Sunday English Service – 18 JUL 21

Transcript

We have been looking at the blessings of our salvation – we’ve been calling it that. We’ve been looking at spiritual blessings that we have received in and through salvation. Right. And chief among those as a foundation to all of those, we saw last week, the great blessing of our union with Christ.

As I told you last week, it is not just one of the many blessings, it is the chief one and it is the foundation for everything. It is both the foundation and the climax. It is both the A and the Z of salvation. In fact, it is the centre and the circumference. Within it, is contained everything. It is so great. This is of such high importance, this truth of our union with Christ. Everything is because of it. Everything is only for it. Let me say that again: everything else only comes because of it and everything else comes for it, ultimately. That’s how important this truth is. It’s quite a simple truth on the surface, but you can keep going into it endlessly. That’s the nature of Bible truth, in general but particularly this one, you know. As I told you, it’s very simple. Basically, it is us being in Christ. What is union with Christ? The believer is in Christ; Christ is inside the believer; Christ lives in me. That’s what this is about. We are joined to Christ, right. We can say it a different way: we are united to Christ; we are one with Christ. All of these statements get at the same idea that there is such a deep and intricate union between the believer and Christ and that makes all the difference in the world. And last week, we began that, and I want to continue talking about it this week because I want the reality of this to sink into your heart. So, even if you don’t get anything else, at least you will know. Today we are talking about how you are joined to Christ. And that itself is beneficial. Just for me to stand here and say 10 times, “You are in Christ and Christ is in you”, itself is has some worth.

Okay, so that’s one of the reasons I want to continue because the reality needs to sink in and for that purpose, I want to speak again, repeat it, and add more things. But today, we also want to try to gain a better understanding of this truth, this reality. I don’t even want to say just truth; it’s a reality. It’s a fundamental reality of every believer. You are one with Christ. I want you to gain better Biblical understanding about it today; that’s what we’re going to try to do. We’re going to try to gain a better Biblical understanding because when you understand something a little better, you can accept it a little more. And you can live out of that reality more.

Last week, I said that this truth is fundamental to our salvation. I can summarize the whole of salvation with this one statement. What is salvation? It is being joined to Christ. It is becoming one with Christ. In it, is everything; because of it, comes everything else. And so, it is not only crucial for the way you understand salvation, and enjoy salvation but also, the entire Christian life, the way you understand and live your whole Christian life, depends on your understanding of this truth. Not only understanding, your realization of it. See, when it comes to this matter — you’re joined with Christ — it’s not enough to understand it, you’ve got to realize it. Meaning, you’ve got to live out of this realization every day, that I am in Christ, Christ is in me. I’m not just a person by myself, trying to manage my circumstances, trying to face this impossible challenge. No! I am in Christ, Christ is in me, Christ is enabling me and so on. Your whole Christian life can be lived on a higher plane if you live out of this reality. The reality of your union with Jesus Christ. When you don’t understand it, the whole Christian life gets affected. The whole quality, the victory, everything gets affected. If you understand it and live out of that reality, the entire Christian life looks different, feels different. You know, this is the key to a victorious Christian life. What is the key? That the King of kings and the Lord of lords has joined Himself to me, He dwells in me, and He lives in and through me. What greater key do you need? If this is true, you see, you have everything. If this is true, you have everything. If you have union with Christ, you have Christ. If you have Christ, you have everything. Amen. If you have Christ, you have everything. See, that is why this truth is so important because union with Christ says, you have Christ, you are joined to Christ Himself. Not just, you are receiving some of Christ’s gifts. No, no, no, you are joined to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. He is one with you, so that all that He has is also yours. So, you know, if this is true, it opens up all kinds of possibilities. And that is why you’ve got to understand that this is true. You’ve got to be convinced of it. You’ve got to live out of this reality. This is the difference between Christianity and any other religion or philosophy.

There are a lot of religions, a lot of philosophies, a lot of great people who have lived in this world and influenced the world. But what’s the difference between those other things and, you know, Jesus and His influence upon us? There are many differences, you know. Nobody is like Jesus. First of all, some of these great people who have lived and influenced the world are dead and gone. But Jesus is alive. He’s alive, He’s ruling, He’s reigning, He’s the King, He’s the Lord. And not only that, but Jesus also influences us today, not just by what He said and what He did 2000 years ago. The living Christ lives within us. His living presence influences us, enables us, empowers us, and guides us and leads us forward. This is a totally different level. You cannot compare this with any other philosophy or any other, you know, so-called influence of anybody else.

Christianity is about the greatest person in the universe, the Lord Jesus Christ, becoming one with us and His life flows within us; His power becomes available to us; His wisdom becomes available to us, and we live our life out of that. It’s not just a better life. It is altogether a different kind of life. So much so, that we can say, “It is not I who liveth, but Christ who lives in me”. If you have this reality, if you are conscious of this reality— see, every true believer has this reality. You don’t have to go achieve union with Christ; you have union with Christ. Everybody say, “I have union with Christ”. It’s not something you achieve by effort. Just because we are studying this, does not mean, only after you study it, you have it. No. The moment you became a believer, you were joined to Jesus Christ. This is a reality already for you. But the thing is, we are not conscious of this reality. It’s so important to be conscious of this reality. When we are conscious of this reality, we can live in the power of this reality, in the power of our union with Christ.

So, let’s try to gain understanding and through it, consciousness, and through it, a real difference in our living. So, like I said today, the goal is understanding, a better Biblical understanding. Now, when you want to talk about something like the union with Christ, and try to understand it, that is not easy because this is one of the greatest, most profound truths in the Christian faith, that we are united with Jesus Christ. This is as profound as it gets, right. That’s why Paul calls it a “mystery”. In Colossians 1:27, he says, “This is the mystery that was hidden, for ages and ages, and now it is revealed”. What is the mystery? “Christ in you, the hope of glory”. That’s the mystery. This is something very great and profound, deep, mysterious, you may say. So, we can never understand this, without the help of the Holy Spirit. And furthermore, to help us understand this, the Bible presents this truth through various pictures, or illustrations. “A picture is worth 1000 words”, they say. So, I want to teach this today, by using those pictures that the Bible itself gives to teach this truth of our union with Jesus Christ, right, these pictures or illustrations or comparisons. That’s what we’re going to do. We’re looking at different pictures that the Bible gives for us to understand our union with Christ, right.

