May 25

as unknown, yet well-known; dying, and yet we live on; punished, yet not killed; — 2 Cor 6:9 BSB

Though we die, and die daily, yet, behold, we live; and in a sense, the more we die, the more we live. The more we die to self, the more we die to sin; the more we die to pride and self-righteousness, the more we die to creaturely strength; and the more we die to our sinful nature, the more we live to grace. This runs through the entire life and experience of a Christian. Nature must die so that grace may live. The weeds must be pulled up for the crop to grow; the flesh must be starved for the spirit to be fed; the old man must be put off for the new man to be put on; the deeds of the body must be mortified so that the soul may live unto God. As we die, we live. The more we die to our own strength, the more we live in Christ’s strength; the more we die to earthly hope, the more we live to a hope that comes through grace; the more we die to our own righteousness, the more we live to Christ’s righteousness; and the more we die to the world, the more we live for heaven.

This is the great mystery: the Christian is always dying, yet always living; and the more he dies, the more he lives. The death of the flesh is the life of the spirit; the death of sin is the life of righteousness; and the death of the creature is the very life of God in the soul.