"Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." - (Colossians 1:28, NKJV).
Do you not feel in your own soul that perfection is not in you?
Does not every day teach you that?
Every tear which trickles from your eye, weeps “imperfection.”
Every harsh word which proceeds from your lip, mutters “imperfection”…
But amidst this sad consciousness of imperfection, here is comfort for you - you are “perfect in Christ Jesus.”
In God’s sight, you are “complete in Him;”even now you are “accepted in the Beloved.”
You are perfect in Christ Jesus.
But there is a second perfection, yet to be realised, which is sure…
Is it not delightful to look forward to the time when every stain of sin shall be removed from the believer, and he shall be presented faultless before the throne, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing?
The Church of Christ then will be so pure, that not even the eye of Omniscience will see a spot or blemish in her.
Then shall we know, and taste, and feel the happiness of this vast but short sentence, “Complete in Christ.”
Not till then shall we fully comprehend the heights and depths of the salvation of Jesus.
Does not your heart leap for joy at the thought of it?
"Christ takes a worm and transforms it into an angel, matchless in His glory and peerless in His beauty." – Charles Spurgeon
Reflection:
I’m sure you don’t feel perfect.
How a Christian sees their own life is never how God sees it.
Dr Eliezer Gonzalez
Dr Eliezer Gonzalez is simply passionate about the gospel. With a background in teaching and management, the Lord called him to the gospel ministry and set him on an academic path. As a result, Eliezer earned two Master’s degrees (in Theology and Early Christian History), and then a PhD in Early Christian History. The Word Spreads Fast, and so do we. Good News Unlimited is led by Eliezer Gonzalez, who communicates the gospel of Jesus Christ with passion and conviction.
"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father" - Ephesians 3:14 (NASB)
At the start of the third chapter of Ephesians, Paul was about to kneel before the Lord and earnestly pray for the Christians in Ephesus, that according to God's riches in glory, they would be strengthened in the inner man with all might, through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
Paul's desire was that Christ would dwell in their hearts through faith, and that each one might be rooted and grounded in love:
"So that they may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width, and length, and depth, and height of God's amazing love, and to know the super-abounding love of Christ which passes all understanding."
Inspired by the Holy Ghost, Paul's prayer for all believers was that they might be filled with all the fullness of God, to His praise and glory.
But at the start of this third chapter of Ephesians, just as Paul was about to explain the reason that he was bowed in prayer before the Father, his thoughts were interrupted, and a parenthetical passage was inserted.
- that Gentiles should be brought into God's family and be made fellow heirs with Christ;
- that Jew and Gentile alike might become part of the same Body and be made partakers of God's promise in Christ through believing the glorious gospel of God.
And so, we read in this verse:
"For this reason I bow my knee before the Father."
To discover the reason that Paul bowed his knee before the Father, causing him to pray one of the most beautiful prayers for the Body of Christ, we need to revisit his thoughts throughout chapters 1 and 2.
For two whole chapters, Paul had outlined in brilliant detail our position in Christ, and the superabundant spiritual blessings we have in heavenly places, which are the inherited right of all who trust in Christ for salvation.
He details the righteousness with which we are covered; he proclaims our position in Christ, where we are seated with Him in heavenly places; and He explains our divine election and adoption as sons.
He further details our complete and unconditional acceptance by God because
- we are positioned in Christ by faith, and
- he rejoices in the hope of our calling,
- the riches of His inheritance in the saints, and
He reminds us of the depths of depravity from which we have been saved, and the heights of ecstasy to which we have risen.
For this reason, Paul bows the knee to the Father.
Paul knows what is ours in Christ, and his prayer is that we appropriate all that is ours by faith.
He does not want us to go through life thinking that we have to add something to Christ's finished work in order to be acceptable by the Father, or that we have to wait to receive these amazing spiritual blessings.
Paul wants us to stand fast on the truth of God's Word and know that our salvation does not depend on us and what we do, but that it depends on Christ and all that HE did at Calvary.
For this reason, Paul bows his knee in prayer before the Father.
May we not only know and appropriate all that is ours in Christ Jesus as recorded in those first few chapters of Ephesians and other beautiful passages, but may we also bow our knees in prayer that the one new man in Christ may appropriate all that is ours in Him.