Picture number one, or illustration number one, comparison number one: we are in Christ, just as we were once in Adam. We are in Christ, just as we were once in Adam. Some of you may know these truths already but you need to hear it again. Same old thing you’ve got to keep hearing it again and again. What does it mean to be in Christ? What does it mean to be joined to Christ? Well, one of the things it means in the Bible is, it means something similar to what it meant to be joined to Adam. There is a connection between Adam and every human being. At least, there was a connection for us. Similar to that connection is our connection now with Jesus Christ. As we were united to Adam, so we are united to Christ. As we were in Adam, so we are in Christ – Romans 5. Let’s go to Romans 5.

You know, Adam and Jesus Christ, right, those are the two persons. Keep them in mind as we read this verse: Romans 5:18. Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. Sorry, let me just read this from an easier translation. Romans 5:18, Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous. You should have noticed the “one Man”, “the many”, “the One and the many”; the actions of One, affect many.

A leader, you know, just take the example of a leader, any leader is like that, right. A leader of a state or a country, if he does something, it’s not just him doing, it’s like he’s acting for the whole group, right. A team leader in a company, he acts for everybody in his team. If he takes a decision, it’s the team’s decision, right. If you send the captain out to the middle of the cricket field for the toss and he wins the toss, and he decides, it’s his decision, but it’s also the team’s decision. It’s not a personal decision; he’s deciding for the team. So, any leader is like that. His actions are basically the team’s actions or the group’s actions. And we have all great world leaders today. And, you know, their decisions either affect people in a good way or they affect people in a bad way, but the two greatest leaders in human history are who? Adam and Jesus Christ. The two most, shall I say, “influential leaders”? The two leaders whose actions affected the most, is Adam and Jesus. Here is Adam, who is viewed, you see, in the Bible, Adam is not just the first man, he is the head of the human race. The first head. Jesus is called as the second Adam or the last Adam.

Here is Adam, and when he decides to eat fruit, it’s not just his decision, not just his action, he is making a decision for the human race. He is saying, “Our entire human race is going to be like this; we are going to be people who eat the forbidden fruit. We are going to be people who will disobey God”. He’s making a decision for the whole human race, he’s saying, “The human race, I decided today, for the human race and I say the human race will be a sinful, disobedient, rebellious people, dishonouring God”. You say, “Wow, that’s so unfair. How can he decide for us? What nonsense?” Like I said, all the time, we have others deciding for us – our MLS, our MPs, our leaders, our team leaders, our captains, our everybody’s, right. So, this is happening everywhere, okay.

So, here is Adam making this decision that plunges the human race into all kinds of consequences. The decision is taken for the team and the consequences are felt by the entire human race. The human race is plunged into sin, into curse, into suffering, into pain, into evil. All the evil you see today is the result of Adam, the first head of the human race. His decision, the consequences. You may think that’s unfair, but I actually thank God for this arrangement, because there is a second Adam, there is a last Adam. Just as the first Adam’s actions were not just his personal actions but were done for the team, the second Adam, the last Adam is Jesus Christ. In fact, Paul says in this passage that Adam is a type of Him who was to come. He says, “Adams very purpose was to point to Jesus”. Adam was a type. Why was Adam there? So that you can look at Adam and understand Jesus. Just as Adam acted for the human race, now, Jesus acts for the new human race, for the new humanity. What does Jesus do? Well, Adam sinned, Jesus lived a perfectly righteous life. Every decision He took, He honoured God, He chose to love God. And then, that great decision in the Garden of Gethsemane, where He says, “Not My will but Yours, be done”. Compare that to the decision another fellow took in the Garden of Eden. He said, “Not Your will, but my will only”. And then he ate the fruit.

But the second Adam, in another garden, decides God’s will, against His own will. “Not My will but Yours, be done”. When He made that decision, it is not just his own personal decision alone. Listen to this. Because we are one with Christ, our union is such that when He made that decision, He is deciding for you and me. He took that position which is now applied to you and me. It’s like, we decided in Him, even though we never decided. He decided, went to the Cross, died, rose again. His obedience—look at what this passage says—His obedience. Whose obedience? Look at verse 19: For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous. One man’s disobedience leads everyone astray. One Man’s obedience leads everyone—not everyone, but those who believe in Him—into a new kind of future reality – “many will be made righteous”.

So, it’s this idea that, you know, even though we don’t do anything, we are affected, for bad or for good. You know, like I said, there are plenty of examples. You can even think about cricket team. Forget about leaders, politics, and all that. A cricket team – India has a cricket team, those players play you know, and win a match. After they win a match, what do we say? We say, “We won the match”. Have you ever thought about that statement: “We won the match”? Actually, we never played the match. We never sweat it out. We were sitting cosily, in an ac room, eating biryani, watching the match, comfortably. We never played, we never tried, we never put in the hard effort, nothing, we never won. But after they won, we say, “We won the match”. Those fellows only played, those fellows on sweat it out, those fellows only trained for it, worked hard for it. Those fellows only won but we say, we won the match. Why? Because we feel a certain solidarity. What they won is not just their victory, it’s our victory. Why? Because they’re not playing as individuals, they’re playing for the country, India. They represent the country. And so, their victory becomes our victory; their loss becomes our loss. It’s like that with Jesus. Jesus is, you know, like the captain. You can think of when the captain lifts the trophy, the nation celebrates. Jesus is the captain of our salvation, and He won the great battle. Amen. And His victory becomes our victory. His decisions are counted as our decisions. His righteousness is counted as our righteousness. His accomplishments are counted as our accomplishments. His victory is counted as our victory. We are in Christ, the way we were in Adam. When we are united to Christ, the way we were united to Adam, Christ affects us the way Adam affected us, only in a good way and in a much better way. Amen.

