Christ in you; event or process

Let me start this slowly.
The thoughts returned just this morning whilst reading Galatians.
Part of our evangelical culture is the notion of 'inviting Christ into your heart'. When evangelising younger folk we tend to talk in terms of 'giving your heart to Jesus'.

Now, if you haven't thought about this the next statement will sound almost heretical, but the language of 'inviting Christ into the heart' or 'giving the heart to Christ' is not a biblical concept. We all know what we mean by the phrases but sometimes we have to examine the language we use to see if it is not confusing us.

There are two particular references which we may have in mind when we use this language.

[color=0066FF]My little children, for whom I labor in birth again [u]until Christ is formed in you[/u], (Galatians 4:19 NKJV)

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, [u]that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith[/u]; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:14-19 NKJV)[/color]

What is interesting in these two quotations is that in each instance ‘Christ within’ is a consequence of an earlier event. In Galatians Paul is saying that he believes that ‘Christ’ is not yet formed in those who have abandoned him for another gospel. In Ephesians Paul is saying (or praying) that the purpose of having the Spirit in the ‘inner man’ is ‘in order that’ Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith. Paul is not thinking about Christ entering the heart at an initial crisis but that the state of ‘Christ in the heart’ is the consequence of an ongoing process.

For Paul ‘Christ in You’ is not a theological statement but a description of a man’s life. He does not say ‘Christ is in you, therefore…’ Christ in you, is not his starting point. The Galatians had evidenced that something was lacking. Paul sets himself to pray until Christ is formed within them. This hardly fits with the way we evangelicals have handled the ‘Christ in you’ theme.

Christ does not live in the heart by faith as a result of someone praying the sinner’s prayer but as a result of the constant inworking of the Spirit. Christ dwells in the heart as a result of the Spirit indwelling the inner man. We use the phrase ‘if you have Christ you have the Spirit’, but the New Testament emphasis seems to be somewhat different, more on the lines of ‘if you have the Spirit Christ dwells in you’.

[color=0066FF]But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. (Romans 8:9 NKJV)[/color]

During his earthly ministry Christ was with them and not in them. He interpreted this in terms of the Spirit in John 14

[color=0066FF] “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for [u]He dwells with you and will be in you[/u]. (John 14:15-17 NKJV)[/color]

In this passage of scripture he switches easily from “He will come” to “I will come”. It seems that Christ ‘comes’ when the Spirit comes. It would seem a logical impossibility to think of ‘Christ in them’ while Christ was still with them. If this is so there was clearly something decisively different about their experience when Christ ascended and sent the Spirit. Surely this indwelling Spirit is the means whereby Christ dwells in us and is formed in us. If Christ is at the Father's right hand how else will be get to be 'in us' other than by his indwelling Spirit?

It squares much more firmly with Paul's question at Ephesus which was not 'have you received Christ?' but 'have you received the Spirit?'

...as Robert W sometimes says... "I'll go and get my helmet" :-)

God is Spirit. We must be born of the Spirit,
be filled with the Spirit, be led of the Spirit,
and walk in the Spirit. The Spirit abides and
dwells within and reveals Christ in you;
the hope of glory!!

If anyone does not have the spirit of Christ, they are lost.

I'm going to be a little provocative. Just some FYI, I don't have all this sorted out.

Two questions.

1) What do you mean "lost?"

2) When were the below people justified and when did they "receive the Spirit"? Can you be justified and not have the Spirit?

Act 8:6 And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.
Act 8:7 For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.
Act 8:8 And there was great joy in that city.

Act 8:14 Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:
Act 8:15 Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:
Act 8:16 (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)
Act 8:17 Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.

I would like you to relate the coming upon of the Spirit, the third and last manifestation of the Holy Ghost to what you have so apply presented; Jesus, of course, being the Baptizer, as John declared.

I think you are going to have to explain that to me. What is the third and what are the first and second manifestations of the Spirit?

We get HIS spirit at the new spiritual birth.

Is this right? or do we receive new birth when we receive his life? and how do we receive the life of him who is at the Father's right hand unless it is by receiving His Spirit?

