Am I In Christ or Just Religious?

I'm asking you to turn in your
Bibles today to the book of 1 Corinthians, chapter 1, verse 30. Now, here's
the subject. Am I in Christ, or am I just
religious? Am I in Christ, or am I just
religious? Now, man is a religious creature.
He's not only a social creature, he's not only a physical creature,
but he's a religious creature. And we see this by all the religious
shrines and churches and religious pictures and all of the statues
and cults and denominations and philosophies that we have about
us today. Man is a religious creature. When our Lord came to this earth,
he came to a religious world. Did you know that? When Christ
came, it was a very religious world. He was surrounded by temples
and tabernacles and Synagogues and places of worship they were
everywhere and he was surrounded by ceremonies and sacrifices
and all kind of religious rituals and holy days and feast days
this was a religious world to which our Lord came and he was
surrounded by teachers and theologians and religious leaders and men
who fasted and prayed and Taught the scriptures and sit on the
street corner and pray He was surrounded by these things, and
men who claimed to know God, though Christ himself said, you
do not know me nor my Father. But these men were religious.
They were very religious. It's a religious world, and our
Lord came to a religious world, and man today is a religious
creature. And when our Lord sent his disciples
out to preach, he sent them out to preach to a religious world.
And if you'll turn to Acts the 17th chapter, verse 22, you'll
hear Paul saying that. In Acts 17, 22, listen to him. Paul stood in the midst of Mars
Hill, and he said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive, I understand
that in all things you are more religious than most. You are
more religious. We're talking about Athens. Not
Jerusalem, not Bethlehem, but Athens. And he says, I perceive
that you are more religious than most. I passed by and beheld
the gods that you worship, all of the shrines that you had erected
to these gods which you worship. And I found an altar to the unknown
God, whom I declare unto you. Yes, this is a religious world. Man is a religious creature and
our Lord came to a religious world and it was religious leaders
that Demanded his death and his crucifixion and when the disciples
went forth to preach they went forth to preach to a religious
people and the thing that That I dread and fear more than anything
else is to be religious and not know God You say, you believe
in God? Well, the devil believes in God
and trembles. You believe that Christ died
on the cross and that he was buried and rose again? Every
demon in hell believes that. You believe the Bible is the
word of God? Did you know when our Lord was tempted of Satan
on the Mount of Temptation? that when Satan tried him and
tested him and tempted him, he quoted scripture to him? That's
right. He said, cast yourself off this
mountain, off this pinnacle. It is written in the Bible that
God will give his angels charge over thee, lest thou dash thy
foot against the stone. Yes, Satan is also a religious
creature. And the thing that I fear, more
than any other thing in this world, is for it to be said of
me as it was said of so many back then, they had a form of
godliness, but denied the power thereof. They were ever learning,
ever learning, and never coming to a knowledge of the truth.
To speak with my mouth and call him Lord, And my heart be far
from him." Joseph and Mary had been to Jerusalem to worship.
They had been there to keep a particular feast day. And the child Jesus
was with them. He was 11 or 12 years of age. And they were leaving Jerusalem,
going back to their home. And the scripture says in the
book of Luke that they traveled a day's journey. Supposing Jesus
to be with them. And at the end of that day's
journey, they began to look for him. Mary said to Joseph, where
is he? Joseph said, I thought he was
with you. Mary said, I thought he was with you. They had gone
that entire day's journey. Supposing, now listen to this,
supposing that he was with them. Now, what is life called in the
scripture, a day's journey? I don't want to travel a day's
journey with all of my theology, and doctrine, and orthodoxy,
and law, and religious associations, and morality, and work, and deeds,
and ceremonies, and rituals, travel all this time, and come
to the end of that journey and discover that he never was with
me. That's what he'll say to them
in the judgment. He said, many will say unto me in that day,
Lord, did we prophesy in your name? They were religious. Did
we cast out devils in your name? Did we do many wonderful works
in your name? And I will profess unto them,
I never knew you. You say, are those people sincere?
I believe they are. They're claiming sincerity. They're
claiming that their works were done in the name of Jesus Christ
That's what they said. We did many wonderful works and
notice the Lord didn't deny that they preached Nor did he deny
that they cast out devils Nor did he deny that they had done
many wonderful works, but he denied them. He said I never
knew you I never knew you ever learning never coming to knowledge
of the truth ever learned. Having a form of godliness, having
a form of religion, but not knowing the power thereof. I want you
to listen to our text in 1 Corinthians 1.30. Now listen to this. And
I believe this text will help you to understand the difference
between being in religion and in Christ. There is a difference.