And may we share this good news with others so that they too will come to know Christ as Saviour, and that their salvation does not depend on what they do but on what Christ has already done.
My Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word and the amazing truths that it contains.
Help me to put away all thoughts that I have to add something to the finished work of Christ, and may I appropriate all that is mine in Him.
Give me the opportunity to share this wonderful truth of salvation by grace through faith in Christ with others and may many come to faith in Him today and in the days that lie ahead.
In Jesus' name,
AMEN.
"Knowing Jesus" is a ministry aiming at edifying the body of Christ through doctrinal sound teaching.
If this page is unmanned ... then the most likely explanation is the rapture has happened. The rapture of the church is the "catching up" of the church taught in 1 Thessalonian 4:13-18. All people who have trusted Christ are taken to be with Jesus. No one knows the date when this will be.
If the rapture has happened it is not too late for you. Put your trust in Jesus Christ work on the cross. He died for sin and rose again. Believe this and have your sin forgiven, and be saved.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” - (Ephesians 1:3)
This little phrase, “in Christ,” conveys a world of doctrinal truth with great blessing to the believer.
Positionally speaking, God has actually “raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6).
- “chosen ... in God in effect sees us as“in Christ,”and this wonderful position at God’s right hand implies great honor.
It is well to note similar phrases throughout Scripture.
Paul assures us that we were him before the foundation of the world” (Ephesians1:4)
- “accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians1:6), and
- “created in Christ Jesus unto good works” (Ephesians2:10).
He is the one
- “in whom also we have obtained an inheritance” (Ephesians1:11) and
- “in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:22).
We have the glorious future promise that God will - “gather together in one all things in Christ” (Ephesians1:10)
- “according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places” (Ephesians1:19-20).
Therefore, in our exalted position in Him, in the heavenly places, we do indeed enjoy “all spiritual blessings.”
This doctrinal truth provides us with the incentive and power to live a practical Christian life that is genuinely consistent with our high calling and position in Him.
This is the basis of the many New Testament exhortations to the believer to live daily “in Christ.”
For example, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him” (Colossians 2:6).
Therefore, since “ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God ... For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:1-3).
A hymn on the life, death and resurrection of Christ
Jesus Christ illustration, Christian cross Drawing Crucifixion of ...In Christ alone was actually the first song Keith Getty and I wrote together. We had been introduced by a mutual friend at a worship conference, where we had a coffee together and talked about our backgrounds, musical influences, and motivations to write. Keith promised he would send me a CD with a bunch of melodies he’d been working on, and to be honest I thought no more about it.
Then a few days later the CD arrived. And the first melody on it really hit me – it was tuneful and memorable, and yet had gravitas and real emotion. And I began to feel the pressure to write lyrics that were of a comparable standard!
The only thing I could think was to base it on the eternal theme of the life, death and resurrection of Christ. The verses came in a fairly linear way, but as the third verse developed, I was getting pretty excited as I thought about the amazing implications of Christ’s finished work on the cross. I wanted to write a fourth verse that was about us – but not just as an emotional response, but as a undeniable statement of the power of Christ to sustain us in this life.
Keith and I are overwhelmed with the response this song has had, and we are just grateful to God that He should use it to build up His church in this way.
In Christ Alone by Marty Nystrom : Napster"In Christ Alone" is a popular modern Christian song written by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend, both songwriters of Christian hymns and contemporary worship music in the United Kingdom. The song, with a strong Irish melody, is the first hymn they penned together. The music was by Getty and the original lyrics by Townend. It was composed in 2001.
"In Christ Alone" is considered a Christian credal song for belief in Jesus Christ. The theme of the song is the life, death and resurrection of Christ, and that he is God whom even death cannot hold.
The song is commonly known as "In Christ Alone (My Hope Is Found)" and "In Christ Alone (I Stand)" taking verses from the song. It has become very popular and has been the subject of many cover versions[4] and many language translations.
The Getty/Townend song should not be confused with the similarly titled song "In Christ Alone" co-written by Don Koch and Shawn Craig, originally recorded by Michael English on his self-titled debut solo album Michael English, and many others.
