We must also experience the cross crucifying our old man and the self. Romans 6:6 says that our old man has been crucified with Christ. The old man is our created and fallen being. Although the crucifixion of our old man has been accomplished objectively by Christ, we need to experience it subjectively by crucifying our soul life, our self. In Galatians 2:20 Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” This “I” is the self, the self is the expression of the soul life, and the soul life is the natural life of the old man. Our old man, the old “I,” has been crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6, Gal. 2:20), and now we need to deny our self (Matt. 16:24) and put aside our soul life (Luke 9:24). We must put all these things on the cross and leave them on the cross.
On the one hand, many problems in the church life are caused by the activities of the body. We talk too much, we hear too much, we see too much, we act too much, and we go to much. We use our feet, our hands, our ears, our mouth, and our eyes improperly. In the church life we sometimes use all our physical members in a wrong way. All these activities cause trouble. On the other hand, our old man, the self, and the soul life are also a source of problems in the church life. There are many problems in today’s church life because there is too much of the old man, too much soulish life, and too much self. Many problems come because “I” is first and “I” is last, “I” is alpha and “I” is omega. Eventually, “I” is everything. Therefore, this “I” must be cut off. “I” is the greatest cancer in the church life. Therefore, it must be searched out and cut off by the Spirit through the cross.
Furthermore, our opinions need to be annulled by the Spirit through the cross. The old man is the fallen man, the soul life is the life of the old man, this soul life is expressed in the self, and the self is expressed in opinions. Opinions are simply the expression of our self, of our soulish life. Therefore, opinions are just the activities of the old man. One day the Lord Jesus told His disciples that He was going to be crucified. Immediately Peter expressed his opinion. He said, “God be merciful to You, Lord; this shall by no means happen to you!” (Matt. 16:22). That was Peter’s good, loving opinion. Peter did not want the Lord to be crucified, but to be the King on the throne. However, his opinion was the expression of his self. When the Lord heard Peter’s word, He turned to Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan!” (Matt. 16:23). This shows that Satan is in the self. The Lord realized that it was not Peter, but Satan in Peter who had spoken such a word. Satan was expressed in Peter’s natural life and in his opinion.
In the church life opinions cause many problems. If there is any fighting or dissension in the church life, it is because someone has an opinion. Every opinion has a good outward appearance. Our opinions may seem to be very nice, very much for the church, and very good, but this goodness is a cloak which covers up the true nature of opinion. Opinions are terrible. In order to have a good church life, we all need to condemn our opinions. We should have no opinion but Christ, no opinion but the Spirit, no opinion but the divine life. We should have no opinion, no self, no I, no soulish life, no old man, but only Christ, only the Spirit, and only the divine life.
Furthermore, we need the cross to destroy all the human wisdom and prudence. First Corinthians 1:18 and 19 say that through the cross of Christ God has destroyed the wisdom of the wise and has set aside the understanding of the prudent. In the church there may be those who are wise, clever, and prudent. But as long as our wisdom and prudence are human, they are opposed to God. In the church, do not use your human wisdom, and do not employ your human cleverness. Your wisdom and your cleverness create many problems in the church life. Therefore, we all must condemn human wisdom and prudence. We must cooperate with the Spirit to nail our wisdom and prudence to the cross.
Next, we need to experience the cross to abolish all our ordinances. Ordinances are our habits, customs, ways of doing things, ways of living, and ways of practicing the church life. These ordinances always cause trouble. But Christ as the Peacemaker has put all the ordinances on the cross (Eph. 2:14-15). We need to cooperate with the Spirit to put all our habits and customs to death.
Next, we must experience the Spirit’s operation through the cross destroying Satan, the one who has the power of death (Heb. 2:14). The previous items we covered—the flesh, the practices of the body, the old man, the self, the opinions, the human wisdom and prudence, and the ordinances—are actually the cloaks that Satan uses to cover himself. Therefore, if we deal with all the foregoing items, we will actually be dealing with Satan himself.
Finally, we need the Spirit’s operation through the cross so that we may set aside the world. In Galatians 6:14, Paul says, “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.” John 12:31 tells us that when the Lord Jesus went to the cross, He judged the world and cast out its ruler, Satan. Therefore, in the church life today, we must set aside and reject anything worldly. Although today’s Christendom has become a worldly religion and is full of worldly things, in the church life we must stay away from anything worldly. The church should move and act in a heavenly way, not in a worldly way.
If we cooperate with the operating Spirit, all the negative things we have covered will be cut off. In this way, the church will be rescued and preserved, and there will be no problems with anything of the flesh, the practices of the body, the old man, the self, the opinions, the human wisdom, the ordinances, Satan, or the world. Then the church life will be wonderful, marvelous, and excellent because of the Spirit’s operation through the cross.