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In this message we shall cover the remaining aspects of Christ’s work in His death. Then we shall go on to consider His work in His burial.
Hebrews 2:9 says that the Lord Jesus tasted death on behalf of everything. He tasted death not only for human beings but also for every creature. This indicates that Christ’s redemption was accomplished not only for people but for everything created by God. Thus God could reconcile all things to Himself by Him. Colossians 1:20 says that God has reconciled all things to Himself through the death of Christ. This is clearly typified by the redemption of Noah’s ark, in which not only eight persons but all other living things created by God were saved (Gen. 7:13-23). The ark is a type, a picture, of Christ in this respect. In Hebrews 2:9 we have the profound revelation that Christ tasted death not only for man but also for all other things. Due to the sin of Adam, the head of the old creation, everything is under death. In His work on the cross Christ tasted this death, a death on behalf of everything. This is the reason we say that Christ’s death was an all-inclusive death.
In 2 Timothy 1:10 Paul tells us that through His work in His death Christ nullified death. The Greek word translated “nullified” also means make of none effect, bring to naught, do away with, abolish, annul, discard. Through His Devil-destroying death, Christ nullified death, making it of none effect. To nullify death does not mean to remove death but to make it of no effect. Death will not be removed until it is cast into the lake of fire after the millennium (Rev. 20:14). Death will be the last enemy destroyed by the Lord (1 Cor. 15:26). Although death has not yet been removed, it is none the less a fact that it has been nullified through Christ’s death on the cross.
Colossians 2:15 says, “Stripping off the rulers and the authorities, He made a display of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” Here we see that in His work on the cross Christ caused the rulers and authorities to be stripped off, to be made a display of openly, and to be triumphed over in the cross by God. The rulers and authorities spoken of in this verse are the angelic rulers and authorities. The Greek word for “stripping off” can also be rendered “putting off.” The Greek word for “make a display” means show or exhibit in the sense of putting to an open shame. God openly shamed the evil angelic rulers and authorities on the cross and triumphed over them in it. The Greek words translated “in it” refer to the cross, but they can also be rendered “in Him,” referring to Christ.
In a very real sense the cross of Christ is the center of the universe. After God created the heavens, the earth, and billions of items in the universe, an archangel rebelled and many angels followed him. This archangel became Satan, and his followers became the evil rulers, powers, and authorities in the heavenlies. Later, the man created by God fell and became sinful. Eventually, Christ, God incarnate, went to the cross to work for the accomplishment of redemption. While Christ was on the cross, many things took place. At that time the cross was the center of the universe. The Savior, sin, Satan, we, and God were all there. While God was judging sin, the evil rulers and authorities were present and were very active, swarming around the crucified Christ, pressing in very closely. If they had not pressed in closely, God could not have stripped them off. The words “stripping off” indicate that the rulers and authorities were very close, as close as our garments are to our body. By stripping off the rulers and authorities God made a display of them openly, putting them to shame and triumphing over them.
Colossians 2:15 portrays the warfare that took place at the time of Christ’s crucifixion. In His crucifixion Christ was working to accomplish redemption, and God the Father was working to judge sin. At the same time the rulers and authorities were busy in the attempt to frustrate the work of God and Christ. The reference to triumph in Colossians 2:15 implies fighting; it indicates that a war was raging. While Christ was working to accomplish redemption, the rulers and authorities came to interfere, pressing in close to Christ. But at that very juncture God stripped them off, triumphed over them, and made a display of them openly, putting them to an open shame. Christ’s work in His death caused all this to take place.
Galatians 1:4 says that Christ “gave Himself for our sins, that He might rescue us out of the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.” Here we see that in His crucifixion Christ gave Himself for our sins. Apart from Christ’s death on the cross, there is no way for us to be redeemed from our sins.
