The Life-Changing Truth of Being In Christ

 THE LIFE-CHANGING TRUTH OF BEING IN CHRIST Spring Valley Mennonite; June 11, 2023; 1 Corinthians 1-9,30; 2 Corinthians 5:16-19 The other day I saw a house I'd never seen before. That wouldn't be a big deal except I had passed by the house dozens of times before. I saw it for the first time because, instead of being in the driver's seat, I was riding in the passenger seat. Instead of having to concentrate on the road, I was free to look around, and lo and behold, there stood this house I'd never seen before! This week I rediscovered something overlooked in God's Word, a truth discovered along familiar roads, a truth so apparent, yet so profound that it demands attention. As I began to explore this truth, however, I was overwhelmed by the volume of scripture relating to the concept. If you have read the title of the message, you have discovered this subject is described by the two words "In Christ." Being evangelicals who emphasize the need for a personal relationship with Jesus, we are very familiar with the concept of Christ being "in us." John 1:12 speaks of "receiving Christ": "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God, even to those who believe in His name." In Revelation 3:20, Christ is pictured standing outside our lives, and we must open the door for Him to enter. We speak of "asking Jesus to come into our hearts and lives," and we stress the truth of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. We are the "Temples of the Holy Spirit." My point being that while we understand clearly that Christ come into our lives and indwells us through the Holy Spirit, we are rather unclear about what it means that we are "in Christ." As I checked a concordance for the number of times the term "in Christ" occurred, I was surprised and somewhat overwhelmed by the volume of verses listed. In the New Testament, "In Christ" is found 90 times in 87 verses! Add to that such terms as "in Him, in Jesus, into Christ, and in the Lord' and we find well over 100 occurrences of this truth. And while not all express the exact same meaning, many of these verses are speaking of a concept which may prove to be like eyeglasses which will bring into focus who we are as believers and the importance of that to our lives. I. IN THE BUBBLE In 1971, David Vetter was born with an autoimmune disease which necessitated him being totally isolated and being placed in a large plastic bubble. He was referred to in the media as "the bubble boy." Complete isolation in a sterile environment was the only effective treatment for his condition. Despite all efforts, David died at the age of 12. Such enclosed and isolated environments are being created in anticipation for future colonies on the moon and Mars. Surrounded by a hostile and dangerous environment, those "in the bubble" are protected and safe. These examples of "living in a bubble" somewhat illustrate what it means to be "In Christ." Being in Christ is like being contained in a completely new environment; it is like entering into a bubble unlike anything we have experienced before. This concept of being placed in an entirely new environment provides clarity to the many verses that speak of being "in Christ." As we apply this idea of a new existence, let me point out a few of the multitude of verses which speak of this very thing: Turn to the first chapter of First Corinthians. We find that this concept of being in Christ is spoken of over 20 times in the Corinthian letters. Understanding that the Corinthian Church had a multitude of problems yet are repeatedly spoken of as being "In Christ" gives us great appreciation and insight into God's great and overwhelming grace. Follow along as I read verses 1-9. Notice: Verse 2: sanctified-set apart- "placed in the bubble" IN CHRIST. Verse 4: grace was given to us-where? IN CHRIST. Verse 5: In everything we are enriched-IN HIM. Verse 9: We are called into fellowship, an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Look at verse 30: (Read) By the Father's doing, we are placed IN CHRIST JESUS. II. WE ARE PLACED "IN CHRIST' BY GOD'S GRACE When God created Adam and Eve, they were "in the bubble" of God's perfect will, in perfect fellowship and relationship with God. When they sinned, our first parents were not only cast out of the Garden of Eden, but they were removed from "within the bubble." Fellowship with God was broken by sin, which always separates. Only through a system of sacrifices could sin be covered; an animal had to die and its blood shed. The sacrificial system was only temporary until the Great Sacrifice was made, and in the fullness of time-at just the right time in God's Divine Calendar, the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, shed His blood as the final and complete sacrifice for sin. Since the time of Adam's sin, all of Adam's race have been born outside the bubble. Romans 5:12: Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned..." Every one of us are sinners by nature and sinners by practice. Paul describes life outside of a saving relationship with God-outside the bubble-in Romans 3:10-12 (Read). But God-BUT GOD! God initiates, and "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." The righteousness we were lacking, the righteousness found only IN CHRIST, the righteousness without which we will never see God-that righteousness has now been made available to us through grace. By grace we have been saved-and placed IN CHRIST. Second Corinthians 1:21: "Now He who establishes us with you IN CHRIST and anointed us is God..." Consider 2 Corinthians 5:16-19 (Read). We are placed IN CHRIST, we are new creatures, old things passed away, new things have come. Yet think for a moment about what this new environment is like for our lives here and now: III. (WHAT) THINGS WHICH CHANGE AND WHAT REMAINS? As we are placed in Christ, in the bubble, we exist and live and breath the new atmosphere of Christ, yet much remains to be changed in our lives. Pastor A.J. Gordon, writing in 1872 in his book "In Christ" observes, "Christianity obliterates no natural relationships, destroys no human obligations, makes void no moral or spiritual laws. But it lifts all these up into a new sphere, and puts upon this seal signature of the Gospel, IN CHRIST. So that while all things continue as they were from the beginning, all, by their readjustment to this divine character and person, become