You In Christ and Christ In You Courtney Hemenway ยท Apr 5, 2009 You in Christ & Christ in You, No. 14 Holly Hills Bible Church https://hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/4926129167536 Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word. We got to question four, that we were ending in question four. Did we get through the answer on four? No. No, I think we got to three. We got to three, right? And then we were, oh, thank you. This is lesson 12. And this is John 17, 21 through 26. And we just began, I think we, if I recall, we just started or got through question three, that's right, about glory. What is Christ given to us that was given to him by the Father, and that was glory. You know, also, a couple came up, Joanne, afterwards, the sanctification, I didn't forget that. You brought a great point afterwards. Is sanctification a single event? It happens, it's done? Or does it happen continuously? Does it happen in the past? Did it happen in the past? Does it happen right now? Will it happen in the future? Yeah. Great point. It's like we say, what is sanctification? It's set apart. And it sounds like That's it. Set apart. We're done. So what's the past sanctification that we have? Position. And that position is set apart in Christ. What is the current or present sanctification? Progressive. Oh, that's a political term. Don't get me started on that. That outcome is not good. That's not the term that I read. You may have a better one. Any others besides the political term that gets me on tangents? What's happening now? How are we being set apart now? You don't know what's happening to you right now. You got the past figured out, but what's going on right now? You're clueless, right? It's the spiritual growth from making your condition conforming to you. That's what I was going to go to. Conforming to the image of Christ. That's our maturing, our conforming to the image of Christ. And what is the future? Sanctification. Yahoo. Yahtzee. Shirk these shells and we're home. We'll be set apart, get rid of the sin nature and this, and we'll be set apart forever, eternally, to rule and reign with Him. Okay, so let's go on here. Let's go to question 4, lesson 12. What is the glory that He bestowed on us? And I'll go back to that. And verse 22, the glory which you have given me, I have given to them. So you're a recipient of this. What did you receive? It came with a big bow on it, wrapped up. You're waiting to open it. Now, what is it? What is the glory? See, you've all received this and you don't know what you've got. You received glory. What is it? You've become sons of God. Yeah, and positionally, we have that position and then conditionally, do we have the glory? As you conform. But isn't glory defined as the essence and attributes of God? Yeah, look at a couple of verses. John 1.14, I can read it to you, but if you want to follow along. John 1.14, And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. Kind of explains a little bit. And we just saw that in John 17, 5. Now, Father, glorify me together with yourself with the glory which I had with you before the world was. Okay? So does that give you a little more insight? What is this glory? Yeah? Well, I guess as you read through all these verses, he keeps hitting on things like that they will be her Father I desire they also whom you gave me may be with me where I am to behold my glory and I've declared to them your name and will declare that the love which you love me may be in them. It's this completion and being in Him and everything that he has benefited from being a son, we are in that. Yeah. That's incredible. Yeah, I think, you know, it's our life, you know, I just go back to our life, it's his life. So everything that he has is now ours. So he's bestowed this glory. And it's a glory as in the past, from eternity past. What was the eternity past glory? The father and the son together. in a relationship that we've seen in John 17, which is very intimate. This intimate relationship and all the some attributes of them together in an intimate relationship. That glory. That's the glory. Do you realize what he just said? What did he just give you? That same thing. You know, I go to my patented statement Do you believe that? Do you believe that? If you do, it's life-changing. Do you believe you have this glory that the Father and the Son shared from eternity past? You have now entered into that relationship. Do you believe that? It's life-changing when you think about that. You now have a relationship with the God of the universe. As I was saying last week, the differences in the garden versus what we have and now what we have, we have a relationship that is infinitely better than what Adam had with God in the garden. It is a relationship as intimate as we see all through. That's why I love John 17. It just explains this intimacy between them. And then he says, guess what? I've given that to you. And from the identification standpoint, if we have been identified with him, he's the firstborn of new creation, we are the new creation. Yeah, we're all having a similar relationship. So that glory, that whole essence of who they are, now we share. That's unbelievable. But it's believable. So, like I said, when you think about it, he just