To Live Is Christ

Romans 8:29-30. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰ And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

“To live is Christ” means that God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. No, I’m not talking about who you marry, or where you go to college, or what job you choose, or even what ministry you do. I’m not talking about “It’s a Wonderful Life” theology. I’m talking about a much bigger, a much grander cosmic purpose. A purpose that ends in glorification. Romans 8:29-30 explain why “all things work together for good,” even our suffering. Because there is a much bigger plan at work, and it’s not centered in you. Its centered in Christ.

God’s wonderful plan for your life starts with being foreknown. There can be no doubt, no matter where you stand theologically, that God knew in advance who would love him and receive his offer of eternal life. Are we foreknown because God graciously chose to save us by his sovereign plan? Or are we foreknown because God could see ahead in time who would trust him of their own free will? My answer is yes. No matter where we land on this spectrum, the reality is that God has been working a plan for your glorification in Christ, by your union with Christ, even before you were saved. Before you were born. Before Creation. Before time. That’s amazing grace.

God’s wonderful plan for your life moves to you being predestined. Our destination has been predetermined – Christ likeness. This process has already begun. It’s unstoppable. It will be finalized on the day we see Jesus face to face. Like him! Holy like him. Beautiful like him. Glorious like him. Loving like him. Gracious, tender, and patient like him. In a body like his; he the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. The destination of your life is just the beginning of living.

God’s wonderful plan for your life then moves to your being called. Called by God externally (you heard the gospel) and internally (the Spirit of God convicted of sin, righteousness, and judgment). Here again, depending on where you stand theologically, you either could not resist this gracious and effectual call of God, or you chose not to resist this gracious and effectual call of God. Either way, your saved now! Now what God predestined for you, your transformation into Christ’s image, can begin.

God’s wonderful plan for your life next justified you. You are counted as righteous. You are legally declared not guilty. You have the imputed righteousness of Christ by faith (Romans 3:21-26). Apart from this justification, there can be no glorification. No Christ likeness. No Spirit indwelling. No zoe life of God. But WITH justification comes all of this and more. It’s called glorification…

Finally, God’s wonderful plan for your life glorified you. It’s interesting to see this verb, and justified for that matter, in the past tense. Every good Jew knew that you aren’t justified and then glorified until AFTER the judgment. These should be future tense verbs. But here Paul is saying that we have already been justified and glorified. The very thing we are predestined to in the future has already happened to us in the present. How? Because we are in Christ, and it has already happened to him. This is the glory that we are waiting for in v. 18-21. The glory that is yet to come. It’s already here inside of us. Sin is eradicated in us. The New Creation has been born inside of us. We are resurrected to God.

What assurance! What security! What hope! What peace! What love! What grace!

“To live is Christ” means that you are foreknown, predestined, called, justified, and glorified. Why? Because you are in Christ. And Christ was foreknown, predestined, called, justified, and glorified. God foreknew in eternity past the the Son would save the world. God predestined the Son before the creation of the world to take on flesh, to become Jesus and then to die and rise and become the glorified Christ. God called the Son unto this redemption plan before the incarnation, and he guided Jesus the Son through this plan while he was on earth. God justified Jesus, who took our sins upon himself, when he raised him from the dead. God glorified Jesus and exalted him as the Christ when he raised him to life and returned him to glory at the right hand of God the Father. In Christ, this is your same destiny. Nothing can stop it. Not even you. God has a wonderful plan for your life – to image Christ so as to glorify Christ. Do you believe this?

Romans 8:28-29. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹ For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Romans 8:28 has been called a “pillow for the weary heart.” It’s a verse that if you have been a Christian for more than a minute or two you’ve probably heard. Maybe you’ve quoted it. Or maybe you’ve had it quoted at you. Some people find it cliche. Like “God is good.” “All the time.”

But the truth is Romans 8:28 is quite possibly the most glorious promise that we have in all of scripture. It should never be cliche. It should be claimed every day and poured deep into our weary hearts and souls.

This week we’ve been moving backwards through Romans 8:28-29. Here’s what we’ve seen so far:
in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers – God’s ultimate purpose is to have a family – sons for himself, and siblings for Jesus. All to the glory of the Trinity.
those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son – God is restoring humanity through our union with Christ. We are being changed into the likeness of Christ by the Spirit, by grace, and by glory.

Because of these two truths, we can claim this promise:
we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Because we are destined to live forever in God’s family, as his sons and daughters…we know.

