Scripture: "When Christ, who is our life, shall be manifested, then shall ye also with Him be manifested in glory."—COL. iii. 4.
After Adam had sinned, and brought death upon himself and his descendants, God gave the promise that a man born of woman should conquer the power of Satan and Sin. This Man, who was the Son of God, the Bible calls the Second Adam— "Adam, who is the figure of Him that was to come" (Rom. v. 14). The second Adam was in every respect to be like the first.
Adam not only brought the curse of sin and death upon his descendants, but actually bequeathed to them a life which was the cause of their being wholly dominated by evil. In this way, the old sinful nature of Adam survived in his descendants. The old nature lived in them and held sway. Likewise Christ by His death not only delivered us from the power of sin and death, but He Himself lives in each of His redeemed ones and is their life.
We are too apt to think of Christ as in Heaven, and from there living for and through us; but the last night He was on earth He taught that as His Father lived and worked in Him here on earth, even so would He dwell in us and work in us. The full Gospel is contained in these words: "Christ is our life." "Christ lives in me." "Know ye not that Jesus Christ is in you?"
Many Christians forget this. They believe Christ died on the cross for them, and lives in Heaven for them, but hardly that Christ is in them. The powerlessness of the Church is mainly due to this. We do not realize that the Almighty Christ dwells in us. We must know and experience and testify to this great truth if there is to be a real and lasting revival in the Church of Christ. Then we shall know what it means to give ourselves wholly to Christ, always to abide in fellowship with Him, that His work may be accomplished through us. "Christ liveth in me, To me to live is Christ."
