John 15:5

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

To be in Christ is the one great thing. All else in the Christian life—our joy, our holiness, our hope—grows out of this union. It is not a detail of the gospel; it is the gospel itself.  — Charles Spurgeon

Union with Christ is the heartbeat of what it means to belong to Jesus.

The phrase “In Christ” shows up more than 200 times in the New Testament

Romans 6:3–5

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

When you become a Christian, you are united with Christ.

By nature, every single one of us is born into this world in Adam.

Romans 5:12 

Sin came into the world through one man, Adam and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— 19 For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners,

Our problem with sin is we were born with it.

We were all born in Adam—and so we must be reborn in Christ.

You are either in Adam, or you are in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:21

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

1 Corinthians 15:22

For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

“grafted in.”

If you are "in Christ", now you have a life source connected to you that enables you to produce fruit in keeping with your new identity.

Union with Christ isn’t just an upgrade—It is a complete transfer of identity.

4 ways Christians approach growth:

1. God Then Me.

God did His part, and now it’s all on me.

2. God Not Me.

God’s in control, so I don’t have to do anything.

3. God Plus Me.

Christianity is not a joint venture—it’s union with Christ.

4. God In Me.

This is what union with Christ means. He doesn’t just save you and then stand back. He doesn’t just partner with you like a business associate. He moves in and He takes up residence.

Philippians 2:12–13

Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Jesus has already done the decisive work.

Our working flows from His finished work.

Colossians 1:29

For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

That’s what union means. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead now lives in you. The life of Christ is flowing through your veins. You are not left to yourself—you are carried by Him.

Philippians 2:13

… it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

He’s not just changing what you do—He’s changing what you want.

You’re secure in this Union.

Romans 8:38–39

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

A grafted branch often bonds so tightly to the tree that the union can actually be stronger than the natural connection of a branch that grew there originally. Over time, the tissues of the branch and the tree knit together so completely that you can’t even tell where one stops and the other starts.

1 Corinthians 6:17

He who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.

joined (kollaō) - literally means to glue, to bind, to fuse together.

John 10:28–29

No one will snatch them out of my hand… no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

Colossians 3:3

Your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Hidden — locked away. Secure. Untouchable.

You’re blessed in this Union

If I am “in Christ,” then all that He is, and all that He has—that can be shared—is now mine.

• We receive grace in Christ — 1 Corinthians 1:4

• Our redemption is in Christ — Romans 3:24

• We are justified in Christ — Galatians 2:17

• We have forgiveness in Christ — Ephesians 4:32

• There is no condemnation in Christ — Romans 8:1

• We are a new creation in Christ — 2 Corinthians 5:17

• We have eternal life in Christ — Romans 6:23

• We have been raised with Christ and seated with Him in the heavenly places — Ephesians 2:6

• God supplies every need in Christ — Philippians 4:19

• We have every spiritual blessing in Christ — Ephesians 1:3

• Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ — Romans 8:39

Every blessing, every promise, every gift of God comes under that one reality: you are in Him, and He is in you.

You’re Transformed Through This Union

John 15:4-5

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Galatians 5:22–23

love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

The great reward of union with Christ isn’t just what you get from Him. It’s Him.

We do not seek in Christ something other than Christ Himself. — Michael Reeves

The gospel is not that Jesus is your ticket to heaven. The gospel is that Jesus is heaven.

Philippians 3:8

I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

The good news of union with Christ is not that He gives you stuff. The good news is that He gives you Himself.

Galatians 2:20

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.