Christ in You the Hope of Glory — Stephen Kaung

The Mystery of Christ in You

1. We will be reading from verse 24 to verse 29. 1. We will be reading from verse 24 to verse 29. Now I rejoice in what was a struggle for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's affliction for the sake of His body, which is the Church.

2. I have become His servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the Word of God in His fullness, the mystery which I have kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints.

3. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you. 4. To hope of glory, we proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.

5. To this end, I labor, struggling with all His energies, which was so powerfully worked in me. 1. We will be reading from verse 24 to verse 29. We thank the Lord for the reading of His Word. Good morning, we are glad and privileged to have our brother Stephen Kwong with us.

Let's pray.

Dear Lord, we want to thank Thee for this privilege. That we may come together in Thy precious Name. We thank Thee for Thy precious Word. We pray that Thy Holy Spirit will breathe upon Thy written Word.

And make it life and spirit to us. We commit this time into Thy hands. And trust Thee to bless us. That Thou mayst be glorified. We ask in the Name of our Lord Jesus. Amen. Please be seated. This morning we would like to share on Christ giving you the hope of glory.

The Apostle Paul talked about a mystery. He said that mystery was hidden through the ages and the generations. And yet that mystery has been manifested to us, that is to the saints today. And what is that mystery?

That mystery is Christ giving you the hope of glory. Christ giving you the hope of glory. And this mystery is the richness of the glory of the mystery. And the hope of the glory of the mystery is the hope of glory.

The Hidden Mystery Revealed Through the Ages

Now brothers and sisters, what is a mystery? If we use a modern word, we can say it is a secret. There in the heart of God is a secret. And this secret has been hidden in Him through the ages and the generations.

Now why is it that He has hidden this secret in His heart for so long? Because it is a wonderful secret. It is a magnificent secret. It is a glorious secret. Or we may say it is the top secret in God's heart.

It is something that is very deep in the heart of God. It is something that He desires to have throughout the ages and the generations. He is not able to reveal that secret to man right away. He has to prepare for the time of the revelation of that top secret.

He has to prepare for the time of the revelation of that top secret. So we find that throughout the ages and the centuries, that is when you read the Old Testament, you find that God has been preparing for the day to reveal that secret.

Until the fullness of time has come. Then He reveals that secret to the saints through the prophets and the apostles. So today this is an open secret. To us it is a secret that has been opened up to us.

Now what is that secret? What is that mystery? That mystery is Christ gives you the hope of glory. You remember the apostle Paul. He said in Galatians chapter 1 that it pleased God to reveal His Son in me.

We find that on the road to Damascus, the Risen Lord appeared to Saul. But it is more than something just appeared to him. Because at the time of His appearing to Saul, by the Spirit of God, actually Christ is revealed in him.

Not only appeared to him, but revealed in him. We know that there is a great difference between to and in. Because if He just appeared to him, it may be something external. But to be in him, that is an inward excuse.

So here the Bible says Christ is in you. Not only to you, but He is in you. And that is the hope of glory. Now brothers and sisters, I remember Andrew Murray once said, he said salvation is not just having our sins forgiven and going to heaven.

You know to common people, we generally think of salvation as having our sins forgiven and going to heaven. Now of course this is great. So far as we are concerned, if we can have our sins forgiven, that is a tremendous thing to us.

And if we will be going to heaven, that is a great hope to us. But if you read the Bible very carefully, you find that salvation is more than just having our sins forgiven. It is more than just going to heaven.

Salvation as Christ in You and You in Christ

Salvation is summed up. Christ in you and you in Christ. Christ is given to you that He may be in you. This is the beginning and the end of salvation. This is for salvation. That is what Andrew Murray said.

And this is what the Bible tells us. So salvation is Christ in you. You in Christ. And Christ in you. That is full salvation. Now brothers and sisters, sometimes we find it is very difficult to understand it.

You know when our Lord was on earth, He was with His disciples. And towards the end of His time with them, you remember in John chapter 14, our Lord Jesus was ready to leave His disciples. He was going back to heaven.

And because of this, the disciples were very sorrowful. And you remember Philip asked the Lord a question. Philip said, now if you will show us the Father. Then we will be satisfied. And you remember what the Lord said to him.

