In the True God vs. In His Son Jesus Christ

 

In the True God vs. In His Son Jesus Christ

1 John 5:20 — “The Son of God has come and has given us understanding that we might know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”

John 15:4–5 — “Abide in Me and I in you… I am the vine; you are the branches.” 

Aspect	In the True God	In His Son Jesus Christ
Meaning	Represents the believers’ living in God as the True One — not merely knowing Him objectively, but experiencing Him subjectively as life, light, and reality.	Refers to the believers’ union with Christ, experiencing Him as the embodiment of God, since Christ is the concrete expression and access to the True God.
Symbolism	Signifies entering into the divine reality and essence of truth; not only knowing about God, but living in God Himself as reality.	Symbolizes the believers’ union with Christ through whom God is made accessible, and by whom humanity enters into the divine reality through incarnation, death, and resurrection.
Way / Method	Through the understanding granted by the Son of God (1 John 5:20), enabling believers to know, enjoy, and experience God as reality; living in His presence in spirit.	Through faith and union with Christ (John 15:4; Gal. 3:27), abiding in Him so that His life operates within us.
Explanation	“The True One” in Greek means genuine, real, actual, in contrast with what is false or imaginary. God becomes subjective reality to us (1 John 5:20).	“In His Son Jesus Christ” shows how we are in the True One—by being in Christ we are in the True God (Col. 2:9; John 14:6).
Distinction	Emphasizes the result—living in the reality of the True God.	Emphasizes the process—we are in the True God through being in Christ.
Example	1 John 5:20 states, “We are in Him who is true,” indicating believers not only know God but live in His realized presence.	Believers are “in Christ” (2 Cor 5:17) like branches in the vine (John 15:5), living with Him in His death and resurrection.
Application	To live not merely by doctrinal knowledge but by the actual experience of God’s reality—loving, walking in light, and serving truthfully.	To live daily by the union with Christ—acting not out of self-effort but by Christ’s indwelling life and reality.
Mutual Relationship	Being “in the True One” is the outcome of being “in His Son Jesus Christ”; both are essentially one since the Son and the Father mutually indwell (John 14:10–11).	Being “in Jesus Christ” is the way to be in the True One; through the Son we are in the Father (John 14:20).
Key Scriptures	- John 17:3 — “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” - John 14:6 — “Jesus said, I am the way, the reality, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.”	- Colossians 2:9 — “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” - John 15:4–5 — “Abide in Me and I in you… I am the vine; you are the branches.” - Galatians 3:27 — “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

 

Core Points:

1.      The True God is the subjective, experiential God who becomes our reality and life.

2.      The Son Jesus Christ is the embodiment of God; through Him we enter and live in the True God.

3.      To be in Christ is to be in God, for the Father and the Son are one (John 10:30).

4.      Knowing the True God equals living, acting, and fellowshipping in Christ.

 

Conclusion:

• Being in the True God is the highest state of the believer’s life — the outcome of being in Christ.
• Through union with Christ, the once-objective God becomes our subjective reality.
• To abide in Christ is to live in God’s reality — this is the essence and expression of eternal life.

 

*Please refer to the June 2025 Summer Training, General Topic: Experiencing, Enjoying, and Manifesting Christ (Part 3), Chapter 12: The True One