Thoughts in Worship

Message Magazine's Online Devotional for Sabbath, April 2, 2016

This Week’s Devotional Focus is, “The Righteousness of Christ.”

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20).

Crucifixion was a long, hard death in Jesus’ day. It was reserved for those whom the Roman government deemed worthy of death. What must it have been like for Jesus to be stripped and nailed to this instrument of torture knowing that He was innocent of all wrongdoing, and that most of those for whom He died would never even appreciate Him for it? Yet, He allowed his cruel accusers to nail Him there and thrust it violently into the hole that was prepared to receive it at its base. And there he would hang until His humanity’s last bit of vital energy was drained before He breathed His last breath. What love! What sacrifice!

Interestingly, it is often overlooked that Jesus was mysteriously 100% God (the Son) and 100% human. The Bible calls it the great mystery of godliness (1 Timothy 3:16). Thus Jesus said, “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” (John 10:17–18). Jesus, in His innate divine power and authority could have made it impossible for His human nature to die, no matter what His blasphemous accusers did to Him. Divinity cannot die, and in His humanity, He was innocent of all sin, the wages of which are death. Therefore, Jesus submitted to the penalty that our sins required so we could be forgiven and cleansed if we continue in faith in Him (Philippians 2:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

Not only did Jesus lay His life down for us so we could be forgiven and cleansed if we continue in faith in Him, the text we highlighted said that He would take His life up again. This is miraculous! His divine nature allowed His human nature to sleep in the tomb and once the prophecy was fulfilled, took up His life again! Yes, His Father called for Him. Yes, the Bible does say the He was raised by His Father. Yet, the Bible also says that He and His Father are one. And as we said already, Jesus had the power to take up His life again. With unborrowed and underived power Jesus took up His life one Sunday morning. The One in whom was life and that life was the light of humanity came forth from the tomb with victory in His hands. The One who declared He was the Resurrection and the Life at the tomb of Lazarus came forth from His tomb at the appointed time with the keys of hell and death firmly in His grasp.

Now, how does this all relate to our theme text? I am so glad you asked! Paul said that he was crucified with Christ. Do you have any sin habits that need to be crucified? I certainly do. If you do, then by faith, you can die to sin. Here is what the Bible says (and be on the lookout for a clue about our next thought): “For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.” (Romans 6:7–12). So when we surrender our will to God fully, our sins are crucified just as miraculously as Jesus allowed Himself to die. The habits that we have had an affinity to, due to genetics, as well as those we have cultivated, can be crucified as long as we continue to submit to God.

I said to lookout for a clue to our next...