This is the question I am posing. We speak so frequently of 'receiving Christ' but what biblical basis do we have for believing that a person 'receives Christ' because they pray a pattern prayer?

God is Spirit. We must be born of the Spirit,
be filled with the Spirit, be led of the Spirit,
and walk in the Spirit. The Spirit abides and
dwells within and reveals Christ in you;
the hope of glory!!

All this is true but none of it answers my original questions. My question is 'how does Christ get to be within?' The usual evangelical answer is by praying a prayer. I don't think that squares with the New Testament. The New Testament says Christ gets to be within as a result of the inward working of His Spirit. Consequently we can only receive Christ by receiving His Spirit.

philologos wrote:

We get HIS spirit at the new spiritual birth.

Is this right? or do we receive new birth when we receive his life? and how do we receive the life of him who is at the Father's right hand unless it is by receiving His Spirit?

This is the question I am posing. We speak so frequently of 'receiving Christ' but what biblical basis do we have for believing that a person 'receives Christ' because they pray a pattern prayer?

that is a very good question... i recently listend to a sermon, where tha man said that when he leads someone to Christ it will take about 5 hours. He makes them read 30-50 verses about sin, and asks questions to see if they understand. And then he makes them read as many verses about Jesus and redemption and so on, and then he asks them if they are a child of God, have they been born of the spirit, if they are not sure more scriptures, he said, he never says to anyone that they are saved, God tells us when we are. I found it also interesting that of all the people this man lead to Christ...he said only one had "fallen away"

And i also find the 3 minute call or "bow your heads" and receive Christ moment in churches to be a little superficial and not biblical.... but what would be the most "right" way to lead a person to Jesus?

When we receive Jesus Christ we are sons.

From the Bible perspective 'How do we receive Christ?'

BTW Greg has an article of mine here on Sermonindex entitled...

[url=https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/articles/index.php?view=article&aid=14601]Receiving Christ[/url]

It explains in greater detail my discomfort with the evangelical phraseology and the way most of us use it.

Ron's:

What is interesting in these two quotations is that in each instance ‘Christ within’ is a consequence of an earlier event. In Galatians Paul is saying that he believes that ‘Christ’ is not yet formed in those who have abandoned him for another gospel.

It seems to me that when folk no longer receive the Spirit- they opt for a substitute. Generally that substitute has something to do with laws or rules designed to 'hem in' the flesh and establishing a series of outward expressions of faith that counterfeit true Christianity. In short, it is a variant form of the Old Covenant.

The 'event' of receiving the Spirit did not happen- and they apparently were scrambling to get things going. But in order for the fruit of the Spirit to 'manifest' the Spirit has to be present. We never read statements like, "the fruit of the Law" or the "fruit of self- discipline", etc. It is the fruit of the SPirit of God, the evidence that He is in us working in us both to will and to do His good pleasure.

This is a quote from the article:

Sometimes the struggles of the ‘seeker’ could be alleviated by an occasional word of direction from a ‘helper’ pointing them to Christ Himself or to a word of promise. Later this spontaneous ‘help’ became more formalised in ‘counselling techniques’ which led the seeker through a prescribed list of Bible verses which brought them to the place of understanding and enabled them to pray the ‘sinner’s prayer’. It was much more efficient than spending hours in prayer, apparently.

I think one of the primary assumptions made by the minister or counselor is that the person has a good grasp of what and who they are even agreeing to or 'receiving'. Paul was at times 'long preaching' as an attempt to make sure that he had delivered all necessary for faith in Christ to become effectual. Paul's objective, so it seems to me, was not to try to 'score' a soul for God as if God were keeping score or something; but to bring the person into genuine reconciliation with God that resulted in communion with Him. He was not content to get the person to agree to some points of facts and doctrine; he was looking for that miracle of death and resurrection that takes place in a life that is truly baptised 'into' Jesus Christ.

I think this is why we read how Jesus talked about taking up their cross and following Him, etc. There was always a sense that when a person left off to follow Christ- that they left [i]all[/i] to follow him. Not their God-given responsibilities; but the things that they used to find fulfillment in. They left off from those things wherein having been born again they are now ashamed of. This is a radical transformation. And that transformation has to be the indwelling presence of Christ by the Holy Spirit that comes in when we cease to resist Him and take hold of Him with all that is within us.

