You In Christ and Christ in You
Courtney Hemenway · Nov 29, 2009
You in Christ & Christ in You, No. 48
Holly Hills Bible Church
https://www.hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/4926148274316

Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word.

are on Lesson 29. I'll hand out 30, which is a real 30. So if you have the Scratch Tab varieties, this is the Lesson 29, Christ in You, You in Christ. It begins with reading the verses from Ephesians. I think I'll go through that just real quickly. It's a great verse.

If you know Ephesians, Ephesians really is, when you read through Ephesians, this is a very positional book, our position in heaven. This is a downward look from heaven, what we have in heaven, and all that we have in our position. So if you look through Ephesians, read it knowing that, that you're really kind of looking down from your heavenly position and all that you have. It's a different kind of, I think, viewpoint when you look through Ephesians.

So do it with that in mind that this is a very positional book, and we'll get into what position means and condition as we go through this lesson. So I'll read through it, Ephesians 1 through 14 first, and this is a New American Standard. Ephesians 1, 1 through 14.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God to the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus, Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.

Just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that he would be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to himself according to the kind intention of his will. to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention, which He purposed in Him, with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens, and things on earth, in Him, Also, we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose, who works all things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.

In Him you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory."

That is wonderful. Amazing amount of truth in there. And then the follow-on is the second in question two, or number two in our lesson, which is Paul's prayer, which I'll continue on, which is Ephesians 15 through 23. So he's just laid out a lot of positional truths in there, and then this is his prayer.

For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray, this is his prayer, that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you will know what is the hope of his calling, what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of his power towards us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of his might, which he brought about in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority, and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come. And he put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all." amazing amount of beautiful things in there.

I love that though. His prayer was that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that what? That you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power towards us who believe. Does that prayer, would that prayer still apply to us today? I think absolutely.

And I think you really, when you say, this is Paul just saying, you know, look at all this wonder, look at, you know, he just laid out a lot of positional truth. And then he said, he's just, I think, pouring out from his heart, you know, what is the hope of his calling? What are the riches of his glory in his inheritance in the saints and the surpassing greatness of his power? He's just saying, look at all you have. And that's what I think, when we look at this, as we study the identification truths and all that, are we to learn a bunch of facts? Is it facts that we're looking after?

No. And I go back to what Mike told me a long time ago when I first met him. Again, go into the Scriptures to know Him. And this is what I think Paul is saying. Look at what you have in Christ. Look at Him and know what you have. And I think he's just saying, you know, that's for us. Do the same thing. Look at Christ. We'll go on a bit. I'll go back to the in hymns in the first 14 verses.

When we had the Tuesday study, this really hit me. And I think I've said this many times. This really changed when it says about predestination, election, and all this kind of stuff. When it says predestined, does that mean he has already selected those? They are already called out so it doesn't matter. You are selected. You're in or you're out. Is that what this means? You on the tape listening, that was a lot of murmuring and shaking heads. Yeah, I think. Other thoughts? I saw a lot of shaking heads. Does this mean you're pre-selected so it doesn't matter, or evangelism doesn't matter because you're already pre-selected so it doesn't matter? Absolutely not. God knew what was going to happen. He knew that. Well, this absolutely needs evangelized. Just don't think about it. Close our eyes and go, no, we don't want to look at that verse, we don't want to care about it. Any other thoughts? It had a lot of different things when we went through this in the Bible study several years ago. Doesn't it mean that when he says he's progressing us to all these things, it means that when you become a believer, then you have all these things to say.

Right. And that's what changed my... because there's always been this struggle, you know, selection and predestination. When you look at those predestinations, does that mean he's already selected us? He's chosen us? We have no choice. And I struggle with that, with our ability to... the unmeritorious act of faith, we believe. When you see all this, well, what changed me is all the in him's. The predestination is in him. And so, the way I finally understood that was, once we believe, we are what? Positionally put in Him. Then what's true about Him is true about us. Has God known the Son? Time past, time future? Yeah, absolutely.