So, when you understand it like this, you see, when you’re living the Christian life, you’ll live with this mindset, that you are in Christ. And so, you are entitled to things that you don’t deserve. What good do we deserve? If you want to talk about what we deserve, my friend. Actually, the Bible says, “Nobody deserves anything good”. Sorry to disappoint. If we deserved anything, it was to go to hell. If you want to talk about what people deserve. People deserve to go to hell. But God sent His Son, out of His love for us, to take our place and to go to hell for us on the Cross, and to bear our punishment, so that we don’t have to get what we deserve, but rather we get what He deserves. The Gospel is that. You and I are now entitled to what Jesus deserves – blessing – that’s the Gospel. He’s righteous, so we are counted righteous. God takes the undeserving, makes them worthy by clothing them with the righteousness of Christ. And then He says, “Everything that is Christ’s, is yours. It’s the Gospel. When you live life in this approach, you’re not thinking, “What do I deserve?” You know, “What am I worthy of?” No, no, no, if you go that path, I’m telling you, you have to go fully in that path, which you will not be prepared to. It’s not, what am I worthy of. I’m in Christ. And He is worthy of everything. And by grace, I can get everything. By grace, I have a portion in everything that Christ won for me. Adam, you know, got curse; Christ got the blessing for us. Adam was defeated; Christ won the battle over death, over sickness, over evil, over everything and Christ’s victory has become our victory today.

You may look at me, you know, look at the world we’re living in, you’re talking about, we got the victory, and you know, what is this? Yeah, I know we’re living in Adam’s world. But we are in Christ. Yeah, we’re living in Adam’s world, but we are in Christ. Everybody say, “We are in Christ”, which means, it’s like, there’s a tension there. Yeah, we’re living in this fallen world that fell because of Adam, but nevertheless, we are now in a new reality in Christ. And therefore, there’s a tension, there’s a struggle. There’s a struggle because Christ’s victory has not become perfectly or fully ours, in many ways. We’re not experiencing it perfectly as Christ Himself experienced it. There is still death, there is still sickness in the world. There is still, you know, evil and it is affecting even sometimes us, as believers. There is this disconnect almost, but the disconnect also starred in the Bible. I don’t have time. Everything that Christ won for us, is ours but we receive it in an already and not yet way. Have you heard that term? Already means it’s already yours, but a lot of it is only going to be realized later on. A lot of it you will experience in its perfection only later on. For example, you know, the Bible says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things are passed away; behold, all things are new”. But actually, all things are not new. I mean, the world is not new. It’s the same old tree and the same old sky, and the same old fellows out there. In fact, I myself am not really new. I’m new on the inside but my outside, my outer man is not new. One day, I will be made totally new, even my body will be redeemed, and I will receive a body like unto the Lord Jesus Christ. Why does Paul say that old things are passed away, all things have become new? Why? Because Christ is fully new. He says that because he’s thinking about, “In Christ”.

You see, we’re thinking about ourselves; he’s thinking about Christ Jesus. And Paul realizes, Christ has already become fully new. When He died and rose again, He rose again with a new glorious, imperishable, immortal body. Jesus inaugurated the new creation. Even though the new heaven and the new earth have not been made yet, Jesus has already begun the new creation, so to speak, because He is the new creation. He already has the body, which He will have forever in the new creation. He is totally and fully and perfectly new. The believer is kind of partly new. On the inside, he’s new; on the outside, he’s not new. But for Paul, the overriding reality is what? Jesus. He’s thinking of Jesus totally, fully, perfectly new, and he says, “If anyone is this totally perfectly, fully new Christ, living Christ, he’s a new creation. What he means to say is, you have entered another world. You have entered into another reality. You have entered into another environment. Christ Himself, is your environment. Christ Himself, is your world. Christ Himself, is above you, beneath you, beside you, around you. You are in Christ. If anyone is in Christ, this new environment, this new, real world, he’s a new creation.

Do you see how Paul is just consumed by this reality of being in Christ? If anyone is in Christ, he has been lifted out of his, you know, earthly lot, into a totally different sphere, the sphere of Christ. He has been transplanted into a new soil, a new climate. And the soil and the climate are Christ. He is breathing a different air, so to speak. If I can give an example, you know, the change that happens from Adam to Christ, going from being in Adam, to in Christ, is like a change that happens say, if you take a guy who lives in the most polluted city in the world—imagine that—the most polluted city in the world, that the air itself is just nasty. The air the person breathes there is just terrible. Imagine you take a guy from the most polluted city and put him in the cleanest city, the city with the cleanest, purest air. Think about the change. The change is huge, it’s fundamental, it’s pervasive. It is what? The very air the guy breathes is different. Once you get in Christ, the change is so profound, it’s like the very air you breathe in the Christian life is different. You’re no longer in Adam, you are in Christ. Accept this reality by faith. It’s nothing for you to achieve, just accept it, believe it, live out of its reality. You are in Christ. Everybody say, “I’m in Christ, not in Adam”. You have been born into a new world, so to speak. You have entered a new kingdom with a new King, a new Leader, not Adam but Jesus Christ. And you live your life out of that reality. Yeah, I know, there is a struggle and a tension because you’re still living in Adam’s fallen world. One picture is not enough because we won’t get the proper idea. Another picture to help us to understand this reality of our union with Christ. This picture of being in Christ as we were in Adam, helps us to realize that everything Christ won, is for us.