Because we have been and are being gloriously transformed into the same likeness as Christ…we know.

Because our future is this secure, this grand, this holy, this spectacular…we know.

If we know the outcome of our lives (and we do), then we know that everything leading up to that final outcome, if God is in control (and he is), must contribute to that final outcome – the conforming of our lives to Christ’s life.

All things. The infinitely seen and unseen. Known and unknown. It all contributes to our transformation into the sons and daughters of God who image Christ. And listen, all things means ALL THINGS. Successes. Failures. Sufferings. Groanings. The good. The bad. The ugly. Even when we sin, God turns it into part of the equation for our conformation into Christ.

It’s kind of like that scene in Terminator 2 where you think Arnold (Terminator) is trying to kill young John Connor, but actually… it’s all good.

How is this possible? God. Good is who he is and what he does. He takes everything that is futile or purposeful, worthy or unworthy, right or wrong, and transforms it into the good. The ultimate good – the image of Christ in us, his ultimate creation. This is the sovereign providence of God at work. This is why we can trust him and declare him to be good in all things – because his goal for us is good. It is Christ. This should fill us with great gratitude and faith in God. Without him, nothing would ever work out for this ultimate good. All would end in meaninglessness. Without him we would be at the mercy of fate. But instead we are IN the mercy of God.

Please note that this verse doesn’t say “all things are good.” Nope. As you know, many things in this life are very bad, even for Christians. Christians experience all the same things, good and bad, that everyone else does. But the promise of this verse is that all things, from the senseless tragedy, to the planned out evil, God will use to change us. But this does NOT change the thing itself. It is still futility. It is still evil.

This verse does not make suffering good. It does not make it something to be embraced or sought after. But it does mean that we no longer have to despair in our suffering. We no longer need to doubt God’s love for us. The cross proves this. Our union with Christ proves this. In Christ, now everything has meaning. Everything serves his purpose when you are called according to his purpose. When you are called to being conformed to Christ.

When you love God, when you are in his family, he WILL work it out for your ultimate good, your ultimate growth, your ultimate glory. Nothing is an accident. Nothing is random. All worry and fear can melt away. The plan of God has not been thwarted by our mistakes, our sins, or our suffering.

“To live is Christ” means we know it all works out in the end. Is that a cliche? Maybe. But it’s a really really good one.

Here’s some real cliches:

 

Romans 8:28-29. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹ For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Yesterday we looked at the ultimate purpose of God in creating for himself a family – in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Today we will keep moving backwards into one of the clearest statements of our union with Christ in scripture – those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.

Image. This word should evoke thoughts of Genesis 1. We were made in God’s image and likeness. A human is an image bearer, a likeness revealer. When we shattered the image and likeness of God at the Fall (Gen.3), God put into place a plan in foreknowledge and predestination to restore his image and likeness to mankind. How? By becoming a human himself. By taking on flesh. By living as one of us in all of the designed perfection of humanity and taking the punishment deserved by us due to all of the destructive rebellion of humanity.

Romans 8:3. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, [God] condemned sin in the flesh.

Not since the Garden had a human lived in the full image and likeness of God. But now, in Christ, it was happening again. Jesus became the mold for humanity. He came to restore us to our original design. Now God just had to get the rest of humanity to be melted down and repoured into that mold – the Jesus mold.

Broken, melted, poured, shaped… just like us.

But how? How are we actually conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.

First, we know that this goes way beyond Jesus simply setting for us an example of how to live. “Do what I do,” or “be holy as I am holy” is not the final answer. Sadly, this is how most people see Jesus – a good teacher and moral guide. This is how most religions presents him. In fact, this is how most Christians try to live the Christian life; with Jesus as their example and not their Savior. The problem is that this is just another form of law. A standard to attain to by works, not grace.

So how IS it done? How are we conformed to the image of Christ?

God, the Spirit.

First, it is an act of the indwelling Spirit. We are conformed by the indwelling life of Christ. By the indwelling power of God. It is poured into us in the form of the power of his love (Romans 5:1-5). We are conformed by God’s spiritual DNA. We now share his heart. His desires. His communicable attributes like love, holiness, and righteousness are now ours. We aren’t gods. But we are God’s. His possession. His family. Our transformation into Christ-likeness is perfect, progressive, and inevitable. Nothing can stop it.

Grace, Sin and Suffering.

Yes, we are conformed positionally and perfectly when we receive the indwelling Spirit. But then we also undergo God’s process of being conformed into Christ through the experience of grace that comes through our sin and suffering.