Although Christ was crucified for our sins, the goal of His crucifixion was to rescue us out of the present evil age. An age is a part of the world as the satanic system. An age refers to a section, an aspect, the present or modern appearance, of the system of Satan, which is used by him to usurp and occupy people and keep them away from God and His purpose. The world system of Satan has different ages, different sections. We may regard each decade as a distinct age or section of Satan’s world system. The present age is the present section of Satan’s cosmos, his world system. Whereas sins are devilish, the present age is satanic. As the Devil God’s enemy is involved with sins, and as Satan he is involved with the evil age. God’s enemy is subtle, lurking behind sins and the evil age. Apart from the crucifixion of Christ, we have no way to deal with sins, behind which the Devil hides, or the evil age, behind which Satan hides. Christ was crucified for our sins so that He might rescue us from this evil age. This indicates that only Christ can save us from the Devil and Satan. Both sins and the evil age have been dealt with by Christ crucified. He gave Himself for us on the cross according to the will of God. He died for our sins so that we might be delivered from the present evil age. Therefore, if we would be delivered from this evil age, our sins must be dealt with. If we, through the preaching of the gospel, help others to have the forgiveness of sins, they will begin to realize that they need to be rescued from the present evil age.
Literally, the Greek word translated “rescue” in Galatians 1:4 means to pluck out, to draw out, to extricate. The present evil age in this verse, according to the context of the book, refers to the religious world, the religious course of the world, which at Paul’s time was the Jewish religion. This is confirmed by Galatians 6:14 and 15, where circumcision is considered part of the world — the religious world to which the Apostle Paul is crucified. Here Paul emphasizes that the purpose of Christ’s giving Himself for our sins was to rescue us, to pluck us out, from the Jewish religion, the present evil age. This is to release God’s chosen people from the custody of the law (Gal. 3:23), to bring them out of the sheepfold (John 10:1, 3), according to the will of God.
In Galatians 1:4 Paul points out that in order to rescue us from the present evil religious age, Christ gave Himself for our sins. This indicates that Christ died in order to rescue us from Judaism. In John 10 we see that Christ as the good Shepherd entered into the fold in order to bring His sheep out of the fold and into the pasture. The fold in John 10 signifies the law, or Judaism as a religion of the law, in which God’s chosen people were kept and guarded in custody until Christ came. Eventually Christ came as the Shepherd to bring the sheep out of the fold to the pasture, where they may feed on His riches. Although Christ came to release the sheep from the fold, the Judaizers crucified Him. Christ died on the cross not only for the sins of His sheep but also to bring them out of the fold.
In Galatians 1 we see that Christ gave Himself for our sins for the purpose of rescuing us out of religion, out of the present evil age. The Judaizers crucified Him. But through His death on the cross the Lord Jesus gave Himself for our sins in order to rescue us from the religious fold. The principle is the same both with the believers in Paul’s time and with us today.
In Ephesians 2:14 and 15 we see that on the cross Christ died as our peace, abolishing the law of commandments in ordinances, breaking down the middle wall of partition, the enmity: “He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of partition, the enmity, having abolished in His flesh the law of the commandments in ordinances.” Here we see that Christ died on the cross to abolish all the ordinances among mankind. Due to man’s fall, among mankind there are many ordinances, many customs, habits, ways to live, and ways to worship. All these differences among peoples have divided, scattered, and confused mankind. Therefore, among the human race there is no peace. Christ died on the cross to abolish all these ordinances. In particular, He died to take away the partition between the Jews and the Gentiles. Not only was there a partition between Jews and Gentiles; there were also partitions between every nationality and race. Without the removal of these partitions, there would not be a way for us to be one in the Lord Jesus as His Body.
All the ordinances were abolished by Christ on the cross. When He was crucified, His death abolished, annulled, the different ordinances of human life and religion. Furthermore, the differences among the races and the differences of social rank have been abolished by the death of Christ.
Ephesians 2:14 says, “He Himself is our peace.” The word “our” refers to both Jewish and Gentile believers. Through the blood of Christ we have been brought near both to God and to God’s people. Christ, who has accomplished full redemption for both Jewish and Gentile believers, is Himself our peace, our harmony, in that He made both one. Because of the fall of mankind and the call of the chosen race, there was a separation between Israel and the Gentiles. Through Christ’s redemption, this separation has been removed. Now the two are one in the redeeming Christ, who is the bond of oneness.
Ephesians 2:14 speaks of the middle wall of partition. This middle wall of partition is the law of the commandments in ordinances, which was given because of man’s flesh. The first of these ordinances was circumcision to cut off man’s flesh. Circumcision became the middle wall of partition because it made the main distinction between the Jews, the circumcision, and the Gentiles, the uncircumcision. Thus, the middle wall of partition, this distinction, became the enmity between the Jews and the Gentiles.