Christ in you, event or process.
Heres my story.
I said the sinners prayer when I was 19.
tried to be a christian, never quit sinning but tried to.
I went to church, married a churched girl, had kids who I took to church.
I was angry, hateful, hurtful, would always confess my sins, but ultimately not be able to stop sinning, which ultimately didnt want to.
My marriage of 17 years was about to end and I was angry with God and everyone else.
I finally ended up going to an accountability group trying to fix my marriage, basically wanted to fix my wife.
I was the one who was broken!
During one meeting when everyone was giving me advice about my wife I heard the spirit of God speak to me and he said, give me your heart, follow me and I will fix your marriage.
I sat there and with just my mind in front of 6 other guys I said to God, ok God you win.
I starting to day Lord, Im going to read the bible and what ever I discover Im going to do, follow no matter what.
AT that instant I felt something like this.
I felt like warm honey hit the top of my head and spread down my neck, shoulders arms and my whole body.
Every one in the room said, hey what's going on with you. It looks like a light just came on or something with you.
I had an event, and everything in my life that God hated just dropped away from me, I started for the first time to be a true follower of Christ and I knew it. My wretchedness he took away from me.
Now as the years have gone by I realise im in a process as well, due to the fact I can look back over each year and realise im different than the year before, God is always showing me things about myself that need to change, Repent of and allow him to mold me into who he wants me to be, for him, for his glory. It's by this grace he gave me to life for him and his grace to be empowered to change for him.
I could never do it before, because I was lost and unfortunately my original church lacked the power to make me realise this, they said I was always saved. maby I could play the game, but be rest assured, unless Christ truly comes into you and changes you, you will be and are lost.
I hope this helps someone.
God Bless.

Question #2 When were they justified? When they accepted the free gift and were saved, they are justified by HIS blood and if they are justfied by HIS blood they are saved.

question # 3 When did they receive the spirit?When they confessed and accepted HIM as both Lord and savior and also acknowledging HIM as Lord and received HIS SPIRIT and became a new creation.

Can you explain the difference between these two?

Whether one receives His Spirit is all dependant upon whether when they prayed that pattern of prayer with the mouth and it was with the heart also. He knows all. Others will see a it change in their life. He also knows when it was only done with the mouth.
He also gives some insight to those who have His spirit on whether another person has His spirit or not, by their lifestle and conversation and at times knowledge and understand of His Word as they either grow or glot.

I'm not sure that you have seen my point yet. My point is that in the New Testament people received Christ by receiving the Spirit, they did not receive the Spirit as a consequence of 'receiving Christ' in the modern evangelical sense of that phrase.

We make an assumption that anyone who has Christ has the Spirit but this is the opposite to the New Testament which seems to show that anyone who receives the Spirit receives Christ.

The question lurking behind my question is 'how does a man or a woman know that they have 'received the Spirit'?

...I had an event, and everything in my life that God hated just dropped away from me, I started for the first time to be a true follower of Christ and I knew it. My wretchedness he took away from me.
Now as the years have gone by I realise im in a process as well...

Greetings bro Ron in Jesus' Name by Whose Blood we are Saved.AMEN.

you ask an interesting question and that Christ entering into a man's heart has been reduced to a formula, the sinner's prayer is quite a terrible thing i believe. i believe that Christ entering the heart of a man is not so much contingent on the man as it is on God Himself showing Mercy. The man can't call on God unless God calls him first, see John 6 for example. The point at which a man is called by God is somewhere before the setting of the foundations of the world, that is the same point at which Christ was slain for the redemption of creation when creation was a concept in the Mind of God, see Revelation chapt 13. So what shall we say then? Christ enters the heart of the man whom God has called because of the Mercy of the Father. What this Mercy then does is allow for this which we see in Acts 2:

[b]35 Until I make thy foes thy footstool. 36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. 37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? [/b] this question is the same as what you are asking to which Peter answers:

[i][b]38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. [/b][/i]

in John 6 we see the tragedy of the fallen state of man, unable to even know he is depraved and in need of Salvation except God shows him so and gives him grace to call upon the Son. That is nobody can come to the Son except the Father draws him and this results in the obedience to what Peter calls upon these men to do (namely confessing and repenting of sin) in response to being pricked in their hearts by the conviction of Holy Spirit. this is the event part.at this point, Holy Spirit begins to work in a man's life to conform him to the Image of Jesus and this is the process part.

in the end, it all rests on God and His Mercy without which we have no clue we need Salvation let alone ability to gather up what it takes to ask for it.