Ironically, I can only be like Christ when I stop trying to be like Christ. Being conformed to the image of Christ is a sheer act of grace that I receive. We “work” at receiving Christ’s gracious work on our behalf (faith), not being like Jesus. And this receiving is what then makes us like Christ. Receiving grace is what made Jesus the Christ. This reality is the same for us.

What draws the resurrection power out of us? What grows the fruit of the Spirit in us? What allows us to behold the glory of the Lord? It is the experiencing of God’s grace and forgiveness. It is the receiving of his grace in the midst of our sin and suffering. It is knowing that we are united to Christ by our co-crucifixion with him. But also considering that we are united to Christ, and are, by grace, ALIVE TO GOD by our co-resurrection with him.

Glory.

Yes, we have the complete and perfect indwelling life of Christ by the Spirit. Yes, the life of Christ is transforming us progressively into Christ’s image. But the reality is that this transformation into Christ’s likeness will not be complete until we see him in glory. Not until our bodies are glorified and our eyes behold him face to face, in his presence, will we finally be perfectly conformed to him.

This is actually the best of news. Our transformation is simply not going to be accomplished fully in this life, on this side of heaven and earth. We will ALWAYS be growing and changing. But also, always failing. Always slipping up. Always having new dark corners of our heart revealed to us. Your depression and anxiety might never go away until you see Jesus. You might be addicted to pornography until you see Jesus. You will struggle with boldness until you see Jesus. You will still be irritable and obnoxious until your new glorified brain and body are resurrected to meet Jesus. And at the same time, you are full of hope, faith, and love. You are full of grace and truth. You have everything you need for life and godliness. This great paradox of conformity to Christ is “to live is Christ.”

Please mend my soul, my frame, my life
A contrite heart, Thou won’t despise
Take now this pain and misery
And let me find my all in Thee

Romans 8:28-29. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹ For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

We come now to what William Newell calls “The Great Marvel,” Romans 8:28-29. Of course, everything we write about here at To Live is Christ is about our union with Christ. But every once in a while we come to a scripture that is so clearly descriptive of this union that we must take time to mine the depths of the truths contained therein. Therefore, we will spend the next few days exploring these two glorious verses from back to front.

in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Let’s remember where we’ve been in Romans so far.

• Ch. 5 -Our justification through Christ’s blood, forgiveness of our sins.
• Ch.6 – Our union with Christ in his death to sin.
• Ch. 7 – Our union with Christ in his death to law and our struggle to fight against sin and law due to remaining indwelling sin (the flesh).
• Ch. 8:1-27 – Our position in the Spirit and our condition of walking in the Spirit in the midst of great suffering.

And now Romans 8:28-29 – God’s victorious saving work in our lives. A work that is already done and that nothing in the universe can stop. All things lead to his glorious end.

But what is that end? What is the purpose of life? Why are we here? Why are we saved? Why did Jesus come? Why the cross? Why the resurrection?

The final answer – so that God can have a family. So that Jesus can have brothers and sisters. So that God can glorify Jesus as the firstborn.

This is the great purpose of all of redemptive history. It’s why Adam and Eve were created. It’s what God predicted in Genesis 3:15. It’s why Noah survived the flood. It’s why God called Abraham out of Ur. It’s why the Red Sea was split open. It’s why David was crowned king. It’s why Jesus was born. Why he lived. Why he died. Why he rose again. Why he indwells us. It’s everything.

God wants to be our God, and he wants us to be his people, his family.

Genesis 17:8. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”

Exodus 6:7. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God,

Leviticus 26:12. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.

2 Samuel 7:14. I will be to [David’s son] a father, and he shall be to me a son.

Hebrews 8:10. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

We will live forever as the brothers and sisters of Jesus. The adopted siblings, yes. But also the born siblings, complete with his DNA. His attributes. His character. His likeness (but now we’re getting ahead of ourselves).

Christ will live forever as the preeminent oldest brother of a whole new race. A resurrected race. And, if we are in Christ, we are part of that race. The family of God. A family tree that God is grafting together. A family of forgiven sinners. A family of believers. A heritage of misfits and outcasts, of failures and addicts, and of recovering Pharisees. All heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ to the glory of God our Father.

Are you part of this family tree? Is Jesus your big brother? Is God your Abba Father?

Just for fun…imagine drawing out Jesus’ spiritual family tree.

