Together with Christ

“Even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”  Ephesians 2:5-6

In our text the word “together” refers to our spiritual union with Jesus Christ. The verbs “raised” and “seated” are used in the past tense, stressing that, as far as God’s own word is concerned, we have been already seated eternally in the heavens with Christ, having been born again with His own life spiritually and raised from the dead physically. All of these blessings were given to us “even when we were dead in our transgressions,” not only because of our good works or by our good intentions, but only “by grace you have been saved.”

The remarkable truth is that this doctrine of our eternal union with Christ, given and maintained only by His grace, does not lead to carelessness or sinfulness as some allege, but to a desire for a holy, God-honoring life. “May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?...so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:2, 4).

The regenerate nature implanted by the Holy Spirit, a heart of gratitude for Christ’s sacrificial love for us, and the wonderful promises in God’s Word, all combine to transform our lives making us new creatures in Christ, knowing that henceforth we shall “always be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:17).