Christ In You
Pastor Andy R. Kern
Distance Studies Coordinator
If I were to ask you, “Who is the person you are closest to in all the world,” how would you answer? Someone might say his spouse, another might say her friend, and another might say his child. These are definitely people that an individual should be very close to in a relationship, but there is a particular relationship that must be the priority. The greatest relationship anyone can have is with God. The one person that everyone should be closest to is our Lord.
When God created man, man was designed for certain functions. Man was created to glorify God (Isa. 43:7), and man was created to fellowship with God (1 Cor. 1:9). These two concepts are intertwined, for a person cannot truly glorify God if he does not have a relationship with God, and a proper relationship with God is what glorifies Him.
In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had a wonderful relationship with their Creator. They were alive without sin and knew only God’s goodness, and God Himself would even walk in the garden with them (Gen. 3:8). Adam and Eve had access to God, they could speak to Him and hear His voice, and their relationship with Him could only be described as good (cf. Gen 1:31). Thus God was glorified at the dawn of creation when all was good and Adam and Eve could literally walk with Him.
Of course, we know what happened next. The cunning serpent, either Satan himself or his instrument, intruded into the garden and deceived Eve, and Adam sinned with her (Gen. 3:1-7). Immediately the relationship between God and man was severed because of sin. God, who is holy in nature, cannot fellowship with sin, and Adam and Eve were now sinners. The first two humans felt the guilt and shame of their action and covered their nakedness and hid themselves from God among the trees (Gen. 3:7-8). It was then that the Lord Himself came to the garden fully knowing what had taken place, but wanting to begin right away to restore the broken relationship. God called out to man, “Where are you?” (Gen. 3:9). This one question demonstrates God’s desire for fellowship with man. The Lord immediately took the initiative to seek out man and provide a solution for man to walk with God once again. The Lord provided for Adam and his wife, shedding blood as He made skins for them (Gen. 3:21). This was most likely a sacrifice of atonement for Adam and Eve, and from this point on any person who wanted to approach God had to make a blood sacrifice to cover their sins. This allowed man to have a relationship with God, however, it was nothing like what Adam and Eve had experienced before their fall, and it barely compares with what God had in store for the future.
Despite the horrible consequences of sin, God provided a way for man to approach Him in a relational manner; a way for man to get close to God. Two of Adam’s descendents, Enoch and Noah, were both described as men who “walked with God” (Gen. 5:24; 6:9). These were obviously two men who experienced a relationship with God and glorified God in their lives in the years before the Great Flood. They lived in a way that pleased God, and when they fell in sin, they made atonement through sacrifice. God would eventually reveal a better way to have a relationship with Him.
As we read through the Scriptures, we continue to see the redemptive plan of God unfold as He progressively revealed how man could have a relationship with Him. He called Abraham to father a nation He could use to reach the world. God later raised up Moses to lead this nation, Israel, and to reveal His law, demonstrating how His holy character was in opposition to man’s sin and depravity. Nearly 1800 years later God sent His Son to bridge the great gulf between God’s righteous nature and man’s sinful nature. Jesus Christ came into the world to be the ultimate sacrifice for sins. He shed His blood to make the final provision for all sin, and all who believe in Him partake of this provision and receive forgiveness of sins and a place in God’s family (Eph. 1:3-7).
God has provided a way to have a relationship with Him. We call this the word of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:19), meaning that now, because of what Jesus Christ accomplished through the cross and His resurrection, man may come to God freely by faith in Christ. In Christ, the relationship with God is restored. In fact, it is a closer and stronger relationship than ever before. The Bible tells Christians that God is so close to them that He lives within them. Ephesians 1:13 explains that when we trust in Christ, we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit,” meaning that God’s Spirit permanently dwells within us. Colossians 1:27 says, “To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” This verse declares that Christ Himself lives in you, if you have trusted in Him for your salvation. Adam, Enoch, and Noah had a walk with God, but today, because of what Christ has done, God lives in the believer. It doesn’t get any closer than that. That is the kind of relationship God wants with man, and believers can experience the wonders of this relationship today as they yield their lives to Christ.
