For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. 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. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Galatians 2:19-21
In nearly fifty years of missionary work, Adoniram Judson only returned to the United States from Burma once. He had stayed on the mission field for many years, but when his wife fell ill, doctors suggested a respite from the rampant infectious diseases might help and they set sail for America. The story of Judson’s suffering and impact of his work had spread, and when he arrived home many people greeted him as a hero. The story goes that upon his arrival someone told Judson that people were comparing him to the great missionary Paul and asked how that made him feel. In response Judson wept and said, “I wanted to be like Jesus.”
As children of God we have been given new life. That life is not for ourselves but for the Lord and we must live it by following His pattern and example. Peter wrote, “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:” (1 Peter 2:21). Every choice we make should be guided by the life of Christ actively working in us. We do not walk by our strength or conviction or power, but by His. Apart from the power of God’s grace we will certainly fail. While pride tempts us to overlook or deny this truth, it is never about us. Living with a “yet not I” mentality means that we are living with a reliance on God’s strength and wisdom rather than our own, and when we do, we will become more and more like Jesus.                                                                                                                                                                         Â
