"But of Him you are in Christ Jesus." This is absolutely something that God has done. Yet we did not know this. In order for us to know, there was the need for the church to preach the gospel. The church announces to men this earth-shaking fact, that God has put men into Christ; when the Lord Jesus was crucified on the cross, God judged Him, and men were also judged in Him. Therefore, judgment is over as far as men are concerned. This is the gospel. The gospel tells us that God has done something in Christ. It tells us that God has included us in Christ. When He dealt with Christ, He also dealt with us. We have been dealt with in Him already. God has solved the problem of sin as well as the problem of ourselves. Thank the Lord that we died in Christ. This is why Romans 6:11 says, "So also you, reckon yourselves to be dead to sin, but living to God in Christ Jesus."

We are dead in Christ Jesus. What do we do after we hear such a fact? We are persons with a will. After we believe in this fact, we should have some kind of expression. Therefore, we want to be baptized after we believe in the Lord and are saved. What is the meaning of baptism? Being baptized is being in Christ Jesus and being in His death (Rom. 6:3-4). In other words, God has put us into Christ, but we have to do something to show others that we are in Christ. Our baptism demonstrates to others the way we get into Christ. When we are baptized into the water, do we remain in the water? No, we come out of it quickly. Our coming out of the water signifies that we have been resurrected with Christ. Whoever comes out of the water testifies that he has resurrected. Hence, our baptism is a reenactment of the work that God accomplished for us in Christ. It is a performance to show others what God did for us in Christ. This is a spiritual performance.

When Christ was on the cross, God put us in Christ and terminated the old man in Adam. God had to terminate Adam; that account had to be settled and closed. We were men in Adam, and we could only be delivered from Adam through death. When we are joined to the death of Christ, we are terminated and delivered from Adam. This is the first aspect of God's work. The second aspect of God's work is to put Christ into us. First Corinthians 1:30 says, "Who became wisdom to us from God."