Jesus Clearly Portrayed as Crucified!

Jesus Clearly Portrayed as Crucified!

“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?”

You can often hear preachers in our days portraying Jesus as crucified, but they do it in a totally different manner than Paul. They portray Jesus as a martyr for mankind, affecting them in their souls in order to get them converted.

We find that the apostles did not use this method. They don’t mention anything about Jesus being a martyr. We only read about it in the gospels as an historic account. There are many martyrs who had to endure more physical sufferings than Jesus did. Here we can have a look at how Paul portrayed Jesus as crucified:

“Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.” Rom. 6:6.

Paul writes, “Knowing this.” He portrayed Jesus as crucified in such a way that they knew that their old man was crucified with Him.

“Because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” 2 Cor. 5:14-15.

When Paul portrayed Jesus as crucified, the Corinthians saw themselves as dead with Him so that they should no longer live for themselves.

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me . . . .” Gal. 2:20. When the Galatians saw Christ as crucified, they also saw Paul as crucified, and they also saw themselves as crucified.

“And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Ch. 5:24. The Galatians wanted to gain victory over their passions by obeying the law, whereas Paul proclaimed Jesus’ death to the passions by faith in being crucified with Christ. 2 Cor. 4:10-11. They had received the Spirit by faith without the works of the law. Gal. 3:2. Now they could, by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body so they could live a new life. Rom. 8:13.

The old manner of living a new life in the strength of the law resulted only in an external righteousness. However, the new way which Jesus has consecrated for us is to take up our cross daily and deny ourselves; or: to crucify our flesh with its passions and desires; or: to put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit. This will result in the righteousness of Christ—truth in our innermost heart. Therefore Paul did not want to boast in anything except in the cross of Christ. When Paul portrayed the cross of Christ, the Galatians did not see a wooden cross on Calvary; the cross they saw was the cross by which the world was crucified to them, and they were crucified to the world. Gal. 6:14.

Paul writes that many people hated this cross of Christ. He could see it by their conduct. They did not hate Christ on the wooden cross on Calvary by which they could receive forgiveness for their sins, but they hated the “cross of Christ” by which they were to be crucified together with Christ. Phil. 3:18-19. They had their belly as their god and desired earthly things. Such people hate the cross of Christ, but if Jesus is portrayed with a crown of thorns on a wooden cross and is proclaimed as the One who died in our place they have nothing against that. Such people think they are magnifying Jesus and grace; they magnify it so much that our conduct doesn’t mean anything, for God sees us only through Jesus and grace, and then He sees us as perfect in Him. Thousands of so-called Christians continue to live in their sins and desire earthly things because of this deception.

Peter resists this spirit powerfully, exhorting us to strive for holy conduct and godliness, knowing that we have been redeemed with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. “And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your sojourning here in fear . . . .” 1 Pet. 1:17-19.

Then Peter continues to exhort us to walk in Jesus’ steps “who committed no sin, nor was guile found in His mouth.” After this he goes on to preach Jesus as crucified in the same way Paul does.

“Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.” 1 Pet. 2:21-24.

Here we see the apostolic preaching of Jesus Christ as crucified. If we compare it with the preaching of our times, we can see how the spirit of Antichrist has worked, and has perverted Jesus’ death and grace to be a cover over sin and worldliness. Jude 4.