Survival Instinct

Wow. I love Watchman Nee. Every paragraph is so dense with truth...

'Do we crucify ourselves? No. “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, that so we should no longer be in bondage to sin” (Rom. 6.6). It is not that we crucify ourselves, but that our old man was crucified with Christ at the time He himself was crucified. This is an objective fact. Your eyes must be fixed on the Lord. Were you to try to crucify yourself, you would discover how wicked you are and how impossible it is for you to die. The greatest mistake made by believers is right here: although the Bible says that I was crucified with Christ, I look at myself and find myself as hard and corrupted and undisciplined as I ever was. Even so, I try to crucify myself; yet I cannot make myself die. And that is where the mistake begins: you begin with yourself. You should keep in mind, instead, that all real beginnings lie with Christ. You do not die because you have seen yourself dead. You only become dead because you died when Christ died.' - Watchman Nee

The objective truth of the cross must become real in our subjective experience or else Christianity is utterly unmanageable. We say, 'I am dead to this.' but in truth we are very much alive and there is an instinct that kicks in to push us to keep ourselves alive.

God says that we died when Christ died and we were raised when He was raised. He is seated in Heaven and we ARE seated in Heaven. Can we mix faith with that truth so it will become alive in our experience? If we do then when the moment of temptation comes we will have practiced God's thoughts many times in preparation.

I have been deeply convicted this week. This clay pot has deep cracks. It isn't just cosmetic. My old man has incurable wounds. Situations just reveal that to be true but that is not my identity.

The believer is a new creature...

"For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them..." - Galatians 6:15-16a ESV

Let this peace and mercy be upon you today. It is finished. Jesus has done something objectively on the cross and the Spirit can take the veil off our eyes. We were blind but now we can see what God already sees if we walk by faith in what Jesus has done.

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