Christ In You

One of the most mind blowing truths that you can ever come into our view is that Jesus Christ is living in you, (the Bible is full of them). It is the most important life changing truth that Paul the Apostle taught everywhere he went. It was and still is amazing. It is the most radical thing you can imagine. I mean just think, we are told that the same spirit that was in Jesus Christ that made Him who he was as man is in you and me and everyone who has received Jesus Christ. How radical is that!!

This blog is devoted to this amazing fact. It is something to talk about. Roundtables can be devoted to it. Discussion groups can be formed. This is an amazing fact that we are told is true about us.  Nothing is as important to you and to me than a full understanding and a full receiving of all that is implied by such a truth as Christ living His life in you and in me. It impacts every area of our existence to know that right now Jesus Christ is in you and desires to live Himself out of you as Himself, but through you as you

There are so many self help books and seminars, retreat, revival services out there, and the thing that every one of them misses is that no one can live the Christian life. No one can be godly. No matter how hard you try, you will always fail. All of the self help christian books all lead you to failure. That can be a great thing if you then come to Christ and find in Him your completeness. What  joy and peace and outright contentment and rest in God comes in receiving the life of Jesus Christ in your spirit.

This is the treasure that is called the mystery that God hid in ages past, but He has made known to the Body of Christ, the Church, since the day of Pentecost. That mystery is Christ in you the hope of glory. In other words, Christ Himself living in you is the only way you and I can be godly. It is the only way that you and I can live the Christian life. It takes Christ Himself, not the truth about Him but Christ Himself living His life through a man and a woman in order to live the christian life. Anything less than Christ Himself is a sham, a joke, and another attempt that will lead to failure.

Paul the Apostle labored like a woman in labor with a child seeking to have Christ formed again in the believers at Galatia. He knew that it was not just them knowing the truth, but that they needed to have The Truth, Jesus Himself living in them. This is the Word of God becoming alive in us. It is the Word of God becoming flesh and once again living among others in us. You and I become the vehicle by which Christ becomes real to those all around us. Christ is is not just for you only. You need Christ in you to be the man or woman who is made into the image and likeness of God, but others all around us need to eat the fruit of the Spirit being seen through us. All of the fruit of the Spirit, which is the result of Christ living in you, is for every one else. Love in all of is characteristic (patience, joy, long suffering, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith) are to be shown to every one around us in every situation we face.

Yes we have this treasure in earthen vessels. You and I our bodies are the earthen vessels, and Christ in us is the treasure. WOW!!!

Your Body Is The Temple of The Spirit of God!

The written Word of God presents to us some very amazing statements of truth. Paul in writing to the believers in Corinth presents this great mind blowing truth to them in the form of a question: do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit in you, whom you have of God? And you are not your own, for you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Paul uses questions as a way to drive home to the childish acting christians in Corinth great truths that impact the behavior of real christians. But this question contains major truths that each of us as children of God, as sons of God must hear, understand and live out every day. This is not meat but milk that all must desire sincerely and grow as a result of digesting milk truths like this one and others found in Paul’s letters to Corinth.

Paul ask this question as the answer to sexual misconduct among the believers at Corinth. Paul does not appeal to sexually transmitted diseases as reasons for curbing sexual misconduct. Rather he brings these believers and us face to face with this awesome truth, that your body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Therefore we should not use God’s temple (our body) in the practice of sexual sins. Wish more christians young and old  understood and applied this truth. Maybe sexual misconduct would be a great deal less than it is today among church folk.

What a statement Paul makes. Your body, my body is God’s dwelling place. It is not the church buildings that we see every where. It is not the Temple that will be built some day in Jerusalem. No it is the bodies of  believers all over this planet. You are something else. God was very precise with every detail of the building of the earthly temple. How much more do you think is He with you and me as His temple? Men built the earthly one, but you and I are God’s workmanship. He is building us in Christ.

The next time you look at yourself in the mirror, stop and think… my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit of God. He is IN me! Today use your body to glorify God. Let praise and thanksgiving come out of your mouth. Bless those you come in contact with today. Lift up your holy hands during the day to bless God and pray for those around you. Let the glory of the Lord be shown through your face, your smile. Let His peace flow from you to someone who is troubled. Use your tongue to speak a word of encouragement to someone who is loosing hope. Maybe God will use you to touch some one who is sick and bring healing to their body. Remember who is in you. He is able. He is God!!

Then there is the great question of why would the Spirit of God want to live in us. Well since the beginning God has wanted us to be made in His likeness and in His image. So God wants us to be like Him, to share in His life. He wants us to have life as He has it full of grace and truth; full of peace and fullness of joy, righteousness, holiness goodness and mercy and an abundance of grace flowing from us to others just like rivers of living water.

Secondly He wants to show up through us. He is invisible but can be made visible through us. It is light that shows up in darkness and reveals the presence of God who is all around us. That is what Jesus did. Remember He spoke to those who were around Him to look at the birds they neither sow nor reap … but your Father feeds them. Every one around Him was in the dark when it came to seeing God feeding the birds. Jesus brought light so that they could see what He saw. There are many around you who are in the dark concerning our Heavenly Father. You are that light that can dispel the darkness that others are in.

You may know of other reasons why God has decided to live in us.  These are two that come to my mind. If you have others, please let me know.

Remember again: your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which you have received from God Himself. So glorify God in your body.

Do you know that Jesus Christ is in you?

This is an amazing statement by Paul to those at Corinth (Do you not know your own selves, that Jesus Christ is in you, unless you are reprobates?). We know that the believers at Corinth had many problems that demonstrated their need to grow up. As I read Paul’s letters to the believers at Corinth, I find that he makes some awesome statements.  In another place he states that our body is the temple of  Holy Ghost. That is amazing. God by His Spirit is living in you and me as believers in Christ. WOW!!!

The reason for this blog is to provide a forum for an ongoing open discussion and exchange that focuses on the great truth of Christ in you the hope of glory. I hope that many who have not given much thought to this mind-blowing truth will do so; and in so doing find God’s resting place. It is in this resting place (Christ Himself) where we can experience the joy of God that passes all understanding.

Getting back to our question at hand, do you not know that Jesus Christ is in you.  Have you come to the place of accepting this to be true about you? My view of Paul’s writing is that this is basic in many ways. It is a basic understanding for babes that are in Christ. This is not meat but milk.  So this kind of understanding is to be had by every one of us even those who are just beginning in their journey.  Yes we are carrying around Jesus Christ in us!!!

Jesus Christ in us is basic to real conversion. Anything less than this is grounds for reprobation.  This is basic christianity – Jesus Christ in each one of us. This is the basic result of anyone receiving Him. To receive Christ is to receive Christ. Anything less than Christ Himself is a shadow of the real deal.

Paul raises the bar higher for this statement by saying that if this is not true, if Jesus Christ is not in them, then they are a reprobate. That is strong language, but needed to hammer home this unspeakable truth of the reality that Jesus Christ is you. I know that there are many, many believers who need to hear this over and over again until, as Paul puts it,  Christ is formed in them.

Another interesting point that Paul makes is that you must know this yourself. We must recognize this fact about us ourselves. Oh, this opens to us the intimate relationship we must grow into and up into. Paul could not do this for them, so no one can do for us. It removes all of the false middle men who present themselves as our mediators, and pushes us to go directly to Christ ourself. Paul taught the truth about who they were as a result of what Jesus Christ had done for them; they received it. Now they needed to realize the impact of it. Paul prayed oftentimes that God would grant the revelation needed for them to understand their calling. Now he is saying you have got to know this for yourself how that Jesus Christ is in you.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Don