In the law of Moses there were two kinds of commandments: moral commandments, such as the commandments concerning stealing and the honoring of parents, and ritual commandments, such as the commandment concerning the keeping of the Sabbath. The commandments regarding circumcision and the eating regulations were ritual commandments, not moral commandments. The moral commandments will never be abolished, not in this age nor in the millennium nor in eternity. The ritual commandments, on the contrary, are not permanent. By the middle wall of partition Paul meant the law of commandments in ordinances, the ritual commandments related to circumcision, the Sabbath, and diet. The law of ritual commandments was a middle wall of partition between the Jews and the Gentiles. Actually, any ordinance or ritual is a middle wall of partition.
Ephesians 2:15 says that Christ abolished “in His flesh” the law of commandments in ordinances. Because mankind became flesh (Gen. 6:3) and was thus kept from God and His purpose, God ordained His chosen people to be circumcised from the flesh. This ordinance was given because of man’s flesh. It was in the flesh that Christ was crucified. When He was crucified, His flesh, which was typified by the separating veil in the temple, was rent (Heb. 10:20). By breaking down the middle wall of partition on the cross, Christ has made peace.
Colossians 2:14 says, “Wiping out the handwriting in ordinances which was against us, which was contrary to us; and He has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross.” The Greek word rendered “wiping out” can also be translated blotting out, obliterating, erasing, or annulling (a decree of law). The Greek word rendered “handwriting” denotes a legal document, a bond. Here it refers to the written law. The ordinances, or decrees, refer to the ceremonial law with its rituals, the forms or ways of living and worship. These ordinances God has taken out of the way by nailing them to the cross of Christ. This is to abolish the law of the commandments in ordinances.
In His work on the cross the Lord Jesus died as a grain of wheat falling into death for the release of the divine life. “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). Christ’s all-inclusive death released the divine life that was within Him. As a grain of wheat He died to release the divine life and to enliven God’s redeemed ones, to produce many grains that can be blended together in a loaf to be offered to God. This loaf is the church, the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 10:17).
The Lord Jesus fell into the ground and died so that His divine element, His divine life, might be released from within the shell of His humanity to produce many believers in resurrection (1 Pet. 1:3), just as a grain of wheat has its life element released by falling into the ground and growing up out of the ground to bear much fruit, that is, to bring forth many grains. The Lord Jesus, as a grain of wheat falling into the ground, lost His soulish life through death so that He might release His divine life in resurrection to the many grains.
On the negative side, Christ’s all-inclusive death has solved the problems of sins, sin, the old man, the old creation, Satan, the world, and the ordinances. On the positive side, Christ’s death has released the divine life from within Him. He was a grain of wheat, and there was no other way for that grain to increase except to fall into the ground and die. This is the way to have the multiplication of life. Therefore, in His death Christ was sown into the earth as a grain of wheat to produce a multiplication through the release of the divine life.
Furthermore, it was by dying to release the divine life that the Lord Jesus was glorified and glorified the Father. In John 12:23 the Lord said, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified,” and in verse 28 He prayed, “Father, glorify Your name.” The Lord was glorified through death and resurrection because it was through death and resurrection that His divine element was released and manifested. God the Father was glorified by the Son’s being glorified. When the Son’s divine element was released and manifested through His death and resurrection, the Father’s divine life was released and manifested. Thus, the Father was glorified in the Son’s glorification through His death and resurrection. The death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus glorified God the Father because Christ’s death released the divine element from within Him. This element was confined in His flesh, just as the life element of a grain of wheat is confined within its shell. In order for the life element of a grain of wheat to be glorified, the grain must die so that the element within it can be released. It is the same with the divine element within the Lord Jesus.
To glorify the name of the Father is to cause the Father’s element to be manifested. This element, which is the eternal life, was in the incarnated Son. The shell of the Son’s incarnation, His flesh, had to be broken through death so that the Father’s element might be released and manifested in resurrection, just as the life element of a grain of wheat is released by its shell being broken and manifested by its blossom. This is the glorification of God the Father in the Son’s glorification through His dying as a grain of wheat to release the divine life.
