Christ- Centered Life
Galatians 2:20
Introduction:

Background: Salvation is through faith in Christ not by observing the law in particular
circumcision, but it doesn’t mean you become lawless rather you lived a life triumphant over
sin. A life led by the Spirit, able to produce the fruit of the Spirit
 A Crucified life (Not I But Christ Crucified)

I am crucified with Christ: what exactly does that mean?
It means dying to self--We die to our old selves (Romans 6:6), we die to our sin
(Romans 6:6), we die to the world, the flesh, and the devil, and we identify with
the cross of Christ (Gal, 6:16).
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German Christian who died in Nazi hands, once said:
When God calls a man, he bids him come and die.
Galatians 6:14 But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
through which the world has been crucified (perfect tense = stands crucified, speaking of the
permanence of the state) to me, and I to the world
Practical applications:
Dying to self means resisting the temptation to do what everyone else is doing
when you know it is wrong. Dying to self means forgiving instead of harboring a
grudge. Dying to self means putting down the remote control and picking up the
Bible. Dying to self means praying when you would rather be sleeping. Dying to
self means swallowing your pride and telling someone about Jesus Christ. Dying
to self means doing what God wants you to do rather than doing what you want
to do. (Insights from a commentary)
“If you are not willing to die, you are not ready to live.” EDJ
John Gregory Mantle wrote, “There is a great difference between realizing, ‘On that Cross He was
crucified for me,’ and ‘On that Cross I am crucified with Him.’ The one aspect brings us deliverance from
sin’s condemnation, the other from sin’s power.”
 A Christ’s manifested life (Not I But Christ lives)
I no longer live, but Christ lives in me
Christ manifested in the flesh (Doctrine of Incarnation and transformation)
One of the core teachings in the Christian gospel, this message is the crucial, most
powerful key to coming to spiritual growth so that the life of Christ can be manifested in
us.

We allow Christ’s life to be manifested in us.
Christ was the source of all the life that we had.

Meaning: Christ’s will, strength, character manifesting in our day to day living.
Through the indwelling power of the Holy spirit in us
Victorious living not on our own power and strength but through the power of
the indwelling Christ inside of us.
 A Christ’s dependent life (Not I But Christ’s Faith)
I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Living according to the faithfulness of God or Christ—The just shall live by the
faithfulness of Christ
The Creation story teaches that we must fully depend upon God not to anyone or
anything else (Theo-centric and not Geo-centric)
Do not depend on people, own abilities, strength, wealth, only on Jesus
Why? He loves us and he is willing to give everything to us and even his own life. (Romans 8:32)
Conclusion:
Christ- Centered life summary:
A Christ-centered life begins with realizing that the source of everything we have is the Lord. He created
us, he owns us, he gifted us with talents, he authors our story, and every blessing that we receive comes
from him (Gen 1, Acts 17:26, James 1:17)
A Christ-centered life means that a Person (Jesus) is the motivation for everything we think, say, and do.
A Christ-centered life has one ultimate goal: that Jesus gets the glory