Excerpts from the CNT:

Colossians 2:2-23 reveals that we may experience and enjoy Christ as the mystery of God. In verse 2 Paul speaks of the “full knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ.” This means that, as God’s story and God’s everything, Christ declares God in full. As the mystery of God, Christ is the Word of God (John 1:1; Rev. 19:13); Christ is the definition, explanation, and expression of God. Moreover, as the mystery of God, the mysterious story of God, the all-inclusive Christ is the history of God; the whole story of God is in Christ and is Christ (John 1:14; 1 Cor. 15:45b; Rev. 4:5). God is a mystery. Although God is infinite and eternal, without beginning or ending, He also has a history, a story. God’s history refers to the process through which He passed so that He may come into man and that man may be brought into Him.

According to His good pleasure, God created the heavens and the earth and all the billions of items in the universe. Therefore, God accomplished the work of creation. Genesis 1:1 tells us that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, but Matthew 28:19 speaks of baptizing believers into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. We know that the Father, Son, and Spirit are the God spoken of in Genesis 1:1. However, the difference is that at the time of Genesis 1:1, God had not yet been processed through incarnation, human living, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. The word in Matthew 28:19 was spoken by the Lord after He had entered into resurrection, having passed through incarnation, [3556] human living, and crucifixion. After His resurrection, He charged His disciples to disciple the nations and to baptize them, not into the name of the Creator, whom we may call the unprocessed God but to baptize them into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. This is to baptize the believers into the processed God. The processed God is God available to His chosen people, and His people can thus be baptized into Him. Although it is not possible to baptize believers into God as He is revealed in Genesis 1:1, we can baptize them into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit; that is, we can baptize them into the processed Triune God.

Today the processed Triune God is the Spirit. At the time of John 7:39, the Spirit was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified. He had not yet passed through death and entered into resurrection. Now that Christ has passed through death and has entered into resurrection, the Spirit is here. This Spirit is Christ, and Christ is the story of God, the mystery of God. As the story of God, Christ is the processed God, God processed to become the all-inclusive Spirit, who now dwells in our spirit and is one with our spirit.

The Christ whom we have received is the mystery of God and the history of God. The Christ whom we have received is God with His wonderful history—God who passed through the process of incarnation, human living, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, glorification, and enthronement. As the history of God, Christ is the mystery of God. Because the Jews do not have Christ, the God in whom they believe does not have such a history. Apart from Christ, there is neither the history of God nor the mystery of God.

As the mystery of God, Christ also is both the embodiment of God (Col. 2:9) and the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b; 2 Cor. 3:17). In order to know Christ in reality as the embodiment of God, we need to experience Him as the life-giving Spirit. The reality of Christ as the embodiment of God is in Christ as the life-giving Spirit. As the mystery of God, Christ is not only the embodiment of the fullness of God but also the life-giving Spirit dwelling in our spirit to be one spirit with us. We should tell the Lord, “I care only for You as the embodiment of God and as the life-giving Spirit in my spirit. Because You are [3557] so real, living, and practical in my spirit, I can live by You and with You. Lord, my only desire is to experience You in this way.”

We need to focus our attention upon Christ as the mystery of God and the church as the mystery of Christ (Eph. 3:4-6). As the mystery of God, the all-inclusive Christ is the embodiment of God and the life-giving Spirit. As the mystery of Christ, the church is the Body of Christ, His fullness, and the new man to be the full expression of Christ (1:23; Col. 3:10-11). As Christ is the history of God, so the church is the history of Christ. As the history of Christ, the church is the mystery of Christ. In the church we are a continuation of this history.

a. In Whom All the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge Being Hidden

In Colossians 2:3 Paul says that in Christ all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden. In writing Colossians Paul was fighting against the Gnostic philosophy by declaring that Christ, as the totality of all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, is far better, higher, and more profound than the Gnostic philosophy. According to history, the influence of Gnostic teaching, which is a mixture of Jewish religion and Greek philosophy, invaded the Gentile churches in Paul’s time. Those who were influenced by such teaching considered themselves as having much wisdom and knowledge, but they spoke many things concerning God and Christ that were not according to the truth. Hence, Paul told the Colossian believers that all the treasures of genuine wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ. This is the spiritual wisdom and knowledge of the divine economy concerning Christ and the church. Wisdom is related to our spirit, and knowledge is related to our mind (Eph. 1:8, 17).

Moreover, wisdom and knowledge refer to all the “stories” of God. All the stories of God are wisdom and knowledge. All the wisdom and knowledge pertaining to God’s stories are hidden in this Christ who is the mystery of God. Therefore, Colossians 2:6-7 indicates that we who have received Christ Jesus the Lord should walk in Him and be rooted and built up [3558] in Him and should not listen to the empty words of philosophy and philosophical doctrines of the Gnostics.

God is the unique source of wisdom and knowledge. All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in the Christ who is the mystery of God. Because the church in Colossae had been invaded by pagan philosophy, Paul was helping the Colossians to trace wisdom and knowledge to their true source in God. Christ is the mystery of God, who alone is the source of all wisdom and knowledge.

The fact that wisdom and knowledge are embodied in Christ is proved by His spoken words, especially those recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and John. In these books, the Lord spoke about the kingdom and about life. The Lord’s words recorded in these books contain the highest philosophy. None of the teachings of the philosophers, including the ethical teachings of Confucius, compare to them. The concept in the Lord’s words is deep and profound. Anyone who makes a thorough study of philosophy will have to admit that the highest philosophy is that found in the teachings of Jesus Christ. Truly all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in Him. Since wisdom and knowledge are stored up in Christ as a treasure, we cannot have wisdom and knowledge unless we have Christ.

If we exercise our being to contact the Lord, Christ as the life-giving Spirit will saturate our spirit and our mind. Then we also will have in our experience the wisdom and knowledge that are hidden in Christ. In this way we will experience Him as the mystery of God. We should not be like the Colossians, who allowed pagan philosophy to defraud them of the wisdom and knowledge hidden in Christ.

b. The Saints, Having Believed in Him and Having Received Him, Walking in Him, Having Been Rooted and Being Built Up in Him

In 2:6-7 Paul says, “As therefore you have received the Christ, Jesus the Lord, walk in Him, having been rooted and being built up in Him.” We, the saints, having believed in Christ and having received Him, now walk in Him. Here to “walk in Him” means to live, to behave, to speak, and to have [3559] our being in the wonderful, all-inclusive Christ. We walk, having been rooted in Him as a plant in soil and being built up in Him as a building on a foundation (1 Cor. 3:9, 11). Christ is not only the soil in which we have been rooted but also the foundation on which we are being built up. We are both planted and built up in Christ; this indicates that we are altogether in Christ.

(1) Having Received Him

In Colossians 2:6 Paul says that we “have received the Christ, Jesus the Lord.” Christ is the portion of the saints (1:12) for our enjoyment. To believe in Him is to receive Him. As the all-inclusive Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17), He enters into us and dwells in our spirit (2 Tim. 4:22) to be everything to us.

Once we have received Christ Jesus, we need not receive Him again. But we should apply what we have received. We need to daily practice to apply the living Christ in a practical way. To employ a common term, we need to “use” Christ. This is difficult because by birth it is not natural for us to use Christ, nor does our training condition us to use Him. The hardest lesson for us to learn as Christians is to apply Christ and to use Him. In our daily living we spontaneously use the self instead of Christ. There is no need for us to try to use the self; we use it automatically and spontaneously. In the matter of applying Christ, we certainly need to watch and pray; that is, we need to be on the alert.

Although we have all received the Lord Jesus, we are short in using Him. If we fail to apply Him, then practically in our daily living there is little significance to having received Him. Our experience of Christ should not be superficial, and we should not take so many things for granted. We are thankful for God’s salvation in Christ, and we are grateful that we have received Him. But now we must go on to apply the One whom we have received.

(2) Walking in Him

Having received Christ, we should walk in Him. To walk is to live, to act, to behave, and to have our being; it implies everything in our daily living. To walk in Christ is to live, [3560] move, act, and have our being in Christ. We should not live, walk, move, act, or have our being in anything other than Christ. Furthermore, to walk in Christ means not to have any substitute for Christ. Because of man’s fall, culture replaces God in man’s life. Man was made for God and needs God to be his life, his enjoyment, and everything to him. But because man lost God, he invented culture as a substitute for God. Now in His economy God has ordained that Christ, His Son, should accomplish redemption, bring man back to God, and then replace all the substitutes with Himself. The various factors and elements of our human life are all replacements for Christ, but the factors and elements that have become substitutes for God must now be replaced by Christ. In order for this to be our experience, we need to walk in Christ. Christ is not only the sphere, the realm, in which we walk, but He is also every factor and element of our human life. To experience Christ in this way is to walk in Him.

