There is no resurrection without death, there is no glory without the cross (Matthew 26:36-56). If we want to experience the resurrection, we must pass through death. When we rise, we never rise alone. Our resurrection will resurrect other saints and after that we will both declare ourselves (Matthew 27:51-53). So the process is: dead – rise up – declare yourself. If we’re not dead, we will not rise, if we’re not rise, we can not declare ourselves. So we must die in order to rise, and we must rise in order to declare ourselves. Die to live.
For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth
for the manifestation of the sons of God
(Rome 8:19).
Some principles about the death of the flesh:
1. We must die from the ways and humane response.
As humans we tend to create humane ways and responds when faced with problems: If we feel we are stronger we will use violence (Matt. 26:51). If we feel we are weaker we would run away from the problem. (Matt. 26:56b). In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was facing the toughest problems in his life, he will face the cross and death. His heart was very sad and afraid even unto death. But what was his response? What did he do? He struggled in prayer and seeking the will of the Father!
Then after that, he did the will of the Father which He obtained in prayer, even though he had the strength to fight but did not resist. We can die from humane ways and responses if every time we face a problem, we bring it in prayer and seek the will of the Father, not immediately respond with humane ways. Many people think humane ways are faster than the divine ways, but it’s just the appearance. The comparison is the same as cars on the roads and the plane on the air. It seems a car on the ground is much faster than plane on the air, but it is not so. Although a plane on the air “seems” very slow, but a plane will reach the destination faster. If we want to rise up, we should die of the ways and humane responses.
2. We have to die from loving our life.
People who is not patient to fight in prayer is the one who loves his own life, because he can not deny himself and take up his cross (Matt. 10:34-39). The man who loves his life will tend to seek safety for himself, rather than seeking God’s kingdom and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33). People who love his life do not want to carry a cross and do not want to experience the death of the flesh. And to be able to bear much fruit we should die from loving our life (John 12:24-25). To be able to die from loving our life, we have to choose the way of the cross.
3. We have to die from personal agendas (verse 51-54 and 56).
Jesus willingly died from his personal agenda in order to be able to fulfill the agenda of the Father. He prayed, “Yet not what I want, but what You want.” Many people go to church and ministry to bring their personal agendas, that’s what caused the churches to be in chaos and don’t go anywhere. If we want God to be with us, we must die from personal agendas and rise to achieve the agenda of heaven, because God is only responsible to “sign” His own agenda. If we work to realize the agenda of Heaven, all resources of Heaven will surely mobilized to accompany us, so that the whole agendas that He aspired can be achieved and realized.
Die to live, it is the proses that we must go through in order to experience the resurrection.
You also can read: Live in the Divine Nature.
