Friday, August 14, 2009

Union with Christ Reprise

'My beloved is mine, and I am his….'
-Song of Solomon 2:16

'"Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.'
- Ephesians 5:31-32

What is that union which the elect have with Christ?
A. The union which the elect have with Christ is the work of God's grace, whereby they are spiritually and mystically, yet really and inseparably, joined to Christ as their head and husband; which is done in their effectual calling.

- Westminster Larger Catechism Q and A 66

'He who is not in Christ is not a Christian.'

-Saint Augustine, Tractates on the Gospel of John,
quoted in Life in Christ by Mark Garcia, p. 56



Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,

These things have been running around in my mind for months now and I can scarcely take it in...all those who profess saving faith in Jesus Christ have been irrevocably joined to Him. Christ has become our Living Head and Husband, to the degree that union with Christ is the reality and marriage is a reflection of the reality. The saving work of Christ joins the believer to Him by faith and the two are inseparably linked. Christ's life becomes our life. Christ's death becomes our death. Christ's resurrection becomes our resurrection. Every imaginable satisfaction for us has been found and supplied in Christ. There is no lack to be supplied by our pitiable efforts. His salvation is full, free, complete, and cannot be improved upon. His mercy to us is superabundant. We have been given untold riches in and through Christ.

There are depths of grace yet unfathomed. We have been joined to Christ.

Pastor Dan

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