in christ

“And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:”
Colossians 2:10

Jesus Christ is the centerpiece of history. His redemptive work, and all that it entails, is the great theme that runs all the way through the sacred Scriptures (Luke 24:25-26, 44-45). Therefore, any proper view of our common faith and salvation must be a Christ-centered view. The redeemed are said to be “in Christ,” and exploring just what this means for the born-again believer is a very enlightening, enjoyable, and encouraging endeavor. To begin with, those who are in Christ are forever free from sin’s condemnation (Romans 8:1). Forgiven and redeemed, those who have trusted in Christ for salvation are brought into a new, loving community of people with like precious faith. “So we, being many,” wrote Paul, “are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another” (Romans 12:5). “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). Equal in value and dignity, every believer is “sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints” (1 Corinthians 1:2). Whereas in Adam, our original progenitor, representative and federal head, we were condemned to death, in Christ we are made alive (1 Corinthians 15:22). In Christ we are new creatures (2 Corinthians 5:17) created for good works (Ephesians 2:10). In Christ we have been blessed with all spiritual blessing in heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3). Positionally, we are already seated with Christ in heaven (Ephesians 2:6), “far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come” (Ephesians 1:21). Those who trust in the Blessed Redeemer for salvation are granted bold access to God in His holy place. Paul writes concerning this awesome privilege, “But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13). Incredibly, almost unimaginably, God “made [Christ] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). We who have experienced the new birth and have entered into a new life with our God and Savior can boldly say with the beloved disciple that “we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life” (1 John 5:20). Let us walk as those who are truly in Christ today, for God’s glory and the good of those He loves.

God bless you,

Pastor John