Romans 4:23-25. But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for [Abraham’s] sake alone, ²⁴ but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, ²⁵ who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Romans 5:8-11. but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.⁹ Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. ¹⁰ For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. ¹¹ More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

If you’re tracking with this blog everyday (or most days) you know that we’ve been in Romans 8. Yesterday I had the opportunity to talk to the “Moms of Grace” group at my church and so today I wanted to pause from Romans 8 and share some of the thoughts I shared with them. They asked me to talk about “self-love.”

Self-love v self-esteem.

The first thing we want to do when talking about self-love is distinguish it from the self-esteem movement. Now that we can see the results of the last 20-30 years of the self-esteem movement, we can tell that it’s done more harm than good. Self-esteem is the idea that you are good enough. That you can reach your full potential. But what the research has shown is that when we have to rely on constant self-approval, or even the approval of others, we actually become more discouraged. Why? Because it creates something that we warn against here all the time – a law.

Self-esteem leaves us having to live up to a “potential” that others are setting for us or that we set for ourselves. It soon becomes rooted in comparison. The gap between where I want to be and where I actually am grows larger and larger. Self-esteem is contingent upon outcomes. If you do well you will feel good. If you don’t do well, then “you can do better.” But can I? Self-esteem actually doesn’t encourage self-love at all, it impedes it.

Self-compassion is better.

A newer movement in psychology today is the self-compassion movement. Dr. Kristin Neff out of the University of Texas is doing a lot of research and writing about self-compassion. “Self-Compassion is not judging ourselves positively, it is relating to ourselves kindly.” It teaches us to be kind to ourselves, to forgive ourselves, to accept that everyone is failing and falling short, so stop comparing. It advocates embracing community and using mindfulness to be in the moment while not letting our successes or failures become our identity.

Self-compassion is way closer to the gospel than self-esteem. It is rooted in the idea of a self-love that is actually honest with yourself. Self-compassion actually begins to remove the fear of failure and thus increases motivation, forgiveness, and responsibility for wrong actions.

The problem is still the “self.”

The big problem with self-compassion and self-love is that it is still something that we must self-create? Do I have the ability to summon self-compassion? What if the thing I need compassion about is my inability to show myself compassion? What if my self-love is rooted in a false version of myself? What if my “self” changes over time?

Our worth, value, and meaning must come from an unchanging outside source. Preferably an honest, true, righteous, loving, supreme outside source. Obviously we are talking about God here.

First, our self-love must be rooted in the reality that we are made in the image of God. We bear his likeness. He made us with purpose and pours grace upon us (even before we are Christians). Of course, our sin destroys this image. We fall short of the glory of God.

Imputation and self-love.

Go back up to the top and read Romans 4:23-25 and 5:8-11.

By faith in Christ, we are counted as righteous. We are counted as lovable. We are counted as reconciled. This is called imputation. God declares over us what actually isn’t true (we’re not righteous, lovable, or reconcilable), and in declaring it, God makes it true.

Do you see it?

Now we have the ability for self-love and self-compassion that no longer is rooted in my own subjective and ever changing mindset alone. Rather it is rooted in the objective reality of the cross and my union with Christ. If God actually loves me, can I love myself? I should. I must. Self-love is required for love of others – “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Imputation (ie: the gospel) allows us to live within the dual reality of “I am wicked” and yet “I am loved.” This is “to live is Christ.” This merging of grace and truth is what allows for real self-love. An embracing of ourselves that’s rooted in God’s loving embrace of us, even when we were still sinners.

Romans 8:24-25. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Hope is confident expectation. It’s not a pipe dream or mere optimism. It’s not a slogan or a cliche. It is waiting within a reality.

We were created to hope. We were born into suffering and hope was born into us. We know there’s something more out there for us. More than just this life. We know it because we long for it. If it didn’t exist why would we want it so badly?

We were saved into hope. In this hope we were saved. Our salvation is “already but not yet.” It is not complete. Our total liberation has not yet occurred. It is therefore full of hope.

We live in a state of hope. The indwelling life of Christ by the Spirit guarantees for us that there is something better coming. The indwelling life of Christ gives us the expectation of something better. The indwelling life of Christ grows the longing in us for something better.

Often, we feel inoculated against hope. Life is so often full of disappointments that hope is a heartache just waiting to happen. We either give in to the despair of abandoning all hope, or we presume upon hope and take matters into our own hands.

