He And Not We

"I do not pray for these alone, but also those who will believe in me through their word; that they all may be one, as you Father, are in me, and I  in you; that they also may be on in Us, that the world may believe that you sent me.  And the glory which you gave me I have given them, that they may be one just as we are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."
John 17: 20-23 NKJV

I asked my mother recently if she knew where God is.  She nodded her head yes.  "Where, I asked."  "In heaven, she told me."  Seeing an opportunity, I smiled and touched her chest.  "No, mom, God is IN HERE."  I'll never forget the look of confusion on her face, but I understood what she was feeling.  See, I was in the very same place that she is not so llong ago.  Years of church teachings and Sunday sermons had drilled it into my consciousness that God and his risen son reside in heaven, with Jesus at the Fathers side.  While this may be true in context, there also another one who resides within these earthly containers of ours.  Here, I think, is where I got confused, and I'm  not alone.  I mention that God and his risen son reside for eternity in heaven as they always have because this is what scripture tells us.

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom he has appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
Hebrews 1: 1-3 NKJV

In John 17:20, Jesus offers a prayer in the Garden of Gethsemene just before his trial and ultimate crucifiction for his disciples AND those believers who would come after them.  Those  "Other" believers that our Lord Jesus is offering prayers for are we who follow him today.  I believe the key passage in these verses in within verse 23.  ""I in them, and You in me, that they may be made perfect in one."  I believe that we can assume from this verse that, wherever we may find ourselves, the risen Christ is there within us.  Not only is Jesus in heaven at the right hand of his father, he makes his earthly home within these temporary bodies of those who believe in him.  The scriptures are full of passages of how close to us that God and his risen Son are in our daily walk, I think residing inside of us is pretty close indeed.
As I mentioned, I could totally understand my mothers confusion when I told her that God indeed resides within her, I've been there.  Not only have I been there, but I AM there as I  continue to discover the greatness of my risen Lord within me!  Better late than never.

~Scott~