May 13

Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. — John 15:4 BSB

Christianity may be nothing more than a religious system to some, and Christian life may seem nothing more than a sincere attempt to follow and imitate Christ.

But the Christ-life is more than these—it expresses our actual union with the Lord Jesus Christ. He is undeniably in us as the source of all our experience and work.

This understanding of the highest Christian life is both simpler and more profound than any other. We don’t teach that Christ’s purpose in redemption is to restore us to the perfection Adam once had. If that were the case, we would lose it again. Instead, Christ unites us with Himself, the Second Adam, lifting us to a higher plane than our first parents ever knew.

This truth reconciles the differing views on Christian life. The Holy Spirit will lead us away from controversies over theories and point us simply to the person of Jesus Christ and the privilege of being united to Him, living in constant dependence on His power and grace.