said he gave that to us. He's given us the glory. In Zodiaty, the Greek word is doxa, for glory, and Zodiaty defines it this way. What is meant by the glory and glorifying of Jesus Christ, it means the revelation of his essential deity, that which he is in the mind of the Father, though veiled from man by the limitations of incarnation. several different verses that show that. And when in John 17, 1, 5, and 24 the Lord Jesus prayed for his glorification by the Father, he was looking forward to the splendor of his passion as issuing in the resurrection, wherein his true nature and redemptive work are recognized and celebrated by the faithful. That was only the partial meaning ascribed to the word glorified. For there is a glory which is yet to come. This will complete the present glory of the spiritual resurrection of the believers with all that is involved in the future resurrection and glorification. And that's in relation to what we just read in 1724. William Kelly has it this way, this is wholly distinct from what we have seen, though all be to the praise of Christ. It is exclusively future unity, though the glory be given to our faith now, and grace would have us apprehend it and feel it and walk accordingly. For all is revealed to act now on our souls. But this unity will be in glory when we shall be one as the Father and the Son are. Hence, failure here is impossible. The weakness of man, the power of Satan can damage no more." Oh, that was great. Doesn't matter, you know. This is a positional truth. You ever going to lose this glory that he just gave to us? Is it a gift that's going to go away? Is it a gift that is possible that I can lose it? No. And Christ is always with you. I mean, you're never alone, which is the most wonderful thing. Sometimes you're so distraught, but you're never alone. It's a wonderful gift. You know, all this stuff that's been going on with this week, and I'm sure Those of us who are going through crazy times, besides the economics, the medical thing and families and all this kind of stuff, if your life is his life, and he's in control of all this, I have utmost peace through all this. It's a peace that the world can't provide. Because I can't lose what he's given me. And so I think on all these things that the positional truths should influence our condition. Because if you realize that, what happens here is not immaterial, but in the long run, He's in control, doing things for our good to draw us to Him, to glorify Him. And when you put it in that perspective, you can get through anything. Are those accurate? I'll say yes. I was going to put it back to the question. I say yes. Because that's what we're to do. What was the will of the Son? What was His will here? To glorify the Father. So if His life is our life, what are we to do? glorify the Father. So, bring glory upon Him? Absolutely. I don't think you can separate glory from life. In other words, we have the resurrected life of Christ, and that life in and of itself is glorious. And so, as the Spirit of God works to manifest that life in and through us, that's where the glories represented are manifested. And so, the life and the glory go hand in hand. And so as the Lord Jesus' glory is now hidden to some degree from the creation, when he comes to rule and reign, it isn't that he's going to turn up the glory, it's that his life will be on display. And because we share the same life, the same glory will be on display. Right. And I think, you know, between position and conditional truth, positional, we have the glory now. Conditionally, we're manifesting it and at full, when we are with Him, it'll be the full manifestation of His glory. So I don't think you can answer Steve's question when you talk about, well, I'm going to glorify the Father. Well, you're not going to do anything. outside of the life of Christ that's in you. Well, and that's the identification. The manifestation of that only can come from our identification with Him through the new life, walking by the Spirit. If you're walking in the flesh, you're not glorifying the Father. That's a little clearer question than I was trying to form, because I guess you could kind of go through the back door and ask, what are some misleading things about us? bringing glory. Is it us or is it us in our life of Christ? It's kind of subtle. Right, it's only when we're abiding or walking in the Spirit can we glorify Him. If we're walking in the flesh, there's no way we can glorify Him. So, you know, I think that's, you know, since we have two natures, you know, we have a sinful nature and a new creation, a new life. And only as we walk or abide can we glorify, walk and abide in the Spirit, can we glorify Him. Okay, question number five. Are all the blessings disclosed in this prayer for the mature believer only? Say that again. Question five. Are all the blessings disclosed in this prayer for mature believers only? I hope not. You hope not or do you know? Is that a A hope as in, yes, you know for sure, or a hope that, gee, I hope this occurs? No, it's for us. Yeah, do you see any requirements in here? You know, I love when we're teaching in John. It was so cool as we went through, just as you realize, you know, salvation, it didn't have all these prerequisites that we put