Grace and Peace are ours in Jesus.AMEN.

Christ enters the heart of the man whom God has called because of the Mercy of the Father.

My question is still "how?" and "at what event?"

Greetings in Jesus' Name by Ron by Whose Blood we are Saved.AMEN. (EDIT)

Greetings in Jesus' Name bro Ron by Whose Blood we are Saved.AMEN.

you said:

My question is still "how?" and "at what event?"

the "how" is by His Mercy because apart from that, no man may know he needs Salvation and that realization is necessary. The "what event" is at the time when God thought to create. in that Same moment, Christ was slain for the redemption of creation.

Now that was in eternity somewhere but on this side what happens is a realization in the physical of what GOd had Decreed in eternity. The realization of this is in a man confessing his sin, repenting and then thereafter receiving Holy Ghost as Peter said in Acts 2.

so in short the how is by the Mercy of God which was shown before creation which allows a man to confess his sin and repent. the when is somewhere in eternity but yet somewhere in the physical when a man in response to the Mercy of God cries out to Him.

Grace and Peace are ours in Jesus.AMEN.

Acts 2
Acts 2
Acts 2

it's in Acts 2 bro

the "how" is by His Mercy because apart from that, no man may know he needs Salvation and that realization is necessary. The "what event" is at the time when God thought to create. in that Same moment, Christ was slain for the redemption of creation.

Now that was in eternity somewhere but on this side what happens is a realization in the physical of what GOd had Decreed in eternity. The realization of this is in a man confessing his sin, repenting and then thereafter receiving Holy Ghost as Peter said in Acts 2.

I believe that this a legitimate view but the vast majority of evangelical Christians do not believe this. They believe that Christ begins his indwelling as the result of a prayer and that the Holy Spirit indwells at the same time. This is why we have the emphasis on 'asking Christ into your heart' which is nowhere suggested in the scripture... so far as I am aware.

Thanks Jalim.

But the truth is that He entered man in John 20.22, the first new birth experiences recorded in scripture.

There are three , only three manifestations, of the Holy Spirt. John 20.22 is the second one.... and that one is NOT the promise of the Father.

The John 14-16 themes of the Spirit necessitate his 'having gone away'. The themes of 'with' moving to 'in' are all part of his promise to send the Spirit, he having left them. This does not equate to John 20:22. John 20:22 was a unique commissioning of his apostles and not the moment of his indwelling.

just a short comment by A.B Simpson

I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you

It is a blessed moment when we are born again and a new heart is created in us after the image of God. It is a more blessed moment when, in this new heart, Christ Himself is born and Christmas time is reproduced in us as we, in some real sense, become incarnations of the living Christ. This is the deepest and holiest meaning of Christianity. It is expressed in Paul's prayer for the Galatians. My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you. There will yet be a more glorious era when we, like Him, shall be transformed and transfigured into His glory, and in the resurrection shall be, in spirit, soul and body, even as He. Let us be, under the power of the inspiring thought, incarnations of Christ, not living our life, but the Christ life, and showing forth the excellencies, not of ourselves, but of Him who hath called us out of darkness into his marvelous light. As a result our lives shall be to all the reliving of the Christ life, as He would have lived it had He been here.

And then we see this happening to them after His return:

"And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost" John 20:22 (KJV)

Is this not so?

As any "objective" reader of the scripture can see

You better watch it Philologos, they might start calling you a Calvinist.

In spite of all my protestations folks occasionally do. ;-) At the lst stock-taking I was a 1-point Calvinist and slipping.

