Identification

The words "in Christ'' are used many times throughout the New Testament. It is important that we understand the significance of this term.

Jesus became totally identified with what we were, so that we could share in what He is. He became the Son of man, so that we could become the sons of God. He tasted of the very depths of the human condition so that He could lift us up to be seated with Him in heavenly places.

JESUS WAS IDENTIFIED WITH OUR . . .

HUMANITY

"For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man" Romans 8:3 (see also Philippians 2:5-8).

Jesus became a man in every sense of the word. He experienced all our emotions and human limitations, yet without sin.

EXPERIENCE

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin" Hebrews 4: 15.

Jesus was fully identified with our human experiences. He did not live an isolated life, but faced life as it is - and overcame on every point. He experienced temptation on every level, yet remained sinless. He constantly encountered the enemy and always was victorious over him (read Luke 4:1-14). He faced storms, angry mobs, disappointments and apparent failure, but always maintained a sense of victory, overcoming each and every situation he came across (read Luke 4:28-30; 8:22-25; 19:41-44; 23:33-43).

SIN

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us . . . " 2 Corinthians 5:21.

Having lived a perfect, sinless life, He then offered Himself to God as an offering for our sin (Hebrews 9:14). In so doing, He became sin for us. His sinless spirit was "immersed" in the sin of humanity, "spiritual death" enveloped Him, and His own Father turned away from the sin that rested upon Him (Matthew 27:46).

JUDGMENT

"And the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? - which means, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me' " Matthew 27:46.

As the sin of mankind came upon Him it had its awful effect, cutting off the eternal Son of God from the presence of His Father which He had enjoyed from all eternity.

"Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption' ' Acts 2: 27 ( KJV) .

He descended into Hell where He suffered the wrath of God's righteousness against the sin of mankind until the debt of all men had been paid in full (see Ephesians 4:8-9).

WE ARE IDENTIFIED WITH JESUS IN HIS . . .

DEATH

"For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be rendered powerless, that we should no longer be slaves to sin - because anyone who has died has been freed from sin" Romans 20 6:6-7.

We are identified with Christ in His death. In other words, when we receive Jesus as Saviour and Lord, God looks upon His death to sin as being our death to sin. He was representing us on the Cross. We die to the kingdom of darkness, so that we might be born again into the kingdom of God (Colossians 1:1-3).

The Judge of all the earth accepts the fact that "in Christ" we are dead to the old life and that it no longer exists. In God's Book of Life (Revelation 20:12,15), the Christian has no history going back before his salvation.

BURIAL

"We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life" Romans 6:4.

Our old sinful nature is buried with Christ, never to be resurrected. In God's eyes, when they took the Lord Jesus down from the Cross and laid Him in the tomb, we were laid in that tomb in Him. When we go down into the waters of baptism, this is our burial service, identifying ourselves by faith with Jesus' burial, and accepting this fact as our own experience. Only one who is already dead is buried.

SUFFERING

"He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied . . . '' Isaiah 53:11KJV) (see also verses 3-4).

Jesus' suffering on the Cross and in the grave was acceptable to God as fulfilling all the demands of justice that were against us. God accounts Jesus' suffering as being our suffering, and we have no further debt to pay.

RESURRECTION

"If we have been united with him in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection" Romans (see also verses 8-1 1 ).

Having broken the power of sin, He confronted Satan in combat, conquered him and rose triumphant from the dead (read Colossians 2:1 4-1 5). When Jesus rose, triumphant over Satan, death and the grave, we rose in Him (Colossians 2:1 2-1 4). He rose totally free from the taint of sin and death as though He had never taken our sin upon Him. In the same way, when we are born again, we are as free from the taint of sin as if sin had never been.

ASCENSION

After His resurrection Jesus ascended into heaven to be seated on the right hand of His Father's Throne (see Ephesians 1: 19-2 3). We were ''in Christ" in His ascension.

"And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus" Ephesians 2:6.

God sees us seated on the throne IN CHRIST. From our position of authority and victory, we can fearlessly take our place, letting the devil know we are in Christ, and truty reign in life through our Lord Jesus Christ.

"For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more with those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ" Romans 5:1 7

All that Jesus has done, He has done as our representative. In God's sight, His victory over Satan is our victory; His triumph over sin is our triumph. As He became identified with us in our degradation, so we are now identified with Him in His glory.

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