on it. You know, you've got to clean up your act before you come to know the Lord. You know, you've got to look, you've got to dress, you've got to wear the team uniform. before you come to know the Lord. No! All the things, it was this unconditional, just believe. And so, let's see. So, are there any requirements to be a mature believer here? Does it say anything about a mature believer? No. Is there any requirement that you memorize so many verses of scripture before you receive this glory? You have to have a certain amount of verses memorized before this. No. Do you have to repent and confess all your sins in order to receive this glory? No. You know what happens with me? I forget some of the sins I did a long time ago. But remember that forgives me for whatever the heck I did. See, that's why I have to stay current on that confession thing. So, do you have to confess and do all this to have this glory? Does it say it in there? No. Okay. You know, I said this could be used as, again, the introduction into the grace truths. There are no requirements for receiving any of what is promised in the Lord's Prayer other than to believe. This goes to the unmerited portion of the definition of God's grace. There aren't any requirements here other than to believe. That's why I always come back to this question, do you believe this? Do you believe it? Another question I have is, is this a positional truth or conditional truth? We've kind of talked about that. Blessings or positional? What? Are blessings positional? Yes. Or is that what your question is? Yeah. It's, you know, the blessings, yeah. I think these are positional with conditional results. It's positional truths that should impact our walk or our condition. But the blessings are positional. I just said, yeah, it's a positional truth that impacts our condition or walk. Remember, for future glory, it's unmovable, untouchable. It cannot be lost or changed. However, for a walk, if we're not walking or abiding in the Spirit, can we glorify God? Going back to Steve's question. If we're not walking in the Spirit, can we glorify Him? All right, question six. What identification truth is shown in verses 22 and 23? And I'll read that. The glory which you have given me, I have given to them, that they may be one, just as we are one, I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them, even as you have loved me. So what identification truth is shown in there? in you, you in Christ, and all of us in the Father. So, yeah. So, unity. And how do we get that unity? By being identified in Him. We are new creatures in Him. So this shows the union or the unity we have with Christ. That we may be one with Christ just as the Father and Son share unity under a triune God framework. And again, shows that Christ is in us as the Father is in Christ, such that we may be perfected in unity. Again, could you have that unity if we're not in Him? No. But he's saying, you have. the love, the joy, the glory, all these things. Because why? Because you're in me. My life is identified, or our life is identified with Him. You ever thought, Mike? No. All right, question seven. In verse 23, what does it mean that, quote, that they may be perfected in unity? So what does the word perfected mean? Perfected. It says you're perfected in unity. So what is perfected? Any other ideas, thoughts? Doesn't that have something to do with maturity? I'm trying to think how that would be. I think that's kind of the process to get to perfected, I think. Together. Together? Wouldn't it be? perspective. Webster's has it this way, to make perfect. They violated the very thing that my teacher said. And perfect means being without fault or defect. That's Webster's. The Greek word is telehio, which means to complete. Make perfect by reaching the intended goal. That's why I say when you go to maturity, I think that by reaching is the process. The intended goal is perfected. So, we know what the definition of perfected means, so what does it mean that we may be perfected in unity? Stunned silence again. Brought to completion. Brought to completion. Good. Others? That there's nothing outside of the oneness that we have in Christ. Yeah, complete in Him. The oneness, the unity that we have. Others? What would you say? Forget that. I've got to get your input first. It would just be so boring if I just sit up here and blathered out everything that I have up here. This is to figure out what you know. Because he's telling me all this stuff. When I'm studying this, I'm thinking, I'm supposed to know this stuff. It's telling me to believe this. What has perfected me? I mean, I'm going through it going, wow. Being a teacher is great. Because you have to go through all this stuff, and you start thinking, man, I read scripture, and it's like, I just blow through these things. But when you have to study it, for the teaching part, it's like, what do all these words mean? So the perfected, what does perfected mean? All right, so perfected in unity. That means we will be complete, made perfect in the reaching of the intended goal, or unity, or oneness with Christ. So putting those definitions together and made perfect in the reaching of the intended goal of unity or oneness with Christ. Just as a father has unity or oneness