How do I enter into this union with Christ?

1. Through Faith
When a person stubbornly refuses to give up on a dream in spite of evidence to the contrary, we consider the crazy, or at least foolish. Abraham’s friends and family must have thought he was loosing it when he insisted that God was going to give him a child – especially after he and his wife Sarah were senior citizens.

“Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, ‘That’s how many descendants you will have!’ And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb. Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.” (Romans 4:19-21, NLT)

God’s promise to become ‘partakers of the divine nature’ is even more outrageous. No other creature has this potential or has been promised this. You’ll find that your friends and family, maybe even your pastor, will think you are foolish to believe this promise. They’ll ask, “Who do you think you are?!” And, worst of all, you will wait year after year with no answer from God. Just like Abraham, you will be stripped of every reason to hope.

But you might find, like Abraham, that as the evidence against this promise becomes more insurmountable, your faith grows stronger. You become even more fully convinced that ‘God is able to do whatever he promises.’

There are many other examples of this type of faith in the Bible. Enoch was the first to ‘walk with God’ after the fall. “It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—‘he disappeared, because God took him.’ For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God.

“And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely (or diligently) seek him.” (Hebrews 11:5-6 NLT) Enoch’s example shows that faith is expressed by the authentic, diligent pursuit of God.

“It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward. It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible.” (Hebrews 11:24-27 NLT)

Moses is an example of someone who could have had ‘the whole world’ of his day. He had wealth, power, position, and education. But, by faith, he saw something more valuable than everything the world offers. He wanted to see the face of God – to be in God’s presence and behold his glory (Ex. 33:18).” This passion cost him everything. But, in the end, he found what he was looking for – the glory of God.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is John 11:40. Just before he raised Lazarus from the dead, “Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" If we believe the promises of God, we will also see His glory.