The heart of today’s teaching is the profound reality of being united with Christ—not just believing in Him, but believing into Him, being joined to Him in His death and resurrection. This union means that when Jesus died, we died with Him, and when He rose, we were raised with Him to new life. Many Christians live unaware of this truth, settling for a lesser experience than what God intends. The call is to move from a superficial understanding to a deep, experiential knowledge that we are truly in Christ, and that this changes everything about how we live, think, and walk with God.
Romans 6 and John 14-15 lay out this reality: we are not just forgiven, but fundamentally changed, joined to Christ, and called to live out His resurrection life. This is not a matter of feelings or emotional experiences, but of faith—believing God’s word and living from that position. The metaphor of the vine and branches in John 15 illustrates how God tends to us: He lifts up the unfruitful branches, cleans and prunes us, not to punish, but to position us for greater fruitfulness. The process is not about striving or self-effort, but about abiding—remaining in Christ, drawing life from Him, and allowing Him to shape our desires, actions, and character.
Abiding in Christ is both an objective reality and a subjective experience. Objectively, every believer is united with Christ at salvation. Subjectively, we are called to live out that union by accepting that nothing of eternal value originates from ourselves, but only from Christ. This means surrendering our self-initiated works, meditating on God’s word with a heart open to the Spirit, praying in alignment with God’s will, and walking in loving obedience. Fruitfulness in the Christian life is not measured by activity or human applause, but by works that are birthed from intimacy with Jesus and empowered by His Spirit.
The practical outworking of abiding in Christ is simple yet profound: accept our dependence on Him, immerse ourselves in His word by the Spirit, pray with intimacy and alignment to His will, and obey His commands—especially the command to love. In this way, our lives bear fruit that lasts, our works are refined by God, and our communities become places marked by genuine love and spiritual vitality.
Romans 6:1-5 (ESV) — > What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
John 15:1-11 (ESV) — > “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he lifts up, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”
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