United With Christ

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“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” (Romans 6:5)

The thing that makes Christianity different than other religions is the fact that we are connected to the one who is the author of our faith – Jesus Christ. In our baptisms we are joined to Jesus, united with him in a death like his. With that comes the promise that we will also join him in the resurrection.

This is the hardest thing for us to understand about how Christ sets us free. When we are claimed by Jesus, we are joined to his death. In a sense, we have already died in Christ. As a result, the promise of resurrection is now ours as well. Because we already have the death of Jesus, our own death is of little consequence. As Paul would write elsewhere in his letters, “Whether I live or whether I die, I am the Lord’s.”

This is the promise that sets us free. Because death no longer has power over us, we have been set free FROM death, therefore we are set free FOR the life Christ desires for us. This is true freedom. Although the world will continue to challenge us to be afraid, in Christ we know that we have nothing to fear. The death that matters most has already happened to us. And the life that matters most has already been promised to us.

Ponder this simple but powerful promise. You have been crucified with Christ. You shall be raised with him as well.

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