Then “He delivered Him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led Him away. And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull… where they crucified Him” (John 19:16–18). And as He hung between two criminals—with Jesus in the center—the crucified Lord spoke: “When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said…” (John 19:26–27).

The crucified man speaks.

This is not merely a historical moment—it is a spiritual revelation. When I say “the crucified man,” I am not referring only to men, but to all mankind—male and female. In Scripture, “man” refers to the old nature we inherited from Adam, the fleshly soul-life within us. This old man was judicially crucified with Christ at the moment of salvation. Yet crucifixion is not instant death. It is a lingering, agonizing process. The flesh is on the cross, but it still speaks.

The apostle Paul declared: “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him…” (Romans 6:6). “Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). “I have been crucified with Christ…” (Galatians 2:20). “I die daily” (1 Corinthians 15:31).

All of these verses reveal a spiritual truth: our flesh has been crucified. Yet our experience testifies that it still cries out. It still resists death. It still seeks to exert control. This is why Jesus commands us to take up our cross daily. If the flesh were silent, there would be no need to deny it daily.

Many can “take up” the cross for a moment. They can lift it onto their shoulder in a burst of zeal. But to bear the cross—to carry it through deep valleys, across raging rivers, and up steep mountains—is another matter. To bear is to endure when every natural instinct cries out for relief. To bear is to persevere when the flesh screams, “Lay this burden down!” To bear is not to escape the cross, but to remain upon it until the flesh is silenced.

The day will come when we lay our burdens down—but that day is not today. It is not tomorrow. It is the day when we take our final breath, and like our Lord, we shall say, “It is finished” (John 19:30).

Consider the two thieves crucified beside Jesus. Both were nailed to their crosses. Both were dying. Both were suffering. Yet one railed against Christ, while the other surrendered and was saved. This is a prophetic picture for every believer: the crucified flesh still speaks, but only the surrendered soul will see Paradise.

The voice of the flesh cries, “Save yourself! Come down from the cross!” But the voice of the spirit says, “Not my will, but Yours be done.”

So I appeal to you, saints of the Living God: Surrender quickly. Obey immediately. Glorify Christ even in your pain. Do not give the flesh any place. Deny its arguments. Silence its cries. Let your spirit ascend with Christ, fixing your gaze on the glory that awaits you.

For what awaits is beyond imagination. “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18).

There is a day coming when you will be redeemed from this corruptible body, delivered from this sin-sick world, and welcomed into a heaven where there is no more striving, no more sorrow, no more temptation, and no more voice of the flesh. There, the crucifixion gives way to resurrection, and every tear is wiped away by the hand of God Himself.

Our cross is but for a moment—but the glory is forever.