Sermon
Found in Christ
Publisher transcript
Transcript
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Imagine the scenario where you're conversing with a person who has never heard of Christianity.
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! They might be in the hospital and they've got the little form and there's no version of Christianity there.
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! There's no knowledge of it at all.
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They've never heard of the fact that their Bible exists.
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They've never seen a Bible.
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They've never heard of Jesus Christ.
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No concept of the church at all.
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And in conversing with them, you mentioned that you're a Christian.
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And it's a term that they are just not familiar with.
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And so they ask you, what do you mean by that?
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What is a Christian?
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How would you answer that?
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What would you say?
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How do you answer that question?
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Maybe various forms of it might be something like,
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well, I believe in Jesus of Nazareth and I follow his teachings.
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Maybe you're a person who follows and adheres to Christianity.
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Maybe, well, my parents were Christian.
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I was born a Christian.
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I've been baptized.
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That's what makes me a Christian.
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Maybe it's a person who lives in a way that's guided by the values of Jesus of Nazareth.
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Someone who's a member of the church.
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Its potential, particularly if you've been hanging around churches for a bit,
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you might use language like, well, I'm someone who's been born again.
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I've been saved.
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I believe in Jesus.
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I have faith in Jesus.
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Or I'm a follower of Jesus.
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Now, a number of those descriptors are certainly descriptors of the Bible, the Bible uses.
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But none of them are the dominant descriptor of what it means to be a Christian.
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The New Testament uses a phrase to describe the Christian that is everywhere in the pages of the New Testament,
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very dominant in the New Testament, but almost nowhere in our churches,
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to the point where I've not had a single Christian,
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and I myself have not used it when someone's asked me, what is a Christian?
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I've never used the term in Christ.
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I'm in Christ.
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In our society, a Christian, the term Christian is often open to a broad interpretation.
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Broad interpretation.
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And anyone can identify themselves as being Christian,
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particularly if it helps their political agendas.
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But in our society, Christianity is not so much connected to the person of Jesus,
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or vaguely so, but it can be connected to things like traditional values and ethics
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and conservative politics and institutions.
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This is particularly in Western civilization.
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And all of those things together kind of blur what it means to be a Christian,
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and therefore what it means to live the Christian life.
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The term in Christ is entirely different.
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Entirely different.
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Because the term in Christ demands that we reflect on something that is a dynamic relationship
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and a living relationship.
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And so what we're doing is, as we launch into term three,
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we're spending this term on this issue, on the term in Christ,
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on this deep foundational biblical term.
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Theologians call this whole topic, the theology, it's called union with Christ.
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It's a theology of union.
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And the reason we're doing this term is because if we misunderstand the dynamic of what it means to be Christian,
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the dynamic of our relationship to Jesus and his relationship to us,
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then we entirely misunderstand Christianity,
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and we entirely misunderstand what it means to live the Christian life.
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And if you've been with us throughout the course of this year,
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you might initially think that this topic here is entirely left field.
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How do they come up with this one?
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Why now?
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Why this one?
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The reality is, if you've been with us,
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you would have hopefully seen that we've touched on it multiple times already.
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We started the year in the book of Ephesians,
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looking at who is the church.
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Not what is the church, but who is the church.
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And which is why we've read Ephesians 1 again this morning,
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is because what we understand the book of Ephesians is that the church is in Christ.
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Wrapped up in him, all that is his is ours.
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Everything that the church is and has been called to do is hinge,
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is entirely connected and hinges on us being united to Christ.
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And last term, we were looking at Ephesians 5 and marriage,
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and we were confronted with this startling claim
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that when God brought Adam and Eve together in the union of marriage,
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right at the very beginning of the Bible,
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Ephesians 5 says that right at the beginning of the Bible,
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when God did that,
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that is a picture of a far greater reality.
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The marriage, as the Bible describes it,
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points to something much bigger,
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the union of a man and a woman in marriage,
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where the two become one,
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which Ephesians 5 says is a profound mystery,
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is a pointer to the greater reality of the union between Christ
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and his church, his people.
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And so we're going to unpack that reality.
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To understand the dynamic of our union with Christ
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ultimately leads to a greater confidence
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of what Christ has done for us,
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a deeper assurance and a hope as Christians,
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and particularly confidence in living out the Christian life.
