“…and he died for all, that those who
live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died
and was raised.” 2 Corinthians 5:15
Why
did Christ die? What was God’s purpose in his bloody, awful crucifixion? For
what reason was the Son of God crushed on the cross? Certainly the Christian
may rejoice in that Christ died to secure the forgiveness of our sins and our
reconciliation to the Godhead. No other fount we know to provide such cleansing
and restoration. But here, Paul fixes our attention on something else that our
Lord’s death accomplished. Namely, by virtue of his cross-work, Christ not only
redirects the eternal destiny of every believer, but also radically transforms
the believer’s daily focus. In what way? The essence is this: Christ’s death
makes it possible that believers “might no longer live for themselves but for
him.” That is, Christ’s death makes it possible for a saint to live for and be
preoccupied with those things that concern Christ and his Kingdom. We may now be
“done with lesser things,” as the old hymn teaches. Even further, not only does
it make it possible for a Christian
to live in this way, it makes it a certainty. For, we died with Christ and have
“crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
What
glorious liberation is this effect of the cross! How many pains are at root the
results of a self-centered lifestyle? How many sins are in essence the bitter
fruit of pursuing the kingdom of me rather than the Kingdom of I Am? But,
thanks be to God, what a Savior we have who provides for us (and at so great a
price it should be added) freedom from the vanity we are born to and toward which
we tend!
So,
may it be that today, Christian, you see clearly the connection between the death
of your Lord and the death of your self, and may such awareness encourage you
to live for him who for your sake died and was raised!