The Lord said, Philip, I have been with you for so long. And you still do not know Me. Do you not know that if you know Me, you know My Father? Do you not know that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me?

But to Philip it was hard to understand. Not only to Philip but to all the disciples. They could understand Christ was with them. And Christ stood by them. He was alongside with them. But they could not understand how can one person be another person.

You know when our Lord Jesus was on earth, the Word became flesh. He is God. And yet He took upon Himself a human flesh. And while He was in the days of His flesh, He could only be by the side of His disciples.

That is as close as He could be with His disciples. He was not able to be in His disciples, nor His disciples be in Him. It is impossible. Therefore to our human concept, when our Lord Jesus said, I am in the Father and the Father is in Me, His disciples just could not understand how could it be.

And I think probably the same thing is true with us today. And yet in the same chapter, in John chapter 14, if you turn to verse 20, and the Lord Jesus said, chapter 14 verse 20, In that day, you shall know that I am in My Father, and He in Me, and I in you.

In other words, the Lord knew that Philip and the other disciples could not understand. How could the Father be in Him, and He be in the Father? But the Lord said, one day, on that day, you shall know, not just know mentally, but more to know experientially.

You shall know that the Father is in Me. I am in the Father, and more than that, you are in Me, and I am in you. In other words, the inward relation between the Father and the Son will become our experience.

As He is in the Father, so we are in Him, and He is in us. Now brothers and sisters, now how can this be possible? The Lord said, on that day. Now if you read carefully, John chapter 14 to John chapter 16, He mentions that day a number of times.

Now what is that day? That day does not refer to the day of Pentecost. That day refers to the day of His resurrection. Because on the day of His resurrection, you remember our Lord appeared to His disciples, and He breathed into them, and said, you receive Me the Holy Spirit.

Now brothers and sisters, you remember, when God created man, He formed the body of man with the earth, and then He breathed into the nostrils of that body. He breathed into them the breath of life. And man became a living soul.

The Indwelling Holy Spirit and the New Spirit

Now here, on the day of His resurrection, He breathed into the disciples, and said, receive Me the Holy Spirit. So brothers and sisters, it is on the day of His resurrection, that we receive the Holy Spirit.

You know, when you believe in the Lord Jesus, you are born of the Spirit. Not only born of the Spirit, but the Spirit came into you. He will come into your new spirit. So Ezekiel chapter 36 told us, God said He will give us a new spirit, and that is our dead spirit, dead spirit, dead in sins and transgressions, a spirit that was separated from God the Spirit.

There was no communication with God. The Holy Spirit would quicken our dead spirit into life. And we have a new spirit. And then the Holy Spirit will come and dwell in our new spirit. Therefore in Romans we are told, the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.

And we cry out Abba Father. So dear brothers and sisters, let us remember this day. When you believe in the Lord Jesus, not only your dead spirit was quickened into new life, the Holy Spirit of God will come and dwell in your spirit.

And that is the reason why you can cry out to God Abba Father. And that is what happened on the Day of Resurrection. Our Lord breathed into the disciples and said receive me the Holy Spirit. So they have the indwelling spirit in them.

Brothers and sisters, we who believe in the Lord Jesus, we all have the Holy Spirit dwelling in our spirit. And because the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, He is the Spirit of God. He is God. Therefore when the Holy Spirit dwells in us, it is Christ who dwells in us.

It is God who dwells in us. So the Lord said, we will all come and abide with you. Now do you know that God dwells in you? Do you know that Christ is in you? Do you know that the Holy Spirit is in you?

Brothers and sisters, often we think of salvation as just having our sins forgiven. And one day we will go to heaven. Now of course this is great. But what God has done is far more than this. He put Christ in us.

He put Himself in us by His Spirit. You know when Christ was in the flesh, He could not be in His disciples because He has the flesh. But now in the Spirit He is able to be in us. Dear brothers and sisters, our relationship with Christ Jesus is not an external one.

It is an inner one. Christ is in you. Do you know Christ is in you? Brothers and sisters, ask yourself, do you know Christ is in you? Do you know that God dwells in you? Do you know the Holy Spirit is in you?

Testing Whether Christ Is in You

Now if you will turn to 2 Corinthians, chapter 13, verse 5, 2 Corinthians, chapter 13, 2 Corinthians, verse 5, examine your own self if you have been in the faith. You have to examine yourself if you have faith or not.