Man is a religious creature by nature. All men have a form of
religion. All men have some kind of refuge,
religious refuge. There's a difference in being
in religion and being in Christ. Being in the church and being
in Christ. Being in morality and orthodoxy and being in Christ.
George Whitfield called this the most comprehensive verse
in the Bible. The most comprehensive verse
in the Bible. Listen to it. First Corinthians
1.30. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus,
who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption, that according as it is written, he that glorieth
let him glory in the Lord." Now, if you look at this verse with
me, it'll help you to answer the question, am I in Christ
or am I in religion? Do you dare examine yourself?
I'll examine myself with you by the word of God, not by my
feelings, not by my experience, and not by the word of someone
else, but by the word of God. Am I in Christ or am I just in
religion? Well, let's look at the first
statement. I want to divide this scripture into three parts. First
of all, the fountain of all blessings. The fountain. And then secondly,
the blessings. And then thirdly, the results.
Now first of all, the fountain. Now listen to this. 1 Corinthians
1.30. You take your Bible and follow along with me. He says,
But of him are ye in Christ Jesus. But of him are you in Christ
Jesus. No more important statement was
ever uttered. And all who lay claim to a religious
hope would do well to study this statement very carefully. Of
him are ye in Christ Jesus. Let's take the last two words
first. In Christ. In Christ. Of him are ye in Christ. Not in religion, not in the law,
not in the right church, not in the right theology or doctrine,
but in Christ Jesus. That's what Paul was talking
about when he said, oh, that I may win Christ and be found
in him. In him. And in John 15, 5 and
6, that's what our Lord was talking about when he said, I am the
vine, ye are the branches, he that abideth in me, and I in
him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without me ye
can do nothing, if a man abide not in me. He is cast forth as
a branch, and is withered, and men gather them, and cast them
into the fire, and they are burned in Christ." Of God are you in
Christ? Are you in Christ? You have no
spiritual life at all except in Christ. None whatsoever, because
listen to the Bible. We are chosen in him. We are
redeemed in him, in whom we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of sins. We are accepted in the Beloved. The love of God is in Christ. Nothing can separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ. We are crucified in Christ,
buried and seated in Christ. the right hand of God in the
heavenly Now my friend if you're satisfied to make a religious
profession if that satisfies you if you're satisfied to join
a religious organization or Accept one that's been handed down through
the years through your family if you're satisfied to turn over
a new leaf and and Memorize some doctrine and call that salvation
If you're satisfied to do that and call that salvation, that's
your affair. But that's not enough for me.
And that's not the salvation of the Bible, and that's not
the redemption of the Bible. The salvation and redemption
which God speaks of in his word is a vital living union with
a person in Christ. He said, I am the head and you
are the body. And we're as much in Christ as
this body is one with this head. And just as much as the vine
and the branch. He said I'm the vine, you're
the branch. Without me you can do nothing. Are you in Christ?
In a living, personal, vital union in Christ. Now watch this. But of Him are you in Christ. Of Him. Now you can get in religion
by yourself. but it takes an act of God to
get you in Christ. You can get in the church by
yourself. That's no problem. Most churches are pretty anxious
to get members. They'll take about anything.
You can get in the church by yourself, but not in Christ,
except by a miracle of God's grace. You can get in the church
simply by expressing a desire to do so, but it takes regeneration
and a new birth and a miracle of God to put you in Christ.
But of Him, Are you in Christ Jesus the first call of this
living vital union with Christ? Lives with the eternal God who
gave you to Christ before the world began Listen to our Lord
in John 6 37 All that my father giveth me shall come to me and
him that cometh to me. I will in no wise cast out For
I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of
him that sent me And this is the will of him that sent me,
that all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but
raise it up again at the last day." That's right. If you're
in Christ, according to the Master himself, you were given to Christ
before the world began. You were chosen in him. That's
right. And not only your election is
of God, but your new birth. of God. Of God are you in Christ. The preacher didn't put you there.
