LAST week, we traced the new creation realities from the Old Testament.
We saw how the In Christ Realities has its roots in the Old Testament or how these scriptural and spiritual truths establish that God is our everlasting harbour.
In other words, Christianity is the only faith system whose Saviour lives inside the saved.
To guarantee eternal salvation, the believer becomes the home, sanctuary or temple of the Godhead.
With a loud voice, the Bible states in Matthew 1:21, “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”
This is the basis for God to make an unbreakable union with the saved or the born again believer.
The Bible goes further and says, Matthew 1:23, “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”
Salvation made it possible for us to come God the Father guiltless and equally important for God to come into us.
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His everlasting abiding presence is emphatic.
The Word says in Hebrews 13:5, New King James Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have.
For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Elsewhere in this column I said that Christianity is the resurrected Christ living in the saved. It’s divinity in humanity.
Salvation gives us eternal life, that is, life existing forever.
We’re saved from death to life.
The life of the believer is the life of Christ.
Put more aptly Christ lives His life in the believer.
Salvation reconciled us to God through the life of the resurrected Jesus Christ, thereby, destroying death.
Outside His life, it is mere existence.
Religiously people talk of someone giving her/his life to Christ.
Truly speaking, it’s not possible because before salvation one is dead and cannot give Christ any life.
You can’t give what you don’t have.
It’s Christ who gives us His life.
Born again believers derive their being from this high level of life.
The revelation of this truth produces excellence and high precision in execution of divine assignment and purpose in life.
When the Gospel of Christ is preached to the unsaved, those who choose to yield receive the life of Christ.
They’re moved from death to eternal life.
The Amplified Bible in Ephesians 2:1 puts it thus, “And you (He made alive), when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins.”
Sin nature is death
So the entrance of Jesus in us makes us alive not by our own life but by His life.
This is new birth or new creation.
From one of the most quoted and memorised verses, we know that this life is everlasting.
John 3:16 states: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
This life is everlasting and not perishable
The eternal life is certain.
Eternal life isn’t affected by the decease of the physical body.
It’s in the integrity and faithfulness of God in Christ Jesus.
This life is not an it but a Him.
1 John 5:11 sums up: “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.”
It’s quite evident that this life is not looked after or kept by believers, but it is Christ Jesus Himself, who is that life.
Eternal life, therefore, is Jesus Christ.
1 John 5:12 takes it further: “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.”
The Bible, here, is blunt enough.
It’s quite clear what life is. Jesus Christ is the life.
Exclusion of Him is death.
Apostle Paul had a greatly to be cherished revelation of Jesus Christ.
He writes in Galatians 2:20-21, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life, which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
“I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.”
So persuaded was he that he couldn’t see himself as himself, but Christ in him.
Anything and everything to talk about himself was nailed to the cross at conversion and everything after that is Christ.
He couldn’t fathom defining himself outside Christ.
His life was the faith of Christ and he dared not frustrate this grace.
We’re thankful to God the Father of our Lord Jesus, who made this life available to us all, including you and me.
Titus 2:11 points: “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men.”
The grace of God is the man Christ Jesus.
He is our salvation and has appeared to us all.
Jesus is the Messiah, our Saviour.
It’s an open invitation to salvation and life.
It’s in your heart and mouth. Romans 10:9 teaches: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
Dear reader, just believe and confess and you will have the life if you’re not yet saved.
Jesus came that we might have life and have it more abundantly.
I quote the Amplified Bible, Classic Version, John 10:10, “The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).”
The last part is by Alexander Scouter, Pocket Lexicon of the Greek New Testament.
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen. Grace and peace be multiplied to you through knowledge.
