Christian's position in Christ
In the Bible, the phrase "in Christ" mainly refers to the relationship between Christians and Jesus Christ. It means to be united to Christ spiritually and all that entails. In addition, it also indicates that a Christian is a part of the Christian church who are also in Christ.
Some of the implications of being in Christ include:
1. Radical transformation via becoming a brand new creation and partakers of the divine nature
Got Questions Ministries notes concerning a Christian's position in Christ:
| â | According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, âIf anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!â There are two Greek words which are translated ânewâ in the Bible. The first, neos, refers to something that has just been made, but there are already many others in existence just like it. The word translated ânewâ in this verse is the word kainos, which means âsomething just made which is unlike anything else in existence.â In Christ, we are made an entirely new creation, just as God created the heavens and the earth originallyâHe made them out of nothing, and so He does with us. He does not merely clean up our old selves; He makes an entirely new self. When we are in Christ, we are âpartakers of the divine natureâ (2 Peter 1:4 KJV). God Himself, in the person of His Holy Spirit, takes up residence in our hearts. We are in Christ and He is in us.[1] | â |
2 Peter 1: 3-4 states: "His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and excellence. Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust and may become participants of the divine nature." - 2 Peter 1: 3-4 (NRSV)
Matthew Henry's Commentary On The Whole Bible indicates concerning 2 Peter 3-4:
| â | Those who receive the promises of the gospel partake of the divine nature. They are renewed in the spirit of their mind, after the image of God, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness; their hearts are set for God and his service; they have a divine temper and disposition of soul; though the law is the ministration of death, and the letter killeth, yet the gospel is the ministration of life, and the Spirit quickeneth those who are naturally dead in trespasses and sins. Those in whom the Spirit works the divine nature are freed from the bondage of corruption. Those who are, by the Spirit of grace, renewed in the spirit of their mind, are translated into the liberty of the children of God; for it is the world in which corruption reigns. Those who are not of the Father, but of the world, are under the power of sin; the world lies in wickedness, 1 Jn. 5:19. And the dominion that sin has in the men of the world is through lust; their desires are to it, and therefore it rules over them. The dominion that sin has over us is according to the delight we have in it.[2] | â |
In Christ, a Christian has the Holy Spirit's guidance and the power to overcome temptation in order to live a holy life. Sanctification is a Christian theological concept that refers to the process of becoming holy or sacred, or being set apart for a special purpose for God. It is a gift from God that involves becoming more pure, blameless, and separated from sin.
2. Spiritual food/drink instead of being spiritually starving and thirsty.
The C.S. Lewis Institute states:
| â | Now let us explore some of the implications of being âin Christ.â First, to be in Christ brings personal fulfillment as a human being. All around us are men and women who are unfulfilled and alienated, who are asking what it means to be a human being. They are seeking the secret of satisfaction, of happiness, and are searching for their own identity. Where is it to be found?
Jesus said, âI am the Bread of Life. He who comes to me will never hunger, and he that believes in me will never thirst.â There is a hunger in the human heart which none but Christ can satisfy. There is a thirst which none but he can quench. There is an inner emptiness which only he can fill. I donât know any more striking expression of this in contemporary literature than in the writing of Malcolm Muggeridge, who said, âI may, I suppose, regard myself as being a relatively successful man. People occasionally stare at me in the street. Thatâs fame. I can fairly easily earn enough to qualify for admission to the highest slopes of inland revenue. Thatâs success. Furnished with money and a little fame, even the elderly, if they care to, can partake of trendy diversions. Thatâs pleasure. It might happen once in a while that something I said or wrote was sufficiently heeded to persuade myself that it represented a serious impact on our time. Thatâs fulfillment. Yet I say to you, and I beg of you to believe me, multiply these tiny triumphs by a million, add them all together, and they are nothing, less than nothing, a positive impediment, measured against one draught of that living water that Christ offers to the spiritually thirsty.â[3] |
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3. Forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7; 1 John 1:9; Acts 2:38)
4. Righteousness of Christ imputed to Christians (2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 4:25-5:2)
5. Adoption into God's family as a child of God (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:5)
6. Eternal life (1 John 5:11-12; John 3:16)
7. Sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13). See: What Does It Mean to Be Sealed with the Holy Spirit? and What is the seal of the Holy Spirit?
8. Indwelling of the Holy Spirit to guide and empower them (John 14:16; Romans 8:9; John 3:5-16)
9. In Christ Christians are loved by God (Romans 8:35-39)
10. Blessed with all spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). See: Matthew Henry's Commentary on Ephesians 1 and What does Ephesians 1:3 mean? - Bibleref.com
Lists of what it means to be in Christ
See also
- Ephesians (First three chapters of Ephesians describes a Christian's position in Christ)