Christ Within
A Day in the Life
“To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
Colossians 1:27
As I sit with Paul’s words to the Colossians, I am struck again by how easily the Christian life can be reduced to activity rather than identity. Paul does not describe discipleship as imitation alone, nor does he frame it as moral improvement powered by religious effort. He speaks instead of a mystery now revealed—Christ in you. The Greek phrase Christos en hymin carries a sense of indwelling presence, not occasional influence. This is not Christ visiting from time to time, but Christ inhabiting the believer as a permanent reality. The Christian life, then, is not lived for Christ as much as it is lived from Christ. That distinction reshapes how I understand obedience, endurance, and even failure.
From the beginning, the Father’s plan was not simply to forgive humanity but to restore divine fellowship through union. When Paul speaks of “the riches of the glory of this mystery,” he is pointing to something far greater than individual salvation moments. He is describing God’s intention to place His eternal Son within ordinary people, making their lives the dwelling place of divine presence. This means that when I face a need, a decision, or a moment of weakness, I am not drawing from my own spiritual reserves. I am meeting that moment with the presence of the crucified and risen Lord already at work within me. As Andrew Murray once wrote, “Christ Jesus came into the world not only to make known the love of God, but to impart that love as a living power in the heart.” Discipleship begins to look less like self-effort and more like surrender to a life already given.
This understanding challenges how we often approach spiritual growth. It is tempting to measure discipleship by how much Scripture we know, how disciplined our habits are, or how visibly consistent our behavior appears. While these practices matter, they are not the source of transformation. True discipleship is learning to give Jesus Christ unrestricted access to every part of life so that He may express His life through us. Paul’s concern is not whether Christ is present—He already is—but whether we believe this reality deeply enough to live from it. The greatest struggle in the Christian life is often not obedience, but trust. Do I truly believe that my relationship with Christ is the center from which everything else flows?
When others observe my response to crisis, pressure, or disappointment, what do they actually see? This question lingers uncomfortably because it exposes the difference between managing appearances and revealing presence. If Christ truly lives in me, then His patience, truthfulness, and sacrificial love should increasingly shape my responses. Dallas Willard captured this tension well when he observed, “The greatest issue facing the world today, with all its heartbreaking needs, is whether those who are identified as Christians will become disciples—students, apprentices, practitioners of Jesus Christ.” Discipleship is not about appearing religious; it is about allowing the life of Jesus to become visible through ordinary faithfulness.
This indwelling presence also reframes how God involves us in His work. When God calls a believer to serve, to speak, or to endure, He does not issue assignments without provision. He places His Son within us so that the work He calls us to accomplish is ultimately His own. This is why Paul could later write, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20, italics added). The Christian life is not sustained by striving to live like Jesus, but by yielding so that Jesus lives His life through us. There is a quiet freedom in this truth—a freedom from self-reliance and a deeper dependence on divine sufficiency.
As I reflect on a day in the life of Jesus, I am reminded that His earthly ministry flowed from uninterrupted communion with the Father. That same life now dwells within us by the Spirit. Discipleship, then, is a daily practice of attentiveness—learning to recognize Christ’s presence in our reactions, our conversations, and our decisions. Over time, the difference becomes evident. Families notice it. Communities sense it. The hope of glory begins to take visible form, not through perfection, but through presence faithfully lived.
For further reflection on this theme, see this article from Christianity Today on union with Christ and spiritual formation:
https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2019/april-web-only/union-with-christ-spiritual-formation.html
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