OPENING: A man met a friend of his one morning and hailed him with, "Say, Sam, have you seen Melvin lately? I’ve been looking high and low for him."
"Well," said the friend, "those are the places to look. He died in January."
APPLICATION: The Bible tells us that all men have died to something. For example: Before you became a Christian you were dead to the things of Christ:
Ephesians 2:1-3 "As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."
BUT, once you became a Christian you were dead in Christ. Galatians 2:20 tell us: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."
I. Now, what does that mean - "I no longer live?"
In Galatians 5:16-24 Paul tells us:
"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;
idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires."
The King James Version is more accurate here. What the NIV translates as "sinful nature" is literally "flesh." Thus, what Paul is saying is that we should live by the Spirit and not by the "flesh." Why would Paul use that word?
ILLUS: Flesh is where I make contact with the world (one of 5 senses is touch). Flesh is where I sense pleasure and pain. Flesh contains my bodily organs, my life blood. When someone looks at me and recognizes me - it’s my flesh they see. My flesh (for all intents and purposes) is ME.
And I do things for my flesh. I lavish it with lotions, colognes, and soaps (aren’t you glad). I take hot baths, enjoy a good backrub. Flesh is God’s code word for our endeavors to serve our personal desires. AND SIN can be boiled down to that which helps us serve our "flesh" by either bringing it pleasure or avoiding pain.
The Bible tells us we have a Choice: live for self or live for God. Whichever one I chose, I have die to the other (you can’t serve 2 masters).
Romans 8:5-9 says something interesting on this matter (from the KJV this time):
"For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally (or fleshly) minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
II. In Romans 8:9 Paul makes a curious statement
"If… the Spirit of God dwell in you." What did he mean by that? He meant "did you make the CHOICE" to die to the flesh? Paul continues in Romans 8:10-11 (NIV)
"But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you."
You really don’t have to keep "remaking the decision" to live in the Spirit. When you became a Christian, you were crucified with Christ. YOU DIED when you made the choice.
That’s what Paul was teaching in Romans 6:1ff ...
"What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? (In other words, if God really loves forgiving us, why shouldn’t we sin a lot and bring God greater pleasure?) By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Paul’s not saying, we need to keep dying again and again. He’s saying: you already have died, now live like it.
ILLUS: Years ago, when I was Purdue, a friend of mine took me on a tour of the morgue (they literally had dead bodies to examine). It wasn’t a pretty sight. Now let’s say we took one of those bodies (one of a man) and brought it here to the church and propped it against the wall. Then, let’s say we brought in a scantily clad, voluptuous girl and had her prance back and forth in front of him. What do you think he would do?
HE WOULDN’T DO ANYTHING - HE’S DEAD!! He wouldn’t stare at her, glare at her, peek at her. Nothing. Because he is dead to sin.
That’s what Paul wants us to visualize for ourselves. We have died to sin, how can we live in it any longer?
So, when did your death happen? Paul tells us in Romans it happened when you decided to become a Christian. When you believed, repented, confessed Jesus as your master, and buried your old man of sin in the waters of Christian baptism.
III. So, I have died to this fleshly body... now, what do I do with it?
I can’t cast it aside like some old rag. Even though I’m a Christian, I still have my body!!! Well, I can deny I have a fleshly body that still tempts me to sin. Or, I can deny myself any contact with the world that will tempt my flesh. OR, I can do what Paul talks about in Gal. 2:20b
"The life I live in body, I live by faith in Son of God…" In other words: "My eyes are on Jesus, not on my flesh."
Paul is saying "NOW (as a Christian), my primary focus in life is not on what pleases me. Why do I do that? Because He loved me and gave Himself for me."
CLOSE: The General John B. Gordon was one of the best generals of the South in the Civil War.
He led the last official attack on the Union at Appomatox - that Sunday morning in April, 1865, when Lee surrendered to Grant. General Gordon later became a candidate for the U.S. Senate.
A man who served under him in the Confederate army became angry over some political incident, and as a member of the legislature, vowed to do everything in his power to defeat him. When the convention convened, he stormed down the aisle with his anti-Gordon vote in hand. On the platform sat his old commander with a once handsome face, now disfigured by the scars of battle.
As he saw Gordon, memories of the old days came back and he was overcome with emotion. Tears streaming down his cheeks he said; "It’s no use, boys, I can’t do it! Here goes my vote for John B. Gordon." Then turning to the general he said, "Forgive me, General, I had forgotten the scars!"
If you are one of those who once marched and won victories under the banner of Jesus, now fighting against Him, read Luke 23. Then you may say, "Forgive me Jesus, I had forgotten your love for me and I had forgotten the scars."
SERMONS IN THIS SERIES
At The Cross - The Cross & Forgiveness - Colossians 1:19-1:23
At The Cross - The Cross & Fruitfulness - John 12:23-12:24
At The Cross - The Cross & Our Flesh - Galatians 2:20-2:20
At The Cross - The Cross & Friendship - John 15:9-15:17
