The Life Of Union

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The heart of Jesus’ teaching in John 5:19–23 is union. When He said, “The Son can do nothing of Himself,” He was not describing limitation but nature. The Son did not copy the Father. He expressed the Father. He could not act independently, because His very being was one with the Father. He is in the Father, and the Father is in Him and does the works (Jn 14:10). He expressed the Father, not by effort but by nature. Honour given to the Son was honour given to the Father because the same divine life pulsed through both. 

Now, this is where it becomes even more intriguing. This union is not only a revelation of who Jesus is; it is the pattern for who we are in Him. As the Father was in Christ and Christ in the Father, so Christ is in us and we in Him – Jn 14:20. We have become united with the Son, sharing in the divine life. Our works are meant to flow from His indwelling life, not from human effort. We go beyond copying Him to letting him leave his life through us. That is what differentiates us from a good man. A good person without Christ may produce admirable works, but they are humanly sourced. The believer’s works are Christ‑sourced. Jesus did not live for the Father; He lived from the Father. Likewise, we do not live for Jesus; we live from Jesus. 

The new creation is not a moral improvement but a new species of life. We are vessels through which divine life expresses itself. This is why Jesus said, “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). God apprehended us not to make us better people but to make us extensions of His Son on the earth. Our works carry the fragrance of Christ because they are His works expressed through us (2 Corinthians 2:14). Therefore, honouring one another becomes sacred because we are honouring Christ in each other. Recognising grace in a brother or sister is recognising Christ’s life at work.  

This life of union is what we received, but not something we claim to have fully attained (as Paul puts it in Phil 3:12), but something we pursue. We do not confess failure either; we confess a holy pursuit. There is a call to come up higher - a vision of being so united with Christ that whatever things He does, we do likewise and even greater.  

As Jesus depended entirely on the Father, so we depend entirely on Him. We choose to do only what we see Him do. This is the upward call: Christ not merely as our example but as our source.  

Is this your heartbeat? May the Spirit of God stir in our hearts a fervent desire to see the realisation of our union with Christ. Let each moment shared with others, every scripture we reflect upon, and all the wise guidance we receive serve a single purpose: to renew our minds and deepen our connection with Christ so His life can shine through us unhindered. Not accumulating knowledge. Not polishing behaviour, but deepening union. Yielding to His life; becoming a vessel through which He expresses Himself freely and fully.  

Christ is not waiting for our strength but for our surrender. Union is the goal. Surrender is the pathway. Christ living through us is the outcome. This is the higher call—a holy pursuit that draws us upward into the life for which God took hold of us.