We should walk, live, and act in Christ so that we may enjoy His riches, just as the children of Israel lived in the good land and enjoyed all its rich produce. The good land today is Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit (Gal. 3:14), who dwells in our spirit (2 Tim. 4:22; Rom. 8:16) to be our enjoyment. To walk according to this Spirit (v. 4; Gal. 5:16) is the central and crucial point in the New Testament.

In Galatians 3:14 Paul says, “That the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” Here Paul refers to the blessing of Abraham and the promise of the Spirit. This blessing refers to the good land, and the fulfillment of this blessing for us today is Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit. Therefore, according to Paul’s concept, to walk in Christ as the good land is to walk in the all-inclusive Spirit.

In Colossians 2:6 Paul tells us to walk in Christ, but in Galatians 5:16 he charges us to walk by the Spirit. Furthermore, in Romans 8:4 he speaks of walking according to the spirit. These verses indicate that the good land for us today is the all-inclusive Spirit who indwells our spirit. This all-inclusive Spirit is the all-inclusive Christ as the processed Triune God. After being processed, the Triune God is the all-inclusive [3561] Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit for us to experience. Today this all-inclusive Spirit indwells our spirit to be our good land.

Christ is the embodiment of God and the expression of God. Through incarnation, He became the last Adam, who was crucified for our redemption. In resurrection this last Adam became a life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45). Therefore, in 2 Corinthians 3:17 Paul says, “The Lord is the Spirit.” Because Christ as the life-giving Spirit dwells in our spirit, we are one spirit with Him. In 2 Timothy 4:22 Paul says, “The Lord be with your spirit,” and in 1 Corinthians 6:17, “He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.” Therefore, Christ as the all-inclusive good land is now in our spirit.

Since the all-inclusive Spirit is mingled with our spirit, we should set our mind on this mingled spirit (Rom. 8:6). By doing this, we are spontaneously setting our mind on Christ. Then we must go on to walk in this mingled spirit. This means that we must live, move, behave, and have our being according to the spirit. In this way we will experience Christ and enjoy Him as the good land. Nothing in the New Testament is more central, crucial, and vital than walking according to the mingled spirit. Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit dwells in our spirit to be our life, our person, and our everything. Our need today is to return to Him, to set our mind on the spirit, and to walk according to the spirit. This is to walk in Christ as the mystery of God.

In our experience Christ should be the good land in which we live and walk. This should not merely be a doctrine to us. We need to pray, “Lord, I want to live and walk in You. Lord, I ask that You be the good land to me in my experience and that every aspect of my living may be in You.” To walk in Christ is a way to experience Christ as the mystery of God (Col. 2:6).

After charging us to walk in Christ, Paul in verse 7 immediately adds the words, “having been rooted and being built up in Him.” If we would walk in Christ, we must fulfill the conditions of having been rooted in Him and being built up in Him. Our basis for walking in Christ is that we have already been rooted in Christ and that we are in the process of being built up in Him. [3562]

(3) Having Been Rooted in Him

In 2:7 Paul speaks of having been rooted in Christ. Like plants, we are living organisms. As such, we have been rooted in Christ, our soil, our earth, that we may absorb all His riches as nourishment. These riches become the element and substance with which we grow and are built up. To be rooted is for the growth in life. This rooting has been completed already. To be built up is for the building of the Body of Christ. This is still going on. Both these matters are in Christ.

Paul realized the importance of being rooted in Christ. He knew that it was a serious matter to be transplanted from Christ and to be rooted in something else, such as heathen philosophy or Jewish ordinances. He wanted the Colossians to see that philosophy was not the soil in which they had been rooted. They had been rooted in Christ. He is our unique soil. Regrettably, many Christians have not been rooted in Christ adequately. Yet if we have been rooted in Him adequately, nothing will be able to distract us from Him.

In order to be rooted in Christ, we must first be planted into Him. In a number of places, the Bible speaks of planting. In the song of Moses we read these words: “You will bring them in and plant them in the mountain of Your inheritance, / The place, O Jehovah, which You have made for Your dwelling” (Exo. 15:17). Psalm 92:13 says, “Planted in the house of Jehovah, / They will flourish in the courts of our God.” In Jeremiah 2:21 the Lord says of His people, “I had planted you as a choice vine, / Wholly a faithful seed,” and in 32:41, “I will plant them in this land in faithfulness with all My heart and with all My soul.” In Matthew 15:13 the Lord Jesus said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted shall be rooted up.” According to John 15, the Lord Jesus regarded Himself as a vine and the Father as the husbandman, the One who planted the vine and cares for it. In 1 Corinthians 3:9 Paul says that we, the believers, are God’s cultivated land. In Colossians 2:7 we see that we have been rooted in Christ. Christ is the land, the soil, and God has planted us into Him.

In 1 Corinthians 3:6 Paul says that he planted, Apollos [3563] watered, and God causes the growth. This also indicates that the believers are plants and that Christ is the soil. Now we need to ask in what part of our being this planting has taken place. Certainly it is neither in the mind nor in the physical body; rather, it is in our spirit. The experience of being planted into Christ and rooted in Him takes place in our spirit (1 Cor. 6:17). When a plant is rooted in the soil, it becomes one with the soil. First, the plant gets into the soil; then the nourishment in the soil comes into the plant. In this way, the plant and the soil become one in life. The nourishing element in the soil corresponds to the life in the plant, and something within the plant corresponds to the element in the soil. We may say that there is a fellowship between the plant and the soil. In this fellowship those factors in the plant and in the soil which correspond to each other become one in life. Thus, the plant and the soil become one unit in life.

In our spirit we have the experience of being planted into Christ, for here we are joined to Him and become one spirit with Him. The Lord, who is the soil in which we are rooted, is the Spirit. If He were not the Spirit, there would be no way for us to be planted into Him. Furthermore, if we had only a body and a soul but no spirit, it would not be possible for us to be planted into the Lord as the life-giving Spirit. However, because the Lord is the Spirit and because we have a spirit, there is a correspondence between us and Him. When we were regenerated, Christ as the life-giving Spirit became one with our spirit. As John 3:6 clearly indicates, regeneration takes place in the spirit. When we were regenerated, we were rooted in Christ as the soil. This is the reason Paul uses the perfect tense in Colossians 2:7. We were planted and rooted in Christ when we were regenerated in our spirit.

Only when we remain in the spirit are we actually rooted in Christ and thus able to walk in Him. We have been planted into Christ. But when we turn to our spirit, we have the experience of being rooted in Him. Having been rooted in Christ, we are able to walk in Him. In this way we experience Christ as the good land with the rich soil that affords us the nourishing life element. The more we are rooted in this soil, the more we absorb the nourishment of Christ into our being. This is [3564] not the objective Christ in doctrine; it is the subjective Christ in our experience.

We need to continually exercise our spirit. This is the reason that toward the end of the book of Colossians, Paul charges us to persevere in prayer (4:2). However, if, instead of exercising our spirit, we exercise our mind, emotion, and will, Satan will keep us from enjoying the all-inclusive Spirit in our spirit. Satan, the subtle, evil one, uses the environment to keep us out of the spirit. Thus, we need to exercise our spirit continually by calling on the name of the Lord in order to become more deeply rooted in the all-inclusive Spirit. Then we will absorb the riches of Christ, grow in Christ, and spontaneously be built up in Christ. As a result, we will walk in Him. This is the practical experience of Christ that we all need.

Having been rooted in Christ, the rich, fertile soil, we should go on to absorb His riches. As a tree absorbs nourishing elements from the soil through its roots, we also should absorb the riches of Christ into us. A tree’s growth depends upon the nourishment it absorbs from the soil through its roots. Since we have been rooted in Christ, we should remain in Him in a practical way. In our experience we need to stay rooted in Christ.

We need to take time to enjoy the Lord as the all-inclusive land so that all the elements of Christ as the rich soil may be absorbed into us in order for us to be made full in Him in our experience (2:10a; 4:2). If we contact the Lord and spend time in the Word with much prayer, we will become deeply rooted in Christ. The only way to become deeply rooted in Christ as the soil is to contact Him and daily absorb the water in the Word. The more we contact the soil and absorb the water, the more we will grow. First we grow downward, then upward. After we have grown downward for a period of time, we will automatically cease to walk in things other than Christ. Instead, because we have been deeply rooted in Christ, we will live, walk, act, and have our being in Christ.

