Ephesians: Unveiling Our Mysterious RealitySýnishorn

Living “In Christ”

The Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians challenges our whole view of reality, claiming that as Christians, we not only live out our daily lives in the seen world; we also dwell in an unseen realm which he calls being “in Christ”, and that our reality is far more wonderful and mysterious than we could ever imagine.

It’s pretty mind-bending stuff. But for all of our scientific advances, we are still only scratching the surface in terms of our understanding of the universe. In fact, the deeper our exploration of the physical world, the more mysterious our created order seems to be. Einstein’s theory of relativity, for example, challenges our idea of linear time. “String theory”, one of the most famous ideas of modern physics, depends on the existence of multiple dimensions, only one of which we can see. In this context the existence of an unseen realm seems less fantastical, doesn’t it?

This isn’t something that Paul just made up. In fact, he is only reflecting what Jesus said of himself when he told us to remain, abide, or dwell in him (depending on translations).

This isn’t the same as some eastern religions that envision us somehow merging with the divine. Jesus remains a distinct person and so do we. But while we live our daily lives here and now in the earthly realm, at the same time we also dwell in this spiritual realm in Christ.

And Paul says, it is in this unseen realm “in Christ” that we receive God’s spiritual blessings. First, “in Christ” Paul says we will be blessed by a clearer sense of our true identity, as people chosen by God before the very creation of the world as his beloved and adopted children. Second, we are blessed by a sense of purpose as we come to understand that we are made to praise God.

Third, we are blessed because “in Christ” we are redeemed through his blood and our sins forgiven through the riches of God’s grace. And finally, as we dwell “in Christ”, God blesses us by revealing to us the full mystery of his will, his plan for all creation—both seen and unseen—which will come to fulfilment “in Christ”.

Reflect: What does Jesus’ call to abide in him mean to you?