This being the case, how much we need to be watchful and on the alert so that the old man will never have a day to rise up again! But is not this very difficult? Surely the flesh regards this as difficult. Therefore, in order for the cross to work in the believers, they must have the empowering of the Holy Spirit. The cross and the Holy Spirit can never be separated. The cross makes it possible for the believers to overcome sin; the Holy Spirit makes real in the believers' life what the cross has accomplished. A believer who wants to be delivered from sins must not make provisions for the flesh; he must be watchful and must be ready to pay any price. He should have less hope in himself and more trust in the Holy Spirit. With man it is impossible; with God, nothing is impossible.

The death of the cross is different from any other kind of death. This kind of death is most painful and slow. Therefore, if we truly reckon ourselves dead and take the cross of the Lord as our own cross, it will be painful and miserable as far as our flesh is concerned. The Lord Jesus hung on the cross for six hours before He died; His death was very slow. In the lives of Christians, the experiences of co-crucifixion belong often to this six-hour period. When the Lord Jesus was on the cross, He had the power to come down if He desired. The same is true for those who are crucified with the Lord. Whenever one allows his old man to leave the cross, his old man will leave the cross. The old man is hung on the cross through one's reckoning. If one maintains the attitude that the old man is dead, the old man will be as powerless as dead. But once a person relaxes, the old man will be activated. Many of God's children often wonder why their old man keeps resurrecting. They forget that the death of crucifixion is slow.

Satan is very alert; he takes any opportunity to resurrect the old man and to cause the believers to commit sin. Whenever we are not watchful, his temptation and deception comes. When outward temptation and deception come, the old man within is quick to respond. At such times, one should come back once again to the foundation of the cross and should once again reckon himself dead. He should wait (through his reckoning) for the Holy Spirit to apply to him the power of the cross, until the temptation loses its drawing power. Every believer should have this extraordinary experience. When he is about to be defeated, he should come again to the cross and should reckon himself dead; by this he will experience a power coming into him, preserving him, and strengthening him to resist the temptation. However, is it not true that sometimes we reckon over and over again and still we do not see any result, but instead we sin? This is the experience of many. This means that your "reckoning" has some problem. If you have truly reckoned, you will surely find extraordinary power coming into you. We should remember that this "reckoning" is not to say with our mouth, "I am dead, I am dead"; neither is it to think in the mind, "I am dead, I am dead." It is the judgment of your will to reckon yourself dead and to maintain this attitude of reckoning with a believing heart. We may say that this is a decision in your will, by which you declare, "I am dead." In other words, first you are willing to die, then you reckon yourself dead. We need to learn to reckon with the will and with faith.

If we really stand on Romans 6:11, we will constantly have the experience of being free from sin. When a believer first takes this attitude, Satan will try purposely to stir up a storm and will cause the believer to feel that things are too much for him to handle. At such times, he should calmly rely on the Holy Spirit to apply to him the power of the cross. Do not struggle. Do not be anxious. Do not think that the temptation is too great, and do not uplift the enemy because of this. You should reckon yourself dead to sin. The cross has the power to overcome the world.

At times if unfortunately we fail, we should rise up even more and should trust more in the power of the cross. The Holy Spirit will lead you to victory in the Lord Jesus. Brothers, "sin shall not lord it over you, for you are...under grace"!