And all these truths are based on in Him. The predestination is in Him. So it's like you go through the door and then you look back and all that history is Christ's history. The predestination, all these truths. So that's what made sense to me that predestination is based on the in Him. So that cleared up a lot of those things.

Yeah, once you step into Him, and we'll get into a little bit of this positionally, how we get into the position, but once we're in Him, everything that's true about Him, except for deity, is true about us. So, when we step in, suddenly we have all that history. We have the predestination, everything God knew about Him, God knew about us now. So, our new creature is predestined because He knew everything about Christ.

So, that really helped me out for that when people come up in predestination, selection, and all this kind of stuff. No, point to Him and say it's in Him. Hopefully, I either muddied the water or clarified that. I don't know. Let's go on to question 3 in lesson 29.

So reading 2 Corinthians 5.17, Acts 17.28, and Ephesians 2.6 and 10, these are positional truths. And just as a hint, what's common in all these when we read through these? I'll read through them just so we can get through them a little quicker.

2 Corinthians 5.17, this is one of my favorite ones from the identification position.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creature the old things passed away behold new things have come okay act 1728 these are all the new american standard for in him we live and move and exist as even some of your own poets have said for we also are his children Ephesians 2.6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 2, 10. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, so that we would walk in Him.

So, what is common in all these verses? You guys are getting this. That's the position. Just when you start reading through and all these things which you see and are great and wonderful, 90% of the time there's an in Him, in the Beloved, in Christ Jesus. It's all based on what? In Him. And these truths are fantastic when you read them.

We are new creatures. I'll get into that. So how did we get into this position? How do we get into the position of being in Him? Faith and belief. Faith and belief in what? In Christ. And what? In His finished work. Finished work on the cross. So, I guess, how do we positionally get into that position? How do we get into Him? We believe that, but what is the transaction that really happens at that point when you believe? And how does that happen?

Getting closer to what my answer is. You're getting close to it. The identification, that's right. How are we identified with him? How? We're inching. How do we get identified with him? There we go! Because if not, we're identified with who? With Adam. It's the death, burial, and resurrection. Our co-crucifixion with Christ. That's the key.

And that's what I think a lot of believers today don't get, and that's why I'm so adamant about the identification truths, because if not, what you're doing is trying to fix up the old Adam. A lot of people believe now that you're a believer, you're now able to do all those laws. You know, now you're capable, you weren't before, but now you have the indwelling Holy Spirit, now I can keep all those laws. Is that what it means? No, but that's what a lot of people do. Now, all that's true about Israel, the Jews, now covenant, we have all those covenants, that's now what we have. Is that correct? No, it's not.

And I think, you know, Mike, one of the first times he's told this story too, you know, I think when he was first going, or when he's talked to people, read Romans 6. Read Romans 6 and what does it say? And that's where you really get the identification truth. I will read them for you. Romans 6, and I have 3 through 11. Again, this is what I think a lot of believers don't have, is this identification. It's really true.

That combined with the verse that we have in 2 Corinthians 5.17, which says you are a new creature. If you don't understand the identification of Romans 6, how do you understand you're a new creature?

Does that mean you're just a new and improved Adam? You kind of shined up, those ugly spots are now buffed out? No, you are a new, new and kind. And if you look in the Greek, as far as the 2nd Corinthians part, you're new and kind. Not a refurbished, not a improved, not version 7.1 of Adam. You are a new creature, new and kind.

How do you get there? You have to get out of Adam. you have to get out of your identification with Adam. Because otherwise it is just a buffed up new Adam. You have to get out of Adam. How do you do that? Romans 6 is the one that really summarizes and when you read this you have to read it and what does it say? You have to believe, but you have to understand what it's saying.

When you really get down to the people who say you're just fixing up Adam, you're trying to make him better, Take him to these verses and say, how do you do that? Is that what it just means when we believe we are new, buffed up, better, new, improved version of Adam? No, we are new creatures in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5, 17. So let's go through Romans 6, 3. I'll read them.

Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into his death? therefore we have been buried with him through baptism into death so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory the father so we too might walk in what newness of life for we have become united with him united with him in the likeness of his death certainly we shall also be in the likeness of his resurrection Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin, for he who has died is freed from sin. Now, if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again. Death no longer is master over him. What comfort we have that in our identification. For the death that he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life that he lives, he lives to God. Even so, consider yourself yourselves to be what? Dead to sin, but alive to God. What? In Christ Jesus. Okay? Our co-crucifixion.

We put away the old Adam. The old Adam is dead. Well, he's still alive in us. We're to reckon ourselves dead. Again, you get into some of this where people take that and it's a one nature. We are just new creatures. We don't have the old sinful nature in us. We still have that. It's been rendered harmless. We are not subject to the bondage of that sin nature anymore. And we are to what? Reckon ourselves dead. Understand, consider yourself dead unto that old nature.

We have a new creature, a new identification with Christ. And that's where this new creature, and when you get out of the old and into the new, that's how we are to function. And then when all the logical commands that we have, that's if you're a new creature in Christ, you will do this. Because that's who you are. You're a new creature in Christ.

So that's how we get out of Adam and placed into Christ Jesus. Consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God. What? In Christ Jesus. There's that little phrase again. We have been placed into Christ. Once you believe, once the non-meritorious act of faith, belief, In this, Christ died for us in, buried, resurrected, the transaction's been made. You are immediately, instantaneously placed into Christ. Then, you are a new creature in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5, 17, you are a new creature in Christ. Even here, you're a new creature. You're new so that we might walk in newness of life. Okay? The identification. Also, if you look at another good one, which is a identification verse, Galatians 2, 20 and 21. What?

I have been crucified with Christ. What is it now? It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died needlessly."

I love that part because there are a lot of verses where we say, are we still under the law? Raise your hand. Under the law? Are we under the law? No. Why is that? Just cause. Just cause. Why is that? It's pretty easy. Yeah, but just because we believe that, it does. The reason is because we get replaced into Christ.

But why are we not under the law? We died to the law. The law applied to the old man. We died to the law. So we are now not under, we are now under grace. So, the principles of law were good, but what was the law meant to do? Convict and condemn. That's what it was for. For a new creature, does that apply to us? No. This is a hard principle because we want laws. The old man wants laws. Give me law. That he can't keep. That's why I read the end of that Galatians verse.

If righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died needlessly. If we could accomplish this through the law, why do we need Christ? And there's so many verses that said we have died unto the law, we're now under grace. That transaction that put us out of Adam and into Christ now puts us into a new operating system, grace, which is very hard for us to understand.

That goes against everything that this world teaches, what the old man wants, and we really struggle with that. Unmerited, unlimited blessings from God. Unmerited. We don't have to do anything for it. Unlimited. What more do you want? But we struggle with that. Everybody does. Because I want that little thing that I can do. So, any thoughts, questions?

So, as far as how do you understand the reference of deadly sin that defeats a myth and calls out a liar and doesn't save himself? Well, no, you reckon yourself, you consider yourself dead. I'm now no longer under the bondage of sin. I don't have to respond to the sin nature. If I'm an unbeliever in Adam, what choices do I have? No choice. I got this sin, or that sin, or this sin, but I don't, you can do some good works, but you're still, the only thing you can do is sin. Because whatever you do is going to be selfish and out of yourself. That's the only way you can function in Adam.

So now, as a believer, I am no longer to consider myself under sin nature. I don't have to respond now. I have two natures. I have the new creature in Christ and to recognize that we all sin. That's where the one nature guys really fall short. How do you explain my sinning?

A lot of them say it's because I have memories. It's just the memories. Wait, you're a new creature in Christ and you still have these memories that make you do all this? They can't explain why you still dance when the music plays. You still sin. So there are two natures in us. The crucifixion places us into Christ, but our old nature, until we step into eternity, we still have the old nature. But we're supposed to reckon ourselves dead under that. Because what's happened? We, judicially, crucified.