virtually new." Gordon then illustrates: "The obligation to labor remains unchanged, but a new motive and a new sanctity are given to it by its relation to Christ: "Our labor is not in vain in the Lord." The marriage relation is stamped with this new signet, "Only in the Lord." Children are to obey their parents "in the Lord." Daily life becomes "good behavior in Christ." Joy and sorrow, triumph and suffering are all in Christ. Death remains, but it is robbed of its sting and crowned with a beatitude, because in Christ, "blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." "Thus Christ, in taking man up into Himself, takes all that belongs to him. Instead of rending him away from his natural connections, He embraces all these with him in Himself, that he may sanctify them all." (Unquote) When we are placed in Christ, we have the same job, the same family, we wake up the next morning after conversion in the same set of circumstances of life-yet we are changed, and these things change as a result. Our obligations remain, but new power is given to us to deal with these obligations. We realize, of course, that this readjustment of ourselves and the relationships around us take time as we learn what it means to be "in Christ." Let's examine what this new "bubble" is like, this new environment into which we are placed at salvation. Helpful to our understanding are those verses which tell of the benefits and advantages that are ours by birthright as believers. IV. BENEFITS OF BEING "IN CHRIST" Romans 6:23: "...the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:1: "No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:39: Nothing shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. We are secure within the bubble. Romans 12:5: "So we, who are many, are one body in Christ and individually members of one another." We are not alone in the bubble; we have a new family. Galatians 3:28: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, mail nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus." There is equality within the bubble, all are there by grace alone. Ephesians 1:3: We have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. No spiritual resource missing-all are available to us in this new environment. Ephesians 2:6-7: "And (we are) raised up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19: "And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." I Timothy 1:14: "And the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus." Are you beginning to grasp the incredible riches and benefits which are ours because we have been placed IN CHRIST? Since all these blessings are given by grace to every single believer, since they are available to every one of us, how do we go about tapping into our possessions? V. TAPPING INTO OUR RESOURSES I am not speaking of things available only to those we consider "spiritual giants" but those things which are ours by birthright. Every single believer has been placed in Christ-in the bubble. How then do we make them real in our lives? How can we make them ours? Let me pose to you the same question which Paul asked the early followers of Christ: "How did you begin this relationship with God? What was necessary for you to receive the gift of eternal life? Was it not by Faith that you received Jesus Christ? Colossians 2:6: "As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him." Verse 10 adds, "And in Him you have been made complete." We are to live by faith: we exist and function within the bubble of Christ by faith. Faith is the new sense, like sight in our bodies, by which we perceive and are able to experience all these blessings. Faith is like a tool by which we reach out and grasp all these blessings and resources. Understand that all the forces of evil and the god of this age do not want you to understand that you are in Christ-that this bubble of newness of existence exists. Satan wants you to think that you are no different than you were before conversion. He would have you think that this exalted state of living is an impossible dream. And every time you stumble, he says, "See, you are just the same as before. You are a failure, and don't deserve to even be called a Christian. You'll never change." Lies, Lies, Lies from the father of lies! Perhaps the enemy of our souls has kept you in the dark about this wonderful truth of being "In Christ" so far. He seeks to keep you in bondage by his lies about yourself. The righteous person shall live by faith. Faith is simply believing something and claiming it. I have often told the story of a man who needed to get from America to England. Being in the days before air travel, he took the last of his money and bought a ticket on a steamship. With the meager funds he had left, he purchased a few packages of crackers and a bit of cheese. His supply of cheese and crackers lasted only a few days and soon were gone. After several days without food, he grew so hungry selling the wonderful aromas coming from the galley that he stopped a steward outside his room. "Please sir," he begged, "I am willing to do any sort of work so I might eat some of the food that is being served." The steward looked at him with amazement and said, "But sir, do you not realize that the food is included in the price of your ticket?" Are we like that hungry man on the ship, existing on cheese and crackers, or spiritually starving when all the blessings of being in Christ are ours, coming with the payment made by Christ? Jesus paid it all, and we must simply believe it is ours and take it by faith. One function of the church, universal and local, is to remind us of who we are. We encourage one another to live to the glory of God, to walk in newness of life. We learn together what it means to exist "in Christ", tapping into all the wonderful resources "within the bubble." Realize that the world and the devil want to keep this truth from us, for a believer empowered by this knowledge and utilizing all the resources of the new life are a powerful force against evil. Such a one shines like a brilliant beacon to a lost world. Their lives reflect the glory of the Lord Jesus and Satan is powerless about a believer empowered by Truth. We are secure within the bubble, never to be expelled. Wonderful, far-reaching truth. We ARE "IN CHRIST." Look around your new world with the eyes of faith. Claim the blessings that are yours by birthright. This truth will change your life! 2