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And that really is what we want for you here at St. Paul's,
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for you to see not just the truth,
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the goodness and the beauty of it,
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that your affections and your hearts would grow for Christ.
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So that's where we're heading.
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And today is really an introductory.
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In fact, when you think about it,
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the whole term is really going to be an introduction to the topic.
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There's a lot of old history stuff written about this.
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Ironically, amazingly,
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the theology of union with Christ
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went unnoticed for,
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in recent history,
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the last couple of hundred years,
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not referred to much.
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But fortunately,
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more recently,
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theologians are going,
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hang on a bit,
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we've left this one behind
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and we need to re-engage with it.
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So, first of all,
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I've got three points on the St. Paul's app.
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Ephesians 1 opens with an astonishing claim.
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Praise be the God and Father,
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our Lord Jesus Christ,
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who has blessed us in the heavenly realms
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with every spiritual blessing.
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See there?
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Every spiritual blessing.
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He has blessed us.
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It's already happened.
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Not that he will bless us,
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he has blessed us,
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and with every spiritual blessing.
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And the language here is absolute language.
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That is,
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that is,
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there's nothing held back.
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There's nothing overlooked at all.
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Nothing is lacking.
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The word blessed is a very significant word.
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It means,
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it's close to the Hebrew word shalom,
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which means that every joy and every benefit
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that your heart and your soul needs and longs for
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has been fulfilled.
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That's what it means to be blessed.
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And what we see in Ephesians is God's plan for all time and eternity
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is to bless,
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and that he has blessed.
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A Christian is someone who's been already blessed
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with every spiritual blessing from God.
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And then what Paul does is he goes on
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and he writes,
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he gives a list for it.
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And each one of these lists,
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each one of these words could be expanded again,
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more and more and more to libraries of books.
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We're referred to as being holy,
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blameless,
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adopted,
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redeemed,
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forgiven,
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we're given knowledge of God.
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The blessings go on and on.
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The implications of them are huge,
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but the key to receiving all of the blessings
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in verse 4,
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sorry,
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3,
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4,
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5,
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6,
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7,
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9,
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and 11
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is the term in Christ
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and its various forms.
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That is how you receive all the blessing.
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That is how you get every desire and longing
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of your heart and your soul fulfilled.
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It's in Christ.
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And so the language here in Ephesians,
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as is the New Testament,
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is that to become a Christian
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is not simply to get Jesus as your Lord to obey
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or as a model in life to follow
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or as a saviour to be grateful for.
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A Christian is someone who has been put in Christ,
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being put in Christ
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so that everything that is his
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becomes yours.
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That's what it means.
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All the blessings and privileges
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of the Christian life
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is by virtue of being united to Jesus Christ.
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Now,
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our union with Jesus,
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as I said,
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is by far
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one of the most important theological concepts
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in the New Testament.
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It's the umbrella theology
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that connects
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so many of the important truths
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and doctrines of the Christian faith.
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many scholars agree
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that the term in Christ
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is the central category
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in the Apostle Paul's thinking
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and his writing in the New Testament.
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He uses the term himself
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over 160 times.
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But it's not just Paul.
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The term in all its various forms
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is used over 200 times
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in the New Testament
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as the default way
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of identifying
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someone
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who is
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what we would call
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a Christian
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or a follower of Jesus.
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And the language of union
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in the New Testament
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is used in two different ways.
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First of all,
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there's the cosmic level,
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the big level,
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if you like,
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where on the cosmic level,
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union with Christ
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means that
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he is your leader.
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And as he goes,
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so you go.
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His fate
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becomes your fate.
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Now that may seem odd,
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especially for those of us
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who would come from
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more of a Western
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cultural perspective.
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But for most
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human cultures
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throughout
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most of human history,
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including the Bible times,
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this way of thinking
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about a leader
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and his people
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or their people
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was actually normal
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and natural.
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Entirely normal.
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The idea
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is the idea
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of corporate solidarity
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or another
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theological term
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to referring to it
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is
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a federal headship.
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that is
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the idea
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that
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as
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the leader goes
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so that people go.
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I don't want to
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delve into it too much
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because I'm stealing
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too much of John's sermon
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for next week
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as he takes us
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a bit deeper into this.