So I do not have to respond to Adam's nature anymore. I'm no longer in bondage to that. Okay? Got thoughts? Were you going to say something? No, the thought that's in my mind is that there's a monster here. And I think this is where spiritual growth, 2 Peter 3 verse 18, to grow in the grace and knowledge. It's the growing. And that's where as you mature, as you focus on Him, understand Him, there are a lot of things that used to drag me away. They don't anymore. They don't even entice me anymore. And it's because my focus is on Christ. I'm understanding more who I am in Christ. It's not that I don't fail. I mean, I still, you know, I'm... Stop doing that. My daughter is nodding with great enthusiasm over there. You know that saying in the...

Yeah, the hungry heart? and in that it says the same thing actually, you know, even what Paul said to Timothy, you know, spread the word and if you go through trials it's because, you know, it teaches you something and you just become more involved in the word instead of wondering what knowledge is at hand.

Yeah, it's not that you become totally I'm going to go in my little black room, no windows, no phone, no cell phone, no nothing, and I'm going to just meditate on. No, it's your focus is on him and when you walk around daily you're thinking of him. It's the prayer, the communication, just understanding with Him. I'm a lot more focused on Him when things happen.

And when the enticement comes, or the anger or something, it's like, no, no. That's not who I am in Christ. I am not acting as who I am in Christ. That's the first John 1, 9, when the confessing. Confess your sins and He is faithful to forgive. Well, all that's saying is, I agree with you, God. I'm not acting as who I am in Christ. That's all that verse is saying. I'm agreeing with you, God. I did not act like who I am in Christ. I'm already forgiven. All the sins are already taken care of.

Why do you worry? Why do you keep carrying the baggage of sin? What more do you want to do than have Christ's blood who's eradicated all sin? Why are you still worried about it? If you sin, there are consequences. If you do something stupid, you may get in trouble, and God will have consequences.

But I also go by that God is sovereignly in control. He's allowed me to do all these things. And for His purposes, we are created for His workmanship. And again, there are no tragedies in a Christian life. If you know God's in control, It's for His purposes. You link that with everything that says about Christ. Are we separated from His love? Principalities, blah blah blah, lists out everything. Can that separate us from the love of God? Nothing can separate us from the love of God. So, if a tragedy happens, does He not love you?

He still loves you. I can fully confess, and I do, God, I don't understand what you're doing. I am before you humbly and say, I don't understand why you did that, but I know you still love me. I know you're in control, and it's for your purposes. I still hurt, and he's there to care with my heart, but I know it wasn't by accident. That gives me peace that surpasses all understanding. You start linking all these verses. The peace that surpasses all understanding. How does that happen? Well, if you know he's in control, that gives me peace.

One of my isms, I always say, God never says, oops. God never says, oh, missed it, Courtney. Oh, I didn't know you were over there doing that. Does that ever happen? No. Does he ever say, oh, I didn't know that illness or that sickness or your business failed. I was looking over here and I missed that. God never says that. So how can you say, how can you get angry at God? I go back to the speeches of God and Job, where Job kind of gets a little, you know, huh? And God says, okay.

Where were you when I created it? Where were you when I did it? Where were you when I... and shows his purposes are much higher than ours in our understanding. Yeah. So is there a difference between allowing and intending? So he allowed something bad to happen to almost fitness. But did he intend for that to happen or did he use that to work for his good? That's the better. He uses it for his purposes. But it's not that he... He said this is going to be, he just, he allowed it to happen.

Yeah, you know, that's why I said that, you know, when people say that Satan's attacking you, when Satan's attacking my ministry, I hear that a lot. Oh, it's attacking my ministry. Okay, who allowed that? God. God did. You know, Mike and I have talked about this, you know, when you defeat an enemy, what do you do with the enemy? When you defeat a country and you take over the country and you take the people, what do you do? put them to work for you. So, is Satan defeated? Absolutely.