In the morning many saints spend time with the Lord. However, even though they spend a certain amount of time with Him, they may not absorb much of His riches. The reason for this is that they are too rushed. If we are to absorb the [3565] riches of Christ into us as our nourishment, we should not be rushed. Every morning we need to take an adequate amount of time to absorb the Lord. We should not be lazy or indolent in this matter. When we take time to enjoy the Lord, the elements of the rich soil are absorbed into us.

We should spend time with the Lord not only in the morning but also throughout the day. We should absorb the Lord all day long; we should be like trees continually absorbing the riches of the soil. This means that we must learn to practice the continual enjoyment of Christ. We should let every physical thing be a reminder of Christ, for all these things are shadows of which Christ is the body (2:16-17). The clothing we put on each day should remind us of Christ. We should put Him on in our spirit and by our spirit. Drinking a glass of water should remind us to drink Christ by the exercise of our spirit. To follow this practice is to be rooted in Christ and to absorb His riches.

In order to absorb the riches of Christ as the soil, we need to have tender, new roots. We should not let ourselves become old but be fresh and renewed day by day. We need to pray to the Lord, “Lord, I want my consecration to be fresh, and I want to open to You anew. I want my roots to be tender so that I may absorb Your riches. Lord, don’t let my roots get old.” If our roots are tender and new to absorb the riches of Christ, we will grow automatically with the riches that we assimilate. This is to enjoy Christ and to subjectively experience Him daily and hourly. We need to forget our situation, our condition, failures, and weaknesses and simply take time to absorb the Lord. As we take time to absorb Him, we grow with the growth of God in us for the building up of the Body of Christ (Matt. 14:22-23; 6:6; Col. 2:7a, 19b; cf. Luke 8:13).

(4) Having Been Built Up in Him

Having been rooted in Christ, we now are “being built up in Him” (Col. 2:7). Paul’s words being built up in verse 7 do not directly refer to the building up of the Body of Christ. Rather, this expression denotes an increase in our spiritual stature, which can be compared to a person’s increase in stature as he grows physically. The only way that a child can grow [3566] physically is by assimilating nourishing food. In the same way, we grow spiritually by assimilating the rich nourishment of Christ. This is what it means to be built up in Christ, as mentioned in verse 7. Paul first tells us that we have been rooted in Christ; then he goes on to say that we are being built up in Christ. No tree can grow up without first being rooted. The growing up of the tree is the building up of the tree. By absorbing the riches from Christ as the soil into our being, we are being built up with these riches. What we absorb into us becomes the material with which we are built up. He is the material, substance, and element with which we can have a greater spiritual measure so that we may be built up personally and with others as the Body of Christ.

We are plants, and Christ is the soil to us; we also are the building, and Christ is the material with which we are built. In much the same way that an American child is built up by eating the produce of America, our spiritual measure is built up by our feeding on Christ. At present we may have a small spiritual measure. We need to grow to a greater measure of Christ, and the way to grow is by feeding on Christ, taking Him in, and digesting Him. Then He will be added to us more and more. We will have Christ increased within us, and our measure will grow. Christ is the material for the building up of our spiritual measure.

If we are lacking in spiritual stature, we cannot be built up as the Body of Christ. In Ephesians 4:13 Paul says, “Until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” The Body of Christ has a stature, and this stature has a full measure. We all need to grow until we arrive at the full measure of the stature of the Body of Christ. For us to be built up does not first mean that we are built up as the church, the Body; rather, it means that we are built up in the Lord and experience an increase in stature. Hence, in Colossians 2:7 to be built up actually means to grow in life. First, we are rooted in Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit, and then we grow up into Him. We build ourselves up by growing up. Our being built up depends on our assimilating the riches of Christ as the soil into our [3567] being. Having assimilated these riches into us, we will grow and be built up. When we are fully grown, we will be built up. Therefore, to be built up simply means to grow. In order to grow, we need nourishment. Our growth depends on how much nourishment we assimilate into us by being rooted in Christ. Because we are rooted in Him, we absorb into us the riches of the all-inclusive Spirit. Then we grow with the nourishment that we derive from these riches.

The building up of the Body depends upon the individual and personal building up of all the members. If a particular member has not been built up, it will not be possible for him to be built up in the Body. To be built up in the Body we first must be built up in ourselves. When we have become built-up members, we will then be able to be built up with others in the Body.

In keeping with this, Paul in Ephesians 4:15 and 16 says, “Holding to truth in love, we may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ, out from whom all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love.” The concept here is similar to that in Colossians 2:19. We must hold to the truth in love so that we may grow up into the Head in all things. Out from the Head in whom we have grown we have nourishment, as indicated by the word supply. Through the supply which comes out from the Head, the Body grows and builds itself up in love. Much is implied here. The focal point of the implications of Ephesians 4:15 and 16 is that we should be rooted in Christ and absorb His nourishment into our being to become the element and substance with which we grow and are built up.

First, we grow individually, then corporately. Individual growth becomes corporate growth. Hence, not only are the members built up individually, but the Body is built up corporately. Our physical bodies illustrate this. Your body is built up through the growth of the individual members. If the members do not grow, the body cannot grow. Without growth, the members of the body cannot build themselves up. This would make it impossible for the body as a whole to be built [3568] up. Therefore, the building of the body depends on the building up of the individual members of the body. If all the members grow and build themselves up individually, the body will be built up corporately. The building up of the church is based upon the building up of the individual members. Furthermore, the building of the members depends on their growth, which, in turn, depends upon being rooted in Christ and absorbing the riches of Christ to become the element with which the members grow.

We should not be distracted from Christ and the church. The Colossians had been rooted in Christ, but they still had to go on to be built up in the church. In order to be built up corporately, the Colossians had to forsake the Judaistic observances and the heathen ordinances and philosophies. Otherwise, they would have been transplanted from Christ and rooted in something else. Furthermore, they would have been led astray from the church life. Whenever we take in some kind of philosophy, ordinance, observance, or practice in place of Christ, the church life is annulled. We are divided from those believers who have different opinions concerning these matters. Those who are preoccupied with such things will eventually cease to care about the church life, and it will no longer be possible for them to be built up in a corporate way. How crucial it is to be rooted in Christ and to be built up in Christ and in the church! In this way we experience Christ as the mystery of God.

In summary, we have received Christ as the mystery of God. Now we need to walk in Christ, that is, live, move, act, and have our being in Christ. If we would walk in Christ, we need to absorb His riches by being rooted in Him and built up as individual members of the Body. We need to sink our roots deeper and deeper so that we may absorb more of His riches. Then we will grow and be built up in Him. When we are adequately rooted in Christ and are personally built up in Christ, we will become the expression of Christ. This expression of Christ, Christ lived out of us, will eventually become corporate. This is the church as the Body and the new man. When the church becomes in reality such a new man, that will be the time for Christ to come back.

c. In Him Dwelling All the Fullness of the Godhead Bodily

In Colossians 2:9 Paul says, “In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” The word dwells indicates that the fullness of the Godhead must be a person; the fullness of the Godhead is personified. The fullness of the Godhead dwells as a person in the incarnated Christ bodily, that is, in Christ with a human body. Hence, the word bodily in verse 9 points to the physical body that Christ put on in His humanity, indicating that all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ as One who has a human body.

Before Christ’s incarnation, the fullness of the Godhead dwelt in Him as the eternal Word, but not bodily. From the time that Christ became incarnate, clothed with a human body, the fullness of the Godhead began to dwell in Him in a bodily way, and in His glorified body (Phil. 3:21) now and forever it dwells. The fact that the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily means that it dwells in Him in a way that is both real and practical. Now that the fullness of the Godhead dwells as a divine person in Christ bodily, it is visible, touchable, and receivable.

The Colossians were under the influence of Gnosticism, which regards man’s physical body and the entire material world as evil. The Gnostics considered themselves to have the [3570] highest wisdom and knowledge, but they failed to realize that the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily. In refuting the Gnostic philosophy, the apostle Paul told the Colossians that all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily.

According to Colossians 2:9, Christ is the embodiment of the fullness of the Godhead. Fullness here refers not to the riches of God but to the expression of the riches of God. What dwells in Christ is not only the riches of the Godhead but the expression of the riches of what God is. The Godhead is expressed both in the old creation, the universe, and in the new creation, the church. We should note that in both 1:19 and 2:9 Paul uses the word all to describe fullness. All the fullness, all the expression, is in the old creation and in the new creation.