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But the Bible
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usually uses it
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in a very big
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cosmic way.
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simply
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is
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that the idea
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is that the one
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represents the many
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and the many
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are represented
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by the one.
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If the
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President
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of the United States
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declares war
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on another country,
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the citizens
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of that country
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are at war
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with that country
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by the declaration
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of the President.
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It's that idea.
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2 Corinthians 5.14
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speaking of the work
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of Christ
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and how it connects
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to us
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says
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one has died
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for all
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and therefore
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all have died
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because Christ
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has died
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and those
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who are united
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to him
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share his fate.
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Like Jesus,
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the Christian too
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has died
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to their old life.
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1 Corinthians
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15.22
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is the whole Bible
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in a short summary.
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As in Adam
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all die,
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so also in Christ
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shall all
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be made
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alive.
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And so
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every human being
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alive
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or has ever
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walked the face
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of this earth
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is either
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in one of those
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two categories.
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They're either
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in Adam
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or they are
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in Christ
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and that is
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the absolute
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fundamental
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defining reality
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of all
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of humanity.
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and the message
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of the New Testament
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is absolutely
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thrilling at this
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point.
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To be united
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to Christ
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as your
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federal head
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is to be
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placed in
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that new
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realm
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with him
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alive
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in his
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new creation.
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Jesus Christ
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plunged
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through death
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and out
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of the
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other
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side
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resurrected
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into the
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dawning
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of a new
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creation
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and to be
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in him
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means
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that he
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has pulled
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you
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with him
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from death
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to life.
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That's what
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it means.
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Now,
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the other way
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that the New Testament
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uses the image,
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the language
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of union
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with Christ
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is much
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more
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personal
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and intimate,
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not just
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a federal
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headship
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sense.
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And to
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display this,
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the authors
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of the New
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Testament
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use vivid
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imagery
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to communicate
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it
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so that we
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can understand
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a bit clearer.
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One of the
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images
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is that
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of the vine
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and the
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branches
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in John's
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Gospel.
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So John
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15, 5,
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I'm the vine,
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you are the
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branches,
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if you
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remain in me
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and I
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in you,
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you will
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bear much
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fruit and
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apart from
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me,
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you can
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do
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nothing.
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That's
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going to be
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unpacked further
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down the track
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by Ash,
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if I remember
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correctly.
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Jesus says,
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he's the vine,
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we are the
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branches.
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And so what
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we have here
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is a picture
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of our
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relationship
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with Jesus
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that is
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an organic
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connection.
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connection.
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It's an
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organic,
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alive
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connection.
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There's
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also the
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imagery
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that we
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saw last
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term of
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the one
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flesh
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union
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in
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Ephesians
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5.
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We are
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members
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of his
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body.
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For
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this
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reason,
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a man
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will leave
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his father
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and mother
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and be
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united to
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his wife
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and the
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two
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will
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become
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one
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flesh.
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This
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is a
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profound
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mystery,
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but I'm
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talking about
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Christ and
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the church.
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And so
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in Ephesians
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5,
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as we
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looked at
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last term,
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we have
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here a
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sexual
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imagery and
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a very
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deeply
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intimate
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imagery
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that
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portrays
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the
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exclusivity,
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the
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closeness,
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the
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intimacy
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of our
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union
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with
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Jesus.
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Just like
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a couple
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in marriage,
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the Christian
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is made
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one
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flesh
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with
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Jesus.
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We are,
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as it
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says in
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Ephesians
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5,
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we are
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members
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of
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his
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body.
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Another
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image
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of union
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is how
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the New
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Testament
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refers to
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the church
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as the
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body of
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Christ
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with
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Christ
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as our
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head.
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1
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Corinthians
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12
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27.
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Now
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you are
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the body
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of Christ
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and each
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one of
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you is
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a part
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of it.
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What we
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see in
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every case
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is there's
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this organic
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intimate
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uniting
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where we
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share in
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the properties.
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We are
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one
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with
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Christ,
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in
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Christ.
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The vine
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gives life
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to the
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branches,
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the head
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directs the
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body and
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the body
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parts,
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neither can
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exist without
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the other.