Often, we place our hope in lesser things. Our hope finds its way on to the trillion lesser things in life that were not designed to bear the weight of our longings. Even Jesus never used the word hope or called himself the hope of the world. Why? Because he knew that the people at that time and in that place would place their hope in him in all the wrong ways.

Our hope is Christ. Our hope is not the teaching of Christ, or the example of Christ. It is Christ. His life. Our transformation into his likeness by his indwelling life. Our union with him. “To live is Christ” is our hope.

Hope gives us sight in the darkness of suffering. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? Hope will not be limited to what we can see. Hope will not call what is visible the final word. Hope will hold God’s hand in the dark. There is a reality in Christ beyond the visible suffering, the felt suffering, the rational suffering of this life. There is faith beyond sight.

Hope produces active waiting with patience. If we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Patience is “steadfast endurance.” Our hope is not passive. It is active. Our passive justification produces an active sanctification. Hope leads to rebellion. The rebellion against evil, sin and the dark forces that seek to destroy mankind. To hope is to fight. To hope is to strive. To hope is to endure. Until our Hope returns.

Suffering has meaning because of hope. Our suffering won’t produce shame. Our suffering drives our survival. How do we survive? Hope. We live or die where we hope. And, as those that are in Christ, we live? Why? Because our hope is not in hope. It is in the objective reality of Christ. A person. A life. A death. A resurrection. An imputed righteousness. Because our hope is in the most meaningful of all things – the life of Christ – our suffering, which forces us toward hope, will never be meaningless.
Romans 5:3-5. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴ and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵ and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans 8:23-26. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
²⁶ Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

Most of us aren’t very good at groaning. Whining, yes. Groaning, no. Of course I mean spiritual groaning. I find myself groaning a lot physically (sitting, standing, lying down, getting up, you get the idea). But spiritual groaning is a different matter.

Creation groans. We groan. The Spirit groans.

We groan in solidarity with creation. We are part of nature. We groan only because the natural part of us is yet unredeemed – we … groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for … the redemption of our bodies. Our Spirit is heaven ready, glorified, a new creation. Our bodies however, are fleshly, full of sin, and corrupt. The reason we still sin today is because we are still stuck in these bodies.
2 Corinthians 5:2,5. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling … He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

The Spirit groans in solidarity with us. He intercedes for us by groaning. The Spirit of Christ has experienced the same groaning in his own life. Christ in you groans with words that are inexpressible. Words you will never hear or understand. The longings of Christ for your glory are in you and are being expressed to God by the Spirit.

Yes, the Spirit groans because we groan, but also we groan because Christ groaned. It’s not just that our longings have become his longings. First, his longings have become our longings. We groan because we have been given the life of Christ, and with that life comes his desires, sorrows, and thirsts. We want what he wants – justice, love, the end of suffering and pain. We long for everything to be made right, just like he does.

This is why it is so important that we learn to groan. To groan is to hope in Christ. This is not the groaning of wretchedness like in Romans 7. It’s the Spirit filled groaning of Romans 8. This is the groaning of our unmet longing. The pain that we feel because we know there is more for us out there, but we just can’t reach it yet. It’s the groaning of real hope.

There’s no better day to groan over unmet longings than Valentine’s Day. Just asking Charlie Brown.

What have you seen lately that makes you groan? Natural disasters? Another friend’s terrible diagnosis? Divorce? The kids going nuts? Your addiction? War? Conflict with friends? Political turmoil? Work place drama? What makes you say “Oh Lord Jesus how long?”

Do you groan for the coming of Christ? Do you groan for Christ-likeness?

Or do you groan for a change in your earthly situation?

Do you groan for death – simple freedom from the pain in your body or mind?

Do you groan for sin to be eradicated from your life apart from an experience of knowing Christ?

Or maybe you reject groaning as weakness. You numb or suppress your desires. You stoically face trials and just keep plugging away one day at a time.

“To live is Christ” means learning to groan. Like the Spirit. Like Christ. Like a person who knows they are missing something, that all’s not right with the world… But it will be someday. It means groaning for Christ himself. Not for mere change, or the absence of pain and suffering, or even the absence of sin. Those things only come when Christ comes. So long for him. For his Second Coming. For a deeper experience of his First Coming.

If you’re thinking “I don’t know how to groan,” take heart. The Spirit is doing it for you. It is happening. That’s what Christ in you means. Ask God to open your heart to the groanings of the Spirit in you. Ask him to refocus your longings toward Christ.

Bonus video: Snoopy!