I am not Calvinist believing strongly in Wesley's concept of Prevenient Grace. However I do believe regeneration is far more that what we see in the evangelical movement.

It is a blessed moment when we are born again and a new heart is created in us after the image of God. It is a more blessed moment when, in this new heart, Christ Himself is born and Christmas time is reproduced in us as we, in some real sense, become incarnations of the living Christ.

I appreciate this comment and especially coming from the CMA stable. I have enormous sympathy with the second blessing holiness people but I struggle to see Baptism in Spirit as subsequent to Regeneration.

philologos wrote:
but I struggle to see Baptism in Spirit as subsequent to Regeneration.

as in one and the same ?

Greetings bro Ron in Jesus' Name by Whose Blood we are Saved.AMEN.

you said:

So you are saying that Christ entered them at the event of Acts 2 in the coming of the Holy Spirit? In other words, that Christ indwells a man or a woman only by receiving the Spirit?

Yes i do. Now prior to that when He taught them and walked with them they had not received Him in this sense. However, that the 12 were all chosen by Christ (even Judas, though to a different destiny) and 11 of them stayed with Him speaks to a Foreordination of God in which Mercy is shown to whomever He will show Mercy. Christ said that those which the Father had given Him would not be lost and that they so followed HIm, even after His death and Ascension without HOly Spirit indwelling them to me is a Divine Guarantee of being indwelt later. It speaks of the Mercy of God conditioning the heart of a man to receive what God has prepared.

I believe that this a legitimate view but the vast majority of evangelical Christians do not believe this. They believe that Christ begins his indwelling as the result of a prayer and that the Holy Spirit indwells at the same time. This is why we have the emphasis on 'asking Christ into your heart' which is nowhere suggested in the scripture... so far as I am aware.

indeed many people emphasize asking Christ into your heart but the truth is many people who pray such a prayer don't change much after it. There must be a conviction of sin which precedes such a prayer if indeed that's the thing which God lays on the heart of a man to do. This conviction is of Holy Spirit and must lead a man to recognize his sins and the penalty of them so as to confess and repent. Without this there is no point in asking Christ into one's heart because there really is no reason to apart from being convicted of sin.

We have many people who claim to have Christ in their hearts but don't have the Spirit of God and it is evident. This can't be. Christ said that He is in us however this is through HOly Spirit who indwells us and whose Work it is to make us more like Christ on a day to day basis. i believe the sinner's prayer to be toothless without conviction of sin by Holy Spirit because if the heart hasn't been prepared, He can't come in and neither can Christ be formed in us.

Grace and Peace are ours in Jesus.AMEN.

I am amazed at your willingness to ignore the scriptures; to twist to make them fit your theological bent.

Goodbye.

as in one and the same ?

philologos wrote:
I do not equate regeneration with decision or the kind of thing that frequently happens in the counselling room AND I don't look for physical phenomena to prove that the Spirit has come

i dont either brother

Nevertheless I think the image of baptism is of a conscious event rather than an imperceptable merging into new life.

you are talking about "baptism" of the spirit right?

I have spent much time meditating on thease things, but do you see that the baptism, filling , whatever name one can call it, cant be two entirely separate events?

i think there is far more to this then what we would perhaps find in our average church today. Myself attend a pentecostal church who for the most part are focused on one aspect of "baptism of the spirit".

I have not myself had a "second" blessing. I seek more of HIM, i want to have thease rivers of living water flowing from my inner being. I want to be filled with the spirit, walk in the spirit , live by the spirit. I am not sure they are describing the same thing, i am not sure they are one single event taking place after salvation, or if we can get it at the same time. But i have come to this, the spirit filled life, is far more then what the average Christian has.

And do you think it would be safe to say to be spirit filled is to be Christ-like?

you are talking about "baptism" of the spirit right?

have spent much time meditating on thease things, but do you see that the baptism, filling , whatever name one can call it, cant be two entirely separate events?

Peter defended his entrance into Cornelius' home by saying...

But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning, saying: And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning. (Acts 11:4, 15 NKJV)

When he said 'the beginning' was he just thinking about the moment when the Spirit came and they spoke with tongues or was 'the beginning' a wider term? The 'event' of our redemption has several distinguishable moments in it, and I think full initiation into Christ may have several distinguishable moments in it too.

