THE THRESHOLD OF RESURRECTION
When we remain in the death of Christ, it is not the end; it is the threshold of resurrection. Whenever I remain in the death of Christ, this death brings me into resurrection, and Christ rises up with me. The problem is that we do not remain in the death of Christ. If we do not stay in His death, Christ cannot rise up in us. Resurrection requires the ground of death. Obviously, Christ could not have been resurrected if He had not died. But because He died, He could be resurrected. The principle is the same with us today. The principle of life is that where there is death, there is resurrection.
After considering all these points, we should no longer try to die. Instead, we should cease from all our striving. The first stanza of a hymn expresses this very well:
Buried with Christ and raised with Him too;
What is there left for me to do?
Simply to cease from struggling and strife,
Simply to walk in newness of life.
Glory be to God!
If we try anything, we should try doing what this hymn suggests. We have been buried, and Christ is resurrected with us. Day after day, we need to be reminded that we have already been buried and that our position is in death. For us to remain in death is to be like a seed remaining in the earth. Eventually, the life within the seed will rise up. Likewise, when we remain in His death, Christ who is the life within us will rise up.
We are not stones, but grains of wheat. The difference between a stone and a grain of wheat is that the grain of wheat has life in it. When the grain is sown into the soil and remains there, sooner or later the life within the grain will rise up. Likewise, Christ as the life in us will rise up if we stay in His death.
(The Experience of Christ, Chapter 21, by Witness Lee)