The song was composed in 2001 and gained increased popularity first in Ireland and the UK and then in the United States and internationally. In 2002, Stuart Townend, the lyricist of the song, recorded it on his own album Lord of Every Heart By 2005, it had been named by a BBC Songs of Praise survey as the ninth best-loved hymn of all time in the UK; By 2006, it rose to the No. 1 position on the United Kingdom CCLI (Christian Copyright Licensing International) charts. "In Christ Alone" appeared on CCLI's "Top 25 CCLI Songs" American songs list for the first time in the February 2008 report although it had appeared in the CCLI chart for Canada, Australia and New Zealand prior to that.
In 2008, the song was included in the release of Christian Worship: Supplement for the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS). In 2015, the song was listed among the "Fifty Favorite Hymns" in a WELS survey.
In 2010, Owl City's Adam Young recorded a version and offered it through his blog. About the song, he wrote: "I'm twenty-four years old, yet something about this song makes me bawl like a baby. The way the melodies and lyrics swirl together is so poignant and beautiful. If I were to count on one hand, the number of songs that have ever deeply moved me, this one would take the cake. Last night I probably spent more time actually crying at the piano than I did recording it. Such are the secret confessions of a shy boy from Minnesota".
In 2013, the song was sung at the enthronement of Justin Welby as Archbishop of Canterbury. Also in this year, a new bridge section was added to the song by Kristian Stanfill and included in the live Passion: Let the Future Begin recording.
In 2015, Julien Baker played a portion of the piano melody from In Christ Alone at the end of "Go Home" on her album Sprained Ankle. Baker later said about the song: "It holds a lot of memories for me—being young in church, and the lyrics hold a lot of meaning when you analyze them."
"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." - Galatians 2:20 English Standard Version
This much-loved verse is quoted, printed, and repeated often, most especially the first half of this statement.
This is also Paul's grandest declaration yet about what exactly happens when someone is saved or justified by placing their faith in Christ.
In a very real sense, Paul's argument is that we become so closely attached to Him that we die with Him and He begins to live in us.
Paul has been emphasizing that faith, and faith alone, is what saves us — adding any requirement of good deeds or rituals is contrary to the gospel (Galatians 1:8–9; 2:16).
Christ was crucified for our sin.
By faith, we trust that His death paid for our own personal sin.
In that way, we are crucified with Him, our sin with him on the cross.
That sinful "us" dies, replaced by the resurrected Christ "in us."
We continue to live in the flesh, of course, but our lives are now directed not by our sinful selves but by our faith in Christ.
Paul expands on this great truth powerfully in Romans 6:1–6.
For the first time, Paul mentions Jesus' motive for giving Himself for us: love.
Christ died for us because He loves us.
Unlike the unyielding system of the law, Christ is a person motivated by His love and concern for us.
Context Summary
Galatians 2:15–21 contains Paul's grand statements about the difference between faith in Christ and following the law.
Nobody can be justified in God's eyes by the works of the law, but only by faith in Christ.
To believe in Christ is to be crucified with Him and to have Him replace your sinful self in you.
Paul now lives by faith in the Son of God.
More, Jesus gave himself for Paul's sin because He loved him.
To say that a person can be made righteous by the law is to say that Jesus died for nothing.
Paul holds a crucial meeting with the other apostles.
Do they preach, as he does, that salvation can only be found through faith in Christ and not by following the law?
He learns that they do, though ''false brothers'' in their midst are opposed to this gospel of God's grace.
After receiving official approval from Peter and the others, Paul later opposes Peter for publicly trying to distance himself from Gentile Christians out of fear of how others might respond.
Paul declares that justification comes only through faith in Christ and not by the works of the law.
"... who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" - (Romans 8:4b).
This verse points to the two realms in which we live while on this earth.
We live simultaneously in the realm of the flesh and the realm of the Spirit.
We do not live according to the flesh, but instead according to the Spirit.
The result for those who have been justified, though they may still be in the flesh, is that they will not live according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
This is the result and not the condition of the “righteous requirement of the law” being “fully met in us” (verse 4a).
We do not live according to the flesh because we died to it in our spiritual union with Christ at the Cross.
Also, we have been spiritually raised up with Christ and are now “in Christ” so that we are now alive to God.