with the God Himself, because of that, these are some truths, God Himself must fail before His children can fail. Think God can fail? No. I hope not. No, He can't. So, if we have this union, can we fail in this union? No. Christ's fullness must be exhausted before His members can fall. So is God going to run out of gas? No. The Holy Spirit must be overcome before our happiness in God can be hindered or disappointed. Think that's going to happen? No. So this perfected in unity has a lot. I mean, it's that comfort that you have, perfected in unity, made complete in Him. I mean, I have great peace through that. Not, you know, positionally. I got everything. I got that. Going back to that unity, I just keep going. He gave this to you. The same unity that he had with his son from eternity past, you are now in that relationship. Boggles the mind. Did you have something? No. All right. Okay, so you know, perfected in unity. We're all good with that? All right. I noticed I have written down here something that Merrill Tenney said about that. Maybe it refers to the second part of that verse. A united testimony which is a confirmation of the divine mission of Jesus and God's love for believers. And then he goes on to say about the world knowing. And we'll get to that a little bit on why he has sent them. We'll get that a little bit later. And I think that goes to that purpose. All right, question eight. How does the world know that Jesus, well, here we go, was sent by the Father into the world? How does he know? What verse? Twenty-three. I'll read from 22. The glory which you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as we are one. So he's given us his glory, given us this unity by being in him. His life is our life. We are the new creature. I in them and you in me, that they may be perfected in unity. What? So that the world may know that you sent me and love them even as you love me. How does the world know that Jesus was sent by the Father into the world? By the apostles they spread the word. By only the apostles? No, but they told others and they told others. Yes. So what's the word? You know what I mean. So how? By the apostles and? Believers. If you go back to what Kenny said, it would be by the testimony that the world sees in the unity of the body of Christ. That's what I understand what he's saying. Yeah, you know, sometimes with that, you know, I had a conversation with a person a couple of weeks ago. You know, this unity of believers. And I keep thinking, you know, the whatever. from the Tate perspective, no. You know, Pentecostals, or Assembly of God, or Southern Baptist, whatever Baptist, the Presbyterian, the Catholic, blah, blah, blah. You know, sometimes I wonder, you know, the unity of believers. Yeah, but the believers of the truth, the apostles. I think they're believers that, you know, they're believers. That's what I think about when I think of the testimony of believers. Yeah, I think that's it. As we talked before, like when you go, even, you know, when I travel and I find a believer, that unity, that bond that I have, they may be, you know, believing other things that I don't or whatever, but foundationally, I mean, not foundationally, they're a believer. You know, I think there are going to be a lot of believers, you know, even in, I mean, I know, there are going to be believers in all different denominations, all different things, that have different, you know, tangential issues that may hinder their spiritual maturity or whatever, and this and that, but the unity is that unity in spirit that we have. There is one spirit, and that unity is through that and through the spirit. And that's what you'll see regardless of denomination, whatever, you know. And like I said, when I go meet somebody and I know they're a believer, I don't go, what is exactly all your doctrinal statement? What do you believe about it? What do you think about tongues? What do you believe about gifts? I don't do that. It is, I share a life with you. And that's the unity, I think, that maybe Tenny has talked about. So, how does the world know that Jesus was sent by the Father into the world from that verse? Through us. Wow. And through the Bible, right? I mean, through each Bible. Well, I mean, there's a whole bunch to this, but through us, you know, us as believers. As we walk in the Spirit, as we do this, we will, what, glorify? Which then people will go, you know, identify Christ in us. Yeah, so the Father, you can see Christ through us. Another couple of verses, 2 Corinthians 3, 1-3, that shows us, are we beginning to command ourselves again, or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men, being manifested that you are a letter of Christ. cared for by us, written not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts." 2 Corinthians 3, 1-3. And gee, I could probably have Mike quote this immediately, his favorite verse. And it is, Mike. 2 Corinthians 3, I think. It's amazing. And what is that? Beholding with unveiled face, as in a mirror, the glory of the Lord, transformed into His image from glory to glory. Yeah, we're being transformed. Even as by the Spirit of the Lord. Yeah, mind the new American. