God sees you in Adam or in Christ

What does it mean to be "in Adam" ?

To be in Adam is to share in all that Adam was and did. By nature we were all in Adam—separated from God and slaves of sin and Satan. How terrible!

But here is some wonderful news. When we were born again, God put us in Christ. We could not do this ourselves, but God did it for us. We are now IN CHRIST.

How did we get into Christ? God put us there! The Bible says,

"But of Him [of God] you are in Christ Jesus..." I Corinthians 1:30

What does it mean to be "in Christ" ?

To be in Christ is to share in all that Christ is and all that He did. The Bible says that God has "blessed us with all spiritual blessings. . . IN CHRIST." We are going to consider some of the blessings that are ours because we are in Christ.

..we are forgiven

Because we are in Christ, God has forgiven us of every sin. The Bible says,

"IN WHOM we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 1:14

...we are justified

What does it mean to be justified? It means to be declared righteous. How are we justified before God? We are justified IN CHRIST. The Lord Jesus was perfectly righteous, and now God sees us righteous in Him. He took our sins that we might have His righteousness. The Bible says,

"For He [God] has made Him [Christ] to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God IN HIM." 2 Corinthians 5:21

..we are made near to God

As sinners we were separated from God and afraid to come into His presence. But now, in Christ Jesus, we can come boldly into God's presence because the blood of Jesus Christ has cleansed us from all sin. The Bible says,

"But now IN CHRIST JESUS you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." Ephesians 2:13

...we are accepted by God

Before we were saved, we were enemies of God. Now we are accepted by Him as His own dear children. Why are we accepted by God? Because we are IN CHRIST! The Bible says,

"To the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted IN THE BELOVED[in Christ]." Ephesians 1:6

...we are made holy

God has a new name for believers. He calls believers "saints in Christ Jesus." The word "saint" means "holy one." In God's sight, every believer is a saint in Christ.

In ourselves we are not holy, but God sees us in Christ. When we stand before God, we stand in the holiness of Christ. We are "holy IN CHRIST."

...we are sealed

We are God's children and our destination is Heaven. God has put us in Christ and has sealed us with the Holy Spirit. The Bible says,

". . .IN WHOM also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise." Ephesians 1:13

...we are complete

Everything we need to live the Christian life is ours in Christ. We are complete in Him. The Bible says,

"For in Him dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete IN HIM...." Colossians 2:9, 10

As God's children, we are no longer in Adam. We are now IN CHRIST.

Joseph was in prison, but the prison wasn’t in him!

Joseph had prosperity of heart. Though for much of his story his physical circumstances were very bad indeed, his internal attitude remained one of abundance and overflow. Joseph's brothers hated him because he was Jacob's favorite. They sold him into slavery in Egypt, and then through no fault of his own, Joseph was falsely accused and placed into prison.

The most important thing to realize about this story is that even when Joseph was in prison, the prison wasn't in him! His incredible character and faith kept him from losing his joy and his anointing even when every circumstance seemed to be against him. Prosperity of heart reveals and releases the prosperity of God in other dimensions of life. In all of his trials, Joseph was being developed to have the skills and character that would befit the position God had in store for him to fill as the second most powerful man in Egypt.

Genesis 39:23 says, “The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under [Joseph's] hand; because the LORD was with him and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.” Joseph had dreamed big dreams for his future, and he wanted to succeed in life. But you know the story; he faced opposition from those who were closest to him. They mistreated him, and he could have sought revenge when the day came that he had the power of life and death over his brothers.

Instead, he wept with compassion and forgave them. How could Joseph do that? Because in his heart, he understood that God had been at work. He told his brothers, “You thought evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20). Not only did Joseph forgive his brothers, but he saved their families—indeed the entire nation of Israel—from the famine.

If Joseph had not possessed prosperity of heart, he would never have been able to see the power of God displayed in his life. None of his natural abilities would have enabled him to succeed in every sphere of life. Success does not come from gifts, talents, abilities, knowledge, or wisdom but through the attitude of our hearts.

I encourage you to view every circumstance of life—both the good and the bad—as part of God's plan to prepare you for His place. Keep your heart right, and the rest will follow.

God gave Joseph a mission—to be light to his generation, and he was indeed faithful. You and I have a mission—to be light to our generation today. Your prayers and gift  will light a candle of love rather than curse the darkness.

Joseph had no idea when he was blessing Israel that the blessing would come back to him with promotion and supernatural favor...I call you Joseph today and speak that same favor over you.