We need to remind ourselves of all that we enjoy as Christians because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ over two thousand years ago. We will outline seven important facts about our identification. This month we will look at the first three facts.
We need to daily consider the great significance of His death, burial and resurrection. We need to identify with Christ and His cross.
By Identification we mean that God identified us with Christ in His redemptive work (death, burial, and resurrection). Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary says to identify means to make identical, to consider or treat as the same.
God considered us to have died with Christ, to have been buried and raised with Him. This identification of us with Christ is based on two facts:
1) Jesus was our Substitute. He acted in our place so that we were accredited with what He did.
- The scripture tells us that God puts his love for us beyond all doubt by the fact that Christ died on our behalf while we were still sinners. Rom. 5:8 (20th Century NT).
- What Jesus did was set down to our account, since it was done for us (on our behalf).
2) Jesus became exactly what we were in spirit, so that God viewed Him as being us. He was treated as though He were us. We were identified with Him.
- 2 Cor. 5:21 - For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Moreover, we need to understand seven important facts about our identification that are clearly outlined in the New Testament.
1) We were crucified with Christ.
- Gal. 2:20 - I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
- When Jesus was crucified over two thousand years ago, in God’s mind we were with Him being crucified on that cross. Jesus was not deserving of that punishment. He was punished for us.
2) We died with Christ.
- Rom. 6:8 - Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him
- - Again we need to understand that when Jesus died we died with Him. In God’s viewpoint we who are born again, (i.e., that is accepted Jesus’ sacrifice), were with Jesus at the time of His Death on the earth.
3) We were bured with Christ.
- Rom. 6:4 - Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the
Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. - So we see that we were also buried with Him. This is all possible in the spirit because there is no time nor distance in that realm.
- Our minds may have a problem accepting these truths. However, the Bible is very clear on these facts therefore we must receive them by faith.
These wonderful truths are for all children of God to enjoy. As we reflect on these realities we see the awesome things God has done for us through His son. It keeps us fixed on the commission to tell others of this wonderful news.
As with every month, say the following with great confidence in our God...“I’m believing to be at the Right Place, at the Right Time saying the Right Thing and the right thing to say is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”