It’s easy to think of the Christian life as something we are trying to carry forward on our own.

We believe in Jesus. We trust what He has done. And so, certainly, we are responsible for the rest of the life of faith. So, we try to live better, respond more patiently, grow more consistent. And when we fall short, it feels like we have failed and we may even wonder if we are really even a Christian.

Paul’s words in Galatians interrupt that way of thinking in a wonderful way:

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”

He is not speaking in exaggerated language. He is describing what is actually true of those who belong to Christ.

Your life is no longer just your own.

Through Christ’s death, your old identity—defined by sin, bound to it…your sinful nature—has been brought to an end. And in its place, something new has begun. Christ Himself now lives in you.

That does not mean you disappear or lose your personality. It means your life is no longer self-contained. You are not drawing only on your own strength, your own resolve, and your own ability to change. The source of your life has changed.

“The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God.”

Faith, here, is not just believing certain truths. It is living in ongoing trust—relying on Christ who is present with you and at work in you. The one who literally worked that faith in you through His Word in the first place.

That changes how you face the ordinary moments of the day.

• When patience runs thin, you are not left to manufacture it on your own.
• When fear or frustration rises, you are not navigating it alone.
• When you seek to love someone difficult, you are not the only one involved.

Christ lives in you!

In fact, listen to what God tells us in Philippians 2:13.

“for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

That’s right, God is not only helping you to do good works, but He’s planned those good works in advance, and works in you to WANT to do them.

Going back to Galatians, Paul does not leave Christ’s presence abstract. He anchors it in the Gospel:

“who loved me and gave himself for me.”

This is the same Christ who went to the cross for you, who took your sin and gave you His righteousness. His presence in your life is not uncertain or distant. It is grounded in His love, already shown.

So the Christian life is not simply about trying harder to live for Christ. It is about living in the reality that Christ is already living in you.

And that changes not just what you do, but how you understand your entire life.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

Thank You that my life is not my own, but is now bound up with Yours. When I begin to rely only on myself, remind me that You are present and at work within me.

Help me to live today by faith—trusting not in my strength, but in You who love me and gave Yourself for me.

Shape my thoughts, words, actions, and desires as You live in me.

Amen.

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.