Elsewhere, Paul expresses it like this:
"… you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God" - (Colossians 3:3).
We do not live according to the flesh, but instead according to the Spirit.
To the churches in Galatia, Paul writes:
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
"The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" - (Galatians 2:20.)
It is the Cross that makes all the difference.
Spiritual Application
Through the Cross, you died to your life of sin, and your life today is hidden with Christ in God.
Think that through. What does that mean to you?
Dr Eliezer Gonzalez
Dr Eliezer Gonzalez is simply passionate about the gospel. With a background in teaching and management, the Lord called him to the gospel ministry and set him on an academic path. As a result, Eliezer earned two Master’s degrees (in Theology and Early Christian History), and then a PhD in Early Christian History. The Word Spreads Fast, and so do we. Good News Unlimited is led by Eliezer Gonzalez, who communicates the gospel of Jesus Christ with passion and conviction.
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
"The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” - (Galatians 2:20)
Several places in the Bible speak of being crucified with Christ or having died with Christ: for example, Colossians 2:20; 3:3; and 2 Timothy 2:11.
An extended discussion on the subject is found in Romans 6:3–14.
Since no believer was literally crucified with Christ, the phrase crucified with Christ is symbolic for a spiritual truth.
Galatians 2:20 is a key passage:
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
"The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
The context of Galatians 2 is how the believer is made right with God.
False teachers were telling the Galatian churches that faith in Christ was not enough.
To be saved, they said, believers must also be circumcised and become “Jewish.” Only then would they be wholly right with God.
In Galatians 2:15–16 Paul counters that idea:
“We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.
"So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.”
Paul says, “Through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God” - (Galatians 2:19).
While Paul was trying to please God by keeping the Law, he was not really living for God.
The more he tried to keep the Law, the more he saw how much he failed.
It was only when he gave up trying to achieve righteousness on his own and accepted the righteousness of God by faith in Christ that he truly began living for God.
Justification by faith actually makes it possible to live for God.
Being crucified with Christ means that we are no longer under the penalty of the Law. That penalty was paid by Christ on our behalf.
When Christ was crucified, it was as if we were crucified with Him. The penalty was fully paid — just as surely as if we had been crucified for our own sins.
When Christ rose from the dead, we rose, too. Now the risen Christ empowers us to live for Him in a way that pleases God.
We used to seek life through our own works, but now we “live by faith in the Son of God” (Galatians 2:20).
Being crucified with Christ means that we are new creations.
“If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” - (2 Corinthians 5:17).
The old life is dead and gone. We walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).
Being crucified with Christ means that we have a new love.
The lusts of the flesh and the love of the things of this world have been crucified (Galatians 5:24).
Now we love Christ, though we have not seen Him (1 Peter 1:8).
Being crucified with Christ means that we have a new commitment.
We are dedicated to the service and glory of the Lord, and that dedication destroys selfishness and surpasses ties to family and friends.
We have taken up our cross to follow Him (Matthew 10:38).
Being crucified with Christ means that we have a new way of life.
At one time we“followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient” - (Ephesians 2:2).
But that way of life was nailed to the cross.
Now we follow Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, and we seek to please Him in every way (Hebrews 12:2).
The idea of being crucified with Christ emphasizes our union with Him and His death on our behalf.
We trust in Christ’s crucifixion as payment for our sin penalty, and we rely on His power to live in a way that pleases God.
The emphasis is on what He has done for us, not what we have to do for God.
Too often, “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is Christ who lives in me” becomes “I need to crucify my sinful desires and try harder to live for God.”
When this becomes our perspective, we have slipped out of grace-living and back into law-living, and we minimize the power of Christ’s death for us.
We are relying less upon the power of Christ and more upon our own power — and that will never work out well!
In short, Galatians 2:20 tells us how we escaped the penalty of sin to live a life that pleases God.
Knowing that we are “crucified with Christ” should give us great encouragement in our Christian walk.
We have the power to say “no” to sin and “yes” to God.
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Got Questions Ministries is an internet based ministry whose mission is to glorify God and reach people for Christ by providing biblical answers to spiritually-related questions.
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"Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." - (Colossians 1:28, NKJV).
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