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"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
(Galatians 2:20)
What an amazing passage of Scripture. What does it mean to be crucified with Christ? Part of the answer is it means we have died to our own way of living and are fully surrendered to Jesus Christ and His will for our lives. We have decided to obey Jesus and deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him (Mark 8:34). As we die daily to our own ambitions and desires, we are free to live the blessed life Jesus offers us. It truly is the best life that we could possibly live on earth, to live by faith in Jesus who loved us so much that He gave His life for us.
The message of brokenness or surrender is all about how God loves us. He will not allow us to live comfortably in disobedience, so He breaks us. There are numerous examples in the Bible where you see God break individuals so He can use them. Moses is a prime example. After he killed an Egyptian, he fled to the desert for 40 years. God got him ready to lead the Hebrew nation to free them from Egyptian bondage. This anonymous shepherd became the mighty leader of God's people only after God broke him and he fully surrendered to God's will.
Peter is another example of a biblical character whom God used powerfully only after He wounded him severely. God had to keep on breaking him to get him usable to become the leader of the Church. What a mighty work God did in Peter's life. He went from denying Jesus to being the preacher at Pentecost that God used powerfully. A. W. Tozer said, whom God uses powerfully He wounds deeply. That is a hard saying, but it is so true.
Paul is another biblical character that God used mightily only after He had broken him to the point of complete surrender. And did God use him! God raised him up to be the apostle, church planter, missionary, and theologian who wrote much of the New Testament. That was God's plan for his life.
God targets us. That statement by Stanley really stopped me in my tracks. God focuses on us because He loves us and knows us best. There are wrongful attitudes that need to be broken and crushed so the wine of truth can flow through us. For Paul, God gave him a thorn in the flesh that targeted his pride, the thing that would have kept him from being a humble servant of God.
God has broken and continues to break me so I am more reliant on Him, to be totally God-dependent and not self-dependent. I am a slow learner at times. But God is so kind and patient, and He will continue to deal with the particular area of our pride and selfishness until it is crucified and brought into subjection to the lordship of Jesus. His goal is to live the life of Christ through us so we will be willing to do what He wants to do through us.
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