Now, let’s go to another picture. Our union with Christ, is like the marriage union. It’s like the marriage union. The Bible itself, points to the marriage union to describe our union with Christ and encourage us to think about our union with Christ, in terms of the marriage union. So, go to Ephesians, chapter 5. It’s a known passage but I want to just read it again. Ephesians 5, verse 25, and as we read, just notice, Paul is talking about marriage—husbands and wives—but he’s also talking about Christ and the church. And remember, the church is not a building, it is the people. It is every believer, joined together. Ephesians 5:25, Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So, husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. “For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.

It’s a bit confusing, because he’s talking about husbands and wives and then he’s talking about Christ and the church and he, kind of, just goes between the two, you know. “Husbands love your wives”. How? “Like Christ loved the church and gave Himself” and did all this. And then he says, you know, “Love your own wife, like your own body” and so on. And then he says, he again brings in Christ and the church, we (believers) are members of Christ’s body. And then, verse 31, he again goes back to husband and wife. “For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh”. So, now you’re thinking, yeah, he’s back to marriage. And then he says, “This is a great mystery” and now, you’re thinking he’s talking about marriage, but then he says, “No, but I speak concerning Christ and the church”.

The point is, it’s not really confusing. I just said it to say, that he goes so freely between one union and the other. It’s like he just moves seamlessly from the one to the other. We may think it’s difficult to compare our union to the marriage union, but he doesn’t think so. The Holy Spirit doesn’t think so. The point is, learn about your union with Christ by looking at the marriage union. That’s the point. So, let’s look at the marriage union.

The marriage union, you see, in the marriage union, the role of the husband is given to Christ here. The role of the wife is compared to the church. Marriage has evolved in the way it, kind of, functions. It’s kind of changed over the centuries, maybe. But when Paul wrote in 2000 years ago, the role of the husband was huge, crucial. Everybody knew it; there was no debate about it. For example, now, husbands and wives may go to work, earn a living, and support the family. In those days, the wives did not work. It was just the reality of that day. The Bible is not condoning anything like that. But out of that time period, comes to this kind of comparison. In that time period comes to comparison. But of course, I don’t think it’s restricted to the time period because I think God designed marriage with Christ in the church in mind. But what I’m saying is, when Paul wrote these words, comparing Christ and the church, to husband and wife, you’ve got to understand it the way people 2000 years ago would have understood it. For them, the role of the husband was huge. He was the guy who went and earned the money, met the needs of the family. He was the person who acted as the protector of the wife. He was the person who provided for everything. He was the person who was the undisputed leader, at least in those days. He was the person who was the guide, the one giving the council. The role of the husband was huge 2000 years ago, and people reading the passage would have understood it like that.

Today, when you look at the passage, you know, you should not try to understand it using what today’s conception of marriage is. Point is, Christ is everything for the church. Christ is everything. He’s the provider, He’s the protector, He’s the leader, He’s the guide, He is everything. What a husband was in the ancient world to the wife, Christ is everything. Period. That is the point. That’s the point. I’m not talking about how it shouldn’t be. No, no, that’s not the point. The point is you get the point about Christ here. We’re not talking about husbands and wives. Today, that’s not the topic, right. The topics is Christ and the church. The point is, Christ is everything for the church, everything.

Now, just imagine that. In the previous picture, as we were united with Adam. we are united with Christ. That’s on one level, but this is on a higher level. You know, it’s like the difference. Imagine—I’ll give you an illustration, right—I told you, now, we are born into a new world. We have entered a new kingdom; we have a new King; Christ is our King not Adam. So, imagine you’re in this new kingdom—not imagine—you are in the new kingdom. You are in the Kingdom of God and Christ is your King, right. But sometimes we think of it like, you know, yeah, I’m in the kingdom in one little corner somewhere and Christ is there in his kingly palace, there about 10 miles away. That’s not the picture, you see. This picture of the marriage union bridges that gap. It’s saying, not only are you in the new kingdom with Christ as your new King, actually, you are in a palace with Christ Himself. You are right there with Christ. He is like your husband, and you are like His wife. That’s the picture. It’s not just, you know, the previous picture was one of grandeur, you know, a new world, a new kingdom, new King, new laws, new provision. But here, it’s one of intimacy. This King is also like your husband. Spiritually, He’s your husband. The nearness, the closeness, you’ve got to get that. 1 Corinthians 6:17, Christ is not just somewhere, up there, you know, seated on the throne, and you’re down here, in one little corner, trying to live your life as best as you can. No. He is one with you! So much so, that it’s like a marriage.

1 Corinthians 6:17, But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him. It’s talking about an individual believer: “He, who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him”. You know, to fully understand this, you have read 16 and 17. Look at 16 and then 17: Do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot — a prostitute — is one body with her? For “the two”, He says, “shall become one flesh.” He’s actually talking about people who are, you know, giving room for sexual immorality, taking it lightly and casually, and he’s telling them, “Don’t you realize what a horrible thing this is? Don’t you realize that this was designed, sexual relationship, was designed only to be enjoyed in the context of marriage? Don’t you realize that? Don’ you realize what a high union this is? Don’t you realize that it makes you one flesh with the person? Don’t you realize God’s purposes?” You people are taking it – in the city of Corinth, they were living in their old Roman pagan culture, you know, just engaging in all kinds of activities. And to those people, he’s saying, “Don’t you have an understanding of God’s design? He designed us for marriage. So, if you join yourself to a prostitute, you become one body with her, one flesh?”

And then, after talking about this, verse 17, he says, “But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.” Notice the level of comparison he’s making. He’s saying, “As intimate and as close as this thing becomes physically, so intimate and close is our union with Jesus Christ, spiritually”. Think about that. It’s remarkable, the intimacy involved here. “One spirit”, husband and wife become “one flesh”. Christ and the believer become one Spirit. Everybody say, “One Spirit”. One Spirit, one Spirit, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us. Christ is one Spirit with us. There is such a level of closeness and intimacy between Christ and the believer, my friend. Are we conscious of this? Are we living out of this reality? He’s not up there, somewhere. No, He’s right there in you. He’s so close to you. He’s one Spirit, in fact, He’s closer than your wife or husband, because He’s one Spirit with you. Not just one flesh but one Spirit. It’s amazing that the Bible describes our union with a King of kings and the Lord of lords in such close, intimate terms. You think like this, it’ll become almost very difficult to sin. That’s why Paul is talking about this. He’s talking to people who are in sin, sinful lifestyle. He’s saying, “Don’t you realize you are one Spirit with Him?” because he knows, once he teaches them this, they will leave that. Next passage reads, “Flee sexual immorality”.

