The Gospel Way Catechismنموونە

QUESTION 22: What is Union with Christ?

ANSWER

Union with Christ is our participation in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. Because Christ is in us, and we are in Christ, our identity is defined by our relationship with him.

Many people today ground their sense of identity in personal affiliations, career advancement, political ideologies, or social status. Worth and purpose derive from these outside measures of success, or from the internal drive to achieve results, acquire more possessions, or make of life whatever we want.

The problem with finding your identity according to these worldly markers is that they can so easily change. They fluctuate. If you base your worth and value in fleeting things, you won’t have a foundation sturdy and substantial enough to stand on when suffering shows up, or when death threatens all you love.

The New Testament provides a different source of identity—a profound connection to Jesus Christ. Union with Christ is our participation in Jesus’s life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. Because of our union with Christ, we are defined not by the marks of this world, but by the maker of this world. Not by human success, but by a divine Savior. Not by our story, but by our envelopment into his story.

The New Testament claims that those who belong to Jesus are so intertwined with him that we died when he died. “You have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3 CSB). When we are united to Christ in faith, we are united with him in all he has done for us. He represents us so thoroughly that we have been “crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:20 CSB), “buried with him” (Romans 6:4 CSB), and “raised with Christ” (Colossians 3:1 CSB). We are even “seated…with him in the heavens” (Ephesians 2:6 CSB).

We’ve been crucified with Christ, the apostle Paul tells us, and therefore we no longer live, but Christ lives in us (Galatians 2:20). Notice the verb tense here; it refers to a past occurrence with an enduring impact in the present. How all this works is a profound mystery. The Reformation theologian John Calvin once remarked, “For my part, I am overwhelmed by the depth of this mystery, and am not ashamed to join Paul in acknowledging at once my ignorance and my admiration…Whatever is supernatural is clearly beyond our comprehension. Let us, therefore, labor more to feel Christ living in us than to discover the nature of that intercourse.”

Union with Christ eliminates the need for continual self-validation. The frantic efforts to find or fabricate an acceptable identity, or the ceaseless endeavors to regulate your reputation, are never over and never done. Union with Christ means you can now rest. When God looks at you, he sees you in Christ. This is an objective reality.

But union with Christ brings about something even more marvelous: communion with Christ, which means we are in Christ and Christ is in us, and we are able to lean into and experience the reality of fellowship with him. He fills, illuminates, and energizes us. We can draw close to him because he draws near to us and makes his presence known.

Having Christ in us means that as we work out our salvation in fear and trembling, we know he is the one working in and through us to bear fruit in this world (Philippians 2:12). Jesus amplifies your authenticity and your conformity to him, making you more yourself as you become more like him. You are united with Christ, in service to the world for the glory of God.

Reflection Questions

How has modern culture shaped your understanding of identity? Do you find yourself defining your worth through external affiliations or achievements? Reflect on the influences that shape your sense of self-worth. How do societal norms and personal achievements impact your identity, and how can union with Christ provide a deeper, more stable foundation?

In what ways does the concept of union with Christ challenge the prevalent secular notion of identity? How does it redefine how we perceive ourselves? Consider how being united with Christ offers a different perspective on identity than the secular focus on self-reliance and external validation. How does this union transform your understanding of who you are?