与基督同活
要领会基督如何能在我们里面活着，我们必须来看约翰十四章。主耶稣在祂死而复活以前，对门徒说，“因为我活着，你们也要活着。”基督使我们与祂同活，而活在我们里面。基督不是单独活着。祂活在我们里面，并且与我们同活。祂活着，是藉着使我们能与祂同活。实在说来，我们若不与祂同活，祂就无法在我们里面活着。我们并不是完全被除去，我们的生命不是由神圣的生命所替换。我们继续存在，但我们乃是与三一神一同存在。现今住在我们里面的三一神，使我们与基督同活。因此，基督藉着我们与祂同活，而活在我们里面。
同一的生命与同一的生活
接枝的例子帮助我们了解这事。一根枝子接在一棵多产的树上之后，枝子仍然活着。但它不是凭自己而活，乃是凭着所接上的树而活。不但如此，这棵树也活在那接上的枝子里面。如今枝子活出一种接枝的生命。这就是说，它不是凭自己活着，乃是凭所接上之树的生命活着。再者，这另一个生命，就是多产之树的生命，也不是凭自己活着，乃是藉着那接上的枝子活着。树的生命活在枝子里面。最终，枝子与树有同一的生命，和同一的生活。同样的原则，我们与基督也有同一的生命，和同一的生活。
我们与基督并没有两个生命。反之，我们有同一的生命，和同一的生活。我们凭祂活着，祂也活在我们里面。如果我们不活，祂就不活；如果祂不活，我们也不能活。一面，我们了结了；另一方面，我们仍然存活，但我们不是没有祂而活。基督活在我们里面，而我们与祂同活。
活基督
我，天然的人，倾向守律法以得完全（腓三6），但神要我活基督，使神藉着基督能从我得着彰显（腓一20-21）。因此，神的经纶乃是，“我”在基督的死里被钉死，基督在祂的复活里活在我里面。守律法，是在我的生活中高举律法在一切之上；活基督是在我的生活中使基督作中心和一切。律法是神为着基督，用以看守祂选民的，只是一段时期，至终要带他们归于基督（加三23-24），使他们接受祂作生命，并活祂作神的彰显。现今基督既已来了，律法的功用就了结了；基督必须在我的生活里顶替律法，以成就神永远的定旨。
请享受生命诗歌329首 (点击诗歌名）
Living with Christ — Phil. 1:20-21
In order to understand how Christ can live in us, we need to turn to John 14. Before His death and resurrection, the Lord Jesus said to the disciples, “Because I live, you shall live also”. Christ lives in us by causing us to live with Him. Christ does not live alone. He lives in us and with us. He lives by enabling us to live with Him. In a very real sense, if we do not live with Him, He cannot live in us. We have not been altogether ruled out, and our life has not been exchanged for the divine life. We continue to exist, but we exist with the Triune God. The Triune God who now dwells within us causes us to live with Christ. Hence, Christ lives in us through our living with Him.
One Life and One Living
Once again the illustration of grafting helps our understanding. After a branch has been grafted into a productive tree, the branch continues to live. However, it lives not by itself, but by the tree into which it has been grafted. Furthermore, the tree lives in the branch which has been grafted into it. The branch now lives a grafted life. This means that it lives, not by itself, but by the life of the tree into which it has been grafted. Furthermore, this other life, the life of the productive tree, does not live by itself, but through the branch grafted into it. The life of the tree lives in the branch. Eventually, the branch and the tree have one life with one living. In the same principle, we and Christ also have one life and one living.
We and Christ do not have two lives. Rather, we have one life and one living. We live by Him, and He lives in us. If we do not live, He does not live; and if He does not live, we cannot live. On the one hand, we are terminated; on the other hand, we continue to exist, but we do not live without Him. Christ lives within us, and we live with Him.
Living Christ
“I,” the natural person, is inclined to keep the law that I might be perfect (Phil. 3:6), but God wants me to live Christ that God may be expressed in me through Him (Phil. 1:20-21). Hence, God’s economy is that “I” be crucified in Christ’s death and Christ lives in me in His resurrection. To keep the law is to exalt it above all things in my life; to live Christ is to make Him the center in my life, even to make Him everything to me. The law was used by God to keep His chosen people in custody for Christ for a period of time, and eventually to conduct them to Christ (3:23-24) that they might receive Him as life and live Him as God’s expression. Since Christ has come, the function of the law has been terminated; therefore, Christ must replace the law in my life for the fulfillment of God’s eternal purpose.