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror, the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. So again, we are the letter, we are the way the world knows that Jesus was sent by the Father. I was looking at John chapter 10 and the Pharisees and the Jews are about to stone the Lord Jesus because he claims to be God and one with the Father. So he says, many good works I have shown you from my Father, for which of these do you stone me? And then a little further on he said, Do you say of him, myself, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, you are blaspheming me because I said I am the Son of God? If I do not do the works of my Father, don't believe me. But if I do, though you do not believe me, believe the works that you may know and believe that the Father is in me and I am in him. My point is that we have the life. And as the Spirit of God conforms us to Christ, we're not going to go around doing miracles, but the world is going to see that unique, different, sanctified, resurrected life of Christ in us. And that's the proof, I think. It's a life that demonstrates the life of Christ to a lost world that isn't necessarily miraculous, but it is miraculous in the sense that The characteristics of that life could not be lived by an Adamic man. You know, when you say that, I know what the perfect example of this is. Hal Malloy. You know, I just remember when he was going through all his struggles with the disease in his final days, you know, they were coming to him for help. And he said the hospice lady who came in was in tears. She was in tears. And she was the one who came to help Hal. And he exemplified that spirit, I think, that people just, they could see Christ through him. They were coming to him for comfort while he was in the throngs of this disease and dying. And to me, that was exactly, the world saw Christ through him. They were drawn to Him because of Christ in Him. Not a pride or boastful thing. It's just life. And when you exhibit that life, people will be drawn to you. And not to you, but to Christ. And so I think that's a lesson for all of us. As we mature, as we exemplify Christ, it's not You know, and my thing, you don't memorize 59 verses and dazzle people. It's a life. It is not a law, it is not a prescription, it's not anything. It's who you are. If you're in Christ, and you're walking according to the Spirit, that life will be evident. It's not something you try to do. It's something as easy as breathing. If you're in Christ, it's as easy as breathing. You just do it, because that's who you are. And so, you know, like I said, when Mike's going through that, it's just how it comes to mind right away. People just knew something was different about him. A spirit that was different, and they were drawn to him, trying to see what was different about him. And he very humbly, it was leading him to Christ. That's what we should be. We should be letters to this world. An example of Christ's life in this world. Question 9, in verse 24, what is Christ desiring and for what purpose? I'll read verse 24, John 17, 24. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, be with me where I am. so that they may see my glory which you have given me for you love me before the foundation of the world." So first, what does Christ desire? Cheeseburger in paradise. What does He desire? Be with me. He desires to be with Him. Yeah. And where? Where He is. He desires that we be with Him where he is. So, is this a new desire that he just came up with? It was a hot topic, but hey, I got a new idea. How about you view where I'm at? Is this a new idea? No? Has he said it before? Other verses? Look at John. If you have another one, I have John 14, 2-4. In my Father's house are many dwelling places. If it were not so, I would have told you. For I go to prepare a place for you. If I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself. That where I am, there you may be also. If this is true, that Christ has prepared a place for us, and He desires for us to be with him there. Will he be satisfied if we're not there with him?" Nah, if you're not there, hey. Is that his attitude? No. No. What did he say? He says, I desire, I desire that you're here. It wasn't a mechanical thing. It wasn't, okay, plan number 6215, you're going to be with us and that's okay. No, do you realize what he said? He just said, I desire. This is God of the universe, the son, saying, I desire, my heart desires to what? Have you with me. It wasn't just a mechanical, law-driven requirement. If you do this, you get that. He desires that we're with him. You know, that's amazing that He desires, His heart desires for us to be with Him. So, you know, put this in place with all the other verses that you have. You know, what can separate us from the love of Christ? You know, what He's given us is joy, He's given us all these things. He desires for us to be with Him. He is lavishing everything upon us. Grace, unmerited, unlimited blessings. He desires for us to be with him. Again, think about it. Can anyone or anything thwart this desire? No. Can we trip up and, you know, man, Courtney, you just, you're a turkey. I don't want you anywhere near me. I don't want you within the same zip code. Is there anything I can do to do that? Nope. Oh my goodness. Yeah, then if that's true, do you believe it? You know, he