Made Alive This is what is happening to Christians – they are being “Made Alive” – as they seek eternal life. This process begins at conversion (the Second Coming of Christ) and continues until the believer is conformed to the image of Christ. This process of confirmation is symbolized in Revelation 21:10 as the New Jerusalem descending from Heaven. This confirmation is also referred to in 2 Corinthians 5:17.
— New American Standard 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.
Most denominations believe and state that Christianity (following Christ) is a personal relationship with Jesus. These same denominations deny this personal nature as it refers to the Second Coming. They state that the Second Coming is a type of corporate event which happens to all Christians at the same time.
I do not adhere to that common theology.
The Second Coming of Christ begins at conversion and is defined as Christ coming into the believer’s heart through the agency of the Holy Spirit of God.
Jesus is said to come to His temple (our bodies, 1 Corinthians 3:16) in Malachi 3:1. Then after the Second Coming (after He indwells His followers) Jesus will refine His people. It is said that the Second Coming is after this earthly life and that it can be defined as a judgment of our behavior during our earthly life. Thank God that this is incorrect. Jesus comes the second time to help us with our salvation by refining and purifying Christians as Malachi 3:3 and Hebrews 9:27 and 28 show.
The first resurrection from the dead (being dead in sins and transgressions) also begins at conversion and is the process of a believer learning to abstain from or die to sin, just as Jesus did. The Apostle Paul refers to His attempt to conform to this death to sin during His earthly lifetime in Philippians 3:10-13. The first resurrection is a resurrection from the condition of being dead in sins and transgressions and is defined as the formation of the nature of Christ within the believer, Colossians 1:27.
— New American Standard 1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive.
“In Christ” all shall be made alive or resurrected. Every person who is “in Christ” so to speak will be “made alive”. The term “In Christ” is defined as “walking” or conducting your life as Jesus “walked” or conducted his earthly life, 1 John 2:6.
The way Christians are made alive is illustrated in the following verses.
Jesus has eternal life within Himself, John 5:26. The person who dwells “In Jesus” (In Christ) will partake of the life that Jesus has.
— New American Standard 1 John 5:11 And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
— New American Standard Colossians 1:27 to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Jesus followers are seeking to partake of the eternal life that Jesus has.
Christians are “made alive” by partaking of the life that belongs to Jesus Christ, in other words they must be “in Christ” to obtain eternal life. Being “in Christ” means keeping the covenant with God. This covenant is summed up by the word’s of the Apostle John, “love God and keep His commandments”, 1 John 5:2 and 3. The covenant is also referred to by Jesus in Mark 12:30 and 31. Keeping the covenant includes recognizing and requesting forgiveness when a sin is committed.
Being “in Christ” means walking as Jesus did. Jesus of course fulfilled the Law by keeping the two greatest commandments and loving God with all of His heart and loving His neighbor as Himself. So it can be said that being “in Christ” is keeping the two greatest commandments. These two commandments are equivalent to, or sum up the entire law of God. In other words, every commandment of God is fulfilled when a person keeps those two commandments.
— New American Standard 1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding, in order that we might know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.
Jesus has come and given us understanding so that Christians may know God, and to know God is eternal life, John 17:3.
— New American Standard John 17:3 “And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.
Jesus gives us this understanding (giving us the mind of Christ) by indwelling the believer, Colossians 3:10.
— New American Standard Colossians 3:10 and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him
This confirmation to the image of Christ has to do with the acquisition of knowledge and understanding, 2 Pet 3:18.
2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen. (KJV)
The Grace and Peace of God are multiplied or increased in the life of the individual believer through the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ, 2 Peter 1:2.
— New American Standard 2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3. seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
If a person wants more of the grace and peace of God in their lives the Apostle Peter tells us how to get it. A Christian is encouraged learn more about God the Father and Jesus Christ.
This is accomplished by reading the word of God, which is the bible.
— New American Standard Ephesians 5:26 that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
Not solely through knowledge does this cleansing happen. It is contingent upon the renewing of the Holy Spirit.
— New American Standard Titus 3:5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,
Not on the basis of Deeds… Before we came to Christ we had no basis or nothing which would move God to save us or prevent His wrath from being revealed in our lives.
The way Jesus indwells a person is explained by the Apostle Peter in acts 3:19 – 21.
— New American Standard Acts 3:19 “Repent therefore and return, that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; 20. and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, 21. whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.
As can be seen in this portion of scripture Jesus comes from Heaven following the restoration.
This “restoration” is a restoration or renewal of the kingdom, or reign of God, Acts 1:6. This restoration is repentance from the rebellion that influenced Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.
— New American Standard Acts 1:6 And so when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”
In Acts 3:19 and 20 it is seen that Jesus comes after personal repentance. So these verses raise a question and answer that same question. The question from Acts 3:21 would be – when is the restoration? The answer (from Acts 3:19 and 20) is that the restoration occurs when the individual “repents” of their unbelief in Christ Jesus.
