in the next sentence of the same verse, which is, I don't want you to live anymore. So he's asking you not to be alive when we are alive. And both of these things are done by faith. So listen, in your I'll read you the famous verse, I have been crucified with Christ. That's the one we talked about yesterday, period. It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me. Period. final sentence, 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. So yesterday, we found ourselves on Team crucifixion. And today, we're gonna find ourselves on team not living. Alright, so here's, here's the deal. Both of these these tad these these days that we're considering is God is asking us to do something that is impossible, first of all, beyond beyond the team crucifixion live, like your crucifix I have been crucified. That's not true. So in what way? Similarly today? Do I no longer live. So wait, my heart still beats and I am still alive. So in a sense, this passage, this command, if you will, makes no sense. And in some way, it's not true, no longer that I live. And in some ways that is true. So let's don't give up and just say this makes no sense and throw it away. It makes some sense, there's a truth in this, do this, and let's go find it. Alright, so we're going to head towards, hey, my life has to be less than primary, I have to rely less on myself and more on someone shining through me and reprioritize me getting out of the way the Lord taking center stage and act like something has changed. So this Christianity that is yelling at the Galatians four and yelling at us, he's saying act like something changed, hey, you're a Christian now, and this is what it means. So use your head. And then this is how you should be acting. This is how you should be living. So in a lot of ways, it's very practical. Alright, so what? What has changed? Remember when God started His impact on the earth? He was incredibly geographic and geocentric. That is, Where can I find God? Well, first of all, go to the solar system, then go to earth, then go to a country called Israel, a people group, then go to Jerusalem, then go to a temple, then go to an ark, and there and finally, you'd be at the ground zero of God, God's presence and God's activity. Well, when Jesus came, that all got turned on its ear, and all that stuff was is kind of not true in that God now in dwells his people, that's why I said in John 16, verse seven, one of my favorites, it's he says, it's to your advantage, that I go away, Jesus said that the disciples at the Last Supper, it's to your advantage, that I go away, for if I don't go away, the Helper will not come to you. So the helper being the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ. John, John 1423 says, If anyone loves Me, he will keep my word and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make Our home with him. So it's the Father, Son, and Spirit all coming to an individual who's a believer now and in dwelling, so where does God live? Now? God lives inside of us. Well, what kind of a god is this? Well, this verse actually tells us at the end, like who am I in trusting myself to is God, good to the last part of the verse says, I live by faith in the Son of God who number one loves me. We have a God of love. And secondly, that he gave himself for me. So he is trustworthy. The person that I'm charging us to trust in is a loving God and one who has sacrificed in given Himself for us. Okay, so let's bring this home then. This past is tells us we are supposed to be living by faith and relying on the Lord. He is here to help me like win. Now there's two parts to this. First of all, I'm crucified with Christ. I think that mostly talks about living the we ride God's coast, coattails and crucifixion. And it helps us helps us primarily with the next life that is with the death problem and the sin problem and the penalty problem. Today's completion of this verse talks about it is no longer I who live when now, this helps me in this life. So you have practical problems, I know you do. Temptation, money, problems, sex, anger, power, obedience, submission, leadership, character, change all these things. So how am I going to live better in these in these categories? Well, what power source what indwelling thing? First Corinthians 1013 talks about a person who's tempted, but the believer gets away of escape wind, for some theoretical, no, these are for practical, real problems, whatever your temptation is, today, he's providing if you're a believer, he's providing a way of escape to help you with that today in real time. So in what way this this is a crazy verse, agree with me that it's crazy. The crazy part is I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So in what way? Am I not living in the way that I'm entrusting myself to him? On a moment by moment basis of faith? He says that I came that they may have life and have it abundantly, when for the future. Yeah, there's a little bit of that. But there's a now part of that there's a then part and there is a now that part of this. So how do we get there? Both of these things? Crucifixion, I'm on Team crucifixion, and I'm on Team living. How do I get to either of those things? Both of them is by faith, crucified by faith, me dead Christ living penalty avoided. How about the living part? I am no longer living how because I'm putting Christ first. I'm relying on him. And I agree with you that both of these things are impossible without faith in the indwelling Good God, who tells us that He loved us, and He gave Himself for us so we can trust him. So live by faith. See you tomorrow.