16/05/2026
CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST, ALIVE IN CHRIST..
Text: Galatians 2:20.
"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life 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.)
Context
Galatians is Paul's passionate letter to churches in the region of Galatia who were being tempted to add the works of the law (especially circumcision) to faith in Christ as the basis of their standing with God. In chapter 2, Paul is defending the truth of the gospel against this distortion. He has just confronted Peter for pulling back from Gentile believers out of fear of the circumcision group. Galatians 2:20 comes as part of Paul's explanation: if we are justified by faith in Christ, not by works of the law, then our old life under the law has died, and a new life in Christ has begun.
Galatians 2:20 is one of the clearest statements of the Christian\'s new identity. Paul does not say, "I am trying to improve my old life," but "I have been crucified with Christ." In God's eyes, the old Paul—trusting in his own righteousness, driven by pride, enslaved to sin—died when Christ died. Through faith, he is united to Jesus in His death and resurrection (Romans 6:3–4).
This is true for every believer. Your old self—the you that was defined by sin, shame, self-effort, and separation from God—has been nailed to the cross with Jesus. It is not that your personality is erased, but that the old way of relating to God (and to yourself) through performance is finished. You are no longer under condemnation (Romans 8:1).