So, God allows Satan to do things. He is a defeated foe, but he allows attacking where he allows it. If not, does that mean God is not all-powerful. Satan is able to do free will, whatever he wants. No, he's a defeated foe. So when people say you're being attacked by Satan, I just say, okay, well, who allowed that?

Yeah, three times. Three times he went to them. You know, the other is, you know, people say, you know, and struggle over decisions. I do this a lot in error. Gotten away from this. Oh, you know, struggle on a decision and finally make a decision. Oh, it's the right one and oh.

God allows me to make that decision. Whether it was good or bad or whatever, he allowed me to go that direction. Maybe it was what he wanted me to do. Maybe it's what I wanted to do. And guess what? I'll get the consequences and I'll go, that was not what you wanted. But he allowed that. So why am I, people get bent out of shape about, oh, am I going to make the right decision?

Well, when you make the decision, God allowed that decision to happen for his purposes. Don't worry about it. You may suffer consequences, but God allowed you to do that. Don't worry about all the consequences of your, oh, you know, did I do it the right way? Well, he allowed it. Get over it and move on. Learn what you're supposed to learn and go on.

I think of when Paul was told not to go to Jerusalem. Do not go to Jerusalem. Do not go there. Do not go there. I'm going. This is Paul. This is the one who told us all about who we are in Christ, all this. Do not go to Jerusalem. Nah, see ya. To Jerusalem. Did he suffer consequences? Yep. But God allowed it. A lot of people told Paul, do not go, do not go. You know, God was putting up the red flags, do not go. Paul knew. Suffer the consequences.

God allows it. You can make decisions, and even though you make decisions, even if they're the wrong decisions, He's using that for His purposes. And you are not separated from His love. And then, if you know that, you have peace that surpasses all understanding. Because God's in control, He let me do that, and I proceed.

And again, the growing in the grace and knowledge. You're growing in that. As I grow, wow. Was that my will or what the Lord wanted me to do? And I grow in that. And the next time, that doesn't even compute. I'm focused on Him. Sorry, a little bit of a rampage there.

The other one, when I said in the verse that we were baptized into Christ, what does the baptism mean? Placed in, identified. I got it from Zodiatis on the word baptism in Romans 6. The baptism instituted by the Lord Jesus is spoken of in Romans 6, which illustrates and demonstrates the inner work of salvation. A person is buried and raised with Christ, not because of the physical act of baptism, but because of the identification with the death and resurrection of Christ through faith. That's what that baptism means, placed into through identification.

Question 4. If you can, describe some of the elements of our position. What are elements of our position? What do you get with position? We have been positionally put into Christ. Remember, read Ephesians 1-14. That tells lots of things about what we have. What do we have in our position? Unchangeable. It's unchangeable, immutable, it's pure. Eternal life. Eternal, eternal life, eternal. Perfect. It is not life, it is God through the cross. Absolutely. It's all those loving and great relationships.

All those identifications, we're placed in him. We're now in him. Yeah, it's a body concept, too. He's the head, we're the body. There are a lot of things, positionally, that we have. What other things? Based on facts. That's exactly right. It's fact. It's indicative mode. Fact. Liberty. That's all you get, huh? Got yes. Others? We have Christ's very life is our life. Remember we're placed into him. Where is Christ now? Right hand of the Father. Where are you positionally? Right hand of the Father. Not a bad position. Indwell. We have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Other thoughts? We went through this a bunch of times. Lewis Perry Chaffer put together the 34 things that he said immediately when you are a believer. Once a transaction is made, these things are immediately true about you.

You're reconciled. We're now reconciled to God. Before, when we were in Adam, sinners, were we reconciled? No. No. Redeemed. We're now redeemed. Therefore, was Romans 8-1, therefore there is now no condemnation. What are you worried about with all these sins and all this? Is there any condemnation now? No. In Christ, in the new creature, no condemnation. All sins removed by his efficacious blood.