Here is a very simplistic illustration. Gen 2 tells us that there was one river in Eden which split into 4 heads. I can imagine a possible geography where to cross from East to West would necessitate a single crossing, but I can imagine geographies which would have necessitated 2, 3 or 4 separate crossings to get from East to West. A man's pilgrimage will be unique but he will know when he has crossed from East to West.

For me the initial evidence of the Spirit's coming is...

[color=0033FF]The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, (Romans 8:16 NKJV)[/color]

but when I use this language I am not talking about being counselled for 'assurance'. I think counselling for 'assurance' is the ultimate impertinance.

I want to be filled with the spirit, walk in the spirit , live by the spirit. I am not sure they are describing the same thing, i am not sure they are one single event taking place after salvation, or if we can get it at the same time.

Paul spoke this way as an exhortation to the Church at Phillipi...

Ph 3:

10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; 11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. 12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

I heard an old preacher once say that some preach about the Spirit once, some preach about the Spirit twice, but he has experienced an ongoing work of the Spirit filling him for the work that he is called to do.

This seems to be what Paul is calling us to look for in this life. Events creates the substance of what is hoped for. The process is the evidence of the things not seen.

In Christ
Jeff

in the book of acts chapter 5:32 I believe. off the top of my head here.
it says, we are witnesses of these things and so is the holy spirit whom is given to those who obey him.
I have seen people come up for a filling of the holy spirit, at the alter. obviously they are seeking something more than salvation but some empowerment, for service, giftings or what not.
I personally believe that God wants to give people more of his spirit for works of service, but quite a few will leave the alter and it seems that nothing happened, but what is probably happening is they are being dealt with by the lord and when they finally agree with him about something in their life, then it happens for them, and giving the appearance they opened their gift later on. but actually God was dealing with them the whole time.
That is why some people get the whole thing at conversion and others seem to get a second blessing, they may have some dealings with the lord to attend to.
I could be wrong, and may not stand up scripturally, we do tend to let experiences sway our interpertation of things.
My two cents.
God bless.

A man's pilgrimage will be unique but he will know when he has crossed from East to West.

yes..

Try to seek the Lord and his presence without predetermined stereotypes of what might happen

i think this is a trap for many, they search for something special. I want what those people in the book of Acts had. I want what peter got from denying the Lord to preaching at Pentecost. However God may manifest it, i believe we will know in the same way we know we are saved.

hold on until you know he has answered your heart's desire. From there there will be growth and increasing fulness and subsequent fillings. This is the event which opens the way to the process.

thank you for that advice.

The 'event' of our redemption has several distinguishable moments in it, and I think full initiation into Christ may have several distinguishable moments in it too.

Can you go through these 'moments' to supplement your article on receiving Christ?

I want what Peter got from preaching at Pentecost to 1 Peter 1:23.

I want what Paul Got from the Road, being knocked down, yelled at by Christ from Heaven in Person, being blinded, unto all His epistles, preaching only Christ and Him Crucified. Becoming the greatest advocate of Christ our Savior being birthed in us and us having a new life in Christ Jesus. 224 times in all his epistles he preaches Christ in you, and us in Christ.

This is the epitome of Jesus Christ being born again in us. New creatures in Christ, a new creation nation of Christ-ones, son's of God only completed in Christ. That is realness of This Christ in us, not just a bible verse that has no reality and no understanding of its true realness. "That is Christ in you the Hope of Glory".

Real truth: Galatians 2:16-20 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Even more, us becoming perfect: Colossians 1:25-28 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:

Also One with the Father, and Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit forever, bringing us to this great revelation of Christ in you.

By our position what we are to be doing:

Colossians 3:1-4 If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

He in us is already our only Hope of Glory, let us seek Him, which is the Kingdom of God in Heavenly Places not on this earth. We are heavenly beings already, just Christ Ones Passing through.

John 8:22-24 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come. And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world. I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

In Him, we are all that He is: Ephesians 2:2-10 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

In Christ: Phillip