• Our Old Man Crucified with Christ

    Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, that so we should no longer be in bondage to sin. Romans 6.6.

    The sin here points to that sinful nature which reigns in man. The old man speaks of the self which delights in listening to sin. And the body of sin means this body of ours which is sin’s puppet and which actually sins. Thus sin reigns within as master. It directs the old man to cause the body to sin. The old man represents all which comes from Adam; the old man naturally inclines toward sin. He it is who steers the body to sin. In order for us not to sin, some have suggested that the root of sin needs to be eradicated from within; whereas others have expressed the thought that we must harshly suppress the outside body. Yet God’s way is totally different from man’s. He neither eradicates the root of sin nor ill-treats the body; instead, He deals with the old man. "Our old man was crucified with him."

    If you ever wonder why you are unable to defeat and overcome your selfishness it is because you have not appropriated God's salvation. You may have thought in your head these things but they have not touched your innerman. Why is that? Because there is a necessary condition that needs to be fulfilled which is consecration and trust in these accomplished facts. I have really died with Christ. My old man has really been crucified. Therefore, I can really put to nought the deeds of the flesh.

    If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. Mark 8.34.

    We do not know what the way of the cross is. We do not realize that all which comes our way is permitted by God. Whatever is against our will, whatever causes us to be misunderstood, makes us suffer, blocks our way, or shatters our hope is a cross given by God to us. Yet how do we face such a thing? Do we resist in heart? Do we complain to people? Do we long to avoid these difficulties?

    Whenever God allows a cross to fall on us, He has a particular reason. Each cross has its spiritual mission, that is to say, it is sent to accomplish something special in our life. If we endure according to God’s will—as the Lord Jesus endured the cross (noting, however, that His cross is to atone for sin whereas ours is not)—our natural life will be further dealt with and we shall have a greater capacity for being filled with the resurrection life of the Son.

    But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deluding your own selves. James 1.22.
    We often misunderstand the word "do." We take it to mean that after we have heard and known the word of God we must try our best to do what we have heard and known. But this is not the meaning of "do" in the Bible. True, we need to will to do what we have heard. Yet the "do" of the Scriptures is not the doing with our own strength, it is instead allowing the Holy Spirit to live out through us the word of the Lord which we know. It is a kind of life, not just a kind of works. And in having the life, we will quite naturally have the works. But to produce a few works cannot be deemed fulfilling the "do" of the Bible. We ought to exercise our will to cooperate in life with the Holy Spirit so that we may live out what we know.

    For the foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. Matthew 25.3, 4.

    The foolish prepared no oil apart from what was already in the lamp. The wise have extra oil in their vessels. Oil in the lamp speaks of the Holy Spirit who dwells in every regenerated person. A Christian, even a beginner, has the indwelling Holy Spirit.

    But oil in the vessel means more than the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; it speaks of being filled with the Holy Spirit. The indwelling Holy Spirit is received at the time of regeneration, but the filling of the Holy Spirit comes through continual seeking following the moment of regeneration. Each believer has the Holy Spirit, yet not all have the fullness of the Holy Spirit. People may not be able to detect whether or not we have the oil twice over; and we may indeed get by without any trouble today, but on that future day we will be found out. Are we willing to pay the price?

    No man rendeth a piece from a new garment and putteth it upon an old garment; else he will rend the new, and also the piece from the new will not agree with the old. Luke 5.36.
    The Bible does not tell us to improve ourselves, since the Lord has already done it all. Jesus Christ has borne our sins on the cross; and there He says, "It is finished." He has completed the work and nothing is therefore left to be done. Today we do not need to do anything except to confess that our garment is torn, that we are corrupted and are unable to do any good, and to ask Him to give us a new garment. But if you will to do good, you will have to will it again and again and again. You ought to know that aside from trusting the redemption which the Lord Jesus has accomplished once and for all, there is no other way of salvation.

    And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 1.10.

    A brother during the first year of his salvation spent much time in searching the Scriptures. He studied especially concerning the second coming of the Lord. He managed to analyze the events surrounding the Lord’s return. And as a result, he felt fairly proud of himself. One day he met a sister who had deep experience with the Lord. They conversed together on the second coming. She, however, did not analyze as he did. What she stressed was how to wait for the Lord’s return. On that day, that brother learned a deep lesson. He had been one who talked about the second coming of the Lord Jesus, but here was another person who was waiting for the Lord’s return. Whoever merely talks about Jesus’ second coming is poor, whereas the one who waits for the Lord’s return is quite rich.

    Looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith. Hebrews 12.2.

    Our eyes must "look unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith." According to the original, it may be translated as "looking away unto Jesus"—meaning that we are to look away from all the other things around us and look only to Jesus. We do not look at anything but Jesus only. By looking to Him we may run the straight path. There are many things around us which may easily affect our attention and divert us from our goal. Only by looking away to Jesus will we be kept running in God’s course.