Paul means a daily identification with Christ's death — reckoning the old Adam as dead while Christ lives in the believer.
Les Feldick grounds this in the believer's two natures. The old Adam has been crucified with Christ and is reckoned dead by God (Galatians 2:20; Romans 6:2), but experientially the old flesh still remains and can trip up the believer. So 'I die daily' describes the Spirit-led process of mortifying the deeds of the body while living by Christ's faithfulness.
1 Corinthians 15:31 — This is the verse where Paul says 'I die daily,' immediately after pointing to the rejoicing he has in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 2:20 — Paul's explanation of being crucified with Christ while Christ lives in him gives the foundational meaning of dying daily.
In 1 Corinthians 15:31 Paul writes, "I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily." In Galatians 2:20 he explains the reality behind that daily dying: "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." Romans 6:2 asks, "God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" — showing that the believer is counted dead to sin through union with Christ. Second Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." Romans 8:13 then ties the daily dying to the Spirit's work: "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."
Les Feldick teaches that 'I die daily' points to the believer's continuing conflict between two natures. The moment a person believes, God reckons the old Adam dead and crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20; Romans 6:2). Yet experientially, that old Adam is still in force, and God leaves the believer in the world to face its pressures and the persistent old flesh. At salvation, God also imparts a new divine nature that cannot sin, making the believer a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). The old flesh remains capable of tripping the believer, so the Christian life involves the Spirit-led daily discipline of mortifying the deeds of the body (Romans 8:13). In Les's view, this is not just giving up things you love; God changes the believer's appetites.
Les Feldick teaches that at salvation God does not remove the old nature. The moment a person believes, God reckons old Adam dead and crucified with Christ (Romans 6:2; Galatians 2:20). In the same act, God imparts a new divine nature that cannot sin, making the believer a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). But the old flesh remains, and it is still capable of tripping the believer. That is why the old nature must be daily identified with the cross — it is dead in God's sight, yet still active in experience.
Paul's 'I die daily' does not describe a one-time event that settles the issue forever in daily experience. Les points to Romans 6:4 to show that as Christ was raised from the dead, the believer comes out of deadness into new life. He also notes that being dead with Christ is not the end — old Adam is put to death and life really begins. Because old Adam is still 'in force' experientially, the believer's identification with Christ's death continues throughout the Christian walk.
Les takes Romans 8:13 to mean that the Spirit is the instrument of daily dying. Paul says, 'if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.' Les explains that this is the disciplined side of the Christian life, but it is not a matter of giving up things you still love. God changes the believer's appetites, so what was once loved becomes hated and vice versa.
Context: 1 Corinthians 15:31
Les sets the context for teaching 1 Corinthians 15:31, the verse where Paul says 'I die daily.'
Crucified with Christ — Old Adam Dead
Les explains that old Adam has been crucified and broken in power, yet experientially the believer still lives in the flesh and must live by Christ's faithfulness.
Dead to Old Adam at Belief
Les connects Romans 6:2 and Galatians 2:20 to show that at the moment of belief God reckons old Adam dead and Christ lives in the believer.
New Divine Nature Through Christ's Death
Les explains that the old sin nature becomes a new divine nature through Christ's death; Christ died the death the soul owed.
Raised to New Life
Les uses Romans 6:4 to show that as Christ was raised, the believer comes out of deadness into new life; old Adam has to die.
Identification with Death by Faith
Les teaches that identification with Christ's death comes by faith and is not the end — old Adam is put to death and real life begins.
New Creation with Old Flesh Remaining
Les teaches from 2 Corinthians 5:17 that when old Adam dies, God imparts a new divine nature that cannot sin, yet the old flesh remains.
Mortify the Deeds of the Body
Les teaches from Romans 8:13 that through the Spirit we mortify the deeds of the body — the ongoing discipline of the Christian life.
1 Corinthians 15:31: I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.
Paul's statement of daily dying is tied to the joy he has in Christ Jesus on behalf of the Corinthians.
Galatians 2:20: I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Paul explains the crucified-with-Christ life as Christ living in him — the basis for dying daily.
Romans 6:2: God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
This question shows that the believer is counted dead to sin through union with Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
The new creation identity is the result of old Adam's death — the new nature replaces the old.
Romans 8:13: For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
This verse spells out Spirit-led mortification of the body's deeds, which is the daily dying.
Paul is describing the believer's ongoing identification with Christ's death. The old Adam is crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20), and although God reckons him dead, the old nature still remains experientially. Each day the believer lives by Christ's life and, through the Spirit, mortifies the deeds of the body (Romans 8:13).
No. Les explains that the old Adam has been put to death with Christ, but God leaves the believer in the world. 'I die daily' is about reckoning that old nature dead and living by Christ's faithfulness, not about physical dying.
At salvation God imparts a new divine nature, making the believer a new creation. That new nature cannot sin, but the old flesh remains capable of tripping the believer, which is why the death of the old nature must be applied daily.
Watch the Teaching: Why Paul Said "I Die Daily" — 1 Corinthians 15:31 Explained