This study of identification helps the student realize the full extent of the work Jesus Christ accomplished on our behalf when he became our substitute. All are identified with Adam in their first birth, but born-again ones are now identified with Christ in a seven-fold way-in his crucifixion, death, burial, quickening, resurrection, seating at the right hand of God, and in his future appearance in glory.

    "Isn't it remarkable that the first command given to us as born-again ones deals not with reforming our behavior but with changing our thinking patterns...we are commanded first to renew our minds by reckoning ourselves dead to sin and alive unto God. We are to conclude that we are permanently dead to sin and forever out of any relationship to it, and that we are permanently alive and living in unbroken relation to God. Legalism will always focus on human behaviors, while grace emphasizes the relationship we have with God."

    From Chapter 6: Identification with Christ: Quickened, Raised and Seated with Him