IN HIM..?

The GOOD NEWS of the Gospel is that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit made a Covenant together which is an irrevocable commitment which CAN NOT be broken under any circumstance. This Covenant was not made with mankind it was made between God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ before the world was created.

We did not and could not have any part of it. We are just the recipients and participants of this Covenant. We really have no part to keep other than to just enjoy what He has already accomplished for us. There is no other way possible! God has provided the only solution once and for all. Any attempt you make to fix the unfixable is not only sin but is totally impossible.

Now the truth of the Gospel message is that God has already provided the only solution possible for sin and mankind's condition once and for all. God Himself has placed you in Christ before the world was created. He did everything necessary for your total and complete salvation. You do need to understand that God has already accomplished of this for and in you before the world was created.

There is absolutely nothing left out or lacking. He has done it all. There is nothing left that can ever be done. He has not only done all that ever could be done in you and for you. He has even taken the responsibility of your obedience to Him forever by keeping you in His love.

Now as a result what God has already accomplished for you, your old sinful self was crucified with Christ and that you no longer live. Your old sinful self has died, and you no longer have a life. You have received His all-sufficient Life in exchange for you old corrupt self. Now the Christian life isn't yours to live. God does not depend on you to live His Life for Him. He knows that it impossible for you to live His life, so He gave you His life. You do not live for Him - He lives for you.

When you hear this message of the gospel of what God has already done in you and for you, the Holy Spirit beings to open your eyes to this existing reality.

Romans 1:16, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."

This message of the Gospel of the finished work of God in Christ is the only possible message that contains the power of God for total and complete salvation for mankind. No other message contains the power of God to bring about perfect and continual obedience.

As the Holy Spirit shows you THE FINISHED WORK you will experience God's gift of repentance giving you the ability to trust and embrace His obedience causing you to turn away for your unbelief and your own dead works. Now this is the ONLY obedience possible.

You do have His Life. You are In Him and He will never leave you of forsake you. If you are unfaithful God will remain faithful to you. God will keep you by his Love. You can NOT keep yourself.

God remains faithful to you no mater what. When you see this truth and recognize that you are in NOW in perfect union by what God in Christ had already accomplished, you can rest and your joy will flow. This is the secret of true rest. You thought it depended on your ability to be faithful to Him and have striven in vain to rest in Him. Now you see that God has promised to abide with and in you. He will never leave you or will never fail you.

Now you can give up all own efforts, struggles and striving in the attempt to be faithful. It is impossible for you to be faithful. IT IS NOT UP YOU!!! God Himself has placed you in Christ.

Eph. 1:4. "According as he hath chosen us before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love."

1 John 5:11-12, "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."

1 Cor. 6:17, "But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit."

Col. 3:3-4, "For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

Acts 17:28, "For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring."

Gal. 2:20, "I am crucified with Christ: neverthless 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."

2 Cor. 5:14, "For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead."

Rom. 6:3-6, "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin."

2 Cor. 5:17, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."

1 Cor. 3:17, "If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."

1 Cor. 6:15, "Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ?"

1 Cor. 6:19, "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?"

1 John 1-6:-
If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth;

So walking in darkness means to live continuously in darkness by yielding to the flesh all the time. If one lives such a life then he does not have fellowship with God, based on 1 John 1-6.

But if you repent and have a longing in your heart to walk in Light because he is light. Then you are in him (fellowship with him).

It is interesting that in this thread there are 2 strong opinions of both sides of the same truth. It is like a coin both sides of the coin are equally part of the coin and important.

One one side we have abiding in Christ by keeping His commands and putting to death the deeds of the body. On the other side we have the abiding in Christ's work by faith and believe and also allowing Him to keep us trusting in His power. Both are very true, biblical and needful for our faith to rest on.

If our abiding in Christ by faith is not coupled by actively putting to death the deeds of the flesh then we are not truly abiding in Christ.

We see this in John 15, that true disciples bear fruit and those that do not are cast out. And this fruit cannot be done by ourselves but by Christ in us. But it manifests in obedience and mortification.

John 15

The Vine and the Branches

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.