Yours in Christ

What is the meaning of the expression “yours in Christ” that is commonly used to close letters? Thank you in advance for our assistance. ~ Jim Wrenn

I am not aware of any statement anywhere specifically encouraging anyone to use the phrase “yours in Christ” in correspondence. It may be a natural tendency (as it is with me) for a Christian who is conscientiously aware of his Christianity to close letters with the “yours in Christ.” The phrase “in Christ” appears 77 times in the New Testament, and it refers to someone who is a Christian. The following is a sample of the way the words “in Christ” appear in the Bible: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16) [emphasis added]. There is one New Testament passage that in so many words tell how one gets “into Christ”: “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).