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The
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husband
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nourishes
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and cherishes
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his wife
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as he
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does his
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own body.
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So what
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we see
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in the
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New
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Testament
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is that
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a Christian,
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becoming a
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Christian,
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being a
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Christian,
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is far
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deeper.
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It is
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far more
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wondrous
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than
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walking an
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aisle or
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praying a
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prayer or
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raising a
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hand or
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going forward
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in evangelistic
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reality.
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being a
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Christian is
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far deeper
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than coming
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to church
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and reading
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the Bible
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and praying.
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To be a
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Christian is
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to be
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united,
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one,
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with the
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living,
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reigning,
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resurrected
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Jesus Christ
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so that all
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is his,
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is ours.
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And at
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the core
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of it,
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implication
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of it for
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us,
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is 2
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Corinthians
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5.17.
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Therefore,
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if anyone
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is in
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Christ,
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they are a
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new creation.
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The old
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has passed
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away.
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Behold,
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the new
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has come.
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Being in
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Christ
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brings a
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absolute
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radical
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transformation
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and
-
reorientation.
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God's
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is a
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movement
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from an
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external
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attempt to
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make myself
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right in
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God's eyes
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to an
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inward
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righteousness
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that
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entirely
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reorientation
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transforms my
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life.
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That's what it
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means to be
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in Christ.
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Now,
-
admittedly,
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it's an
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elusive
-
concept.
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And so,
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maybe one
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of the
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reasons why
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we don't
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talk about
-
it much,
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it's much
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easier to
-
grasp the
-
ideas of
-
being a
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follower of
-
Jesus,
-
or to
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being someone
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who,
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Jesus,
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my Lord,
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and I
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obey Jesus,
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or that
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Jesus is my
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saviour and
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he's forgiven
-
me for my...
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Much easier to
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grasp hold of
-
those concepts
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and to explain
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those concepts.
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Much easier to
-
grasp the
-
concept of
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Jesus being
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my leader,
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or my Lord,
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or my saviour,
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or my inspiration,
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or my teacher,
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or my ruler.
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So,
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how does
-
being in
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Christ work?
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Maybe this
-
illustration
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might help.
-
And it's an
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illustration I
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got from one
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of the resources
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that I've been
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reading in the
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past few
-
weeks.
-
You book a
-
trip to
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Tasmania,
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say,
-
for instance,
-
hi to all
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the Tasmanians
-
online.
-
You're at
-
the airport,
-
you're ready
-
to begin
-
your trip,
-
and the
-
plane going
-
to Tasmania
-
is also
-
at the
-
airport,
-
ready for
-
the trip.
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The question
-
is,
-
what is your
-
relationship
-
to the
-
plane?
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What's your
-
relationship to
-
the plane?
-
would it
-
help,
-
for example,
-
to be
-
under the
-
plane?
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To submit
-
yourself to
-
the plane's
-
authority,
-
because it
-
is a much
-
more greater
-
authority you
-
are on this
-
whole thing of
-
aerodynamics and
-
airline travel,
-
so just to
-
submit yourself
-
and be under
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the plane.
-
would it be
-
helpful to be
-
inspired by
-
the plane?
-
Stand in the
-
terminal as you
-
see the plane
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take off and
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you go,
-
my goodness,
-
look at,
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I mean,
-
how,
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you know,
-
one day I'm
-
going to do
-
that.
-
One day,
-
a bit more
-
practice,
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I too am going
-
to run down
-
this runway,
-
and I too am
-
going to flap
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my wings,
-
and I am going
-
to fly just
-
like that.
-
Would that be
-
helpful?
-
Is that your
-
relationship to
-
the plane?
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Would it be
-
helpful to
-
follow the
-
plane?
-
Open up
-
flight radar
-
24,
-
push follow,
-
get,
-
and as the
-
plane takes
-
off,
-
you run down
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the runway,
-
and you get
-
after it as
-
fast as your
-
little legs can
-
go,
-
and you follow
-
the path on
-
flight radar,
-
and eventually,
-
maybe,
-
you get to
-
Tasmania.
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Is that your
-
relationship to
-
the plane?
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You see,
-
the key
-
relationship you
-
need with the
-
plane is to
-
get in it.
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Is that not
-
right?
