We cannot live in Philippians 3 unless we first know Romans 6 in our vital experience. Philippians 3 speaks of the death of the new man, and of taking the resurrection life back to the cross and having the stamp of death placed upon it. Resurrection life constantly gravitates to the cross. After His baptism Christ was on resurrection ground, yet He was constantly under the shadow of the cross: "Not My will, but Yours" (Luke 22:42).
We live to die. We live through cycles of life and death as we become conformed to His image through deeper and deeper experiences of dying. The good self often intrudes into divine service; therefore, it has to go through death. For example, we cannot let our eloquence intrude into the teaching of divine truth. Suppose Brother A can preach and Brother B can manage affairs. If Brother A is asked to preach, he will go forward with confidence; but if he is asked to manage affairs, he will be driven to his knees. We must have no confidence in our natural ability; instead we must put our natural ability to death and be willing to die to it.
No one has an advantage over anyone else in spiritual things. The only difference is in the extent of our faith and obedience! Our attitude toward natural wisdom should be: "Lord, I refuse to understand Your Word by myself or by my natural intellect. I prefer to remain in ignorance unless You will be wisdom to me." We must be willing to wait for revelation. "Lord, I refuse to love anyone with my own love. I am willing to let my self be limited in order to gain Your approval."
The cross is both a fact and a principle. In regard to salvation, it is a fact. In regard to victory, it is a principle. Death deals with sin and self, and life deals with resurrection life. Therefore, in regard to victory, the cross is a principle, not a fact. There must be many experiences of death and resurrection, that is, cycles of death and resurrection which take us through death and life. We should often say to the Lord, "I refuse to live by this and that. I confess that this or that has to go, and I accept Your verdict." This is going through a new experience of death and coming out in a realm of greater resurrection that has the stamp of death upon it.
Victory needs only faith; conformity requires obedience. We should set ourselves against ourselves. "I'll kiss the chastening rod," Madam Guyon said. Paul said that conformity was something he desired to attain to. "Not that I have already obtained or am already perfected, but I pursue" (Phil. 3:12).
The flesh profits nothing. We have to pray, "Lord, give me light. Reveal what the flesh is to me." The revelation of the flesh is a crisis, whereas the daily putting to death of the flesh is a process.
The joy of victory is exuberant, but conformity to His death is different. As one hymn says, "Let the spirit praise Thee,/Though the heart be riven" (Hymns, #377).
Salvation and deliverance are free gifts, whereas conformity costs us everything. It is a joy to be healed, but a greater joy to bleed.
First Corinthians 2:2-4 indicates that we should have conformity in our service. "For I did not determine to know anything among you except Jesus Christ, and this One crucified...weakness...fear...much trembling." Enduement gives self-confidence, and very often the carnal man is fed through such enduement. This is the reason so many Pentecostals do not go on to the stage of conformity and do not even know deliverance. It is not enough to receive enduement alone; one must go through death and receive the stamp of death.
Conformity to His death leads to the fellowship of His sufferings. Miss Barber once said, "Lord, I die because I want to leave the field for others to die. Let me stand in the place of death that others may pass into life."
Every new light is for the whole Body. It may mean death for us, but life for others (2 Cor. 4:11-12, 15). "For we who are alive are always being delivered unto death for Jesus' sake" (v. 11). This "dying" or killing is His killing work in us.