The Godhead in verse 9 refers to deity, which is different from the divine characteristics manifested by the created things (Rom. 1:20). This strongly indicates the deity of Christ. The fullness of the Godhead is versus the tradition of men and the elements of the world. The world’s tradition and elements simply cannot be compared with the fullness of the Godhead.

All the fullness of the Godhead in verse 9 refers not only to the entire Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—but also to all that the entire Triune God is, has, does, knows, can do, has done, has obtained, has accomplished, and has attained; all this fullness dwells in the Son bodily. The Divine Trinity is the fullness of the Godhead, and this fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ. Therefore, Christ is the embodiment of the Triune God. The Father, the Son, and the Spirit are all embodied in Christ. The fullness of the Godhead is threefold: the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. The Father is rich, the Son is unlimited, and the Spirit is without measure. Because the Triune God is altogether embodied in Christ, outside of Christ there is no God, and outside of Christ we cannot find God or contact God. Christ is God’s dwelling place, God’s address, and God’s home. If we want God yet do not want Christ, we cannot have God. When we receive, experience, and enjoy Christ, we receive, experience, and enjoy the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. [3571]

d. In Him the Saints Being Made Full, Who Is the Head of All Rule and Authority

In Colossians 2:10 Paul continues, “You have been made full in Him, who is the Head of all rule and authority.” The Greek word translated have been made full is a verbal adjective based on the same root as the word translated fullness, a noun, in verse 9. We should understand the expression have been made full based upon the word fullness in verse 9. Because all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily, we have been made full in Him.

According to verse 10, the Christ in whom we have been made full is the Head of all rule and authority. On the one hand, Christ possesses all the fullness of the Godhead, for it dwells in Him bodily; on the other hand, this Christ, who is the Head of all rule and authority, is above all rule and authority, that is, above all the fallen angels occupying positions of power in the air in subordination to Satan (v. 15). Christ not only has the fullness of the Godhead but is also above all rule, authority, and power of Satan. We have been put into such a Christ and have been made full in Him.

(1) Having Been Made Full in Him

The Greek word translated full in verse 10 implies completion, perfection. Because all the fullness dwells in Him, after we have been put into Christ (1 Cor. 1:30), we are made full, filled up, with all the divine riches. Hence, we need no other source. In Christ we lack nothing, for in Him we have been perfected and completed. There is no reason for us to turn to anything other than Christ.

Because all the fullness of the Godhead is in Christ and because we have been placed in Him, we have been made full in Him. The New Testament reveals clearly that all those who believe in Christ have been put into Christ. Therefore, we are identified with Him and one with Him. The result is that all that He is and all that He has belongs to us, and all that He has experienced is our history. We inherit all that Christ has experienced and passed through. Furthermore, because [3572] we are one with Him, we partake of all that He has accomplished, obtained, and attained.

We the believers are members of the all-inclusive Christ. We have been put into Him, identified with Him, and joined to Him as our Husband (Col. 1:28; Rom. 7:2-4). Hence, we are one with Him. All that He has passed through is now our history, and all that He has obtained and attained is our inheritance. We are in such a Christ, and He is in us. We have been placed into Him, we are one with Him, and we receive all that He is and has.

Although some Christians have a doctrinal knowledge of this, a mere mental understanding of our union with Christ is not adequate. We need to exercise faith in order to partake of all that is ours in Christ. We should not consider ourselves poor, just as a poor woman who has married a rich man should no longer think of herself as poor. Even though she may feel poor, she must practice applying the fact that the riches of her husband belong to her. In like manner, because we are one with Christ, we should not regard ourselves as in poverty. To the contrary, we need to have a full realization of what we have in Christ.

In their prayers, some Christians like to declare how poor, pitiful, and low they are. This kind of prayer is without faith or assurance. We need to believe with full assurance that we are one with the rich, all-inclusive Christ, with the One who is the embodiment of all the fullness of the Triune God. If we realize this with full assurance, we will never consider ourselves poor.

We should not believe our feelings about ourselves but look away to Christ (Heb. 12:2). We need to exercise our faith to realize what He is, what He has passed through, what He has obtained and attained, and where He is today. Since He is in the third heaven and we are one with Him, we also are in the third heaven. We have been placed into the Christ who is unsearchably rich.

In Christ we do not lack anything. We should not talk about how much we lack. Because we are in Christ, we lack nothing. In Him is the fullness, the perfection, the completion. Actually, He Himself is the fullness, perfection, and [3573] completion. Because we are in Him, we also are complete and perfect. We are those who possess the riches of Christ.

In Ephesians 3:8 Paul speaks of the unsearchable riches of Christ. We are more than billionaires because the riches we have are greater than can be counted. We simply have no idea what vast riches we possess in Christ. Often we have prayed: “Lord, I am poor and pitiful.” But we need to pray in this way: “Lord, I thank You that I am rich, complete, and full. Lord Jesus, because I am in You, I am short of nothing.” We should tell the Lord, the angels, and even the demons that we are richer than any earthly billionaire because we are in the Christ whose riches are unsearchable.

When we are rooted in Christ as the soil, the first thing to take place is that we are made full in Him; we are filled with all the divine riches to become His expression (vv. 8, 17, 19). In Christ as the soil we are filled, completed, perfected, satisfied, and thoroughly supplied; we do not lack anything (cf. Phil. 1:19). Christ as the soil is the history and mystery of God with all the riches of His person and processes (Col. 2:2). Christ as the soil is the Head of all rule and authority (v. 10). In Christ as the soil there is an element with the killing power which puts the flesh to death (v. 11), an element which causes us to be buried (v. 12a), an element which causes us to be raised up (v. 12b), an element which vivifies us (v. 13), an element which wipes out the handwriting in ordinances (v. 14), and an element which is victorious over the evil spirits in the atmosphere (v. 15).

Christ as the soil is the One in whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily. Since Christ is the good land in which we have been rooted, we have been rooted in this fullness; in it we have been made full, complete, and perfect. We have no need whatsoever. Having been planted into this fullness, we should simply absorb nourishment from it. As we do so, we will find that we have no lack.

Before we were rooted in Christ as the good land, we did not have anything positive. Instead, we were involved with the flesh, the ordinances, and the power of darkness. But now that we have been rooted in the good land, the fullness has become ours, and we are supplied with every positive thing. [3574] In this all-inclusive and extensive fullness, we have everything: God, an uplifted humanity, divine attributes, and human virtues. Because this fullness is all-inclusive, it accomplishes everything for us, it fully satisfies and supplies us, and it makes us full, perfect, and complete. How rich is the soil in which we have been rooted! It supplies us with everything, and we have no lack. We have the all-inclusive, inexhaustible fullness. In this universe there is such a thing that Paul calls the fullness. This fullness dwells in Christ bodily. In Him, the embodiment of the fullness of the Godhead, we are made full.

(2) Christ Being the Head of All Rule and Authority

In 2:10 Paul indicates that the Christ in whom we have been made full is the Head of all rule and authority. As previously mentioned, the rule and authority spoken of here refer to the angelic powers, in particular the fallen angels who still occupy positions of power. According to the full revelation of the Bible, after God created the universe, He placed it under the control of an archangel and other leading angels. When this archangel rebelled against God and became Satan, many of the leading angels who assisted him in ruling the universe became the evil rulers and authorities in the heavenlies. These are described in Ephesians 6:12 as the rulers, the authorities, the world-rulers of this darkness, the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenlies. These angelic powers rule over the nations. For this reason, the book of Daniel mentions both the prince of Greece and the prince of Persia (10:20). (A prince here denotes one of the angelic powers or rulers.) This means that all the nations on earth today are under the rule of authorities in the heavenlies; however, not all of these are evil. Nevertheless, Christ is the Head of all rule and authority.

Since Christ is our perfection and completion, we do not need other rulers and authorities as objects of adoration, for He is the Head of all rule and authority. We should remember that the Colossians had been led astray to the worship of angels. Therefore, Paul told them that since Christ is the Head of all the angels and since we are in Him, there is no need for us to worship angels. We are identified with the One [3575] who is the Head of all the angels, and in Him we have been made full. If we are clear about this, we will never be deluded into worshipping angels. Rather, we will have the proper knowledge that, in a very real sense, because we are one with the Head of the angels, we are higher than they are. Actually, we are partners of the Christ who is the Head over them, and in Him we are complete. The fact that we have been made full in Christ who is the Head of all rule and authority is versus the worship of angels. Because we are one with Christ, we should never worship angels.

e. In Him the Saints Being Circumcised, in the Putting Off of the Body of the Flesh, in the Circumcision of Christ, Buried Together with Him in Baptism and Raised Together with Him

In Colossians 2:11 Paul says, “In Him also you were circumcised with a circumcision not made with hands, in the putting off of the body of the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ.” Here Paul is dealing with Judaizers who prize and boast in their circumcision. Paul thus declares that in Christ, in whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily, the saints have been circumcised. This circumcision is not merely to cut off a piece of flesh but to put off the entire body of the flesh. It is also the circumcision of Christ, that is, to be crucified with Him, buried together with Him in baptism, and raised together with Him.

