In Christ (Part Two)

IN CHRIST (part two)

Recap: In part one of In Christ, I talked about how being in Christ means we live a new life. We pattern our lives after the example set forth by Jesus and the other men and women of faith. Paul said ,'follow my example as I follow Christ'. In this new life we think, talk and behave differently. We live for Jesus-not ourselves. We seek to do his will and bring glory and honor to his name.

And in Christ there is now no condemnation. Through faith in Christ we have been given eternal life; we have been set free from sin's penalty of eternal separation from God and we are also set free from sin's power over our lives. We are now free to be like Jesus. However, we need to keep the faith and persevere to the end. But we don't have to be afraid of that because we are given everything we need through the Holy Spirit to be able to persevere.

Today, I conclude with the fact that in Christ means we are blessed and we are all one body.

1) To be in Christ means we are blessed.

Eph. 1:3, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ."

"In the heavenly realms". Does this mean that all of our blessings are in heaven? No, though the greatest blessing is in heaven! However, we're blessed in the here and now also. God blesses everyone in some ways. We can think of how we were blessed before we became Christians. But only by being in Christ are we able to have every spiritual blessing. So what are the spiritual blessings?

There is worldly love and then there is godly love. Worldly love is shallow and fickle; God's love is unconditional and everlasting. There's happiness and there's joy. Happiness is dependent on circumstances; joy is a state of being. There's worldly peace and then there's heavenly peace. Worldly peace is contingent on everything being in a state of calm. Heavenly peace can be present even in the midst of chaos.

In John 14:27, Jesus told his disciples, "my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives". Jesus differentiated between the blessings he gives vs. worldly "blessings".

Phil. 4:4-8, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

In chapter one, Paul talked about having joy in Christ. Things like joy, peace and the rest of the fruit of the Spirit are found in Christ. Do you want to experience the blessings of knowing and understanding God's love, peace, joy, mercy and forgiveness? You need to be in Christ.

Do you want to operate your life according to kindness, gentleness, goodness and self-control? You need to be in Christ. In order to think about whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy we need to know what fits into these categories. Being in Christ enables me to know these things so I can meditate on them.

Later, in vs. 19, Paul said, "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

"My God". Not that he wasn't their God too but I like how Paul personalized it. We need to do that too. "My God will meet all of my needs."

"All my needs". There is never a need we have that God cannot and will not meet. How he does it and when he does it are left to his control but we never have to worry about God taking care of us. These are the blessings we have in Christ. And because we're blessed to be in Christ, we need to be thankful. Paul said we are to present our requests to God with thanksgiving.

1 Thess. 5:18, "give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."

We are to be in a continual mode of gratitude. We might not be thankful for all of our circumstances, but if we understand that we are still blessed despite our circumstances then we can find something to be thankful for even in the midst of trying circumstances. And it's a blessing to be able to do that. It counters our misery and frustration. It helps us to be hopeful and at peace.