So, you know, what I’m trying to say is that it has various applications, not just application for holy living or something. The point is, you’ve got to get the higher reality. It’s not just, “Flee from sexual immorality”; the higher reality, the more fundamental reality, the cause to flee is that you are so joined to Christ, so intimate, so close to Jesus Christ, that you ever think of engaging in that kind of activity, immorally. That’s the point. Don’t miss the deeper point. The deeper point is you’re so one with Christ, one Spirit with Him, right.

The problem is, I think, marriage is downplayed by society. One person told me, you know, I’ve been talking about marriage and our union with Christ is like marriage. We just don’t think of it as very great. [Tamil] It just doesn’t appear as very great. Why? Because of all the failed marriages in the world. There are failed marriages and not only that, even the marriages that don’t break up like that, the whole portrayal about marriage, given in the world is what? It’s all a joke, you know, they make jokes about it. Marriage begins so high and then goes down low. The honeymoon is great, and then, it’s all downhill from there. And everybody makes jokes about it, and everybody believes the jokes. And some of them live out the jokes also. And so, when you teach, saying, “Oh, our union with Christ is like marriage union”, it just doesn’t. Something is missing. The Bible does not portray marriage like this, my friend. The world portrays everything upside down, you see. You’ve got to get biblical wisdom. The Bible portrays marriages beginning like this and goes higher and higher and higher. That’s the biblical portrayal. That’s what God intends; that’s what God wants.

The problem is, there are no perfect marriages in the world. Nobody’s marriage is perfect, right. So, it’s hard to get a real, thrilling glimpse of our union through marriage, but just imagine, the perfect marriage, even though there is no such thing in this world. Imagine the perfect marriage because that is our union with Christ. You know, imagine, marriage. There are so many elements, I don’t have time to go into it but if you think about it, it’s higher than any other union, any other relationship. According to the Bible, the marriage relationship is higher than any other relationship. It’s the only relationship, about which, the Bible says, “It’s a one-flesh union”. “The two are no longer two, but one flesh”, Jesus Himself said. And Paul quotes Jesus only here. No other relationship is put on par with marriage like this: two becoming one. And you know, there’s so many things about marriage. It’s not like a friendship, you know. Even getting into a marriage is so serious, formal, legal. We all appear in suits and there’s a pastor and he declares, makes them tell these vows and they’re all seriously telling the vows and then, you know, he pronounces them and then, they go and sign the register. Is this how you enter into a friendship with others? If you want to become a best friend, you say, “Oh, let’s become best friends; let’s go and have a little ceremony”. No, no, no, there’s nothing like this. Think about it.

Purposely the Bible, God Himself, uses this to teach this union. It’s something very legal, real, formal, very serious. It involves a union with a whole person, not just part of the person, you know. You can feel one with a friend, you know, just you share a hobby with your friend or maybe you share some other interests or whatever. So, you have a friend for this, you have a friend for that or maybe you have a friend who you share almost everything with, but still you say, “ta-ta, bye-bye” to them and you go back to your home, to your husband and wife only. This is simply a higher union. Whether we realize it or not. And also, I’m just trying to spit out some things about marriage, that you can apply to this union with Christ. Marriage is also something that is established once and for all, and yet we grow into it, right. Once you sign the papers, it’s done, it’s a done deal, you’re married, finished, in one sense. But in another sense, that’s when you really begin the married life, right. That’s where it all begins and that’s where from that point only, the intimacy grows, develops, the oneness actually gets consummated and all that. So, you can even apply that to the Christian life. When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, when the Holy Spirit joins us to Christ, then Christ and us, become one. It’s like the marriage is over almost or we have been engaged.

You know, the Bible sometimes one place, it says we are engaged to Christ, awaiting the consummation, in the marriage supper of the Lamb and so on, you know, in Revelation. You all have to understand, spiritually. Not physically, but spiritually. What I’m trying to say is, similar to human marriage, it’s finished. Once you become a believer, it’s already over. You are united forever with Christ. But then, that’s when you start growing in fellowship with Christ. That’s when you start growing in intimacy with Christ. I think of those, as you live the married life, you start to see qualities about the other person. More and more, you start to see the good and the bad but hopefully, you’re seeing enough of the good to make that relationship sweeter and sweeter. But like I said, there is no perfect marriage; it just doesn’t compute, right. But with Christ, it does compute because He’s perfect; He has no imperfections. So, the more you get to know Him, it will only produce a good reaction in you. Isn’t that true? The more you get to know Christ, the closer you become with Christ. The more your fellowship with Christ grows in your Christian life, you will only become more attracted to Him. You will only desire more, you will only see His beauty and glory and majesty, His perfections, His character, His goodness, His grace, His power, His purposes. You will only see it more and more and you will only fall in love more and more. Do you know what I mean? There is a growth. You are already united, but you’re growing in that union in communion.

So, there’s so many things we can say about marriage, but I hope that your Christian life reflects this. Is there a growth in fellowship with Christ? Can you say that to you have begun to see the beauty of Christ more and more? Can you say that these things are true? You see, marriage brings a lot of benefits. But the benefits are always lesser than the marriage union itself. Marriage brings a lot of benefits, like I said, being joined to Christ is like being married to the King. If you’re married to the King, imagine the benefits of that! All your needs are met. Whatever you need, you can ask the King because you’re not just in His kingdom; you’re married to the King.

