Do You Know How to Live in Christ?

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:2

Do you live in a confused state because things do not work out as you heard them preached, taught, talked or sung?  Does it seem like God gave you a to-do list, took the tools, the instructions and the money, and drove off saying, “Good luck with your new life!” If this is your problem, you have warped the process of identification.  You identify more with yourself, with the enemy and with your circumstances rather than with Christ Himself.  This is especially true if you were raised in western culture.  Westerners subscribe to deeply ingrained philosophies that continually interfere with their relationship to Jesus Christ.  They are fiercely independent. They are automatically suspicious of everything and everyone.  They cling to their native identity.  They suffer from the paralysis of analysis. 

First, remember what Christ did for you.  He “qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light;” He “delivered us from the power of darkness;” and He gave us “redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:12-14. Not only did Christ act in your behalf, He also re-positioned you from being “without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.”  You who were hopelessly “far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”   He broke “down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances;” and He reconciled you to “God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.” Ephesians 2:12-15.

Next, think of who you are and what you do because you are “in Christ.” Here is a sampling of relevant “in Christ” scriptures: (One body, eternal life, no condemnation, sanctified, wise, triumphant, hopeful, etc.). The principle of identification is at work here:  Whatever Christ did for you, it is as though you did it!  In God’s economy, you did it in Him!)  

A great analogy is to think of an army tank.  According to sources, “a tank is an armored fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat, with heavy firepower, strong armor, tracks and a powerful engine providing good battlefield maneuverability.” Wikipedia.  Now, think of what it would be like to ride in a tank.  How would you feel?  Safe?  Powerful? Invincible?  That’s the concept of living in Christ! 

Your job is to stay in Christ.  God will not dispossess you, but don’t disqualify yourself! “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” Colossians 3:1-2.  In other words, you have control over your own emotions and thoughts.  You are maneuvering your tank though hostile territory.  Temptations like money, material possessions, pleasure and pride hide behind every corner.  Keep your spiritual head in place.  (Remember, poverty may have slain its thousands, but prosperity has slain tens of thousands.)  Lust, offense, anger, bitterness, jealousy and more also make for rough terrain.

“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 11:3.   It is simple.  If you open the hatch and venture outside of the tank, you are likely to get blown to bits.  Live in Christ, identify with Christ, have your total being in Christ!  “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend (overpower) it.” John 1:4-5.  You are only safe if you stay “in Christ!”