Living by Faith in the Son of God - nobody can be justified in God's eyes by the works of the law, but only by faith in Christ. To believe in Christ is to be crucified with Him and to have Him replace your sinful self in you. Christ was crucified for our sin. By faith, we trust that His death paid for our own personal sin. In that way, we are crucified with Him, our sin with him on the cross. That sinful "us" dies, replaced by the resurrected Christ "in us." We continue to live in the flesh but our lives are now directed not by our sinful selves but by our faith in Christ

What does Galatians 2:20 mean?

"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."  - Galatians 2:20 English Standard Version

This much-loved verse is quoted, printed, and repeated often, most especially the first half of this statement. 

This is also Paul's grandest declaration yet about what exactly happens when someone is saved or justified by placing their faith in Christ. 

In a very real sense, Paul's argument is that we become so closely attached to Him that we die with Him and He begins to live in us.

Paul has been emphasizing that faith, and faith alone, is what saves us — adding any requirement of good deeds or rituals is contrary to the gospel (Galatians 1:8–9; 2:16).

Christ was crucified for our sin. 

By faith, we trust that His death paid for our own personal sin.

In that way, we are crucified with Him, our sin with him on the cross. 

That sinful "us" dies, replaced by the resurrected Christ "in us." 

We continue to live in the flesh, of course, but our lives are now directed not by our sinful selves but by our faith in Christ. 

Paul expands on this great truth powerfully in Romans 6:1–6.

For the first time, Paul mentions Jesus' motive for giving Himself for us: love. 

Christ died for us because He loves us. 

Unlike the unyielding system of the law, Christ is a person motivated by His love and concern for us.

Context Summary

Galatians 2:15–21 contains Paul's grand statements about the difference between faith in Christ and following the law. 

Nobody can be justified in God's eyes by the works of the law, but only by faith in Christ. 

To believe in Christ is to be crucified with Him and to have Him replace your sinful self in you. 

Paul now lives by faith in the Son of God. 

More, Jesus gave himself for Paul's sin because He loved him. 

To say that a person can be made righteous by the law is to say that Jesus died for nothing.

Paul holds a crucial meeting with the other apostles.

Do they preach, as he does, that salvation can only be found through faith in Christ and not by following the law? 

He learns that they do, though ''false brothers'' in their midst are opposed to this gospel of God's grace.

After receiving official approval from Peter and the others, Paul later opposes Peter for publicly trying to distance himself from Gentile Christians out of fear of how others might respond. 

Paul declares that justification comes only through faith in Christ and not by the works of the law.

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