Don't Waste Your Life Assignment Questions

Galations 6:14: "Far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."  This is a confusing verse at first glance, but when we compare it to the Gospel message, it begins to make sense.  Boasting only in the cross means that we find our pride and fulfillment in the work of Christ, not in anything we do ourselves.  God's power is greater than we are; boasting in the cross means we are relying on that power, instead of our own.  To me now, that means giving up my stress and fears to find courage in God's power.  Lately I've been dealing with a lot of stressful and difficult things; it's hard to stay positive and focused.  If I tried to stay calm by my own power, I would surely fail.  Instead, I have given my fears to God, and now, I can boast in HIS power when thing turn out well. 

I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me.
-Galatians 2:20
At first, this verse seems to be talking about one single person.  However, mid-way in the verse, the "I" changes.  The first "I" is the sinful man who has died to his sin by finding his life in Christ.  This means that the man has given up a life of sin, and has accepted Christ and is trying to live according to Christ's standards.  That old "I" is dead; the old has gone, the new has come.  Christ is now the source of this man's life and purpose.  Next, Paul specifies what kind of life by saying "in the flesh".  By this, he means physical existence, sinful as it is.  The very next "I", however, is living in Christ by faith, trying to remove themselves from their sinful flesh and following God's laws.  When we accept Christ, we are a new creation, born again.  The person we were is dead; but we are newly alive in Christ.