With Christ

WITH CHRIST

a prayer to open

Here I am, Lord. Remind me who I am.

I am loved. I am known. I belong to you.

For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.

What is true of Jesus has become true of us. Though we walk the earth, we are united with Christ, who has been resurrected and seated at the right hand of the Father. Though we may feel dead and be tempted by parts of our old lives or the desires of our old selves, we are, in actuality, united with, tied to, incorporated by, wrapped up in the resurrected Christ himself. And all this is not just for some future day but for this day, today. We are not waiting for bodily resurrection (although that will happen too); we can experience resurrection now. We need not sleepwalk through our lives, waiting for heaven; resurrection power and life has begun. Of course, as Paul repeatedly reminded, this isn’t a result of our goodness or a product of the good things we have done but is because of God’s unthinkable kindness and grace.

• Reflect on a time in which you were essentially sleepwalking, living in a kind of dull reality instead of in the light and truth of resurrection. How would you describe that time in your life? What awakened you?
• What does a life lived in the reality of union with Christ Jesus look like today? What would your life look like if you could fully grasp and live into this reality? What would change about your current attitudes or behaviors?
• Take a moment to quiet yourself in God’s loving presence. Ask him to open your eyes and heart to the ways he wants you to live more fully into the truth that you have been united with the resurrected Christ. What did God bring to mind?

Father, your grace is beyond my comprehension. It is not what I deserve or what I ever could have imagined for myself. Lord, I receive it. What do I have to fear, clothed in your grace as I am? How can I maintain a single regret of my past since you have raised me up in Christ Jesus to demonstrate the reach of your grace? Awaken me! Help me be a carrier of your grace—someone who spreads it, speaks it, and lives in the reality of it so others can’t help but want to receive it themselves. Bless you, Lord. Amen.