So, that’s the way we need to look at our relationship today with Christ, you know. You may have needs today, you may have problems today, you may have all kinds of difficulties but don’t be sitting there by yourself, thinking, “Oh, where is Jesus when I need him?” No! He’s your husband, so to speak. Call out to Him, look to Him as your everything. Remember, He is your protector, your provider, your leader, your guide, your counsellor, your everything, your Shepherd, your Alpha and Omega; He’s your everything. He’s your husband, the great King of kings and Lord of lords is your husband. There is nothing you can’t get from Him; there is nothing He can’t do. And there is nothing that He won’t do that’s good for you; good for you and for His glory. Sometimes, we don’t understand what He does, that’s because we’re like children, compared to Him. We just don’t get it sometimes, but He’s good and He acts for your good and for God’s glory. So, look to Him as the source of your every need today. Don’t think of Him as somewhere out there. No, no, no. He’s right here with you, in you, so one with you. He’s your husband; He does everything for you, and He is everything for you and to you. The benefits are endless, that’s why I’m teaching this.

People always want something practical. This is practical and more; it’s practical plus. It is the ultimate practical. I’m not saying, you know, Christ will help you. I’m saying, you are one with Christ, you are married to the King, where everything He has is yours. You meditate on this reality, your prayer will be different, your faith will be different, your confidence will be different. So, meditate on this reality that you are married to the King, so to speak. But remember that the benefits of marriage are always lesser than the union of marriage itself, it’s always lesser. Christ gives us everything good but the greatest thing He gives us is Himself. It’s Himself. Just as in as a marriage, the greatest thing you’ll get is the spouse. You may get the land and the jewellery and other things and all that, with the spouse, but that’s not the greatest thing – the spouse – it’s the same thing, you know. Christ is your greatest gift! He is your spouse, He’s your partner, He’s one with you. So, to truly live out this reality, you’ve got to be experiencing the benefits that Christ gives, but also, you’ve got to be cultivating the fellowship you have with Jesus Christ. Are you doing both? Are you growing in your fellowship with Christ?

Alright, let’s move on to another picture, because like I said, this picture just doesn’t convey everything in this fallen world, with messed up marriages. Another picture, the picture of a head and body, right. In fact, if you look at Ephesians 5, let’s go back. I think you were in Ephesians 5 only maybe. Just go back to Ephesians 5, where he talks about marriage. He’s actually mixing two metaphors, two pictures there. One is the husband-wife union, but he brings in another picture, metaphor, and mixes it with that. Look at verse 28 onwards: So, husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh. He says, “Love your wife like your own body; don’t think of her as an outsider. Think of her as yourself, your body”, right. No one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. Now look at that. He brought the Lord and the church; it’s the picture of… You know, marriage just doesn’t compute for us sometimes. Why? Because here’s two people and no matter what we say, they become one and they still fight and they still do this and that and whatever, right. And some of the marriages break up and sometimes you see a divorce and they still end up living alone. It’s like two, remaining two, sometimes. But the Bible portrays marriage as one – the wife is your own body. And then he says, “Christ and the church are like that; He’s the head and the church is the body”, right.

Verse 30, We are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. Now, this is a deeper union. It’s one thing to say it’s like marriage, when it’s two people, even though they’re becoming one, practically, we don’t see it that much. But now, we have one person. Now, imagine, not two persons but one person. Just imagine a head and a body. There’s the picture: Christ is the head; the church is the body. We are united to Christ as the head, as the body is united to the head. You can leave your wife at home and go out; you can’t leave your head at home and go out. You just can’t do that; it’s a deeper union but in the Bible, in so many places, it talks about Jesus as the head, and the church as the body. Ephesians 1:22, you know, Colossians 1:18, I don’t have time to read the verses. He is the head of the body, the church. And so, what I’m seeing is just picture this deeper connection here. Maybe it’s possible for someone to get divorced and live without their spouse. But it’s not possible for you to live without your head. It’s a much deeper connection. That is how we are connected to Christ. It is so deep; it is so intricate. The same blood that flows in the head, flows in the body. The same wisdom of the head is available to the body. The same power the head is there for the body. Everything that is Christ, flows so freely into His body, the church.

This picture also brings the idea of all believers. It’s not just, I am united to Christ on an individual level. Christianity is not delivered in isolation, where I have my Jesus and I will just be in a room, locked up and, you know, just do my own little fellowship time with Jesus, and forget about anybody else. No, it doesn’t work that way. It’s a community. Where, because we are united with Jesus Christ, automatically, we are also united with every other believer, because we are one body in Christ. There is a oneness, vertically, between us and Jesus but also oneness, horizontally between us and other believers, where we can’t think of our differences as very big, because we are one in Christ. Everybody say, “We are one in Christ”. Amen. We are many but Christ is one. We are all put together, His body; Christ is the head. The ‘head and body’ image is a very rich image because the head is the thing that dictates. Even we know that the brain is the control centre of the body, isn’t it? The brain is the thing, that’s where activity happens basically; that’s what controls your whole body. The human organ, I’m talking about, the brain. But the older image of the head and the body is even richer. It’s that the head is everything for the body; the head does everything for the body, again. Everything that’s in Jesus, is available for you and for your benefit, and for God’s glory.

Another picture: the vine and the branches. So now, I hope you notice that this these are higher than marriage, these are more intricate than marriage. Like I said, in marriage, there’s two people, we just don’t see them, practically, becoming one. But, the vine and the branches, take that image. John 15, verse 5, I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bringeth forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. Familiar picture: “I am the vine; you are the branches”. Again, notice the connection, very deep, very intricate. A person can get divorced and live without their spouse but if it cut off the branch from the vine, the branch will die. That’s it. It cannot survive. It just cannot survive because it’s so intricately, organically connected. Its very life comes from the vine. The very life sap of the vine flows into the branch. Without that life from the vine, the branch cannot survive. Similarly, our joining with Jesus right, it may appear superficially. Look at the plant, you don’t think of much of the connections and all that, the union there. But you go close, then you see it. You study it and then you see it; it’s like that. Our union with Jesus Christ may look superficial, if you look superficially, but it’s very deep, it’s very intricate. His life sap flows into us, the branch. If you cut off this connection, that’s it. That’s why Jesus says, “Without Me you can do nothing”. The life sap flows from Him; without Him, we cannot do anything.