-
I mean,
-
it might be,
-
I might be
-
pushed out,
-
but it's to
-
get in the
-
plane.
-
It's not
-
helpful to be
-
under it,
-
not helpful to
-
be behind it,
-
not helpful to
-
be inspired by
-
it.
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You need to
-
be in it,
-
and the
-
reason is
-
because by
-
virtue of
-
being in
-
the plane,
-
what happens
-
to the plane
-
happens to
-
you.
-
The question
-
of your
-
arrival to
-
Tasmania
-
will be
-
answered,
-
that is,
-
the question
-
of did I
-
arrive to
-
Tasmania,
-
will be
-
answered by
-
a prior
-
and more
-
important
-
question.
-
Did the
-
plane
-
arrive in
-
Tasmania?
-
Because if
-
it did,
-
I do too.
-
It's as
-
simple as
-
that.
-
And at
-
its heart,
-
that is the
-
New Testament's
-
idea of
-
being in
-
Christ.
-
What the
-
New Testament
-
is saying
-
is that
-
through faith
-
in Jesus
-
Christ,
-
we become
-
united to
-
him,
-
and that
-
unity with
-
him means
-
that anything
-
that is true
-
of Jesus
-
is true
-
of you.
-
And you
-
had as
-
much to
-
do with
-
it as
-
being someone
-
who sits
-
on a
-
plane waiting
-
for the
-
destination
-
to arrive.
-
it's
-
all
-
him.
-
The
-
late
-
theologian
-
and
-
pastor
-
John
-
Stott
-
summed
-
up really
-
neatly,
-
I think.
-
He said,
-
the relationship
-
is
-
the
-
relationship
-
is
-
something
-
much more
-
than a
-
formal
-
attachment
-
or a
-
nodding
-
acquaintance,
-
something
-
more than
-
even than
-
a personal
-
friendship.
-
It is
-
nothing less
-
than a
-
vital,
-
organic,
-
intimate
-
union with
-
Jesus Christ
-
involving a
-
shared life
-
and love.
-
life.
-
That's
-
what it
-
means to
-
be in
-
Christ,
-
a vital
-
union,
-
a dynamic
-
union with
-
him.
-
Now,
-
this,
-
of course,
-
leads to
-
another
-
question,
-
and this
-
again will
-
be unpacked
-
more and
-
more,
-
so very
-
brief,
-
on how
-
to get
-
in Christ,
-
therefore.
-
What does it
-
mean to be
-
in Christ?
-
How does
-
that happen?
-
And this
-
is where
-
we might be
-
confused about
-
this,
-
because in
-
so many
-
places,
-
in so many
-
people's
-
thinking,
-
the way to
-
get in
-
Christ is
-
to find
-
myself
-
approved
-
of him,
-
to live
-
in such
-
a way
-
that he
-
will approve
-
of me,
-
God will
-
approve of
-
me.
-
But the
-
key to
-
unlock
-
every
-
spiritual
-
blessing
-
in
-
Ephesians
-
1 is
-
verse 7.
-
In
-
him,
-
that's
-
Christ,
-
we have
-
redemption
-
through his
-
blood,
-
the forgiveness
-
of sins.
-
In
-
Christ,
-
God has
-
redeemed
-
us,
-
brought us
-
back into
-
relationship
-
with himself
-
through the
-
blood of
-
Jesus.
-
And in
-
that,
-
my sins
-
are forgiven.
-
And this
-
is really
-
a summary
-
or points
-
to the
-
deep
-
central
-
point of
-
the Christian
-
faith,
-
that Jesus
-
Christ,
-
the Son
-
of God,
-
came into
-
this world.
-
Note that,
-
the eternal
-
God who
-
always existed,
-
God the
-
Son,
-
came into
-
this world
-
made as
-
a human.
-
God
-
took the
-
initiative
-
to unite
-
himself to
-
us
-
in human
-
flesh
-
in order
-
to
-
represent
-
humanity
-
to God,
-
back to
-
himself.
-
He not
-
only became
-
like us,
-
but he
-
came like
-
us in
-
order to
-
deal with
-
our deepest
-
problem and
-
the thing
-
that was
-
keeping us
-
separated from
-
God and
-
his blessing,
-
and that
-
is that
-
word sin
-
in Ephesians 1.
