"It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."
Galatians 2:20
An elementary age child heard the minister preach on receiving Christ into our lives. She later asked her mother, "I don't understand how Jesus can live in us. What does that mean?" Her mother said, "He lives in us by faith." The girl thought for a moment, then she asked, "Is this like make-believe?" The mother said, "No, honey, it's a faith that knows for sure. When you have that experience, you know for sure." That's what the apostle Paul taught in Galatians 2:20. He wrote, "I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
When the apostle Paul wrote, "It is no longer I who live," he was referring to his old life-style. He lived as a very religious person. As a Pharisee, he sought to live a self-righteous life. When he received Christ as Lord of his life, he saw himself as a sinner in need of God's grace. He knew that he was accepted by God, through the perfect righteousness of Christ alone. He was justified by faith in Christ. God has always justified sinners by grace through faith. In the Old Testament, it is written, "The just shall live by faith" (Habakkuk 2:4). Those same words are repeated in the New Testament (Romans 1:17; Hebrews 10:38). The apostle Paul summarized God's way of saving sinners: "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God" (Ephesians 2:8).
The believer testifies, "I know that my sins are forgiven by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ." The doubter asks, "How can I know for sure?" The Bible gives a clear answer, "The just shall live by faith." Do you have the assurance that Christ lives in your life? Faith is the evidence (Hebrews 11:1). It is a faith that comes by hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17). Such faith is an abiding gift of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 13:13). Doubt is dismissed, as we confess, "Christ lives in me . . . I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
Prayer: Father, we give You all the glory for salvation, by grace through faith, in our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
When the apostle Paul wrote, "It is no longer I who live," he was referring to his old life-style. He lived as a very religious person. As a Pharisee, he sought to live a self-righteous life. When he received Christ as Lord of his life, he saw himself as a sinner in need of God's grace. He knew that he was accepted by God, through the perfect righteousness of Christ alone. He was justified by faith in Christ. God has always justified sinners by grace through faith. In the Old Testament, it is written, "The just shall live by faith" (Habakkuk 2:4). Those same words are repeated in the New Testament (Romans 1:17; Hebrews 10:38). The apostle Paul summarized God's way of saving sinners: "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God" (Ephesians 2:8).
The believer testifies, "I know that my sins are forgiven by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ." The doubter asks, "How can I know for sure?" The Bible gives a clear answer, "The just shall live by faith." Do you have the assurance that Christ lives in your life? Faith is the evidence (Hebrews 11:1). It is a faith that comes by hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17). Such faith is an abiding gift of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 13:13). Doubt is dismissed, as we confess, "Christ lives in me . . . I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
Prayer: Father, we give You all the glory for salvation, by grace through faith, in our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