I'll just read a few. We're free from the law. And Romans 7.4, we're dead to the law. And we're delivered from the law.

Romans 7.6, Galatians 3.25, Romans 6.14, 2 Corinthians 3.11. All those are ones that say we are now dead to the law, but what? We are alive under Christ, alive under God, and we are under what? Grace. We are children of God.

Feel that today? And we are not only that, we are adopted as adult sons. I don't know any other way to say it. It's kind of like fully vested and it's kind of a business term. We're fully as adult child, children of God. We have that position. We're justified, forgiven all trespasses, made close, delivered from the powers of darkness, translated into the kingdom.

I just go on and on and on. That's our position. Will that ever change? No. Rest in that. Understand that. These things are true about you no matter what you do. If I fall off the deep end and go crazy, if that transaction's been made, is it still true about me? I may suffer really bad consequences if I fall off the deep end and go crazy. but it's still true about me positionally. These positional truths never change. Never.

So, that's the comfort we have, the peace that we have. this again from the eternality of it, 1 Peter 1, 3-5, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to what His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to what to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. So all of these things that we're talking about in terms of our tradition, and going back to verse 5 in Ephesians 1, Yeah, in Christ. Once we're placed into Christ, that's all. Everything once...

Oh yeah, I mean, this was, you know, there, Spirit, there's a list of 34. And then there was another guy, I think, 213. You know, if you really get into it, I mean, it's, it's more than we can tally. Probably even more than what has been revealed in His Word.

So it's not that God said, you're going to be the one who saves, and we know that you're not. But He predestinated Jesus Christ to receive all of these things. Yes, in Christ. Once we believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, once through the unmeritorious act of faith, we do that, and I think God works on people and it brings it square in front of you.

And you have to either reject or believe. And that's your choice. And if you reject it, you're still an Adam. All the condemnation, all the things that are about Adam are still true. If you believe that, once you do that, you have that co-crucifixion, the identification with Christ, you're placed into Him, and everything that's true about Christ is true about you, then all these truths come, are true of you now.

And I think that's brought out in some of the researches, because you have the words may or might, but you will be the usual. See, that's where, you know, I always struggle with that, and that's where I'm sorry it got out, but that really helped me out with, when you look at that Ephesians one, all this predestination, everything was in Him. When you look at that, it was nine times, in that first 14 verses that are positional truths, and they're all in hymns. And when you do that, it's like, well, it seems like everything is related to in hymn. Then the question is, how do you get in hymn?

Well, the Romans 6 tells that. You have to get out of Adam. Our identification with Adam is, like I said, from the first cell, when we were conceived, we had sin. Because of what Adam did. It's a lineage. It's our identification with Adam. We can't get it off. It's your DNA. So you have to get out of that. The only way you can get out of that is through death and separation. So the death is through our co-crucifixion with Christ.

Once we do that, we have co-crucifixion, our death unto it, reckoning ourselves dead unto it, and we are now placed into a new creature in Christ. then everything is replaced in the hymn, all those in-hymns, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in-hymn, in- All right. Any other questions? Well, you know, my mother-in-law, we have a different name for her, and she thinks we're wacky. We say prayers before we eat, and she eats. She eats, and I get what she has.

And, you know, you try to No, I don't believe there's any predestination either way. I think that you may not and that's solely up to the work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will convict them, and it's up to them to accept or reject. It's not your responsibility. In my family, there are people, and I have to be comforted by the fact that it doesn't have to be me, and it's ultimately up to that person. There are people who are going to reject. From our perspective, the stupidity of that act is unbelievable.

However, all I have to do is go and look in the mirror and say, how did this guy accept this? If I can accept it, anybody can, because I know how rotten I was. I was really, in the world's eyes, I think, a good person. All-American athlete, all these academics who never got in trouble. But I was as rotten to the core as I could be.

