According as He chooses us in Him before the disruption of the world, we to be holy and flawless in His sight.
Paul To The Ephesians 1: 4, Concordant New Testament
I've spent a good deal of time proclaiming the truth of Christ Jesus in me. Some refer to this as the indwelling Christ. The apostle Paul spoke to this in his letter to the church in Galatia {Paul To The Galatians 2:20}. I know that it is indeed Christ Jesus that I now live in union with. But the question was raised this week of just when Jesus came to be in me. In the words of John, Jesus has been with us from the beginning {Johns Account 1:3}. Not one thing came into being apart from Christ Jesus, even me. Paul also speaks to the fact that Jesus chose us before the creation of the world {Paul To The Ephesians 1:4}. Indeed, it was Jesus who chose me, I did not choose Him. It was Jesus who chose us from the beginning. Knowing what I know now, why is it that I did not speak to the indwelling Christ long before this? Well, in all honesty, I did not realize that I indeed lived in Him. I would say that this is the issue with many well meaning believers today. They do not realize their own life in Christ. I know I didn't. This should come as no surprise as many believers continue to adhere to the traditional teachings and traditions of the mainstream church. If there is one place where one will not hear of the indwelling Jesus it's in the church. The one place where this truth should shouted from the rooftops. Of course, the refusal of the church to embrace the truth of our union with Christ does not by any means make it untrue. What it means is that, for reasons of it's own, the traditional institutional church has chosen to ignore the truth of the gospel of Christ. Therefore, I am not at all surprised when people respond with confusion when I proclaim my union with Jesus. The church has long stood by the edict that God could never be in the presence of sin. God is holy, and sin is unholy. The two do not belong together. But the mainstream church, in all of its wisdom, has chosen to ignore the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. For Jesus became sin in our place on the cross {Paul To The Corinthians (2) 5:21}. Jesus died for our sins, end of story. So, tell me again how God and sin cannot coexist.
And He is before all, and all has its cohesion in Him.
Paul To The Colossians 1: 17, Concordant New Testament
In all honesty, the biggest barrier to our realization of the indwelling Christ is the mainstream church. Yet I cannot pass all of the blame on the institution, as people also have the ability, as I did, to inquire and search on their own. People have the ability to seek out the teachings of others in order to know Him more. In fact, the apostle John challenges believers to "Test the spirits" of those who are speaking the gospel to see if they are of God {First Epistle of John 4:1}. Despite the fact that I spent many years in the halls of the mainstream church, it was the words of a good friend which started me on the journey of knowing the truth of His Son in me. This eventually led to the Fathers revelation of my life in Christ. Although we are tasked to test the spirits, it is the Father who will give us the revelation of our union life in Him {Johns Account 14:20}. Paul, one of the greatest teachers of the gospel of Jesus, received his revelation on the road to Damascus {Paul To The Galatians 1: 15-16}. Yes, Jesus has been with us from the very beginning, as He has all things. Yet it is by the Fathers revealing that we will know of our life in Him. This in no way nullifies the words of Paul which speak of the indwelling Christ. That "Living in me is Christ."
With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living; no longer I, but living in me is Christ. Now that which I am now living in the flesh, I am living in faith that is of the Son of God, who loves me, and gives Himself up for me.
Paul To The Galatians 2: 20, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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