Acts 3:21 shows the reader that Jesus remains in Heaven until the “restoration”. In verses 19 and 20 Peter told the people that Jesus will be sent to them (individually) when they repent (from unbelief).
Jesus indwells the person who seeks Him when that person repents; this repentance is the restoration spoken of in Acts 3:21. Jesus made reference to this restoration when He was speaking of John the Baptist (John preached repentance) whose ministry restored all things,Matthew 17:11.
— New American Standard Matthew 17:11 And He answered and said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things;
The Second Coming of Christ occurs when God the Father sends Jesus to indwell a repentant person, John 14:23.
— New American Standard John 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him.
It is important to stay within the confines of the Bible. This means that the bible gives us the information that we need, and it all fits together in a precise manner.
In Hebrews 9:28 that the Lord comes to the world for two reasons. Once to bear sins and once for salvation.
After he indwells the individual He says that He will never leave them.
There are several places in the scriptures where Jesus is said to “come” to the believer after they have been indwelt, such as Matthew 24:50, Luke 12:36-40 and Revelation 3:3.
These comings can be called visitations. Interestingly the word “visitation” in 2 Peter 2:12 pertains to the Lord’s visit’s and carries the same meaning as the word “bishop” from 1 Timothy 3:2. Possibly suggesting one of the functions of the office of Bishop or overseer of a congregation.
The basis for this thought concerning “visitations” is that The Day of the Lord is a point of judgement/destruction (Joel 1:15), and Christians are judged so that they are not condemned. This illustrates that there is a period of time after the Christian’s judgement (sometimes carried out be the thief/devil) during which the Christian learns obedience so as not to be condemned, 1 Corinthians 11:32. This judgment or evaluation (evaluation is a root or definition of the word visitation) can be seen in 1 Corinthians 3:13-15. The times when the Lord comes as a thief in this manner can be seen in the events of Matthew 5:23-26.
The concept referred to in Ezekiel 20:37 is important to remember as the visitations of Christ are studied.
— New American Standard Ezekiel 20:37 “And I shall make you pass under the rod, and I shall bring you into the bond of the covenant;
As the student tries to reconcile the “comings” and “visitations” they must be limited by the information in Hebrews 9:28. There are only two reasons that Jesus appears on earth.
So if Jesus is said to come to a person after the initial indwelling or conversion experience mentioned in Acts 3:19-21 it has to be for the purpose of salvation. These subssequent “visitations” to the believer are employed to advance the salvation of the believer regardless of wether the visitation is for reward or discipline, Hebrews 12:2.
All visitations must adhere to the mandates of the Second Coming mentioned in Hebrews 9:28. Meaning that all visitations after the cross (the first coming) must be for the purpose of the person’s salvation. These subsequent “comings or visitations” are not to indwell the believer, since Jesus promised to never leave them after the initial indwelling at conversion. It therefore must be for the purpose of furthering the salvation of the person. Jesus comes into the life of the person and transforms the person from glory to glory, 2 Corinthians 3:18. This can be defined as bringing them into the bonds of the Covenant, Ezekiel 20:37.
It is important to remember that the covenant allows for the sinner to obtain forgiveness of sins. That means that if a person sins, they can ask for and receive forgiveness and they have in that manner kept the covenant with God. They are then within the convanent. This concept of sinning and being forgiven results in righteousness, being right in God’s eyes. This is called the righteousness contained in the law.
Paul understood this righteousness, but longed for the righteousness which He could receive by faith. In other words Paul wanted to be right in God’s eyes because he did not sin, not because He complied with the covenant after He had already sinned. God can tansform a person into someone who does not sin, as is seen in Genesis 20:6.
— King James Philippians 3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
When a person passes under God’s rod they can receive from the Lord as is mentioned in Luke 12:37. In that case the person received (spiritual) food, (had lunch with God).
The person who suffers loss as a result of evaluation is mentioned in Luke 12:46.
This illustrates the disciplines and the rewards that the Lord uses to further a Christian’s salvation, Hebrews 9:28.
In Romans 8:19 the bible says that creation waits for the manifestation of the sons of God. Christians are also are told to wait in Galatians 5:5.
In 1 Thessalonians 1:10 we are told that Jesus followers are waiting for Him.
If Jesus followers are waiting for Him after He has already promised never to leave them (Hebrews 13:5) “what are they waiting for”?
They are waiting to be transformed (by the renewing of their mind, Romans 12:2) into righteous a person, or a person who God has conformed to the image of God’s Son Jesus Christ.
— New American Standard Galatians 5:5 For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.
As Christians ‘wait’ for the ability to do what is right in God’s eyes (righteousness), there are points of time in which are their performance is evaluated. We are either rewarded for correct behavior or we are corrected.
This involves pain which Paul likens to labor.
— New American Standard Galatians 4:19 My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you