desires for you to be with him. You can't do anything about it. You can't trip up. You can't make him so mad that you think this desire will go away by anything you do. No. No. So when you screw up and you've got to confess, like 1 John 1 9, you know, confess, all you're saying is, I agree, I'm not living the way I'm supposed to be. But it doesn't mean that his desire went away during that time. You forgot that sin, Monique, remember? You forgot the one that happened three years ago on Tuesday. You forgot that one. So his desires just nicked a little bit, right? No. No. It doesn't matter. But it's amazing, isn't it? As you understand all this, it becomes overwhelming. Overwhelming, what we have in Christ. Our identification with Him gives us all this. That's why we're stepping into grace. This gets us into grace, which is unlimited, unmerited blessings. Based on our work? No, based on His work. John 17, 24. What is His purpose for having us with Him where He is? So we can be worker bees. We can build those mansions. You know, all these engineers in this room, we're going to be engineering the plumbing, the electrical, the computer systems. That's why he wants us there. He needs us there to complete the building of those mansions, right? We got a lot to do when we get there, right? He desires us there because he needs us to complete things, right? To give him the glory, right? What does it say? So that they, what? They may see my glory which you have given me. He wants us there, what? To see his glory. To be with him. To just have a relationship with him. To see the glory and manifest the glory. It's incredible. Think of that, Christ will not be satisfied until we're with him, so he can show us his glory given to him by the Father since eternity past. Know that this will occur. Nobody can stop this from happening once you're a new creature in Christ. My question is, how does that affect your current conditions on earth? That's a bad day. I've got to drive to Oklahoma City tonight. That changes everything. No. All right, if we can go on quickly because the buzzer is going to run. Question 10. What is the great promise to believers given by Christ in verse 26? Verse 26, 17, verse 26. And I have made your name known to them and I'll make it known so that the love with which you love me may be in them and I in them. What promise did he give? the love of God in us. It just keeps getting better and better and better and better. The promise is that the love with which the Father loved the Son may be in us. Do you believe this? Can you even begin to comprehend the love between the Father and the Son, and then that the same love is in us that is between the Father and the Son? So my question is, how can this love be in us? Just by chance. Or my favorite answer, just cuz. Just cuz. How? How can that happen? How can this love be in us? Because we transformed. Yes, and we are what? New creatures. In Christ. Christ is the firstborn of the new creation. We are the new creation. The identification truth that ends this verse, I be in them. If we are totally new creatures in Christ, whose very life is Christ's life, then we can have the same love. We can have that same love. This is the last one. We can get to it quickly. Question 11. What is the connection between what Christ is praying for here and what Paul is describing Romans 6, 1 through 6. This should be actually real quick. I'll just read the verses. Romans 6, 1 through 7. What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may increase? May it never be. How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do ye not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we become united with him in the likeness of his death, certainly we shall be in the likeness of his resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin, for he who has died is freed from sin." So that's the process. It's the identification. Romans 6 tells us how God accomplished it. The reality of the oneness as for here and throughout John 17 is through our identification with Him, our death, burial and resurrection, our death of the old Adamic identification with our new identification through resurrection with Christ. So that's how we get all these truths, all these things, because of our unity, our oneness with Him. All right, we will hit 13 next week. And we will get through that in one time. We will get through that in one lesson. Mike is looking skeptical. All right, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time. Father, I thank you just for, again, the word that you've left to us. These truths are just piling, you know, blessing upon blessing upon blessing, which is your operating system. Grace, which is unlimited These truths are life-changing, as we truly believe these truths that you have laid out in your intimate prayer with the Lord Jesus. We see the unity that we have, all the blessings that are bestowed upon us. So Father, we just thank you for all that you have done. It's all of you. And we thank you again for the indwelling of the Spirit in your Word, which we can come to know, a relationship with your Son, and that conformity to his image. Father, we just commit this day to you now and we thank you for it. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.