“God forbid that I should boast
except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom the world has been crucified to me,
and I to the world.”
GALATIANS 6:14
Whereas
the Holy Spirit is
instrumental in the increase of Christ, the Cross is instrumental in the
decrease of Self. Remember that the whole trouble with man is his
inherent tendency to travel a path that is independent of his Creator.
This is why the Cross must do a very deep, thorough work in every
disciple of Jesus.
As
Self is submitted to Christ, Sin begins to lose its
power of attraction, and Satan has no more leverage. The night He was
betrayed, Jesus told His disciples, “The ruler of this world is coming,
and he has nothing in Me” (John 14:30). That is to say, there was
nothing in the Lord Jesus that the devil could use to get an advantage
over Him. This is the condition He desires for each of His disciples,
and the Cross is the means through which that condition is arrived at.
