Out of His unconditional love, God united the divine life of His Son to our corporate human life in the womb of Mary. Thus Christ, the God-man, qualified to be our substitute and representative. By His perfect life and sacrificial death He satisfied all the demands of the law on our behalf. In Christ, humanity has a new history which fully qualifies every believer for heaven. This is the incredible good news of the gospel.
3Part 1 / Lesson 3
The Truth As It Is In Christ
Explore Paul's central 'in Christ' theme and the new human history God created in the last Adam.
25 min study19 guided questionsProgress saved locally
“If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come.”
Begin Here
What you will explore
- 1Understand biblical solidarity in Adam and in Christ.
- 2See salvation as God's completed gift in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
- 3Recognize faith as the personal reception of that gift.
Original Lesson Introduction
Prepare for the study
When Jesus came into this world, some two thousand years ago, He came to be the Saviour of the world. It was however, the apostle Paul that God set aside to explain this good news of salvation, the gospel. When reading Paul’s writings you will find a key phrase that runs through all his epistles. If you were to remove this phrase there would be very little left of Paul’s explanation of the gospel. That phrase is “in Christ” or “in Christ Jesus.” The truth expressed by this phrase is also expressed by other similar phrases such as “in Him” or “together with Him” or “in the beloved” or “in whom,” etc. All these phrases express the same “in Christ” idea or motif (theme). This truth, stated in the phrase “in Christ,” was first introduced by Christ Himself when He told His disciples to “abide in me.” These are the undergirding words of the gospel. If we do not understand what the New Testament means by this expression “in Christ,” we will never be able to fully understand the good news of the gospel. There is nothing we have as Christians except we have it in Christ. Outside of Him we have nothing but sin, condemnation, and death.
The concept of “in Christ” is however, difficult to understand. Just as “you must be born again” was beyond Nicodemus, one of the top religious leaders of the Jews, the phrase “in Christ” is likewise a difficult idea for us to comprehend. This is especially true of the Western mind. How can I, as an individual, be in someone else? Worse still, how can I, born in the Twentieth Century, be in Christ who lived almost 2,000 years ago? This makes absolutely no sense to our Western way of thinking. Because we cannot fathom this truth, we tend to ignore or skim over it. Yet appreciating the good news of the gospel hinges on our understanding these vital two words, “in Christ.”
The “in Christ” concept is based on Biblical solidarity, the idea that all men constitute or share a common life. This is what we touched on in our first lesson, the sin problem. Therefore, if we are to come to grips with this phrase “in Christ,” we must first understand what the Bible has to say about solidarity or corporate oneness. In Hebrews 7:7-10, Levi paid tithes to Melchizedek “in Abraham” since he was in the loins of his great grandfather Abraham when he paid tithe to Melchizedek. This is based on Biblical solidarity.
According to Scripture, three fundamental facts are revealed:
It is this last fact that constitutes the good news of the gospel and gives us everlasting hope. As you study God’s Word regarding the “in Christ” motif or idea may your eyes be opened to the matchless charms of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Step 1 / Read the lesson
Study the teaching
Read the lesson material and cited passages first. The questions and saved responses follow in the next step.
Study 1
The Two Representatives
The first Adam passed on a condemned life; Christ, the last Adam, became humanity's new representative and Savior.
The man who brought death to humanity is Adam and the man who brought life to humanity is Christ. Today, science is trying to find a solution to the death problem but they cannot because the only solution is Christ.
Because the first Adam (mankind) sinned and brought death to all mankind, God sent His Son as the last or second Adam (mankind) to redeem men from that death sentence. Christ is our only hope of eternal life (see 1 John 5:11,12).
a
Because we were in Adam, his one sin made us all sinners (verse 19). While God does not blame us, or hold us responsible or guilty for Adam’s sin, nevertheless, because we were in Adam when he sinned, we share his condemnation to death.
b
Just as all die because all have sinned in Adam, so also, all have obeyed in Christ and stand justified to life in Him. Please notice that what God has brought to the whole human race by Christ’s obedience is a “free gift” and like any other gift, we cannot enjoy it until we receive it (verse 17). What is ours in Adam is ours by inheritance; what is ours in Christ is a gift from God, for “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life.”
