WEEK 7 — DAY 1
Morning Nourishment
1 John 5:11-12 "And this is the testimony, that God gave to us eternal life and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life."
We know that the Body needs life, and the new man needs a person. With regard to the church as the Body of Christ, there is the need for Christ to be our life; with regard to the church as the new man, there is the need for Christ to be our person. At this time we want to point out clearly that on the one hand, the Spirit is life, and on the other hand, He is a person. The Spirit is not only life to us but also a person. (One Body, One Spirit, and One New Man, p. 103)
Today's Reading
In this new man you have no place. In other words, in this new man the Jew has no place, and neither does the Greek. The American has no place,and neither does the British. The Japanese has no place, and neither does the Chinese. In this new man the natural man has no place. The hating ones have no place. Neither do the loving ones have any place. We all have no place in this man. The quick one has no place. The slow one also has no place. Circumcision refers to the religious ones and uncircumcision to the unreligious ones. The religious ones and the unreligious ones all have no place in this new man. The civilized or the barbarian have no place. The slaves and the freemen have no place because Christ in this new man is all the persons. Christ becomes you and Christ becomes me. Christ becomes every one of us. Christ is all the persons and Christ is in all the persons. In this new man it is not a matter of being humble, kind, gentle, or loving. It is altogether a matter of a person living in us. In this new man it is not a matter of morality, ethics, or goodness. In this new man there is only one person. (The One New Man, pp. 14-15)
Ephesians says more clearly than the other books that we must let Christ be the person in us.
This, however, does not mean that He is in you as your person, He is in me as my person, and He is in another one as his person. This is an improper understanding. I tell you that He is in all of us as one person. The person in you is the person who is in me. We all have only one person. Who is this person? This person is Christ. (One Body, One Spirit, and One New Man, p.63)
Many have been distracted from Christ to other things, including scriptural, fundamental, and so-called spiritual things. Many believers are fighting concerning certain ordinances. Some may oppose how we practice baptism without a formal ceremony. We should not be caught in the snare of opinions. God does not care for this. What God cares for is whether or not we live by Christ and take Christ as our person. We should forget about all the opinions, and simply take Christ as our life and our person. (The One New Man, pp. 43-44)
If there is a full-grown man, then there will definitely be the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. If you take Christ as your person, then you will surely take Him as your life. Taking Christ as your person is for the new man, while taking Christ as your life is for the Body. If you take Christ as your person, then you will be able to grow and mature. The result will be that the Body of Christ will grow and have the adequate measure of stature as the fullness of Christ. Thus, you can see that as long as we grow and mature,there will be the necessary measure of the stature of the fullness. In other words, if you take Christ as your person, then you will certainly have Christ as your life. Christ as our person is for the growth of the new man; Christ as our life is for the increase of the measure of the stature of the Body. (One Body, One Spirit, and One New Man, p. 77)
Further Reading: Taking Christ as Our Person for the Church Life, chs. 4,7
Morning Nourishment
1 John 5:11-12 "And this is the testimony, that God gave to us eternal life and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life."
We know that the Body needs life, and the new man needs a person. With regard to the church as the Body of Christ, there is the need for Christ to be our life; with regard to the church as the new man, there is the need for Christ to be our person. At this time we want to point out clearly that on the one hand, the Spirit is life, and on the other hand, He is a person. The Spirit is not only life to us but also a person. (One Body, One Spirit, and One New Man, p. 103)
Today's Reading
In this new man you have no place. In other words, in this new man the Jew has no place, and neither does the Greek. The American has no place,and neither does the British. The Japanese has no place, and neither does the Chinese. In this new man the natural man has no place. The hating ones have no place. Neither do the loving ones have any place. We all have no place in this man. The quick one has no place. The slow one also has no place. Circumcision refers to the religious ones and uncircumcision to the unreligious ones. The religious ones and the unreligious ones all have no place in this new man. The civilized or the barbarian have no place. The slaves and the freemen have no place because Christ in this new man is all the persons. Christ becomes you and Christ becomes me. Christ becomes every one of us. Christ is all the persons and Christ is in all the persons. In this new man it is not a matter of being humble, kind, gentle, or loving. It is altogether a matter of a person living in us. In this new man it is not a matter of morality, ethics, or goodness. In this new man there is only one person. (The One New Man, pp. 14-15)
Ephesians says more clearly than the other books that we must let Christ be the person in us.
This, however, does not mean that He is in you as your person, He is in me as my person, and He is in another one as his person. This is an improper understanding. I tell you that He is in all of us as one person. The person in you is the person who is in me. We all have only one person. Who is this person? This person is Christ. (One Body, One Spirit, and One New Man, p.63)
Many have been distracted from Christ to other things, including scriptural, fundamental, and so-called spiritual things. Many believers are fighting concerning certain ordinances. Some may oppose how we practice baptism without a formal ceremony. We should not be caught in the snare of opinions. God does not care for this. What God cares for is whether or not we live by Christ and take Christ as our person. We should forget about all the opinions, and simply take Christ as our life and our person. (The One New Man, pp. 43-44)
If there is a full-grown man, then there will definitely be the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. If you take Christ as your person, then you will surely take Him as your life. Taking Christ as your person is for the new man, while taking Christ as your life is for the Body. If you take Christ as your person, then you will be able to grow and mature. The result will be that the Body of Christ will grow and have the adequate measure of stature as the fullness of Christ. Thus, you can see that as long as we grow and mature,there will be the necessary measure of the stature of the fullness. In other words, if you take Christ as your person, then you will certainly have Christ as your life. Christ as our person is for the growth of the new man; Christ as our life is for the increase of the measure of the stature of the Body. (One Body, One Spirit, and One New Man, p. 77)
Further Reading: Taking Christ as Our Person for the Church Life, chs. 4,7
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