-
sin,
-
some reform in
-
the Bible,
-
is a desire to
-
live independently
-
of our
-
creator,
-
to not be in
-
him at all,
-
not even be
-
with him.
-
It's the sin
-
that Adam
-
committed with
-
Eve at the
-
very beginning
-
of the very
-
beginning of the
-
Bible.
-
Bible.
-
And as
-
Jesus came
-
into this
-
world,
-
taking on
-
human flesh,
-
he lived a
-
life of
-
perfect
-
obedience to
-
God,
-
the one
-
person who
-
is the
-
only one
-
who's ever
-
done every
-
single thing
-
that God's
-
always required.
-
And that
-
included
-
obedience,
-
dying on a
-
Roman cross,
-
being rejected
-
by God
-
so that we
-
could be
-
brought back
-
to God.
-
He faced
-
expulsion so
-
that we
-
could be
-
brought in.
-
He
-
willingly
-
allowed God's
-
justice for
-
our sin to
-
be poured out
-
on him,
-
on that cross,
-
so that we
-
could be
-
redeemed,
-
we could be
-
ransomed,
-
we could be
-
brought back
-
in Christ.
-
And when God
-
poured out his
-
anger on
-
Jesus on
-
that cross,
-
he satisfied
-
the just
-
demands
-
of God's
-
justice.
-
It's like
-
in Australia,
-
one of the
-
things, in
-
fact, in my
-
previous life,
-
Rob said he
-
used to work
-
as a nurse,
-
I used to
-
work in the
-
national parks,
-
and apart from
-
things to do
-
with feral
-
animals, the
-
other things I
-
used to do
-
was bushfire,
-
I used to
-
fight bushfires,
-
and one of
-
the things we
-
used to do
-
in fighting a
-
bushfire is
-
a thing called
-
control burning.
-
And with
-
control burning,
-
what you do
-
is it's a
-
defensive
-
mechanism,
-
and it's
-
one of the
-
tips for
-
those of you
-
who have
-
never been out
-
there in the
-
bush and
-
you're going to
-
be in the
-
summer,
-
here's a
-
little tip for
-
you, always
-
take a box
-
of mattress
-
with you.
-
If there's a
-
bushfire that's
-
looming on
-
you, one of
-
the most,
-
the clearest
-
ways to be
-
safe in a
-
bushfire is to
-
start a fire.
-
That is, as a
-
fire's looming on
-
you, start a
-
fire, and as
-
this fire's coming
-
and this fire's
-
burning, step
-
into the fire
-
zone.
-
Step into
-
what's been
-
burnt.
-
Why?
-
Because a
-
fire can't
-
burn what's
-
already been
-
burnt.
-
It's burnt.
-
It's one of
-
the safety
-
mechanisms.
-
So I used to
-
go and start
-
fires, it was
-
fantastic.
-
In fact, one
-
back burning
-
control burn, or
-
one control burn
-
I started to
-
ward off a
-
bushfire that
-
was coming, was
-
so fierce, it
-
started another
-
fire 10
-
kilometres away.
-
That was my
-
bad.
-
anyway, I
-
mean, gave
-
those people
-
something to
-
do too.
-
Anyway, so
-
what the Bible's
-
telling us here
-
is that God
-
has poured
-
out his
-
justice for
-
our sin on
-
the person of
-
Jesus Christ,
-
scorched earth,
-
and Jesus
-
calls us to
-
stand in the
-
scorched earth,
-
cling to the
-
cross, the
-
work of
-
Christ, because
-
when you are
-
in Christ, you
-
have died with
-
him and you
-
are safe from
-
the justice of
-
God.
-
The fire can't
-
strike there
-
again because
-
you're safe in
-
Christ.
-
Christ.
-
And so what
-
the union of
-
God and man in
-
the coming of
-
Jesus Christ is,
-
it is so, so
-
affirming, but
-
it's not
-
flattering.
-
His presence in
-
flesh, uniting
-
himself with us,
-
tells us that we
-
are on the wrong
-
track as
-
humanity.
-
And we need
-
redemption.
-
As we didn't
-
say it, one of
-
the old creeds
-
of the church,
-
the thing called
-
Nicene Creed,
-
helps us to
-
understand our
-
union with
-
Christ in
-
salvation terms.
