CHRIST IN US - CHRIST AS US - CHRIST THROUGH US

Christ in us - Christ as us - Christ through us!

Christ in us; Christ as us; Christ through us was an article written by James A. Fowler. He mentioned a few things concerning our life in Christ.  I have taken a few quotations from his article. 

1.        CHRIST IN US

Jesus Himself explained that He would give another Helper, the Spirit of truth, and His disciples would know that they were in Him, and He was in them (John 14:20). In His prayer for unity Jesus explained that He would be in His followers as God the Father was in Him, the Son (John 17:23).The Apostle Paul clearly noted that the mystery of the gospel is "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27). He asked the Corinthians, "Do you not recognize that Jesus Christ is in you?" (II Cor. 13:5), unless you are not a Christian. The essential reality that constitutes being a Christian is the indwelling presence of the Spirit of Christ. "If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him" (Rom. 8:9), i.e. is not a Christian. Continuing his explanation to the Romans, Paul wrote, "If Christ is in you, ... the spirit is alive because of righteousness.”

There is no possession of spiritual life apart from the Person who is life.

2.        CHRIST AS US

For some readers this will be a phrase they have not previously encountered in popular Christian literature. They may have heard of "Christ in us" and Christ through us," but not "Christ as us."

Paul meant more by the phrase "Christ in you" than just locative placement of the presence of Christ becomes apparent when we examine his statement to the Galatians, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who lives, but Christ lives in me" (Gal. 2:20. Christ is in us, not merely as a deposit of a commodity called "eternal life," but Christ lives in us as the personified and living function of the dynamic of divine life. If, according to Paul, I am no longer living, and Christ is "living in me," then we begin to understand that Christ is living as us.

CHRIST AS US" REFERS TO OUR IDENTITY AS CHRISTIANS BY REASON OF HIS REAL SPIRITUAL PRESENCE AND HIS BEING WHO HE IS IN US. "CHRIST IS OUR LIFE" (Col. 3:4), and Christians "live together with" (I Thess. 5:10) and "through" (I John 4:9) Him. "Christ has become to us righteousness" (I Cor. 1:30). "We become the righteousness of God in Him" (II Cor. 5:21) when we are "created in righteousness" (Eph. 4:24) as a "new man" and are "made righteous" (Rom. 5:19). As "new creatures in Christ" (II Cor. 5:17), Christians are "created in holiness" (Eph. 4:24) and are "holy and beloved" (Col. 3:12) as "holy ones" or "saints" (cf. Rom. 1:7; 8:27; Eph. 1:18; 4:12). In Christ we are "perfect" (Phil. 3:15) and "sanctified" (Heb. 10:14) as "righteous men made perfect" (Heb. 12:23), for Christ "has become to us wisdom and sanctification" (I Cor. 1:24,30).

The Christian life is not imitation, but manifestation of Jesus as us!

 

3.       CHRIST THROUGH US

"Christ in us" has to do with indwelling;

"Christ as us" has to do with identity;

"Christ through us" has to do with intercession.

The preposition "in" refers to location; the preposition "as" refers to function; the preposition "through" refers to extension.

"Christ in us" points to Presence ¬ the real presence of the living Lord Jesus in our spirit;

"Christ as us" suggests Identity ¬ His presence establishes our new identity as Christ-ones;

"Christ through us" implies Expression ¬ Christ's presence and function necessitates His expression through us unto others.

The Christ In You written by Åge M. Åleskjær

Christ is all and in all. He Himself is all you need––and all the world need as well. And He is already in you! So let’s discover the indwelling Jesus! If you are in Him, then YOU ARE HOLY! You don't have to try and be holy or get holy - you ARE holy!

Hebrews 10:10 - it is amazing that this is in the Bible. "We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all". You have been made holy once and for all! Now I am going to try and define what holiness is and it isn't complicated.

God was holy long before sin ever existed. In fact God's holiness could not be referenced to sin at all. Sin wasn't around! If we limit the holiness of God to the mere absence of sin then we are limiting His awesome holiness! God's holiness is far greater than just the absence of sin.

What is holiness then? Holiness is who God IS. God IS holy! If you are in Him and born again then you are holy!