Acquittal—Death Sentence

Acquittal—Death Sentence

People usually make a critical mistake with regard to this acquittal (or pardon), as if there were two people, one of whom was to be acquitted and the other condemned to death, but they mistook these two for each other so that the one who had received the death sentence and was to be crucified was instead set free and thus continued with his wretched and terrible life. The acquittal was applied incorrectly so that “the old man,” who had been condemned to death, continued to live, and flourish, and bear manifold corrupting fruit. Who is it that has been acquitted? It is our spirit! But what about our flesh? It has been condemned to death. Gal. 5:24. Who has been condemned to death? Our sinful, big “I”—our “old man”—our “flesh”—our self-life, our self-will! The death sentence is to be executed (carried out) immediately. The “old man” must immediately say farewell to “his dear ones,”—read “The Lord’s Prayer”—and that is the end of it! However, our spirit has been justified or pardoned, and is being made alive, bearing fruit for God (the fruit of the Spirit) and works done in God.

We can also say that we have been pardoned with regard to eternity, so we can live even though we die, instead of suffering eternal death and perdition away from God. However, as far as the present time is concerned, we have been condemned to death. We no longer have any right to live for ourselves (Gal. 2:20; 2 Cor. 5:15), no right to do our own will or to go our own way, whether in great or small things. We no longer belong to ourselves—we have no say over ourselves—for Christ is Lord of our hearts. He is in command. We have given our hearts to Him voluntarily; in the presence of witnesses (with the witnesses’ “signature”) we were baptized into His death. Rom. 6:3. We have entered into a covenant (pact) to die to ourselves. If we do not keep this contract, we are criminals, spiritually speaking.

Therefore, people make a terrible mistake when they consider their entire person—both flesh and spirit—pardoned or justified. No wonder there is so much misery in the assemblies when “the old man” is pardoned and continues to live. It is as if all the penitentiary inmates (various kinds of criminals) were pardoned and then formed an assembly. That would certainly be a fine assembly!!! It would be the “assembly of pardoned sinners.”

When the flesh is crucified and the spirit is made alive, the result is the church of the living God.

In the natural realm an acquittal and a death sentence are complete opposites, but in the spiritual realm these two opposites are in complete harmony with each other, in that the flesh is condemned and crucified, while the spirit is justified and made alive, and will at last be clothed with a correspondingly eternal and glorified body.