Maybe you were told that Christianity is about your personal relationship with Jesus. And of course, there is some truth to this...
Faith is personal. and Christ saves sinners, not crowds, but somewhere along the way, “personal” became “private.” So you tried to manage it. You monitored your quiet times. You evaluated your sincerity. You dissected your motives. Because of this, you may have learned to ask questions like: Am I close enough? Do I feel Him enough? Am I serious enough? Am I different enough? You were turned inward so often that you forgot where Christ actually is. So, let me be blunt. If your identity depends on the quality of your devotion, you and I both are in a world of trouble. Our devotion fluctuates, and if the stability of our standing before God rises and falls with your devotion, you will live either proud or panicked. But, you were not saved as an individual spiritual project; you were united to Christ (Eph. 1:6), and that means your identity is not generated by you; it is bestowed upon you. You did not climb into Him; the Spirit grafted you in. You did not negotiate adoption; the Father declared it. You did not secure your own righteousness; the Son accomplished it. When you were joined to Christ, you were joined to His body. A covenant people gathered around a preached Word and a visible gospel. Your instinct likely says, “How is my relationship with Jesus doing today?” But the church exists to keep telling you that, “Christ is risen, you are baptized into Him, and His verdict over you stands.” One is introspective. The other is declarative. One keeps you looking at your navel. The other drags your eyes to a cross and an empty tomb. If Christianity is primarily about your inner experience, you will constantly recalibrate who you are based on how you feel about God this week. But if Christianity is about union with Christ, then your identity is anchored outside of you. Week after week, you walk in as someone tempted to reinvent yourself, and Christ says through His Word, “You are Mine.” Not because you are intense enough, not because you are consistent enough, not because you are improved enough. Because He obeyed perfectly for you. Because He died for you. Because He was raised for you. Because He is coming again for you. You are not on an individual journey called “My Walk with Christ.” You are a baptized sinner whose life is hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3). and will never fluctuate.