Galatians 2:20 is the best and most concise statement of the Christian life in the New Testament. Paul makes it clear here that the new life we live rests squarely on and in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. And the linchpin of it all is the resurrection.

Without it we are without hope. And as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, we are still in our sins, still under the control of sin and death. Think of the implications of Galatians 2:20 if Christ had not been raised. How could Paul write "but Christ lives in me?" Or, "I live by faith in the Son of God?" These statements are meaningless apart from the resurrection.

But Christ was raised from the dead. And everything changed when he walked out of that tomb.

It means that you and I "were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4). As Galatians 2:20 states, we "have been crucified with Christ."

Apart from the resurrection, this is a scary statement. Why would anyone want to die in Christ if there were no hope of being raised to live a new life? But with the resurrection, we can boldly proclaim that we have died with Christ and that we no longer live. Why? Because Christ lives in us.

Let that stunning truth soak in. Here is what that means. You have a new way of life. You now live by faith in Jesus, the one who loves you and gave himself for you. This is the Christian life. This is your life in him.