(1) Being Circumcised with a Circumcision Not Made with Hands

In verse 11 Paul speaks of a circumcision not made with hands. This certainly is different from that practiced by the Jews, which was carried out with a knife. In addition to that physical circumcision, there is another kind of circumcision, the circumcision in Christ, which is not made with hands. This is spiritual circumcision and refers to the proper baptism, which puts off the body of the flesh by the effectual virtue of the death of Christ.

The circumcision in Christ involves the death of Christ and the power of the Spirit. When Christ was crucified, His [3576] crucifixion was the genuine, practical, and universal circumcision. His crucifixion cut off all the negative things. These negative things include our flesh, our natural man, and the self. However, along with the death of Christ we need the Spirit as the power. If we have Christ’s crucifixion without the Spirit as the power, we will have no means by which to apply Christ’s crucifixion to us and to execute its effect upon us. The crucifixion of Christ becomes practical and effective by means of the Spirit. By the Spirit as the power, Christ’s crucifixion is applied to us. Then under the power of the Spirit, we are circumcised in an actual and practical way. This is the circumcision in Christ, a circumcision not made with hands. It is a circumcision not made with hands because it was accomplished by the death of Christ, and it is applied, executed, and carried out by the powerful Spirit. This is the circumcision we have all received.

In Christ, on the one hand, we have been made full, and, on the other hand, we have been circumcised. Because we have been made full in Him, we are short of nothing. Because we have been circumcised in Him, all the negative things have been removed. Regarding the positive things, we are complete. Regarding the negative things, everything has been cleared up, and we have no problems. Therefore, regarding the positive things, we are not short of anything, and regarding the negative things, we are no longer troubled by anything.

However, we need to exercise faith and not look at ourselves. We must turn our eyes away from our feelings and from our apparent situation. According to our apparent situation, we are short of everything positive and are troubled by everything negative. But according to the facts, we are not in ourselves—we are in Christ. Because we are in Him, we have been made full positively, and we have been circumcised to clear away the negative things.

(2) In the Putting Off of the Body of the Flesh

In verse 11 Paul speaks of “the putting off of the body of the flesh.” This means to strip off something, as one would strip off clothes. The circumcision that took place by the death of Christ and is applied by the powerful Spirit accomplishes [3577] the putting off of the body of the flesh. Our body of flesh was crucified on the cross with Christ and has been put off. Regarding this, we must again exercise our faith and not consider our self and our apparent situation. Let us exercise faith and say, “Amen! The body of the flesh has been put off on the cross and by the powerful Spirit.”

(3) In the Circumcision of Christ

The spiritual circumcision in verse 11 must be in the circumcision of Christ, not with a circumcision made with hands. The circumcision of Christ is by His crucifixion. Our flesh has been crossed out by His death on the cross.

(4) Being Buried Together with Him in Baptism

Furthermore, the circumcision in Christ takes place through baptism. In verse 12 Paul says, “Buried together with Him in baptism, in which also you were raised together with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who raised Him from the dead.” We have been buried together with Christ in baptism. To be buried in baptism is to put off, to strip off, the body of the flesh. Moreover, in Christ we have been raised together through the faith of the operation of God. In baptism there is the burial aspect, which is the termination of our flesh, and the raising aspect, which is the germination of our spirit. In the raising aspect we are made alive in Christ with the divine life.

In this verse Paul points out that this is through the faith of the operation of God. Faith is not of ourselves; it is the gift of God (Eph. 2:8). The more we turn to God and contact Him, the more faith we have. The Lord is the Author and Perfecter of our faith (Heb. 12:2). The more we abide in Him, the more we are infused with Him as our faith. It is through this living faith in the operation of the living God that we experience the resurrection life, signified by the raising aspect of baptism. Genuine baptism involves an operation in which we are buried and terminated. This operation involves the exercise of faith. The One who carries out the operation is the Spirit. Whenever we baptize someone, there is the need for the exercise of faith to realize that an operation is taking place to [3578] terminate the old being of the one who is to be baptized. We must have faith in the operation of God, the Triune God, who raised Christ from the dead.

Whenever we baptize a new believer, we must realize that this one is being placed into a divine operation that will terminate him and bury him. We must exercise faith in the operation of the Triune God. By faith we have the reality of the termination and burial of the old man, the self, the flesh, and the natural life. The operating Triune God will honor this faith by making these things real. This burial and termination of the old man through baptism is the real circumcision.

(5) Having Died with Christ from the Elements of the World

In Colossians 2:20 Paul points out that we have died with Christ from the elements of the world. These elements include Jewish observances, heathen ordinances, and philosophy. They also include mysticism and asceticism. The elements of the world are the elementary principles of worldly society, the rudimentary principles invented by mankind and practiced in society. With Christ we have died to these elements of the world. When Christ was crucified, we were crucified also. In His crucifixion we were released from the elementary principles of the world.

Since we have died with Christ from the elements of the world, Paul in verse 20 asks the believers in Colossae why, as living in the world, they continued to subject themselves to ordinances, that is, to the elementary principles from which they had died in Christ. The world in this verse refers not to the physical earth but to human society, to mankind. Therefore, Paul is asking the believers why they still subjected themselves to ordinances as if they were still living in human society.

In verse 21 Paul lists some of these ordinances: “Do not handle, nor taste, nor touch.” These are rules and regulations in material things. These rules refer respectively to things that move, to things that are edible, and to things that are tangible. Handling, tasting, and touching include virtually every kind of action. Because these regulations are related to [3579] the practice of asceticism, to submit to ordinances concerning handling, tasting, and touching is to practice asceticism.

Since we have received the circumcision in Christ, there is no need for us to practice asceticism. Being circumcised in the circumcision of Christ is versus asceticism (vv. 20-22). Those who have been buried and terminated and who are now resting in the tomb, have no need of asceticism. There is no reason for them to treat their bodies severely. To do so is against the spiritual principle. According to the spiritual principle, we have been terminated and have put off the body of the flesh, the thing that asceticism attempts to deal with. Every form of asceticism attempts to deal with the lusts of the flesh. According to the teaching and practice of asceticism, treating the body severely eliminates lusts and restricts indulgence. This is the basic principle of asceticism. This severe treatment of the body is “not of any value against the indulgence of the flesh” (v. 23). The various practices of asceticism are not effective in restricting the indulgence of the flesh. Paul’s concept in Colossians 2 was that since the believers in Christ have been circumcised in the circumcision of Christ, which was accomplished by Christ’s death and is applied by the Spirit, and since this is the circumcision in which they have been buried and terminated, there is absolutely no need for the practice of asceticism. To mistreat the body in an attempt to restrict the indulgence of the flesh is foolish and of no avail. Truly, the circumcision in Christ is versus asceticism.

The experience of Christ’s death is versus asceticism. Day by day we should pass through the cross. This means that no matter what we have done or no matter what has happened to us, the cross takes care of everything. If we are made unhappy in some way by others, we need to apply the cross to our feeling of unhappiness; then the feeling of unhappiness will disappear. This indicates that our way is the cross, not asceticism or any severe treatment of the self. Realizing that we have already died in Christ, we should have a consciousness of the cross. If we realize that we have died in Christ, we will be in resurrection as a new person. We not only have Christ, the unique person, who is versus all things; [3580] we also have the cross, the unique way, which is versus all other ways.

As we drive, we come to many intersections; every intersection is a cross. Only by passing through many crosses can we get to our destination. Speaking of spiritual experience, we also must pass through many crosses before we can reach the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:2). Just as we cannot travel very far geographically without crossing an intersection, so we cannot progress spiritually without passing through the cross. Only when we arrive at the New Jerusalem will we cease to pass through the cross, for by that time all the negative things will have been eliminated (cf. v. 8). Until we come to the New Jerusalem, we need to pass through the cross day by day in our walk with the Lord.