Prove your own self. Prove your own self. Do you not recognize yourself that Christ, Jesus Christ, is in you? Do you not know that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless indeed you have been reprobate, we need to examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith.

Now you say you believe in the Lord Jesus. Alright, examine yourself. Now how do you examine yourself whether you are in the faith? Prove your own self. Do you know, do you recognize that Jesus Christ is in you?

This is the test. This is the proof that you are in the faith. If you do not recognize that Jesus Christ is in you, then you are a reprobate. You are not really in the faith. So it is very very important.

Dear brothers and sisters, you must know that Jesus Christ is in you. It is not just you believe on the Lord Jesus. It is that when you believe in the Lord Jesus, Jesus Christ comes and dwells in you.

This is the test that we are in the faith. Whether you are really a true believer. It depends on whether Jesus Christ is in you. So ask yourself this question. Do you know Jesus Christ is in you? The living Jesus Christ is in you.

The Jesus Christ who came into this world. The Jesus Christ who lived 33 years upon this earth. The Jesus Christ who was crucified on the cross. The Jesus Christ who was buried for 3 days. The Jesus Christ who was risen from the dead.

The Jesus Christ who ascended to heaven. Who sits at the right hand of God the Father. And one day he will come back. Now this living person lives in you. He is in you. Now do you realize that? Now unfortunately to many Christians their understanding of Jesus Christ is external.

That he is in heaven and you are on earth and there is such a distance between you and Christ. Now of course on the one hand it is true that Christ is now in heaven. He sits by the right hand of God waiting for the day when all things shall be under his feet.

But on the other hand he is gained by his spirit. He is in you. He lives in you. He is very living in you. You know Christ in you is not dormant. It is not just to live there. Doing nothing. As if he is shut up in a closet.

Hearing the Still Small Voice of the Indwelling Christ

You know Christ in you is living. There is a living Christ who lives in you. And he is trying to live out his life through you. He is very active in you. He talks with you. He walks with you. He is with you all the time.

Now do you do you feel like that? Some people ask this question. How do I know that Christ lives in me? How do I know that he is in me? When did I hear him talk to me? You know some Christians say well Christ talks to me.

And it puzzles some other Christians. He said how does Christ talk to you? Do you hear it with your ears? Christ talks to you by the indwell spirit. Now do you hear his voice? You know we are so busy hearing noises all around us that we fail to hear the voice of God in us.

When God speaks to you it is a still small voice there in your spirit. You hear him talk to you. Let me illustrate. Now after you believe in the Lord Jesus after you become a Christian do you not have this experience?

Now suppose you are a very talkative person and you like to talk and when you talk you usually talk out of control and sometimes you exaggerate sometimes you even tell lies you say it's white lies not black lies and you are used to that or sometimes you criticize people you judge people it becomes a habit to you and that's what you have been doing all along you don't feel bad about it but after you believe in the Lord Jesus don't you have such an experience when you are talking and you begin to exaggerate or you begin to criticize you find there is a chest within you as if someone is checking you and say now that's enough don't talk anymore.

If you talk more you will sin. Do you have such an experience. I believe you do you know just like you are driving a car and as you are driving you have to brake the car so you find the Holy Spirit in you just applying the brake and say that's enough.

Stop now brothers and sisters listen to me. What's your reaction. It is because you have been talking and you just neglect that brake and just talk off but after you have done that you feel bad in your conscience you have to go to the Lord and confess and ask the Lord to cleanse you with his precious blood.

Otherwise your relationship with the Lord is interfered. Now this is how the Lord is talking to you. So Christ in you is living. He is talking to you he is teaching you in all things. Now sometimes when you are reading the word of God suddenly you find as if light has come as if light has shown upon the word of God and the word of God begins to speak to you.

You know we read the word of God. But sometimes when we are reading the word all we read is just black words on white paper. And after we have read it we forgot it. But sometimes when you are reading the Bible suddenly the light shines and the word of God begins to speak to your heart.

And this is how the Lord speaks to you. Brothers and sisters Christ in you is living. And that is the reason why you find in 1 John chapter 2. In 1 John chapter 2 you find that there is an anointing within you.