Mom and Daddy didn't put you there. God put you there. That's
what the Bible says. In John 1 11 it says he came
unto his own and his own received him not but to as many as received
him to them gave he the right the privilege to become sons
of God which were born not of blood that is not of natural
family inheritance not of the will of the flesh Not of the
will of man, but of God. They were born of God. Those
who received Christ, those who are sons of God, were born of
God. And then your repentance and
faith, your call to faith, is of God. Paul said in Galatians
1 15, God who separated me from my mother's womb and called me
by his grace was pleased to reveal his Son in me. Paul had a revelation
of Christ to his heart. And that revelation was given
by God himself. That's what Christ said to his
disciples. He said, whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?
And they said, well, some say you're John the Baptist, and
some say you're Elias, and some say you're one of the prophets.
But he said, whom do you say that I, the Son of Man, am? And
Peter said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And
our Lord replied, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah. Flesh
and blood did not reveal that to you, but my Father which is
in heaven." What am I saying? I'm saying what Paul wrote here
in 1 Corinthians 1.30. The fountain of blessings is
Christ. And the way a man gets in Christ is by an act of God.
Of him are you in Christ Jesus and not only that but right now
you who are in Christ are kept in Christ by an act of God You
read first Peter chapter 1 and it tells you we're kept by the
power of God Through faith not apart from faith not in spite
of faith, but through faith, but it's God who keeps it Of
him are you? And it doesn't matter who you
are either Doesn't matter whether you're a preacher or a deacon
or a Sunday school teacher or whether you do nothing. If you're
in Christ, of him are you in Christ Jesus. You say, I believe. Certainly you do. The Holy Spirit
enables a man to believe, but that man believes. You say, I
repented. Certainly you did. The Holy Spirit
enabled you to repent and gives you cause to repent. and gives
you power to repent, but you repent. You say, but I believed
on Christ. Of course you did. Without faith
it's impossible to please God, and God doesn't believe for you.
Faith is the gift of God, but you believe. If thou shalt confess
with thy mouth the Son of God, and believe in thine heart that
God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. God doesn't
believe for you. God enabled you to believe. It's
of Him that you are in Christ Jesus. As I said before, if you're
in religion, you got there by yourself. If you're in tradition,
you got there by yourself. If you're in ritualism, you got
there by yourself. If you're in legalism, you got
there by yourself. But if you're in Christ, that
was the gift of God. But of Him are you in Christ
Jesus. All right, let's watch the second thing now. We've seen
the fountain of all blessings. Now let's look at the blessing.
But of him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto
us. Not only are we in Christ by
the power of God, but Christ is our surety for the power of
God. Not only are we in Christ by
the purpose of God, but Christ is unto us all of these things
by the purpose of God. He said, I came to do the will
of him that sent me. God sent his son into the world
to redeem sinners. It's God who purposed and planned
salvation and predestinated his mercy and his grace to sinners.
God did it. Of God are you in Christ, who
of God is made unto us. Wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption. Now the finger of God points
at Christ and says there's wisdom. There's wisdom. All you need
to know of God is in Christ. He that hath seen me, Christ
said, hath seen my Father. All you need to know of God is
in Christ. All you need to know of creation
is in Christ. All things were made by Him,
and for Him, and because of Him. In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and was God, and all things were
made by Him. All you need to know of truth
is in Christ. He said, I am the truth. You
shall know the truth, and the truth will make you free. Christ
is the truth. The truth is not a systematic
theology. The truth is not a list of doctrines. The truth is not some discovery
of a certain way to do things. The truth is Christ. And all you need to know of truth
is in Christ. And all you need to know of life
and death is in Christ. He said, I am the resurrection
and the life. He that believeth on me, though he were dead, yet
shall he live. All you need to know of justice is in Christ.
He is just and justified. And all you need to know of eternity
is in Christ. He said to his disciples, I go
to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place
for you, I'll come again and receive you unto myself, that
where I am, there you may be also." What do you want to know
about the future? About eternity? About what in the next millennium? You'll find it all in Christ.
