CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST

Passage: Galatians 2:17-21

Key verse: 20

NIV

17 “But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we Jews find ourselves also among the sinners,(A) doesn’t that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not!(B) 18 If I rebuild what I destroyed, then I really would be a lawbreaker.

19 “For through the law I died to the law(C) so that I might live for God.(D) 20 I have been crucified with Christ(E) and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.(F) The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God,(G) who loved me(H) and gave himself for me.(I) 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law,(J) Christ died for nothing!”[a]

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Footnotes
  1. Galatians 2:21 Some interpreters end the quotation after verse 14.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

17 But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found (A)to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through the law I (B)died to the law, so that I might (C)live to God. 20 I have been (D)crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives (E)in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, (F)who loved me and (G)gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for (H)if righteousness[a] were through the law, (I)then Christ died for no purpose.

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Footnotes
  1. Galatians 2:21 Or justification
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

1. Don't rebuild what you destroyed (17-19)

It is easy for a Christian to get in a rut. Instead of walking with Jesus to challenge life and the culture, we slip back into comfortable old patterns. This is a real temptation for those with Jewish or cultural Christian backgrounds. When Paul talks about rebuilding what he destroyed, he is talking about living habitually and about following (consciously or unconsciously) the Jewish laws and customs instead of following Jesus.

2. I have been crucified with Christ (2

-21)

The Christian cannot be judged by whether or not he conforms to certain rules or rituals. I am a Christian because I accepted Jesus' death for my sins and his resurrection. I died with Christ when I repented of my sins, and I must die daily. So I have been crucified with Christ and the Risen Christ lives in me, as he promised. He loves me; I love him. I want to live by faith in him.

Prayer: Lord, help me not to live habitually, but to live by faith in the One who gave himself for me.

One Word: Crucified with Christ