Christ’s Death Frees Us So His Reconciling Life Can Flow Through Us | Lent Devotional Day 24 Copy

Exploring the Meaning of Jesus’ Death
March 14, 2026
Written by Frederick (Rick) Eccher

Christ’s Death Frees Us So His Reconciling Life Can Flow Through Us

Scripture:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. And the life that I now live in my body, I live by faith, indeed, by the faithfulness of God’s Son, who loved me and gave himself for me.
(Galatians 2:20)

Reflection:

In the early church, Jesus’ death was understood as the heart of Christian identity—baptism joining believers to Christ’s death and resurrection, freeing them from the old patterns of self‑rule and reconciling them to God. John Wesley, founder of Methodism, often emphasized this as the “great exchange”: Christ gives himself fully for us, and we give ourselves fully to him, trusting his love to reshape our lives.

Shall we reflect on how our relationship with reconciliation can bring us closer to Jesus?
There are seasons—especially in later life—when we feel the tension between who we have been and who Christ is forming us to be. Old habits of self‑protection, pride, or resentment can cling tightly. Paul’s words remind us that the deepest truth about us is not our failures or our history but Christ living within us. His death breaks the power of estrangement - estrangement from God, from others, and even from parts of ourselves we’ve struggled to face. Reconciliation becomes possible not because we are strong, but because Christ’s self‑giving love is stronger than our resistance.

This passage invites a gentle but courageous step: to let Christ’s death open a path toward reconciliation.

• Reconciliation with God, by trusting that nothing in us is beyond his redeeming love.
• Reconciliation with others, by releasing the old self that insists on being right, being first, or being in control.
• Reconciliation within ourselves, by allowing Christ to heal the places we’ve avoided or carried alone.

This is not a demand but an invitation—an act of faith in the One who “loved me and gave himself for me.”

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, who loved us and gave yourself for us, teach us the grace of dying to what keeps us distant—from you, from others, and from our own true selves. Let your life within us become our courage, our gentleness, and our peace. Lead us into reconciliation where it is needed, and give us the wisdom to walk in your love. Amen.

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