2 Coríntios 5

2 Coríntios 5:17

Boice writes that "The phrases in Christ, in Him… occur 164 times in all Paul’s writings. The phrases mean more than just believing on Christ or being saved by His atonement. They mean being joined to Christ in one spiritual body so that what is true of Him is also true for us… This is a difficult concept, and the Bible uses numerous images to teach it to us: the union of a man and woman in marriage (see notes Eph 5:22-33), the union of the vine and the branches (Jn 15:1-17), the wholeness of a spiritual temple in which Christ is the foundation and we the individual stones (Ep 2:20-+; Ep 2:21, 22-+), the union of the head and other members of the body in one organism (1Co 12:12-27). But whether we understand it or not, union with Christ is in one sense the very essence of salvation… Apart from Christ our condition is absolutely hopeless. In Him our condition is glorious to the extreme. (Ephesians: An Expositional Commentary) (Bolding added)