WHAT IT MEANS TO BE IN-CHRIST!

It is no longer I that liveth but Christ tt liveth in me....

Several years ago a little lady who had been a missionary for many years
was visiting a pastor in a city in the United States that had many street
gangs. It was a dangerous place to live and minister. Consequently, the pastor
was taking a karate course to learn how to defend himself. When the little
missionary lady discovered what the pastor was doing, she was shocked.
"Why are you taking karate lessons?" she quickly asked.

The pastor sheepishly responded, "You must understand that it's very
dangerous here. I need to be able to protect myself." "Then you don't
understand your position in Christ." "What do you mean," the pastor
asked.

The little missionary then began to explain a great theological and
practical truth about victory in Christ. She began drawing circles.

After the first circle she said, "This circle represents your life."
She then drew a bigger circle around the first one. "The bigger circle
represents Christ. The Bible says that you are in Christ. Do you
understand?" she questioned. After a positive response, the little lady
then drew an even bigger circle around the first two circles. "That
circle" she said, "represents the Father. You are in Christ and Christ is in
the Father."

Then she drew a small circle inside the first circle. "That circle
represents the Holy Spirit who lives inside you. You are in Christ.
Christ is in the Father. And the Holy Spirit lives in you."

After the pastor agreed, the little missionary lady continued, "Before
the devil can do anything to harm you, he has to first go through the Father
and get permission from Him. If the Father gives him permission to attack
you, he then must go through the Son. If the Son gives him permission to
attack you, then you have the blessed Holy Spirit living within you. And the
Bible says that 'greater is He who lives in you than he who lives in the
world.' Then why are you so afraid? The safest place in the world to be is 'in
Christ."

That little lady understood a great truth about victorious Christian
living. Our victory is completely related to our position in Christ. Therefore,
everyday we need to awaken and clothe ourselves with Christ. We need to
take time to recognize that we are in Christ. By faith, we must claim
Christ's protection over us. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to take complete
control of our lives. As He fills us, we will experience victory over the
attacks that Satan has against us.

Perhaps it would do us good to draw a few circles and remind ourselves
of our position in Christ. I've walked into a revolution, the aftermath of
an attempted genocide, been in airports that terrorists were threatening to
blow up, had knives put to my throat, and been shot at as I've
attempted to bring the message of God's love around the world. But I've learned that
the safest place in the world is "in Christ." I need to simply take time
daily to place myself in Christ and allow Christ to fill me. There's no safer
place in the world than "abiding in Christ."