What does He mean, mainly “Do nothing”? He means, mainly in this place. The emphasis falls on fruit bearing. See, this whole picture, ‘vine and branches’, one of the most important things about it is fruit bearing. Why do people plant a vineyard? What is the purpose of having a vine and all that? For fruit. Without fruit, it loses meaning and purpose. You know, some trees you can plant for shade; they grow up, they give you shade. Some plants you can plant so that maybe their leaves have some medicinal properties, you know. Some trees, maybe the wood, the stem, the bark, gives something good for you. The thing with the vine is, if it does not give fruit, it is of no use. At least, that how they thought in the ancient world. If it does bear fruit, it is good for nothing, taking up empty space. The whole purpose of planting and maintaining a vineyard was simply to get that fruit. All the value is in that fruit. That’s why, Jesus, in this passage, I don’t have time to read it, but you read it, and you will see Him talking about bearing fruit again and again. From verse 1 to verse 8, He says, fruit and then more fruit and then much fruit, you know. The main purpose is fruit bearing.

What is the point? The point is, Jesus is trying to say, “If you’re connected to Me, you will bear fruit”. Simple point. What’s the point? Every true believer is connected to Jesus, as a branch is connected to the vine. If you’re connected to Jesus, you will bear fruit. Why? Because the life of Jesus will flow through you. The life sap, the power of Jesus will flow through you; the wisdom of Jesus will flow through you; the grace of Jesus will flow through you; you will bear fruit. Maybe the fruit may take time, maybe it will come out as little fruit, but it will be there. At least something will be there, some fruit will be there, and it will grow into much fruit because the Father prunes the ones that bear some fruit, so that it can bear more fruit. It’s all there in that passage. I hope you’ve read it. I’ve taught very detailed on this passage on Tuesday evenings. The point is very simple. Every true believer will end up bearing fruit, simply because they are connected to the Lord Jesus in such an intricate and organic manner. There is no two ways about it. It may take time and all that, yeah, but they will bear fruit. It’s just the way it is.

You may say, “What is fruit?” Fruit – let me just give you a quick definition of ‘fruit’ in this passage. Every good thing that is produced in us, by the life sap of Jesus; that’s fruit. Every good thing that is produced in our life, by the life sap of Jesus, flowing through us, that is fruit. What is not fruit, is what we do on our own. That’s not fruit. See, the world thinks of a fruitful life as, you know, by having a good education and a good job, whatever, a good salary, settled well, you know, a name and a reputation for yourself, live honourably. Yeah, that’s a fruitful life, according to them. Well, in the Kingdom, the fruit begins with first, are you connected to the vine, first of all? This is that fruit. If we are not connected with Jesus, then all that fruit doesn’t count. It’s not fruit, as far as God is concerned. The first question is, are you connected to the vine, because this fruit is about fruit that comes by being connected to this vine, Christ. And that’s why I say, “What is fruit?” Fruit is every good thing that the life sap from Jesus, which is flowing in you, produces in your life – Jesus’ power and wisdom and strength and everything that’s flowing in you. If it is making you do things and producing things in and through you, that is fruit. That’s why, in Galatians 5:22, it says, “The fruit of the Spirit”, because it is not fruit that I am producing. It is the fruit that the Spirit is producing in me. It’s not my fruit, it’s the fruit of the Spirit; it’s not fruit that I produce, it’s the Spirit that produces the fruit and I simply bear it. Not that I don’t have any role in it but, but the predominant role becomes God’s, you see? In this picture also, vine and branches also, it’s the life sap flowing from the vine into the branch that produces the fruit. The branch bears it; the fruit makes the branch look good, but ultimately, it makes the vine look good.

Here’s another clue, if you want to know whether there is fruit in your life, here’s another clue. One is, whatever you are producing, not by your own efforts, but by God’s enablement in your life, that is fruit. If a believer says, you know, I, myself, couldn’t do anything, you know, I was a different kind of person, but Jesus came into my life, and He changed my life and He made His power and grace and wisdom and everything available to me. He led me, He guided me, and that’s how these things have happened in my life. It seems like I’ve accomplished all of this, but it’s really not I, but the grace of God, you know; that is fruit. What you do, not by your own power, but by His power flowing through you.

Another guide for what fruit is: fruit is something that ends up glorifying, not you, but God, ultimately. If it glorifies you, it’s not fruit. Because Jesus says, in this passage, in verse 8, He says, “In this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit”. “That you bear much fruit”; If you’re bearing much fruit and the Father is glorified; that is fruit. If everything looks good, but you are glorified, the Father is not glorified, that’s not fruit. It’s as simple as that. You may say, “How do you bear fruit”? That also, Jesus tells us very simply. He says, “Abide in me”. “Abide in me”, right. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He that abides in Me, and I in him”—the same person—“bringeth forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing”. So, we produce fruit by abiding in Jesus.

Now, what does that mean, abide? That word has just carried on such great sentimentality, right. Abide in Jesus. People think of, when they hear that word sometimes, you know, just floating in the air with Jesus. Is that what it means? What does abide mean? The simple meaning of “abide”, is continue in Me, remain in Me, stay connected to Me, don’t go away from Me. He’s talking to people who have come to Him, He’s saying, “Stay with Me”. Some translations say, “Continue with Me”. Don’t be like people who come, believe, they stay for a while and then they say, “Well, what’s the use”, and then go. No. “Abide with Me”, that’s the basic meaning. If you get that wrong, all the other ‘up in the cloud’ experience of abiding is not foremost. Foremost meaning is, stay connected with Jesus.