There is an anointing in you and that anointing will teach you in all things. And what he teaches is true and is not false. If you listen to the anointing you abide in Christ. Now the anointing refers to the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is working in you. He is like an ointment. He will apply that ointment upon your wound and there is a soothing feeling within you. He is teaching you in all things. And whatever he teaches is true.

Obeying the Spirit's Guidance in Daily Decisions

And we need to obey the teaching of the anointing. Sometimes you feel someone within you is talking to you. He is teaching you now do you obey him. Often times young Christians will come to you and ask can I do this.

Can I go there. Tell me what God's will is. You know when he is asking such questions. If you know how to help that young brother or sister instead of telling him outright you can do this. You shouldn't go there if you just tell him how do you feel yourself.

You know when a young brother or sister ask a question it shows that something is bothering him. And at the same time the Holy Spirit is teaching him something. But he would rather ask other people than to listen to the Holy Spirit within him.

Actually he already knows but he is trying to ask people. Now when he asks a question can I do this. He already knows he couldn't do it. But he asks a question. If someone tell him you shouldn't do it.

Oh he says I'll ask another one. And if he asks enough people he will get the answer that he wants. But it may not be the answer of God because the Holy Spirit within you has already. So brothers and sisters Christ in you.

That is a great mystery. He is in you hope of glory. Now what is glory. You know glory is very difficult to define as a matter of fact all the terms in the Bible are difficult to define because they are beyond our human comprehension because they are so rich.

And our glory is very difficult to explain. We find that sometimes the Bible use glory instead of the word God. God and glory are one. Glory manifest the character of God. Glory shows for the act of God glory is fully manifested in our Lord Jesus Christ.

So it is a very difficult word to explain. But one day I was reading a book I think probably some of you may have read it. It is something written by our dear brother T. Austin Sparks. And he put it in a very simple way.

He said what is glory. Glory is when God the creator is satisfied with the things he created. Glory is how it ought to be how it ought to be now. Is it not true when you are doing something and it turns out to be how it ought to be.

You feel a tinge of glory within you. Now when God look upon us and he saw that we are what we ought to be what he has created us for. And when this happens then glory appears now brothers and sisters he put it in a simple way Christ in you is the secret of glory.

If Christ is not in you you will never be able to get into glory. You remember the Bible said one day our Lord Jesus will lead many sons into glory. But how can he lead many sons into glory unless he has already incorporated work.

You know no man can see God if God will bring you to his glory. And there is not glory within you. You cannot stand that glory. So you find that glory must be worked into you first. The character of Christ must be worked into your life.

God's character must become your character. He must transform you from glory to glory according to the image of his beloved son. And how is he going to do that. It is through Christ in you because Christ is in you.

So there is the hope of glory. We have a blessed hope. And the blessed hope is that we will be transformed. And not just in the future but even today from the day that we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ is in you and the Holy Spirit will begin to do the work of transformation and he will deal with what is the natural what is endemic.

He will deal with all these all the flesh. And he will make Christ increase in us. The character of Christ will characterize we are being transformed and Christ will take over our life. Instead of we live by ourselves Christ lives in us.

As Apostle Paul said the need to live is Christ no longer I. It is Christ who lives in me. I am crucified with Christ. It is Christ who lives in me. Brothers and sisters this is glory. You know whenever you see Christ in a brother or a sister you see glory.

But whenever you see a brother or a sister in himself or herself that is you see Adam in brothers and sisters there is shame. Glory is Christ in you. So dear brothers and sisters we have a blessed hope.

Christ in you is a secret to glory. Now it is true. When he is transforming you there will be suffering. So far as your old Adam is concerned your old self is concerned you may have to suffer. You have to deny yourself take up the cross and follow the Lord.

But the result is glory. Christ will be formed in you and you will be protected in Christ Jesus. And this is what the Lord is doing today. So dear brothers and sisters do keep this word in your heart Christ in you.

The hope of Lord. Let us pray. Dear heavenly father we want to thank thee for God has already revealed to us that Christ is in us. This is the hope of glory. Oh how we praise and thank thee. Thou has not only called us but thou has also justified us.

And thou who has justified us thou will also glorify us Lord. We do turn our hearts towards thee that we may be transformed by thy spirit from glory to glory that Christ may be fully formed in us that thou may look at us and say this is how we ought to be.

May all glory be unto thee in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.