-
For us and
-
for our
-
salvation, he
-
came down and
-
took on human
-
flesh.
-
It is for us
-
and our
-
salvation that
-
he united
-
himself to
-
us.
-
And things
-
only need
-
saving when
-
they've gone
-
horribly wrong.
-
and if God
-
is united to
-
us in the
-
coming of
-
his son, in
-
the person of
-
Jesus Christ,
-
then in his
-
saving death and
-
resurrection, we
-
are united to
-
him.
-
In
-
Philippians
-
3, Paul
-
uses this
-
language.
-
He says,
-
all the things
-
I used to have
-
confidence in,
-
all the things
-
that I put my
-
hope and my
-
trust in, that
-
God would find
-
me approved.
-
He said, I
-
now consider
-
them lost.
-
I consider
-
them garbage,
-
refuge,
-
sewage.
-
In fact, the
-
language is even
-
stronger than
-
that.
-
Now that I
-
am in
-
Christ.
-
And the
-
language he
-
uses is, I
-
am found to
-
be in
-
Christ.
-
Not that I
-
went finding
-
Christ, I am
-
found in
-
Christ.
-
Jesus Christ
-
came to
-
him, found
-
him, initiated
-
union with
-
him.
-
It is what
-
he has done
-
for us all.
-
And
-
Ephesians 1
-
tells us that
-
his whole
-
motive, God's
-
whole motive,
-
was a motive
-
of love, of
-
his goodwill, of
-
his grace.
-
And the
-
promise is that
-
everyone who
-
repents and
-
believes and
-
puts their
-
faith in him
-
is united to
-
him.
-
And in being
-
united to him,
-
everything that
-
is his is
-
yours.
-
The heart of
-
the matter is
-
not how much
-
faith you
-
have.
-
You know,
-
imagine jumping
-
in that plane,
-
you're heading to
-
Tasmania and
-
you've done it
-
multiple times,
-
you don't even
-
take any notice
-
anymore of the
-
safety briefing and
-
every time there's
-
a bit of a bump
-
and stuff like
-
that and there's
-
a little bit of
-
turbulence, you
-
go, whatever,
-
you know, been
-
here before,
-
joy.
-
But over the
-
aisle from you,
-
there's someone in
-
the safety briefing
-
taking notes and
-
reflecting on it and
-
asking the hostess
-
multiple times,
-
you know, can you
-
please go and
-
check on the
-
pilots to make
-
sure everything's
-
as they're
-
expecting it to
-
be.
-
You know,
-
they're a nervous
-
traveller, every
-
time there's a
-
bump, we're
-
going to die.
-
When you get to
-
Tasmania, do you
-
both get to
-
Tasmania?
-
The nervous,
-
anxious flyer and
-
the confident flyer,
-
do you both get
-
there?
-
Yes, you do.
-
Because your anxiety
-
levels mean absolutely
-
nothing to the
-
process.
-
It's got everything
-
to do with the
-
plane.
-
It's got everything
-
plane.
-
See, one of the
-
many wonderful
-
things about being
-
in Christ is that
-
it causes us to
-
take our eyes off
-
ourselves and to
-
put our eyes
-
fiercely focused
-
on him.
-
When we understand
-
the foundation of
-
our salvation is to
-
be found in him,
-
then we know that
-
it's not faith in
-
the abstract or
-
the amount of
-
faith that will
-
save us, but it's
-
the one to whom
-
we have our
-
faith, that we
-
are saved in
-
him.
-
Which just brings
-
me briefly to my
-
last point that we
-
are secure in
-
Christ.
-
That's one of the
-
big implications
-
for this, which is
-
why we want to be
-
speaking in this
-
season.
-
The whole point
-
for us to
-
understand it is
-
so that our
-
comfort and our
-
joy soars,
-
soars as we
-
melt into the
-
calm reassurance
-
of who God
-
actually is and
-
who we are in
-
Christ.
-
I would be
-
encouraging you
-
in this series to
-
let your mind and
-
your heart go deep
-
into the reality of
-
this truth of
-
union with
-
Christ.
-
You are in
-
Christ.
-
You have every
-
spiritual blessing.