It's to be with Christ. He is our wisdom. We understand
in Him how God can be just and justify the ungodliness. How
though the moon shineth not and the stars are not pure in his
sight, yet man can be just with God. That's all understood in
Christ. He is the wisdom of God and the
power of God. The finger of God points at Christ
and says, there's righteousness. He of God is made unto us wisdom
and righteousness. This is my need, this is your
need, righteousness. That's what we need because we're
so sinful. Our thoughts are sinful, our
imaginations are sinful, our motives are sinful, our attitudes
are sinful, our words are sinful. In our flesh dwelleth no good
thing. We wouldn't want anybody to look into our minds or into
our hearts and see what's there, would we? All the time. But God
sees. God looks not on the outward
countenance, but God looks on the heart. And we're so sinful. There's none that doeth good,
there's none that understandeth, there's none that seeketh after
God. Our so-called righteousnesses, which we lay claim to, are nothing
but filthy rags. We all do fade as the leaf who
shall stand in his holy presence, he that hath spotlessly clean
hands and a pure heart, and that lets all of Adam's race out.
But Christ is our righteousness. God says, take a look, there
is righteousness, right there. in the person of his beloved
son. In Adam we died, in Christ we're made alive, and by the
disobedience of one we became sinners. By the obedience of
Christ we were made righteous. Yes, sir, he is our righteousness. You know who the Pharisees were.
The Pharisees were, I suppose, the most moral religious people
of their day. There were teachers of the Bible
and our Lord spoke one day and had something to say about that
which cometh out of the heart, condemns a man out of the mouth.
And the disciples said, the Pharisees were offended by what you said. And he said, except your righteousness
exceed their righteousness, you shall not enter the kingdom of
God. We've got to have a righteousness better than the best human being
on this earth. You say, how can we attain thereunto? Only in Christ. He is our righteousness.
And He is our sanctification. Righteousness and sanctification
must always go together. I look upon righteousness as
being that imputed holiness which Christ charges to our account,
and sanctification being that imparted holiness which the Holy
Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, brings into our hearts
and our natures and our lives. We're not only legally holy,
but God's people are actually holy. That's right. They're being conformed to the
image of Christ. But Christ is our holiness. It's
his Spirit that enables us to love and to forgive and to believe. It's his Spirit that brings us
the grace and mercy that we need. It's his Spirit. We don't take
any credit for it. I don't care what you do, or
what you know, or what you give, you take no credit for it if
you're in Christ, because you know it's not you, but the grace
of God in you. Nothing commendable about any
of us, but Christ. And the finger of God points
to Christ and says, there's redemption. There's wisdom, there's righteousness,
there's sanctification, there's redemption. It's all in Christ.
He of God is made unto me, all I need, all I need. Now, some
feel that redemption ought to have been mentioned first. In
other words, we ought to say, but of him are you in Christ
Jesus, who of God is made unto us, redemption. Well, redemption
is the Alpha, but it's the Omega, too. Yes, sir, we are not yet. Now, watch this. We are redeemed,
but we are not yet, and I wouldn't offend you, fully redeemed. We consider salvation from the
scripture in three senses. We have been saved. Ephesians
2 8 9 for by grace have you been saved we are being saved to them
who are being saved It's the power of God and now is our salvation
nearer than when we believe Actually, my friend someday I shall fall
asleep. I Shall fall asleep rejoicing
that I am redeemed in Christ By the blood of Christ, but not
not even then will I realize the full measure of redemption?
When will we have the full measure of redemption? When God brings
these bodies out of the grave and they are perfectly conformed
to his holy image. David said, I will be satisfied
when I wake with his likeness. Now that's when we're going to
be redeemed. That's when you can say redemption is when the
redemption of the body is complete. That's what we're waiting for.
Read Romans 8. We're waiting for the redemption of our bodies.
when we'll be like Christ. Today, thou shalt be with me
in paradise, our Lord said to the sea. That's when I'll be
fully redeemed. Now, what's the life, the results
of being in Christ? Of him are you in Christ Jesus,
who of God is made unto us. Wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption. What's the result? That according
as it is written, he that glorieth. And man's going to glory in something.
Yes, sir, he is. He that glorieth. Man's gonna
glory in something. We're born with a natural pride.
We'll either glory in our good works, or glory in our morality,
or glory in our doctrine, or glory in our denomination, or
glory in our accomplishments, but man's gonna glory in something.
But he said, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. And when you realize that salvation
is not something you've done for God, but something God has
done, is doing, and will do in Christ for you, you'll start
glowing in the Lord. To God be the glow. Great things
he has done. So loved he the world, he gave
us his Son, who yielded his life and atonement for sin, and opened
the life gates that all may go in.

Am I In Christ or Just Religious?

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Am I In Christ or Just Religious?

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