And so, if God can reach me, He can reach anybody. And that's what I always put in perspective. I just have to look in the mirror and say, God did it to me. He can get anybody. But it's not up to me. God will convict them. God will work on them. God works through a lot of different people, situations.

You just have to be available and don't be worried. about that. That's not your job. Yours is just to be an ambassador for Christ and be who you are in Christ. That'll be the draw. They're going to be drawn to Christ. And if you're living as Christ lives, you will draw people to Christ. And that's the key. It's not to me, not to anyone else. Draw them to Christ. And as you live Christ-like, they'll be drawn.

Hey, what's different about you? And I think that's why in some of the tragedies and other stuff, when people understand, how did you get through that? God uses that. Because the next person who's going through it is going, how did you do that? Well, I'm in Christ. Christ is in control.

He uses a lot of those things to draw people. He conditions you to be used in a thousand different ways. And like I said, when you put it all, He's in control of all this. Stuff that happened to me 20 years ago may be what I'm going to be used 10 years from now. God uses it all.

He's in control. And that gives me great comfort, that peace that I always talk about, that surpasses all understanding. Because what happened, which was terrible to me 20 years ago, now I can use, oh yeah, I understand perfectly what you're going through. I got through it because Christ is in me. So I mean, he uses all that. Okay, any others? We have like three minutes to go. Question five, is the position of every believer the same? Yes? Any no's out there? Any dissenters? Anyone willing to go against the grain? Yes. It is all, every position is the same. Galatians 3, 26 and 27, 28.

For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you were baptized, where? Hey, look at that again. Into Christ. have closed yourself with Christ, let me read that again, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have closed yourself with Christ.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one, uh oh, in Christ Jesus. Look at how many times that shows up, you know, just start making a mental note of that, how many, in Christ, you are all one in Christ Jesus, not separate, not We're all different. We're all one. Our position is still the same.

Alright, if we can quickly get through Colossians 3.1 to Ephesians 6.10. Describe our condition and then we'll describe what is condition.

Colossians 3.1, Therefore if you've been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

And then Ephesians 6.10 through 12. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the full armor of God so that you'll be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of witness in the heavenly places." So, what does it mean by our condition versus position?

Daily walk is your condition the same every day. All right, we have a lot of... Yes? Same every day? No. Right, it changes. Is that different than our position? Yes. Our position never changes. Hence, the difference between position and condition. Our condition is our walk. Growing the grace and knowledge. Walking the spirit. That's our daily walk. That's our condition. We'd like, as we mature, our walk, our condition, begins to get closer to our position. That's what I think is spiritual maturity. That is our walk. As we get closer as our maturity, our condition begins to be closer to our position. I don't think that can be perfect until we get rid of these shells and get rid of Adam's old nature completely. So we have one, until we step into eternity. But as we mature, our condition begins to match our position.

Let me just ask quickly into question seven, because this should be an easy answer. Is the condition for every believer the same? No. No. And again, I think that's for the body concept. When you think, you know, there are fingers, there's toes, there's elbows, there's knees, there's ankles, there's... In the body concept, the condition, I think, gets us to be an ankle, a finger, elbow.

We're different. We're all different. God works on us. We're individuals. We're all in the body. But God works on us individually, differently, used differently. We are created for specific purposes in that workmanship. He's created specific things for us to do. So, all right, any final little questions? Totally confuse you. All right, we'll finish up this and then also we have Lesson 30. Did I put that up here? Let me see here. I'll pray and then I'll hand these things out. Let's close in a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time. Father, we thank you for any time again that we can study your word.

We are so thankful just for what the identification with Christ means in our position. Those are eternal, rock-solid, never to change, no matter what we do, say, or whatever. Once we are a new creature in Christ, those things are true eternally, and we thank you for that. We thank you that that's not predicated on anything we do or our actions. Just thank you for the operating system which we live in now, grace, and not under the law, we're under grace. And as we mature in our walk in Christ, Father, we just thank you that our focus, the only way to do that is to focus on your Son. So we thank you again just for this time, and we just thank you for this day. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.