It is a healthy spiritual practice to pass through the cross every night when we go to bed. By applying the cross at the end of each day, we may rest very well during the night. At bedtime we need to apply the cross to every problem and to every negative, natural, or sinful thing. We may pray, “Lord, I want all these things to pass through the cross. I do not want to go to sleep with any natural, sinful, negative, or worldly element that has not been dealt with. When I go to bed, Lord, I want to be a person who has been crossed out.” Because we have Christ as the unique person and the cross as the unique way, we do not need asceticism. Furthermore, we do not even need to make up our minds with respect to certain things. Such a practice does not work. What we need to do is simply lie down through the cross at night, have a restful sleep, and then rise up in the morning in resurrection. We need to be those who pass through one cross after another. We need to daily pass through the intersection of the cross.

Apart from the cross as God’s one way, we should have no ordinances and no particular ways or practices. The way which God has ordained, uplifted, and honored is the cross of Christ. The cross is our only way. Only the cross can enable us to be one and in perfect harmony. We all need to pass through the cross. If we do not experience the cross, we cannot have the proper church life. All the saints must learn to daily pass [3581] through the cross. By passing through all manner of crosses, large and small, we will have oneness and harmony in the church life.

In the church life it is possible to have oneness without harmony. In order to have a sweet, harmonious oneness, we all must daily pass through the cross. We should not argue that we are right and that others are wrong. The more we dispute in this way, the less we pass through the cross. To repeat, the way to our destination is through the intersection of the cross. We should not avoid any cross. On the contrary, we should pass through all the crosses that we encounter in the Christian life, in the family life, and in the church life. In married life and in the church life in particular, we need to pass through the cross daily, even hourly. In Ephesians 4:26 Paul exhorts us not to allow the sun to go down on our indignation. This means that we should let go of our anger by passing through the cross. If we have a daily life of passing through the cross, there will be harmony both in the family life and in the church life. God has given us one person—the all-inclusive Christ—and one way—the cross.

f. The Body (the Reality) of All the Shadows

In Colossians 2:16 and 17 Paul says, “Let no one therefore judge you in eating and in drinking or in respect of a feast or of a new moon or of the Sabbath, which are a shadow of the things to come, but the body is of Christ.” These verses reveal that as the mystery of God, Christ is the body, the reality, of all the shadows.

In verse 16 Paul covers matters related to daily life, weekly life, monthly life, and yearly life. Eating and drinking are daily, the Sabbaths weekly, the new moons monthly, and the feasts yearly. All the aspects of our living are shadows of Christ. Eating and drinking signify daily satisfaction and strengthening (1 Cor. 10:3-4), and the Sabbath signifies weekly completion and rest (Matt. 11:28-29). Without completion, we cannot enjoy rest. Rest always comes from completion and satisfaction. When we have finished a certain matter and are satisfied with it, we are then able to be at rest. After God completed His work of creation on the sixth day, He enjoyed rest on the seventh day (Gen. 2:1-3). Hence, the Sabbath signifies completion and rest on a weekly basis.

A new moon signifies a monthly new beginning with light in darkness (John 1:5; 8:12). Just as the new moon marked a new beginning in Old Testament times, so Christ affords us a new beginning with light in darkness today. Before we came [3584] to the Lord, we were in darkness, like all unbelieving Jews today. But after believing in Him, we now enjoy Christ as our new moon with light in darkness.

The feasts signify yearly enjoyment and joy (1 Cor. 5:8). Three times a year, God’s chosen people came together for the annual feasts, which were times of enjoyment, of rejoicing together before the Lord. Although the feasts were enjoyable, they were simply shadows of Christ. He is the real food, drink, completion, rest, new moon, and feast. Daily we eat and drink Him, weekly we have completion and rest in Him, monthly we experience a new beginning in Him, and throughout the year He is our joy and enjoyment. Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly Christ is to us the reality of every positive thing.

All these items of the ceremonial law are a shadow of the spiritual things in Christ, which are the things to come. The body in Colossians 2:17, like a man’s physical body, is the substance. The rituals in the law are a shadow of the real things in the gospel, like the shadow of a man’s body. Christ is the reality of the gospel. All the good things in the gospel belong to Him. This all-inclusive Christ is the focus of God’s economy. Hence, there is no room for Jewish religion or Greek philosophy—there is room only for the all-inclusive Christ. Although Paul was once very strong in Judaism, when he received the revelation concerning Christ, he realized that both Greek philosophy and Jewish tradition were nothing. In God’s economy only Christ counts for anything.

As the body of shadows, the all-inclusive Christ is the reality of all the positive things in the universe (cf. Rom. 1:20; Eph. 3:18). Because the universe with the billions of things and persons in it was created for the purpose of describing Christ, He, in revealing Himself to His disciples, could easily find in any environment something or someone to serve as an illustration of Himself (Col. 1:15-17; John 1:51; 10:9-11; 12:24; Matt. 12:41-42). The Old Testament uses six major categories of things as types to describe Christ: human beings, animals, plants, minerals, offerings, and foods. Christ is typified by human beings, such as Adam (Rom. 5:14), Melchizedek (Heb. 7:1-3), Isaac (Matt. 1:1), Jonah (12:41), and Solomon (v. 42). [3585] Christ is typified by animals, such as a lamb (John 1:29), a lion, an ox, an eagle (Ezek. 1:10), and a gazelle (S.S. 2:9). Christ, who is the tree of life (Gen. 2:9), is typified by plants, such as the vine tree (John 15:1), the apple tree (S.S. 2:3), the fig tree, the pomegranate tree, and the olive tree (Deut. 8:8); the different parts of a tree are also types of Christ, such as the sprout, the stump, the branch, the root, the shoot, and the fruit (Isa. 11:1, 10; 4:2; Luke 1:42; Rev. 5:5).

Christ is also typified by minerals, such as iron, copper, silver, and gold (Deut. 8:9b, 13), and different kinds of stone: the living stone (1 Pet. 2:4), the rock (1 Cor. 10:4), the cornerstone (Matt. 21:42), the topstone (Zech. 4:7), the foundation stone, and precious stone (1 Cor. 3:11-12). The offerings that typify Christ include the burnt offering, meal offering, peace offering, sin offering, trespass offering, heave offering, wave offering, and drink offering (Lev. 1—7; Exo. 29:26-28; Num. 28:7-10; cf. John 4:24). Christ is typified by foods, such as bread, wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, milk, and honey (6:35; Deut. 8:8-9a; 26:9). In the New Testament Christ is the Spirit of reality who makes the untraceable riches of all that He is real to us, guiding us into Himself as the divine reality (John 14:6a; 1 John 5:6; John 14:17; 16:13). The elements of the reality of all the types are in the Spirit, and the Spirit transfuses and dispenses all these riches into us through the Lord’s words (Phil. 1:19; John 6:63; Col. 3:16; Eph. 6:17-18; Rev. 2:7).

We need to experience Christ as the reality of every positive thing in every part of our daily life. We who believe in Christ should consider all things and evaluate all things according to Christ, who is everything to us in a practical way. Christ, the mystery of God and the substance of every positive thing, is everything to us: our breath, drink, food, light, clothing, and our dwelling place (John 20:22; 4:10, 14; 7:37-39a; 6:35, 57; 1:4; 8:12; Gal. 3:27; John 15:5, 7a). As we consider all the positive things in the universe, we should evaluate them according to Christ. If we consider all things according to Christ, our daily living will be changed. What a tremendous revelation this is! The Christ whom we have received is not a narrow Christ. On the contrary, He is full, rich, unlimited, [3586] and all-inclusive. He is not only our Redeemer, Savior, and life—He is everything to us.

According to the principle in the Bible, the first in a certain category often includes all the other items in that category. The book of Revelation says that Christ is the Alpha and the Omega (22:13). This does not mean, however, that Christ is only these two letters and not all the letters in between. Because He is the first letter, He is also all the other letters. The principle is the same with respect to the slaughter of the firstborn in the book of Exodus (12:29). The firstborn of the Egyptians represented all the Egyptians. Likewise, when the Bible says that Christ is the Firstborn of all creation, it implies that Christ includes every item of the creation. This concept is confirmed in Colossians 2, where Paul says that such things as eating, drinking, feasts, new moons, and Sabbaths are shadows and that Christ is the body, the substance, of these shadows.

Christ, who is superior to all things in Greek philosophy and Jewish religion, is the body, the reality, of all the shadows in the Old Testament, such as feasts, Sabbaths, new moons, eating, and drinking. This is, however, altogether different from pantheism, the satanic belief which identifies God with material things in the universe. According to the Bible, we can say that Christ is the reality of all the positive things in the universe; He is the reality of our food, our drink, and the new moon, a new beginning with light in darkness. But we cannot turn this around and say that our literal food, clothing, and houses are Christ. That would be the grossly heretical doctrine of pantheism. This is devilish, and we repudiate it without reservation. Nevertheless, we have the biblical ground to say that Christ is the reality of every positive thing in the universe: He is the door, the pasture, the Shepherd, the light, and the life (John 10:9, 14; 8:12; 14:6). Therefore, we can say that Christ is everything to us, the reality of all positive things.

