A phrase that is often heard in Christian circles is “die to self”. It is an idea referenced many times throughout scripture and is a vital part in the life of a believer. Even so, there are still many Christians today who are still bound and struggling with self.
Today we will be studying how Jesus Christ can truly free us from ourselves to live the life that God intended for each and every one of us to have.
Most people when they hear the phrase “die to self” actually confuse it with self-debasement, or what I call false humility. Those who have been coming here for a while already realize that True Humility is Worship. Yet dying to self is closely related to worship and true humility. In-fact it is so closely connected to worship that one can not exist without the other. Let’s take a look at Galatians 2:20:
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives 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.”
We can observe a few things from this verse. Firstly we can see that this dying happens when we truly accept the salvation of Christ. I am crucified with Christ. This is not just a statement of recognition, but also of covenant. No person can truly accept Jesus Christ without dying to self, and those who claim to accept Christ without dying to themselves are lying to themselves and everyone else as well. We see this and the reasoning for it in the rest of this verse. Nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me. This is a statement of submission. The word “flesh” here is talking about our physical body, and what the verse is saying here is that once we accept Christ we are no longer the master of our own lives, but we have submitted to the perfect will and leadership of our true Father, and the LORD of our lives, Jesus Christ.
Now look at the next part: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. This is quite a wonderful statement of faith, but what does it actually mean. There are sadly many believers who have never thought about it. This is not a detached and distant faith, but a personal faith. What this verse is stating here is that we have faith that Jesus is not just a great man or a good teacher, but that He is the Son of God and is the rightful LORD of our lives. We have faith that where God leads is actually for our best interest and our prosperity because He loves us and gave Himself for us. This is a true comfort because He would not pay such a high price for us even submitting to torture and death in our place just to lead us into a ditch.
So we submit to His leading, we live our lives for Him, not out of necessity (trying to curry favor), but we do it as an act of faith and worship (we truly trust Him as our LORD). Yet many believers don’t actually trust God. I have talked with people over the years who are only happy with God as long as they get what they want, and when the scriptures don’t line up with their personal wants or desires, then they reject God and follow themselves. This is actually much more common among believers than you may think at first. And this is a sign of someone who has never really accepted Jesus as Lord, but still have their self in the leader’s position. This kind of person may think that they are protecting themselves, but in reality they are leading themselves into a pit, one that only Jesus can save them from. Remember what we read in the verse, that the life which we now live in the flesh we live by faith in the Son of God. This means that we have faith in God’s direction and leading even if we don’t always like it or get what we want. This is submitting to Jesus as Lord, this is accepting Him as our God.
So how then do we get to this place? Again, this is another area of misunderstanding and confusion among believers. Many are trying to submit to God through sheer force-of-will, but dying to self is not a matter of willpower, it is a divine choice that only the Holy Spirit can help a person to make. So the question we should ask ourselves then is how do we fill ourselves with the Holy Spirit… The answer is to be filled with the Spirit’s words. And where can we find those? Jesus gives us the answer in John 6:63:
“It is the spirit that vivifies; the flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life.”
Jesus tells us here that His words are spirit and life. The Bible is filled with the words of Jesus, the scriptures are our source. To be filled with The Bible is to be filled with the Holy Spirit and life.
The result of this is as we are filled with the Spirit, we will begin to see the amazing benefits of being led by God Himself, no more wandering around and wondering with out own limited human understanding, but having the Creator of the Universe lead and guide us. Does that seem too amazing to be true? Let’s examine 2nd Timothy 3:16-17:
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished to all good works.”
So in the scriptures we find doctrine, reproof (conviction), correction and instruction, all for the purpose of righteousness in Christ. And we also see in verse 17 that this instruction and guidance from God via the scriptures is what enables us to be equipped for the good works, which only come after being filled by the Spirit.
This is actually a very simple concept when we look at it plainly, but man has complicated it by inserting his self, where his self need not be. Let’s remember that it is God who gave us the Bible, and He did not do an incomplete job. In the Bible is everything we need (including His divine advice and leading) for everything that we could ever need in this life.
There’s two more scriptures for us to look at today, the first is in Exodus 33:20:
“And he said, You can not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.”
Before Jesus, no-one could look at the face of God and live, His glory was so great that no flesh could survive once it met His face.
This is still true today, but there has been one change, because of Jesus, we can see His face; every time we read the Bible or see the scriptures we are looking into the very face of God. Whenever we hear the scriptures we are hearing His words. And when we do this, our self dies, and more of His divine life enters into us.
This is an amazing truth that when we fully grasp it, it carries with it immense power and amazing revelation of the glory and Grace of God towards us. See now 2nd Corinthians 3:18:
“But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the LORD.”
I think that this is truly amazing. As we read the scriptures and behold the glory of God, we not only see His glory, but we also see the truth of how He has glorified us in Christ Jesus. It is that truth which spawns worship for God within us (true humility) and that worship causes our self to die as it should.
My friends, this is why it is impossible for someone with a self that is alive and well to have truly accepted Jesus Christ. The two can not co-exist. The truth is that there are many false Christians in churches today that have never really made Jesus the Lord of their lives, and they are stumbling around aimlessly following their own desires and intellect all the way to destruction.
We however know the truth, that as stated in Philippians 1:21: To live is Christ and to die is gain.