The centrality of the cross: Applied to believer, the substituted sinner made ambassador

A.    The Death at the Cross applied to the believer (Romans 6:1-4)

"We who died. . . ." (Romans 6: 2, R.V.) "Discharged ... having died." (Romans 7: 6, R.V.) "Ye died with Christ. (Colossians 2: 2o, R.V.) "For ye died. (Colossians 3: 3, R.V.m.) "For if we died with Him, we shall also live. .(2 Timothy 2: 1 1, R.V.)

Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus ended chapter two with the saying that In Christ we are members of God’s house hold. I said the kingdom of faith is now our home country. We leave in the world but we are not of the world. Our old self was crucified and we live in newness of life in Christ. To the Roman’s he calls out with a question. Should we keep on sinning so that God can keep on forgiving?
If we’ve left the country where sin is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Did you not realize that we packed up and left there for good? That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old country of sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace- a new life in a new land!
Ro 7:6,7 “But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code. What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”” So the saying is true that “if we have died with Christ, then we will also live with Him.”
People thought that grace will cover their willful violation of the law. Others that they could be slack in their Christian duties, believing that God’s grace would save them in their laziness. No. Grace is not a license for sin.
Christians have been set free from sin and law by God’s grace, but they have not been set free to sin against law. The law is established by our thankful response to grace (Rom 3:31)
Those living with Christ are those who have died with Christ. Therefore if we are not living with Christ, then we have not died with Christ.

B.     The cross: The substituted sinner made ambassador (2 Corinthians 5: 14,15)

One man died for all, therefore all died. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own. Living for him who died for the sake you and I and was raised. Because of what Christ did by his love, we do not evaluate people by what they have or how they look. No, we do not regard according to the flesh but we evaluate from inside and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah is a new creation; he gets a new fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!
The man who was rebellious has become representative, ambassador because of what the master, Jesus Christ did in taking His wretched position to die for his sin. Christ’s disciples are known by their love of one another (John 13:34,35). The Christian does good works because of what the good works will do to the people for whom he works. The good works are sacrificial and focused on the recipient of the works. So the Christian has a new life haven been washed of sin (Act 22:16) and he walks in life for the benefit of others. So, in living for others the ambassador, the substituted sinner manifests his love of the Lord (Ro 6:11).

C.     Continuity of the 'Cross' for every believer. (2 Corinthians 4: 10- 12)

What they did to Jesus, they do to us- trial and torture, mockery and murder; what Jesus did among them, he does in us-He lives! Our lives are at constant risk for Jesus’ sake, which makes Jesus’ life all the more evident in us. While we’re going through the worst, you’re getting in on the best!
In bearing the cross, one recognizes his humanity and dependence on God for survival in Christ (2 Cor 1:8, 9). Trials and persecutions drives us to depend on God. The life of our Lord can only be manifested in our body if we willingly suffer for the name of Jesus when preaching the gospel (Rom 8:17, Gal 2:20). The trails of an evangelist is an opportunity to live for Jesus (Rom 8:36).