Many things in the environment of our daily living are also shadows of Christ. For example, the food that we eat is a shadow, not the real food. The real food is Christ. Christ is also the real drink. The clothing that we wear to cover us, [3587] to beautify us, and to keep us warm is also a shadow of Christ. Christ is the One who truly covers our nakedness, who keeps us warm, and who imparts beauty to us. Christ is also our true dwelling place and real rest. The houses in which we live are a shadow of Christ as our dwelling place. The rest that we enjoy at night is also a figure of Christ as our rest. Even the satisfaction that we enjoy after a good meal is not the real satisfaction but a shadow of Christ as the reality of satisfaction.

Every day, week, month, and year we need Christ. All the positive things in our daily life, weekly life, monthly life, and yearly life must be Christ. Christ must become everything to us, not merely in a doctrinal way but in the way of experience. Christ should be our completion, rest, new beginning, enjoyment, joy, food, drink, and satisfaction. Although Christ is universally vast, He is also all the detailed aspects of our practical daily living.

Whatever we do day by day should remind us of Christ as the reality of that thing. As we eat our meals, we should take Christ as the real food and pray to Him in this way: “Lord Jesus, I do not simply thank You for this food and take it into me. Lord, I take You as the reality of this food.” When we drink some beverage, we should also drink Christ. As we put on our clothing, we should be reminded that Christ is the real clothing, and we should experience Him as such. As we put on our material clothing, we should also put on Christ. It is easy to enjoy Christ in this way. Even our breathing should remind us of the necessity of breathing Christ spiritually.

If we follow the practice of taking Christ as the reality of all the material things in our daily life, our daily walk will be revolutionized and transformed. It will be full of Christ. When we eat and drink, we shall take Christ as our spiritual food and drink. Everything that we do will remind us to contact Christ, to enjoy Christ, to experience Christ, and to have Christ as our everything. To practice this day by day is truly to enjoy Christ.

According to God’s mathematics, only Christ has value. Doctrines and opinions do not matter. What matters is the Christ who is for our daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly life. If [3588] Christ is truly everything to us in our daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly life, there will be no need for us to express our opinion. We have Christ as our unique factor, reason, element, and source.

It is significant that after speaking of Christ as the body of the shadows, Paul goes on to say, “Let no one defraud you by judging you unworthy of your prize” (Col. 3:18). According to the context, the prize is the enjoyment of Christ as the body of all the shadows. The enjoyment of Christ is truly a prize. Today we may enjoy Christ as our reward, our prize. This prize is not only the objective Christ but particularly the subjective enjoyment of Christ. According to verses 16 through 18, to be defrauded of our prize is to be defrauded of the subjective enjoyment of Christ daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. The Jewish believers were distracted from Christ by the Judaizers, whereas the Gentile believers were carried off by certain philosophical concepts. Both were defrauded of the subjective experience and enjoyment of Christ. We need to check whether we experience and enjoy Christ in a practical way daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. It is very possible that we, like the Colossians, have also been defrauded of our prize. We should not allow anyone to defraud us of this prize, and we need to enjoy Christ in all the small details of our daily living.

According to 1:26, the word of God completed through the ministry of Paul was “the mystery which has been hidden from the ages and from the generations but now has been manifested to His saints.” This mystery is Christ in us, the hope of glory (v. 27). Although we may have considerable knowledge of the Bible, we do not have the completion of the divine revelation unless we adequately experience Christ daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. Our need is for the subjective Christ to become our enjoyment to complete the divine revelation within us. If we are short in the experience and enjoyment of Christ, we are also short concerning God’s revelation. His revelation needs the experiential Christ as its completion.

g. The Head of the Body, out from Whom

All the Body Grows with the Growth of God

In 2:19 Paul speaks of “holding the Head, out from whom [3589] all the Body, being richly supplied and knit together by means of the joints and sinews, grows with the growth of God.” The heresy of angel worship distracted the believers in Colossae from holding Christ as the Head. God’s economy is to head up all things in Christ through His Body, the church, thereby making Christ the center of all things (Eph. 1:10, 22-23). The device of the subtle one is to carry the saints away and to cause the Body to collapse. The heresy at Colossae caused the saints to be severed from the Head. This damaged the Body. Paul’s revelation was to uplift Christ and to safeguard and build up the Body. We need to be preserved in Christ for the church life.

To be preserved in Christ for the church life is to hold Him as the Head, out from whom the Body grows with the growth of God. Growth is a matter of life, which is God Himself. As the Body of Christ, the church should not be deprived of Christ, who is the embodiment of God as the source of life. By holding Christ, the church grows with the growth of God, with the increase of God as life.

This growth takes place as all the Body is being richly supplied and knit together by means of the joints and sinews. Joints are for the supply of the Body, whereas sinews are for the knitting together of the members of the Body. In the church some members are joints and others are sinews. By means of the joints and sinews, the Body grows. This indicates that we cannot grow with the growth of God individualistically; we need to be in the church.

(1) Holding the Head

To understand properly what it means to hold the Head, we need to consider Colossians 2:16 and 17, where Paul tells us that Christ is the body, the substance, the reality, of all the shadows, such as eating, drinking, Sabbaths, new moons, and feasts. Based upon this fact, Paul warns us not to allow anyone to purposely defraud us of our prize, the subjective enjoyment of Christ. Those who seek to defraud us are the ones who stand on things which they have seen and who do not hold the Head. Thus, there is a connection between Christ as the body of the shadows and holding the Head. In other [3590] words, the Christ who is the reality of all positive things is the One who is the Head of the Body. If we would know what it means to hold the Head, we must know what it is to enjoy Christ as the reality of all positive things. Without enjoying Christ in this way, we cannot experientially hold Him as the Head. Therefore, we can say that to hold the Head is simply to enjoy Christ as the reality of all positive things.

The genuine Christian life is a life of enjoying Christ. We need to enjoy the Lord all day long. Whenever we enjoy Christ continually, we automatically hold Him as the Head. Thus, the best way to hold Christ as the Head is to enjoy Him. There is no better way to hold Christ than to eat Him. Just as we hold food by taking it into us and eating it, so we hold Christ by eating Him.

In 2:16-19 Paul takes a great leap from Christ as everything for our enjoyment to Christ as the Head. As we enjoy Christ as our food, drink, air, and everything, we are uplifted to the height of our experience of holding Christ as the Head. But if we stop enjoying Christ, we immediately stop holding Him as the Head. Only when we enjoy Him do we also hold Him. This is not a doctrine learned from theology books; it is a fact of Christian experience. To hold the Head is to enjoy Christ continually. We are vessels made to contain Him, and we hold Him by eating, drinking, and breathing Him.

Holding the Head is also equal to abiding in Christ (John 15:4). To hold the Head implies that we are not detached, or severed, from Him. At the time that Paul wrote to the Colossians, they had been somewhat detached from Christ by their culture. Culture can be a form of insulation which keeps us from Christ. To hold the Head is to remain in Christ without any insulation between us and Him.

For the Body to hold the Head means that the Body does not allow itself to be separated from the Head. If we truly hold Christ as the Head, we will not be separated from Him by anything. When we live by our culture instead of by Christ, we separate ourselves from Christ as the Head and are defrauded of our prize, which is the enjoyment of Christ.

Furthermore, because Christ’s headship is in resurrection, [3591] the enjoyment of Christ spontaneously brings us into resurrection and saves us from our natural being. We all are natural. If we are not brought into resurrection through the enjoyment of Christ, we will remain in our natural person. The more we enjoy Him, the less natural we are.

The enjoyment of Christ also brings us into the ascension. The more we enjoy Him, the more we are in the heavenlies experientially. This means that through the enjoyment of Christ, we become heavenly. We are not only no longer natural but also no longer earthly. The enjoyment of Christ causes us to be both in resurrection and in ascension. The more we enjoy Christ, the more we are in the heavens. Therefore, to hold Christ as the Head is to be in the heavens in our experience. It is also true to say that to be in the heavens is to hold the Head. Experientially, holding the Head and being in the heavens are one and the same.

If in our experience we temporarily abandon Christ and do not continue holding Him as the Head, we will sense that we are earthly. Whenever we are earthly, we are not holding the Head, but if in our daily life we consistently enjoy Christ, we will hold Him as the Head and be in the heavens in our experience. Then we will be a heavenly people.