Yeah, it’s possible that you can have different levels of abiding, I suppose but, you know, that’s not the main emphasis. I don’t think so. The point is, stay connected, because He tells us how to abide. Look at how to abide; John 15:7, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you”. How do you abide in Him? “Abide in Me, and My words abide in you”. Previously, He said, “If you abide in me and I abide in you”, now He’s saying, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you”. Basically, He’s saying, if His words abide in you, He abides in you. That’s the key. That’s the key. How do you abide in Jesus? How does Jesus abide in you? When His words abide in you. That’s why we give so much importance to the preaching of God’s Word. 

John 8:31, Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in Him, “If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples”. You are not truly My disciples, just because you come here and sit here, listening to what I’m saying. If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples. 1 John 2:24, John—the same John—clarifies there what is this “abiding in His words”. 1 John 2:24, Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. “What you heard from the beginning”. What’s he talking about? He’s talking about basic Christian truth, basic truth about who Jesus is. What you heard from the beginning about Jesus, about what He has done, about what this has done to you, about how you are now joined to Christ. You are saved; you are in Christ. This is what he means by, “Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you”. The basic truth of the Gospel of Christianity, of God’s Word. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you.

You know, why am I saying this? Because today, we are living in challenging times. People are oppressed, people have lost this and that and some people may be saying, thinking, at least, “What’s the use of following this Jesus?” You know, “What’s the use of being with this Jesus; what’s the use of worshipping this Jesus?” Because some of their relatives or some of their other people may be mocking them and saying, “You believed in your Jesus; look what He did or look what He didn’t do”. And people are wondering, you know, what’s the use? Why did Jesus allow this to happen? I want to say to those people, the Devil loves to use bad circumstances in our life, to draw us away from Christ. He’s the one feeding those thoughts. What’s the use? Might as well be better off without Christ. you know, forget about all this. No, my friend. I think today, this word is important, especially for those people. Abide in Christ, simply means, continue. Whatever you do, don’t go away from Christ. Whatever you do, just stay with Christ. Yeah, you want to question Christ, you want to spit out your anger and this or that, go ahead. The Psalmist does it. The psalmist, read the Psalms. Sometimes he just talks so rudely to God; How can you? Haven’t you heard my prayer? You allowed the wicked to prosper, you know. But he stays with God. The one thing he does not do is go away from God, like Judas or like some others.

If you read 1 John 2:19, John talks about others who were with them but then went away from them and that itself, showed that they never were abiding. Same word is used in the Greek. I don’t have time to read 1 John 2:19; you can read it on your own. Point is, I want to say to people who are facing that temptation. The one thing you should not do is go away from Christ. You question Him, you talk in anger, whatever it is, He will forgive you, I believe He’s a gracious Lord, because He will restore you. He will comfort you; He will strengthen you; He will lead you forward from no matter how low a situation you are in today. Abide in Him because if you just continue, if you just remain stuck with Him – the branch doesn’t go away, but we go away sometimes. That’s the problem, right. So, if we just remain with Christ, He will ensure that your life bears fruit. If you can just stay with Christ through it all, He will make sure. He knows how to prod you, push you, pull you, move you into doing what you need to do even. Just stay with Him, stay connected to Him, abide, remain with him.

Alright, those are the pictures, but I want to bring this to a close by saying that all these pictures, even if you put it together, they don’t fully cover the profound mystery, that is our union with Christ. This is profound; that’s what I said. You know, Paul calls it a “profound mystery”, right. We read it in Ephesians 5:32; this mystery is profound. I’m saying, it refers to Christ and the church and in Colossians 1, he says, “This mystery is hidden for ages. The glory of this mystery is Christ in you the hope of glory”. The possibilities of this are endless. If you would understand even a little bit and realize and live out of this great reality that you are one with Christ, Christ is in you, He lives in and through you, it’s not you, but Christ who lives in you, it’s His power, His wisdom, His grace, His ability that’s flowing in you. If you would realize that, your possibilities are endless. A new world will open up for you, my friend. This truth is so great.

You know, these pictures, I tried to capture its beauty, but I don’t know whether I was successful or not. In all these pictures, it’s never perfect. Not only the marriage picture, any picture. Like I said, in the marriage, people divorce, so there you go. Even if they don’t, death separates the married couple. Take the vine and the branch, like I said, if you cut it off, it dies, but you can cut it off. You can take a knife and go and cut it off. Even the head and the body, it’s so it’s so intricate. It’s one person, but even that, these bad fellows cut it off sometimes. They cut off hands and legs and do all kinds of horrible things to people, right. But the beauty about our union with Christ, it is such a union that nobody can separate the believer from Jesus Christ. Nobody can separate the believer from Jesus, and I want you to think about that. You can cut off the vine, you can even cut off a person’s body part, but you can’t, nobody can separate the believer from Jesus Christ. That is mind boggling because your union with Jesus is closer than your… Let me say like this, my union with Christ is closer than my union with my hand. It’s possible for this to be cut off but it’s never possible to be separated from the love of Christ. Just think about that.

The Bible, in fact, says that the believers die in Christ and rise again with Him. I don’t have time, maybe later on. But even death does not separate us from our union with Jesus Christ. It talks about the dead who, you know, when they will rise again. “The dead in Christ”. We are not just the dead; the dead in Christ will rise at the sound of the trumpet, and so on. What an amazing union, my friend. This is how closely, intricately, deeply, organically, vitally, powerfully we are connected. If you meditate on this reality, this is more than enough to help you, no matter what situation you are in. Amen.

Let’s stand up and let’s give thanks to God for this amazing truth. You are not alone; Christ is in you. Christ is your everything. He’s your provider, your healer, your source, your protector, your everything. Oh, His life is flowing through you, His power is flowing through you. What a great reality this. What an amazing thing this is. We can ask for nothing more or nothing higher. Let us thank God for it.