In Christ

 February 13, 2021

“To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.”

Colossians 1:27-28 NKJV

Paul gives us a curious play on words as he speaks of Christ in us, and us in Christ—similar wording, but with very different emphases. Both point to an intimacy deeper than mere academic interest or even personal acquaintance. Christians often speak of “receiving Jesus into our hearts,” language not actually used in the New Testament, although the concept is present. Christ in us, as wonderful as it is, is only a small part of the story. The real significance is not Jesus in us, but us in Jesus.

Christ in you gives us a glorious hope, but our being in Christ is the source of the power and greatness of our salvation. One of Paul’s favorite phrases in all his letters is “in Christ;” appearing scores of times, it is central to his theology of salvation. Imagine being shipwrecked in the Pacific. Your ship is gone, you are clinging to a life raft, but lose your grip and start to drown. You are getting some of the Pacific into you, but the amount of ocean in you is minuscule compared to the magnitude that is the ocean itself. There is so much more to the ocean than the little bit inside you. So it is with Christ. Our being in him is so much more than his being in us. Being in Christ at the very least, is a reminder that we are not the center of salvation; Christ is. It is humbling, which is exactly what it ought to be, for God saves the humble, not the proud.