-
He is your
-
intimate companion
-
moment by moment.
-
Being in Christ
-
means you cannot
-
lose.
-
You are
-
inexhaustibly rich
-
for you are
-
one with
-
Christ and
-
he is
-
himself
-
inexhaustibly
-
rich.
-
He is the
-
heir of the
-
universe.
-
And through
-
no activity
-
of your own
-
or my own,
-
but by the
-
sheer and
-
mighty grace
-
of God,
-
you have been
-
folded in,
-
brought in,
-
the triumphant
-
and tender
-
ruler of the
-
cosmos,
-
Jesus Christ.
-
That means
-
nothing can
-
touch you
-
that does not
-
touch him.
-
Nothing can
-
touch you
-
that does not
-
touch him.
-
That's what it
-
means.
-
anything to
-
get to you,
-
every pain,
-
every assault,
-
every disappointment
-
has to go
-
through him
-
first because
-
you are in
-
him.
-
And when you
-
are in the
-
midst of that
-
moment of pain
-
and suffering
-
and doubting
-
and confusion
-
and disillusionment,
-
he's not out
-
there, you are
-
still in him.
-
and it has
-
to go through
-
him to get
-
to you,
-
to get to
-
me.
-
You are
-
shielded by
-
his invincible
-
love.
-
Everything that
-
comes into
-
your life,
-
no matter how
-
hard it is,
-
comes from
-
and through
-
the tender
-
care of
-
Christ.
-
he himself
-
feels your
-
anguish
-
even more
-
deeply than
-
you do.
-
He feels
-
it even more
-
deeply than
-
you do
-
because you're
-
one with
-
him.
-
You're united
-
to him.
-
Amid the
-
storms of
-
your and
-
my little
-
existences,
-
sins,
-
the sins
-
that we
-
know we
-
struggle with,
-
the sufferings,
-
the failures,
-
the faltering,
-
the waywardness,
-
the wandering,
-
the lack of
-
following.
-
In all
-
those things,
-
he will
-
walk you
-
into his
-
eternal
-
presence.
-
He will
-
do it.
-
not just
-
with you,
-
he is
-
in you
-
and you
-
are in
-
him.
-
His
-
destiny
-
falls on,
-
sorry,
-
his destiny
-
now falls
-
on you.
-
Everything
-
that is
-
his is
-
yours
-
in Christ.
-
His union
-
with you
-
at both
-
the macro
-
and the
-
micro levels
-
guarantees
-
that he
-
will walk
-
you into
-
heaven,
-
into
-
everything
-
that he's
-
promised.
-
How do
-
I know?
-
Because
-
he's
-
achieved it
-
all already.
-
How do
-
I know
-
that he's
-
not going
-
to reverse
-
his plans?
-
He won't
-
reverse his
-
plans.
-
He can't
-
undo
-
his union
-
with you
-
any more
-
than he
-
can be
-
de-incarnated
-
in human
-
flesh
-
any more
-
than he
-
can be
-
de-crucified,
-
any more
-
than he
-
can be
-
de-resurrected,
-
any more
-
than he
-
can de-ascend.
-
And if
-
he was
-
to do
-
any of
-
that,
-
union
-
stops.
-
But it
-
won't.
-
It
-
won't.
-
you
-
were in
-
Christ.
-
And so
-
as we
-
go through
-
this
-
series,
-
draw strength
-
from your
-
oneness
-
with Jesus.
-
You are
-
no longer
-
alone.
-
You are
-
not isolated.
-
And when
-
you sin,
-
don't give
-
up.
-
he
-
hasn't
-
turned
-
his
-
back
-
on you
-
in any
-
way,
-
shape,
-
or form.
-
In fact,
-
in that
-
moment,
-
he draws
-
close to
-
you,
-
even closer
-
than you
-
thought he
-
was.
-
In that
-
moment,
-
he draws
-
close and
-
he lifts
-
your chin
-
and he
-
looks you
-
in the
-
eye
-
and he
-
says,
-
I am
-
your
-
existence,
-
not your
-
sin,
-
I am
-
your
-
existence
-
and your
-
existence
-
is this,
-
I am
-
in the
-
Father
-
and you
-
are in
-
me
-
and I
-
am in
-
you.