According to Colossians 3:1-4, our living should be in the heavens, where God’s throne is. On the one hand, Christ as our Head is in our spirit (1:27; 2 Tim. 4:22); on the other hand, He is in the heavens, not on earth (Col. 3:1). Only when we are in the heavens do we hold Him as the Head. To enjoy Christ is to hold the Head, and to hold the Head is to be in the heavens.

We can be experientially in the heavens only by enjoying Christ, the Head, as the life-giving Spirit in our spirit. Second Corinthians 3:17 says, “The Lord is the Spirit.” If Christ were only the Head and not the Spirit, there would be no way for us to contact Him or hold Him experientially. But although Christ’s position is that of the Head, in our experience He is the life-giving Spirit. According to 2 Timothy 4:22, the Lord, who is the Spirit, is now with our spirit. In the heavens Christ is the Head, but in our spirit He is the Spirit. Therefore, to hold Christ as the Head is not only to enjoy Him and to be in [3592] the heavens; it is also to be in our spirit. If we would hold the Head, we must be in spirit.

In Colossians 2:18 Paul uses the expression vainly puffed up by his mind set on the flesh. The mind is part of the soul, and the flesh is related to the physical body. Anyone who is puffed up by the mind of the flesh does not hold Christ as the Head, for he is in his fleshly mind, not in the spirit. Whenever we are in the mind or in the flesh, we are not holding the Head. But when we turn from the flesh and from the mind to the spirit, we automatically hold Christ as the Head. If we linger in our fleshly mind, we will not be able to touch Christ or hold Him. But if we turn to the spirit, we will hold the Head, who is the life-giving Spirit in our spirit.

Therefore, in order to hold Christ as the Head, we should enjoy Christ, be in the heavens, and be in our spirit. From our experience we know that these three matters go together. When we enjoy Christ, we are in the heavens and in our spirit, not in the mind or in the flesh. To be in the spirit is experientially to be in the third heaven. According to the Bible, the Holy of Holies is both in the third heaven and in our spirit (Heb. 10:19; 4:14, 16). Whenever we turn to the spirit, we are in the heavens enjoying the Lord. This is the way to hold the Head.

(2) Out from Him All the Body Growing with the Growth of God

In Colossians 2:17 Paul says that the body, the reality, of all the shadows is of Christ, but in verse 19 he speaks not of Christ but of holding the Head. The reason for the change in terminology from Christ to the Head is that our enjoyment of the Lord causes us to become conscious of the Body. If we enjoy Christ continually, we will not continue to be individualistic. The saints who are individualistic are those who do not consistently enjoy the Lord. The more we enjoy Christ, the more we become Body-conscious. We should touch the Lord in the morning, but in the evening we should come to the church meetings. It is not normal to enjoy the Lord during the day and neglect the meetings of the church, which is His Body. Even if our environment does not allow us to attend all [3593] the meetings, inwardly we should have the sense that our whole inner being is with the saints in the church meeting. This consciousness of the Body comes from the enjoyment of Christ.

What we enjoy of Christ day by day is actually something of Him as the Head. This is the reason that when we enjoy Christ, He causes us to become conscious of the Body. The more we enjoy Christ, the more intense is our desire for the Body. However, if we fail to contact the Lord for a period of time, we will automatically neglect the church life or lose interest in the meetings. The less we contact the Lord, the more we become critical of the church or the saints. We have an eye for the faults and shortcomings of others. This shortage of the enjoyment of Christ opens the door for the enemy, Satan, to come in to make us critical of other members of the Body. But if we begin again to enjoy the Lord, the door will gradually close. Eventually, if we continually enjoy Christ, the door will be completely shut. Then, instead of criticizing the church, we will praise the Lord for the church life, and we will testify how much we love it. What brings about such a change is not admonition or correction but the recovery of the enjoyment of Christ.

The dear, precious One whom we enjoy as our food, drink, and breath is the Head of the Body. Because Paul had a thorough realization of this, he could leap from Christ as the reality of all positive things for our enjoyment to the matter of Christ as the Head. Since the Christ we enjoy as our everything is the Head of the Body, the more we enjoy Him, the more we become Body-conscious. This indicates that the enjoyment of Christ is not an individualistic matter. It is a Body matter. We need to enjoy Christ as members of the Body in a corporate way.

In 2:19 Paul speaks of “all the Body.” The enjoyment of Christ keeps us one as members of the Body. The more we enjoy Christ, the more we love the other members of the Body. The enjoyment of Christ causes us to love everyone in the church life. Even those whom we find difficult to love become dear and precious to us. However, if we do not continue to enjoy Christ, we will desp

ise certain ones in the church. [3594] Actually, the church and the saints remain the same; it is our attitude that changes. But if the supply of Christ is ministered to us and we begin to enjoy Him again, all the members of the Body will once again become lovable to us. We will have the pleasant realization that, as members of the Body, we love all the other members.

It is the enjoyment of Christ which causes Him to be the Head in our experience. Christ cannot be our Head subjectively and experientially unless we enjoy Him. We may be told again and again that Christ is the Head of the Body, but we will not have any consciousness of Him as the Head unless we enjoy Him regularly. The more we enjoy Christ, the more we will realize experientially that the Christ whom we enjoy is the Head of the Body. This realization will make us conscious of the Body and cause us to love all the members of the Body.

Colossians 2:19 speaks of the supply and of the Body being knit together. When the Body is supplied and knit together by holding the Head, the Body grows with the growth of God. The phrase out from whom in this verse indicates that the Body grows out from the Head, for all the supply comes from the Head. In one sense, Christ is the Head; in another sense, He is the soil (v. 7). As we absorb the riches of the soil, we hold the Head. Likewise, to receive the supply from the Head is to absorb the riches from the soil.

When we enjoy Christ in the heavens and in our spirit, we hold the Head and absorb His riches. Then out from the Head something will proceed to produce the growth of God in us. This means that more of the element of God is added into our being and thereby into the Body. This causes the Body to grow with the growth, the increase, of God.

In order to have genuine growth, we must first be rooted in Christ, our good land. We are plants rooted in Christ as the soil. As a tree grows, it absorbs water and nourishing elements from the soil in which it is rooted. As these riches are absorbed by the tree, they become the increase of the tree. The tree grows with the increase of the riches from the soil. In like manner, we are living plants rooted in Christ as our soil. What we absorb of Christ into us—the element of the riches of Himself as the soil—becomes the increase of God [3595] within us. Our land is Christ, and Christ is the embodiment of the Triune God. Therefore, the land is the Triune God. This means that when we absorb the riches of the soil, we absorb the riches of the Triune God. Actually, we absorb the Triune God Himself. Through this absorption, we take more of God into us. This increase of God within us is what we mean by the growth of God.

The genuine growth in life is to grow with the growth of God, that is, to grow with the increase of God, the addition of God. In Himself, God cannot and does not need to grow. He is eternal, perfect, and complete. However, there is the need for God to grow in us. We all need more of the increase, the addition, of God within us. We need to grow with the growth of God; that is, we need God to increase, to grow, in us.

God is rich in every way. He is rich in glory and in all the divine attributes. He is rich in love, kindness, mercy, light, life, power, and strength. God’s riches are endless. Now this rich God is adding Himself into us. God’s riches are the element and substance by which we grow. God is real, rich, and substantial, and we need to absorb Him.

Our God today is the processed, all-inclusive Spirit, and we have a spirit with which to absorb Him. Thus, we must exercise our spirit to stay in His presence to absorb Him. This takes time. Although we all have experienced absorbing the riches of God, our experience is not yet adequate. For this reason, we must spend more time to absorb Him. We should not spend so much time in our mind, emotion, and will, but spend more time in our spirit to adore the Lord, to praise Him, to offer thanks to Him, and to speak to Him freely. As we fellowship with Him in this way, we will absorb His riches, and He will add more of Himself into us. The more God is added into us, the more growth He gives to us. This is the way God causes the growth.

In summary, to hold Christ as the Head is to enjoy Him as the body of all the shadows continually, to be in the heavens, and to remain in our spirit. Through holding Christ as the Head, we become conscious of the Body because the Christ whom we enjoy as our real food, drink, Sabbaths, new moons, and feasts is the Head who causes us to become conscious of [3596] the Body. Experiencing the Body life, we absorb the riches out from the Head. These riches are the elements of God, which become in the members of the Body the increase of God by which the whole Body grows. Therefore, the growth of the Body is the product of enjoying Christ, holding Him as the Head and absorbing His riches.