Part 4 - Joint-Heirs, Reconciled and Forgiven

This Article is part of a multi-part Study Series called The Many Blessings of the Grace Believer.

Joint-Heirs:

Jesus is the unique Son of God. He is the God-Man–true God and true Man. When a person believes in Christ, he becomes God’s adopted child. Furthermore, we are joint-heirs of Christ. One day, God the Father will sum up all things in Christ. He will give to His Son all there is to give. Paul wrote that we are joint-heirs with Christ. This blessing is beyond comprehension. In Romans 8.15-17, Paul wrote:

15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.

Peter wrote to Israel the same thing in 1 Peter 1.3-5:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Reconciliation:

Reconciliation is the great doctrine that declares that the estrangement between God and man due to sin has ended due to the death and resurrection of Christ. The believer in Christ has taken full advantage of this arrangement. Paul explained this in Romans 5.10-11:

10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved [Grk. sozo, completed] by His life. 11 And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

And again, Paul wrote,

19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him [in Christ], 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven (Colossians 1.19-20).

And finally, Paul gave this word in 2 Corinthians 5.17-19,

17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 18 Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word [message[ of reconciliation.

Forgiveness:

God has forgiven ALL the sins of the believer in Christ. Paul wrote in Ephesians 1.7,

In Him [Christ] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace,”

This statement is paralleled in Colossians 1.13-14:

13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Later in this same letter, Paul wrote,

13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross (Colossians 2.13-14).

Forgiveness of sins for the believer in Christ is a present state. It is not something in the future that we hope for. God has forgiven us our sins–past tense. No believer in Christ should ever ask God to forgive him–He already has. All we can do is thank God for His forgiveness.