In that day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you
Johns Account 14: 20, Concordant New Testament
The question was suggested this morning. How is it that we know that we are in Christ Jesus? I look back on the day in which the man Saul came to realize that the spirit of Christ was indeed in him. It is Paul who proclaims that it is God who revealed His Son in him {Paul to the Galatians 1:16}. It is also Paul who tells us that when we are in Christ we are a new creation {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:17}. But how is it that we KNOW that we are in Christ Jesus? Speaking for myself, I believe that I am in Christ for two reasons. First, the scriptures have proclaimed to me that this is true. Paul instructed young Timothy on the value of the written scriptures {2 Timothy 3:16}. That all scripture is indeed inspired by God. Knowing this, I can be assured that I am indeed in Christ Jesus. But it goes even deeper than that. For I suggest that simply reading the word will not produce the knowing of our union with Christ. Many well meaning Christians have read the passages of Jesus giving Himself on that cross yet they still struggle with the sin issue. Reading and knowing in our hearts are two different things altogether. It wasn't the written scriptures that drove Saul to the realization that Christ was in him. There was something else involved. Paul KNEW that Jesus was in him. For his part, the man Saul was well educated in the teachings of the Jewish texts. He was raised in that environment. Consequently, those Jewish texts definitely did not speak to the truth of Christ Jesus in us. So, Saul would have been unaware of this truth before his trip down the road to Damascus. But when the time had come, the Lord chose to REVEAL to Paul His Son in him. This brings me to the second truth of how it is that we know that we are in union with Christ Jesus. Just as it was revealed to Saul that Jesus was in him, so the Father chooses to reveal our presence in Christ as well. In this we know that we are in Him.
With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living; no longer I, but living in me is Christ. Now that which I am living in the flesh, I am living in the 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
My mother had a saying whenever it was that I would ask her how it was that she knew God was indeed real and living. Yes, as a young whipper snapper I would ask these questions. My mom would smile and say "I know that I know." She knew in her heart that God was real and personal to her. She knew that all she needed to do was speak His name and that He would listen. Of course, having been taught in the mainstream church, I doubt that she understood the truth of the indwelling Christ as I do, but she may have understood this as well. Just like my mother before me, I also know that I know. I know that it is the Father who revealed His Son in me. I also know that I now live in union with He and the Father. Jesus has proclaimed that when we see Him that we see the Father as well {Johns Account 14:9}. In the end, this all comes down to our own deeper knowing of what has already been spoken to be true. The Lord has proclaimed it, I believe it! Of course, the true litmus test of this knowing is when the rubber hits the road and we are faced with life situations. Do we panic, or do we rest in the assurance of our knowing that we are in the Father through it all? We do not live as individuals, but as His creation in union with Him.
Philip is saying to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficing us." Jesus is saying to him, "So much time I am with you, and you do not know Me, Philip! He who has seen Me has seen the Father, and how are you saying, 'Show us the Father'?
Johns Account 14: 8-9, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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