Five Died On The Cross

Feature 3 – April 2025 – Grace & Truth Magazine

Five Died On The Cross

Crucifixion is a brutal method of execution which was practiced by the Romans against their slaves, criminals and enemies. It was commonly used from the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD. While it is hard to estimate the exact number of individuals crucified by the Romans, accounts from historians suggest that tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, were crucified. For example, the Jewish historian Josephus reported the Romans had crucified thousands of Jewish rebels during the siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD under the command of the Roman commander Titus, who later became emperor (79–81 AD).

The most famous crucifixion was that of Jesus Christ our Lord, but Paul has told us that someone else was crucified with Christ, saying, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20 ESV). What does it mean to die with Christ? Paul explained this by telling us about five who died on the cross of Christ.

1. The Old Self Died On The Cross
In Romans 6:6 Paul wrote: “We know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.” The old self, or “old man” in some other translations, is the whole character that is associated with Adam. It reflects our old race and identity. What comes to your mind when you think of our identity in Adam? Maybe you think of selfishness, lust, pride, jealousy or other similar things. All these characteristics define the old self. Judicially, God has crucified the old self on the cross to make us free from this bad identity, so that we may “no longer be enslaved to sin,” breaking our connection to Adam. As Christians, God has adopted us into a new family whose head is Christ, replacing our old one in Adam. This frees us from all sinful practices associated with the family of Adam.

In the practical sense Paul has called us to “put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and … put on the new self, created after the likeness of God” (Eph. 4:22,24). The expression “put off” does not imply acting or pretending, because that would make you a hypocrite. Putting on is an external expression of a change in our internal character. Paul explained this concept by writing: “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (Col. 3:12). Note that all these attributes – compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness and patience – are internal but have external actions associated with them. In summary, the old self is associated with the sinful “practices” (v.9).

2. The World Has Been Crucified
The “world” has three meanings in the Bible. Depending on the context, “world” may mean the people who live on earth, and in that sense “God so loved the world” (Jn. 3:16). Or it may mean the creation, including the earth, stars, trees and animals, as in Romans 1:20. The third meaning denotes a system that the Devil has in place to rule and control the world, aiming to divert people away from God (consider 2 Cor. 4:4). This is the world that was crucified in the cross of Christ.

In Galatians 6:14 Paul wrote: “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” How would the world be crucified to me? One illustration is Noah, who was saved from the world around him by the flood. In his time everyone had a choice to either go into the ark or stay outside. The ark was the separating factor. The cross separates us from the world because it is also a decision point for everyone: accept Christ or reject Him.

People who follow Christ hate the world because of two reasons:

• Christians are part of the Church, which is the bride of Christ (Eph. 5:25-27). The bride should have her full emotions focused on her Bridegroom, as a reflection of His great love to her. Loving the world would nullify the Christian’s devotion to Christ.
• The world is a system at enmity against God. The British writer C. S. Lewis described Christians as soldiers in an occupied land (earth), receiving instructions from the central command through wireless communication (the Holy Spirit). If the world is our enemy, there is no room for the Christian to love the world.

James summarized the above two reasons: “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (Jas. 4:4). As the bride of Christ, we can’t love the world because that would make us “adulterous.” As part of God’s people and members of the Church, one cannot love the world because by doing so he “makes himself an enemy of God,” thereby committing treason.

Our practical duty is to have Christ occupy our hearts and attention so the world will disappear from our sight. 

3. Hostility Or Enmity
Throughout history the Jews and Gentiles have been at enmity with each other, but they were united in their enmity to God (Job 21:14). Paul told us how God fixed this problem and could “reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility” (Eph. 2:16). How did God fix the problem of enmity? God did not change. Rather, He loved the whole world before and after the cross. So, to kill the enmity, we had to change. The Bible calls this process “reconciliation”; the cross killed the enmity by reconciling us to God.

First, God fixed the relationship between Himself and humankind by reconciling the whole world, “in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation” (2 Cor. 5:19, italics added). In this sense God opened the door for individuals to come back to Him. Second, God fixed us, “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life” (Rom. 5:10, italics added). God worked in the hearts of many to attract them to come back to Christ after being His enemies. The result is that we are now qualified to have a relationship with God and with each other. Our practical duty is to enjoy and nourish this relationship with God through praying, studying Scripture, attending Christian meetings, reading Christian books, and having fellowship with Christians.

4. Certificate Of Debt Or Ordinances
The law of the Old Testament was given to teach about mankind’s weakness until Christ came with the message of grace (Gal. 3:24). The law and legal demands were against us because they demonstrated our failure; each sin being a debt for the Jew that had to be paid on the Day of Atonement (see Lev. 23:27-28). Paul said, “You … God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by cancelling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross” (Col. 2:13-14). The law did not die; its impact, or scope, was diminished because we died to it. A dead person cannot be judged.

We must die to the law because:

• For some, the law is God’s demands of the flesh to prove its failure. Once we prove our failure, we die to the law and live by grace.
• For others, it is people’s demands of the flesh to prove its success. In this case, the law will prove our failure and condemn us to death.

Being liberated from the debt of the law is to agree with God that there is no goodness in our flesh, and the only appropriate thing to do for the flesh is to crucify it. We signed this certificate of debt when we depended only on our own works. We invalidate the certificate of debt when we go under the domain of grace, by confessing our failure (Rom. 7:4). Practically, we should not seek self-righteousness by making any laws for ourselves or by following man-made religions. Realize that we will fail in honoring God if we try to follow rules and ordinances on our own, but through our new lives in Christ we will automatically bear the fruit of the Spirit, which is honoring to God.

5. Flesh
The “flesh” in the Bible usually refers to the sinful nature, the old nature, or basically the factory that produces sins. Paul wrote: “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal. 5:24). God hates sin, so He crucified it. Paul hated sin so he cried “wretched man that I am!” (Rom. 7:24). When we become true Christians, at the time of our repentance and conversion, we agree with God’s point of view on crucifying the flesh. So, we put our flesh in the position of death.

This aspect of crucifying the flesh needs to be renewed continually (Col. 3:5; Rom. 8:13). We need to give control of our being – mind, body, emotions and will – to the Holy Spirit. This can happen by starving the flesh to death and feeding our new nature.

Die To Live
Paul’s invitation in Galatians 2:20 is for all Christians to consider themselves dead – crucified with Christ – so they can enjoy Christ’s attributes in their lives. When we completely comprehend the truth that God has crucified on the cross the old self, the world, the enmity, the certificate of debt, and the flesh, then we will be able to enjoy the freedom to live in a way that will enable Christ to live in us.

By Shereen Ghobrial

The cross blotted out our sins and the whole system of legal ordinances which had been against us. The law was not blotted out, far from it, for it was vindicated and magnified in the death of Christ. We died from under the law in His death, and we are now under grace, with all the old legal ordinances set aside. The idea of “handwriting” (Col. 2:14 KJV) is that of obligation to which a man is subject by his signature. We had bound ourselves by our signature to Jewish ordinances, but the document has been nullified in the death of Christ. As far as we are concerned, it was nailed to the cross when He was nailed to the cross. In these words, of course, Paul particularly had Jews in view. Colossians 2 presents three connections. We may summarize them in this manner: The cross in relation to ourselves, and in particular the flesh (v.11).The cross in relation to legal ordinances (v.14).The cross in relation to the spiritual forces of evil (v.15).—Frank B. Hole, “Colossians” (adapted)