Study 2
A Completed Gift
God planned salvation before creation and accomplished it objectively in Christ for humanity.
Before we were even created in Adam, God, who knew beforehand that Adam would sin, had already planned our salvation in Christ. According to verse 5, God predestined our adoption to be His sons and daughters by uniting us to Christ. He did this, not because we were good or deserved it, but because of His unconditional love for us. The moment you accept Christ as your Saviour, God looks at you as if you are His son or daughter, “accepted in the Beloved” (Christ ,verse 6).
These three facts are what God has accomplished in Christ for all men and women. Together, they constitute the good news of the gospel: salvation full and complete for sinful humankind. However, for these facts to become ours individually, there must be a human response.
Salvation comes as a result of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and is made effective through faith; this grace is the supreme gift of God to mankind. The fruit of receiving this grace is good works (see verse 10).
a
By nature, as well as by performance, we are sinners and deserve death since all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
b
Please note that while death is wages we earn, eternal life is entirely a free gift that comes through the holy history of Christ and which we have not earned or deserved. That’s why the Bible tells us that we are saved by grace alone.
The whole world is trying to escape from the “grim reaper.” No one wants to die, but there is only one Source of the life that never ends — Jesus Christ.
Please do not refuse this incredible gift. If you refuse it you will not have this eternal life, no matter how many good works you have performed. If you accept Jesus as your only source of salvation and life, the eternal life God offers you in Christ is guaranteed.
Study 3
Receiving Life in Christ
The gospel is complete in Christ, but love never forces the gift; it is personally enjoyed through faith.
Those who believe in the Son of God may know that they have eternal life.
God looks at every one who believes in Jesus Christ as His child. If you believe in His name you have already received life, even though you may not feel it or think you deserve it.
We pass from death to life by accepting the gift of God, Jesus Christ, and not by the works of the law. However, to those who are justified by faith in Christ, the law becomes the standard of Christian living (see Galatians 5:13,14).
The word “end” means something completed or terminated. Paul tells us in this verse that, by faith, Christ’s perfect obedience to the law becomes ours. In His earthly mission, Christ met both the positive demands of the law as well as its justice. Thus, He terminated legalism (salvation by our own attempts to keep the law).
Read also verses 18-21. On the cross, God heaped all the sins of the world on His Son Jesus Christ. Thus, by His death humanity has been redeemed from sin. Then, in exchange, God gave humanity the life of His Son in the resurrection. When you accept Jesus by faith as your personal Saviour, you pass from death to life.
He abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
The gospel calls people to believe and be baptized into Christ.
From the original lesson
Do you believe that Christ has redeemed you? If yes, check here:
Step 2 / Questions and answers
Respond to the study
Read each passage, write your response, then reveal the lesson answer or source note to compare what you found.
Question set 1
The Two Representatives
1
In whom did God place us to save humanity?
2
Who are connected with our death and resurrection?
3
What were the first and last Adam made to be?
4
What passed to all through one man's offense?
a
5
What passed to all through one Man's righteous act?
b
Question set 2
A Completed Gift
6
When did God plan redemption in Christ?
7
What three things did God do while we were dead in sin?
8
How do we experience salvation?
9
What are the wages of sin?
a
10
What is God's gift in Christ?
b
11
What gift has God given in His Son?
12
What are the two possible responses to this gift?
Question set 3
Receiving Life in Christ
13
What assurance is given to believers?
14
What do believers become?
15
What results from hearing and believing?
16
What is Christ to everyone who believes?
17
What happens when Christ's righteousness is received?
18
What did Christ accomplish through death and resurrection?
19
What response accompanies salvation?
Step 3 / Personal reflection
Reflect and respond
Do you accept that God placed humanity in Christ and that His perfect life and sacrificial death provide a new history of justification and life for you?
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