“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

This was not the initial phase of Paul’s life after meeting Jesus. After having been introduced, he was left with an indelible impression upon his soul. His whole life was spent in an attempt to fully embrace what he both saw and experienced in meeting such a man. He was intrigued by the phenomena of God in the flesh; a glimpse of the glory state of his own soul trusting that the time would come when the Christ that he saw from a distance would totally possess him. It is Christ in us that give us the hope of glory. All other expressions of life would be so futile in their pursuits after such an encounter because they become mere shadows since the realness of Christ has become so real to us. This is the place the Lord intends to deliver each of us to. Once we are there, a passion to shed all that would compete with the life in the Spirit is willingly abandoned. No longer is it the pangs of death, but rather the pleasures of willful obedience that is anticipated. A new life springs forth in the place of where the old life once occupied. Only when the old has passed will the new be realized. It is faith in the Son of God, our having that quality of faith in Him and what He has done because He of loves us that keeps us connected. Then we can glorify the Lord in our flesh through the new life now lived.