The Destruction of the Old Man

The Destruction of the Old Man

Everything of the old man is incurable and has therefore been sentenced to death. It would have been wrong to have him crucified with Christ if a single particle of him had been usable. Then God would have let him live, strengthening this little bit and letting it grow and develop.

“In me, (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells.” Rom. 7:18. That is precisely why here was only one thing to be done with this incurable and incorrigible flesh, namely, that which took place in and through Christ: the flesh was crucified with Him. Glory to God! Now, anyone who wants to can get rid of it. This takes place by first forsaking everything of our own, and secondly, by acquiring a personal, living faith in the work that was completed in Christ Jesus.

Because this can and shall be realized, the Scriptures speak firmly, directly, decisively, authoritatively, understandably, and clearly, about the crucifixion, death, and burial of the entire old man. Rom. 6.

We do not bury anyone who is not dead!

This is altogether very comprehensive, even completely comprehensive, to the degree that Paul considers it wrong to continue behaving like mere men. 1 Cor. 3:3-4. Here we have one of the strongest and most glorious expressions the apostles have given us, in accordance with what Peter says about being partakers of the divine nature.

Man (the old man) causes only harm on all his ways (when it concerns spiritual values). He only disturbs, making bad things worse. He pesters and deceives his fellow men. We can justly say that everything that is sound and good and profitable consists of getting rid of the old man, that big “I” that we have, our strong self-will. We can presume that our dear fellow men quickly become sick and tired of us—that is to say, of that distasteful “I” of ours.

We often make a shameful mistake when we think it is our godly fear people oppose and are tired of. It may well be that our big, strong “I” makes everything so repugnant, so that it is really this off taste they are so tired of. If this should be the case, then these dear souls, properly understood, are our excellent co-workers, whoever they are (with or without getting paid for this work).

If we think this over wisely, we will keep this fact in mind, so we do not bother our fellow man unnecessarily with our own will, our taste, and our opinions, not even with our own voice or even just with our presence. For this noble reason, we will once in a while perform a little “disappearing act.”

It is indeed very difficult to realize that we are or can be such a thorn in the eyes of our dear fellow men, but blessed and wise is the one who believes it just the same.

One other manifestation of the foolishness of the old man is that in certain cases we admire the old man’s achievements so much that we practically worship him. We admire the one (as long as it lasts) and abhor the other. The one insanity is just as bad as the other.

We can summarize it all by saying that the good and profitable thing is to get rid of our own face and form as much as possible, whether it is despicable or charming, so Christ can be formed in us, and His life, mind, and nature can be revealed in us and through us. Away with the mere man, and let Christ come into view!

This is the only thing that is profitable.