The Most Important Doctrine You’ve Never Heard Of

Who do you think you are?

I mean that in the nicest way possible.

At the most foundational level of your personhood—who are you?

When you wake up in the morning and look at yourself in the mirror, who (or what) do you see? All day, we think thoughts and say things about ourselves to ourselves, and we are usually our harshest or most generous critics.

Perhaps your reflection in the mirror is your identity. You are either beautiful, or you’re not, accomplished or not, worthy of love or not. Maybe you see yourself as a number—the number on the scale, in your bank account, or on your social media feeds. Or maybe you’re defined by your roles and relationships. You are your track record with people—you’re either winning at relationships, or you’re losing. You’re either popular, enviable, and successful, or you’re not.

However you define it, who you think you are is shaped by your perception of yourself, which may or may not be true.

A Reality Hidden In Plain Sight

But what if the most important thing about you—the thing that truly defined you wasn’t a worldly metric, but a heavenly reality that is fixed and unchanging? What if this defining truth superseded every other identity marker, making them pale in comparison? And what if this reality has been there all along, woven through the pages of your Bible, and you just didn’t have eyes to see it yet?

This defining doctrine will awaken your awe and wonder in God’s Word. It will anchor your identity, deepen your assurance, and give you joy and courage that your hardest circumstances can’t touch. It’s no exaggeration to say it changes everything, and it answers the question of who you really are.

Yet, many of us have never fully seen or understood it. Kevin DeYoung calls it “the most important doctrine you’ve never heard of.”

So what is this life-transforming doctrine?

It’s your union with Christ.

What is Union with Christ?

The doctrine of our union with Christ is as expansive as it is mysterious—which is probably why so many Christians are unfamiliar with it. It’s difficult to explain all it entails and all it affects in our lives. We often can’t get at this truth directly, so the Bible gives us pictures to show what it’s like.

It’s like a marriage; the most intimate one-flesh relationship you can have in this life (Eph. 5:31-32). It’s also a relationship of a body made up of many parts connected to its head (1 Cor. 12:12-13; Col 1:18), or a temple made up of living stones, growing up together into something beautiful (1 Pet. 2:5; Eph. 2:21-22). And it’s like a branch connected to a vine, receiving all of the vine’s life-giving sustenance and tended by the Father Vinedresser (John 15:1-5). The number of pictures the Bible gives suggests that our union is unlike anything else we know. It’s like these things, and yet it’s more.

So what does it mean to be united to Christ? Rankin Wilbourne, author of Union with Christ, defines it as, “You are in Christ, and Christ is in you.” Practically, it means everything that is spiritually true of Jesus is also spiritually true of you. It means that what Christ is and has is yours. His perfect righteousness becomes your own (2 Cor. 5:21), his triumph over sin and death (Rom. 6:10-11), his Sonship and inheritance (Rom 8:15-17), and his ultimate victory over all things (Rom. 8:37), all of this and more become yours in Christ.

Seeing Union With Christ In Scripture

I’ve been a Christian for over forty years, and it wasn’t until a few years ago when I read Union with Christ that all that my union entails became real to me. This book wrecked me in the best way possible and forever changed how I see the gloriousness of our salvation. Now, I see union everywhere—I see it in my daily Bible reading, I hear it in sermons, and as I was writing my book, I realized it was the foundation of the pursuit of holy leisure! It is union with Christ that allows us to enjoy communion with him, and this theme is woven throughout my book.

So how do we find union with Christ in our Bibles? Once you know what to look for, you’ll see it everywhere. Look for and underline these prepositional phrases, “in Christ,” “in him,” “with Christ,” “through him,” and “Christ in you.” Each time you find one (and there are about 200 in the New Testament), you’ve discovered a new facet of your identity in Christ.

Why Union With Christ Changes Everything

Your union with Christ is the good news of the gospel. It’s not just that by believing in Jesus you avoid hell (as wonderful as that is!) but that you get Jesus Christ himself! You are no longer defined by who you are—but whose you are.

Sinclair Ferguson said that our union with Christ is the most stabilizing force in the universe. When you think about it, what is there to fear if you are in Christ? No matter what trials or suffering enter your life, nothing can separate you from his love (Rom. 8:35-39). You are eternally secure, and your life is hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3). And you have a glorious future and inheritance waiting for you (1 Pet. 1:3-5).

Everything Christ has is yours!

This doctrine is freeing because it means we no longer suffer from an identity crisis. If you are in Christ, the most irreducible reality about who you are is not what you see in the mirror, but that you are one with Christ.

The most important doctrine that you’ve never heard of delivers the most important news. If Christ is in you, then you are in Christ, and that’s who you really are!

In him,

Cara

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P.S. Union with Christ is what makes The Pursuit of Holy Leisure possible. Our union informs our communion. To learn more, read Chapter 1 of PHL 🙂.

P.P.S. Just who are you in Christ? I’ve compiled 125 (of the 200) verses that talk about your union. Grab your free copy below.

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