Christ said, “I am the way and the reality and the life” (John 14:6). In the two preceding chapters we saw how Christ becomes life and reality to us. In this chapter we come to Christ being the way. Christ first becomes life to us, then reality, and lastly the way. We must have Christ as our life in order to participate in Him as our reality. When we have Him as our reality, this reality becomes our way. The way to live the Christian life is a person, the all-inclusive Christ. He is our way to contact and serve God, fellowship with other believers, live the church life, preach the gospel, and shepherd the saints.
In 1 Corinthians Paul twice mentions Christ crucified. In 1:22 through 24 he says, “Indeed Jews require signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” In the previous chapter we saw that Christ becomes the reality of all things to us by being the power and the wisdom of God. Now we need to see that this One who is the power and the wisdom of God to us is Christ crucified. The crucified Christ is the way.
In 2:1 through 4 Paul says, “I, when I came to you, brothers, came not according to excellence of speech or of wisdom, announcing to you the mystery of God. For I did not determine to know anything among you except Jesus Christ, and this One crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling; and my speech and my proclamation were not in persuasive words of wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” Paul spoke not from his eloquence, keen mind, or burning emotion but from his spirit. His natural being, including his mind and emotion, was crucified with Christ. Because Paul preached only Christ crucified, he had the attitude of one who was crucified. He was with the saints not in his mind but in weakness, fear, and much trembling. His speech was in demonstration of the Spirit. Paul’s example shows the crucified Christ as the way to minister life to others. The way to preach the word is not an exalted way but a crucified way. To rely on human capacity, eloquence, or charisma is to not take the crucified way. The proper way to preach the gospel and minister life to people is the crucified way—the way that puts us to death. This way is a person—the crucified Christ.
The crucified Christ is not only the way to preach the word but also the way to live. In order to live, we must die. The way to live is to die. If we do not know how to die, we do not know how to live. When young saints ask me how to help others, I say, “The way to help others is to die.” Some young husbands have asked me how they can properly love their wives. I say, “You have to die. When you die, you are able to love.” The way to love our spouse is the crucified Christ. A number of times young wives have asked me how to submit to their husbands. They feel that they are able to submit to the Lord and to the church, but it is very difficult for them to submit to their husbands. I tell them, “You have to die. The way is to die.” After listening to this answer, most ask, “How can I die?” It is indeed difficult to die. To live is easy; to die is hard. Although we cannot make ourselves die, within us we have the crucified Christ, who is dying all the time.
When the Lord Jesus came out to minister at thirty years of age, He first went to John the Baptist to be buried through baptism (Matt. 3:13). Only one who has died and been buried is qualified to touch the ministry of God. Even the Lord Jesus, who was holy, pure, sinless, and perfect, had to die and be buried before touching God’s ministry. John the Baptist thought that only the sinners needed to be baptized. According to his natural concept, because Jesus was born of the Holy Spirit and was therefore holy, sinless, and perfect, He did not need to be buried but could enter directly into God’s ministry. However, the Lord Jesus knew that no person should touch God’s ministry without having his human nature buried. Therefore, He came to be baptized by John.
When John tried to prevent the Lord from being baptized, the Lord told John, “Permit it for now, for it is fitting for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness” (vv. 14-15). In the previous chapter we saw that righteousness is to be right with God and man. The highest righteousness is to die and be buried. In order to properly love our spouse, we need to die and be buried. In relating to our spouse, our children, or anyone, the best righteousness is to die and be buried. As long as we are alive, we make trouble for those around us. However, if we die and are buried, we will no longer cause problems for anyone. When we die, our spouse will be at peace, and our home will be calm. The most righteous thing is to die and be buried. When we die and are buried, we are completely righteous before God and man.
When the Lord came out to touch the ministry of God, the first thing He did was to hand Himself over to die and be buried in baptism. Immediately after He went up from the water, the heavens were opened to Him, the Spirit descended upon Him, and the Father spoke (vv. 16-17). These three things signify the enjoyment of the presence of God. The way to enter into the enjoyment of the presence of God is by dying and being buried.
Not only was the Lord put into death when He was baptized, but the four Gospels reveal that His living on the earth was also continually under death. In one sense, after being immersed in baptism, the Lord rose up from the death water. Yet in another sense, He remained under death in His living and walk. Jesus was dying to live. For the entire three and a half years of His earthly ministry, He was dying. In other words, He was always being crucified. Eventually, at the end of the three and a half years of His ministry, He walked to the cross to die physically. Hymns, #481 by A. B. Simpson, founder of the Christian and Missionary Alliance, says, “All the way to Calvary.” Jesus was going all the way to Calvary during the entire three and a half years of His ministry on the earth. His way to the cross on Calvary began from His baptism. His baptism was His first step on the way to the cross. He always lived by dying. The Lord was powerful, victorious, and full of life because He was dying all the time.