How to stand well in Christ is a vital question for every believer who desires spiritual stability, clarity, and faithfulness in a world filled with competing influences. Scripture teaches that standing is not merely about outward appearance or religious activity, but about spiritual uprightness and alignment with God’s standard.
To stand well in Christ is to live in unity of spirit, soul, and body, measured by the plumb line of Jesus’ life and teachings. As believers navigate daily decisions, temptations, and pressures, true uprightness is maintained by looking continually to Christ as the ultimate reference point, resisting worldly wisdom, and remaining anchored in God’s truth.
1 Corinthians 10:12 (KJV)
“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.”
Standing in this context means spiritual uprightness. It also signifies spiritual oneness, that is, the unity of the spirit, soul, and body to achieve God’s purpose.
Apostle Paul was admonishing believers concerning temptation, and it is within this context that he made the statement above.
For a man to stand, that is, to be upright, there must be a plumb line by which the degree of his uprightness is measured. Amos 7:7–8 speaks about this plumb line.
Many Christians have tilted downward spiritually. They are walking at a forty-five-degree downward angle in the spirit.
- How do I measure my uprightness?
By looking up to Jesus.
In the spiritual realm, there is only one major authority: God. The devil however desired to establish an authority contrary to God through the systems of this world. If your authority is the world, you cannot stand upright. Your wisdom then comes from below, from the world, and not from God.
It is in bending for worldly wisdom that such a person falls into temptation and eventually into destruction, just as King Saul sought revelation from the witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28).
John 17:16 states that believers are in the world but not of the world.
You must look up to Jesus for appraisal. In the workforce, appraisals are conducted yearly or quarterly to assess alignment and performance. In the same way, believers must constantly assess themselves by Christ, not by worldly standards.
Many Christians today look to the world for guidance on how to dress, how to relate, and how to live. Such a believer risks spiritual downfall due to a lack of spiritual uprightness.
Spiritual uprightness brings clarity. In physics, there is what is known as parallax error. When taking measurements, one must stand at a ninety-degree angle to the measuring instrument to obtain an accurate reading.
Though the resulting error may appear minimal with parallax error – little drops of water make a mighty ocean however, small errors accumulated over time can lead to devastating outcomes.
Standing correctly in Christ enables accurate judgment. If, at the slightest provocation, a person reacts aversely ;in anger, that person is not standing upright spiritually. This is because, in Matthew 5:39, upright standing means not allowing the enemy control your emotions in anger.
The life of Jesus on earth is the plumb line for a Christian’s life on earth.
Prayer:
Father, help me to remain in alignment with You through Jesus Christ and by the help of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
