However, the matter does not stop here. When we are in Christ, our past is terminated and we are ushered into the present, in which God has given us another part to our inheritance in Christ. This inheritance is "Christ in us." What is the purpose of Christ being in us? Christ in us is for the present and for the future. Christ is in us for the purpose of becoming our life today.
Many times we ask, "How can we overcome? How can we be righteous? How can we be holy?" We have to note carefully that God has not given us Christ as our pattern. He has not given us Christ as our power. God has given us Christ for only one purpose: "I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me" (Gal. 2:20).
Many people are misled to think that God has made Galatians 2:20 our goal. After being a Christian for five or ten years, they hope that they can one day say that they are crucified with Christ and that it is no longer they who live, but Christ who is living within them. They think that this is the high goal toward which they should strive. Many people think, "I will keep pursuing, until the day I reach that goal. That will be wonderful." But Galatians 2:20 does not tell us that this is God's goal for us to achieve. It says that it is God's means, something that God has accomplished. This verse shows us the meaning of a Christian's life, and how a Christian should live out this life and satisfy God. Thank the Lord that we are crucified in Christ already. We do not need to seek to live with Him. Rather, Christ lives within us as our life. If we want to live out the Christian life and satisfy God's heart, the way is for us to no longer live, but for Christ to live in us. In other words, the Lord Jesus is living for us and on our behalf. This is why we can say that it is no longer we who live, but Christ who is living.
Paul said, "For to me, to live is Christ" (Phil. 1:21). This does not mean that Paul would reach a certain stage after being a Christian for many years and could then say, "For to me, to live is Christ." He was telling us that this was the way he had lived all along. What is the Christian life? The Christian life is just Christ. What does it mean for Christ to live within us? Christ living within us means that Christ is our life and that He is living instead of us. We do not live by the power of Christ. Rather, Christ lives within us and on our behalf. This is an inheritance that we can enjoy. God has given Christ to us to be our life. A Christian life is one which requires no self-effort, because the Christian life is a law. God has given Christ to us to be our life. This life is a law, and it is spontaneous. There is no need for us to do anything. The law of the Spirit of life is in us (Rom. 8:2). We do not have to make up our mind to do anything. When this law operates, it spontaneously does things for us. We need to realize that this life is a law. If it were not a law, there would be the need for self-effort, and we would have to do something. But since it is a law, there is no need for self-effort, and there is no need for us to do any work. Suppose we are holding something in our hands. The minute we let go, the object will fall on the ground. The force of gravity is a law, and this law will produce certain results automatically. Thank and praise the Lord that the Christian life is a law and that we do not have to grasp onto such a life. Thank the Lord that such a law operates in a spontaneous way. God has put Christ in us and given Him to us for our inheritance. He is working spontaneously in us. All we have to do is receive as Isaac did.