Finally, in His work on the cross the Lord Jesus flowed out water from His body, signifying the release of His divine life for the producing of the church. “One of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water” (John 19:34). Here we see that two substances came out of the Lord’s pierced side: blood and water. Blood is for redemption, dealing with sins (John 1:29; Heb. 9:22) for the purchase of the church (Acts 20:28), and water is for imparting life, dealing with death (John 12:24; 3:14-15) for the producing of the church (Eph. 5:26-31). We were sinners fallen away from God, but through the blood of Jesus we have been brought back. Moreover, we were dead. Therefore, the Lord released His divine life to enliven us, to make us alive. In this way the problem of death is solved, and the church as the new creation is produced. On the one hand, the church was bought by the Lord’s blood; on the other hand, the church was produced by His divine life, which He released and imparted to us.
On the negative side, Christ’s death takes away our sins; on the positive side, it releases the divine life. Hence, His death has two aspects — the redemptive aspect and the life-releasing aspect. The redemptive aspect is for the life-releasing aspect, which is even more wonderful than the redemptive aspect. God’s purpose is that redemption be followed by the imparting of life, for God’s intention is to dispense Himself into us as life. Therefore, redemption prepares the way for the release of the divine life so that this life may be dispensed into us for the producing of the church.
The water that flowed out of the Lord’s side signifies the life-releasing aspect of His death. This is typified by the water flowing out of the smitten rock (Exo. 17:6; 1 Cor. 10:4). This aspect of Christ’s death is the life-releasing, life-propagating, life-multiplying death, the generating and reproducing death. When the Lord Jesus said that He was a grain of wheat falling into the ground to die so that many grains might be produced (John 12:24), He was referring to the life-releasing aspect of His death. The dying of this grain of wheat was not for redemption; it was for releasing the divine life so that it may be imparted into the many grains. On the negative side, Christ’s death dealt with our sins; on the positive side, it released the divine life. As we believe in Him today, our sins are forgiven through His redemptive death, and eternal life is imparted into us through His life-releasing death.
Through His death on the cross Christ’s divine life was released. Hence, His death was a life-releasing death. Because His divine life has not only been released out of Him but also imparted into us, His death was a life-imparting death. On His side it was the life-releasing death; on our side it is the life-imparting death. Moreover, it is the life-propagating death, for by it life is spread in many directions. Furthermore, it is the life-multiplying death, causing the multiplication of life. It is also the life-producing death, for the one grain has been reproduced in the many grains. We need to be deeply impressed with the wonderful life-releasing aspect of Christ’s all-inclusive death.
Now we need to consider Christ’s work in His burial. After He was buried, Christ went in His living spirit to the spirits in prison (the rebellious angels) to proclaim God’s victory, through His incarnation in Christ and Christ’s death in the flesh, over Satan’s scheme to derange the divine plan.
According to 1 Peter 3:18, Christ was “put to death in flesh, but made alive in spirit.” This is not the Holy Spirit but the spirit which is Christ’s spiritual nature (Mark 2:8; Luke 23:46). The crucifixion put Christ to death only in His flesh which He received through incarnation, not in His spirit. Instead of dying at the cross when His flesh did, Christ’s spirit was made alive, enlivened with new power of life, so that in this empowered spirit Christ made a proclamation to the fallen angels after His death in the flesh and before His resurrection.
We should not interpret “made alive in spirit” as referring to Christ’s resurrection. There is no mention of Christ’s resurrection in 1 Peter 3:18. Rather, this verse indicates that when Christ was buried in the tomb, in His empowered spirit, He went before His resurrection, to the abyss to proclaim God’s victory to the rebellious angels.
First Peter 3:19 says, “In which also having gone to the spirits in prison, He proclaimed.” The phrase “in which” refers to the spirit in verse 18, indicating and proving that in this spirit Christ, after dying in His flesh, was still active. In particular, in His enlivened spirit He made a proclamation to the spirits in prison. Throughout the centuries great teachers of different schools have had varying interpretations concerning the spirits in prison. The most acceptable according to the Scriptures is as follows. The spirits here do not refer to the disembodied spirits of dead human beings held in Hades, but to the angels (angels are spirits — Heb. 1:14) who fell through disobedience at Noah’s time (1 Pet. 3:20 and Life-study of Genesis Message 27, pp. 363-364) and are imprisoned in pits of gloom for the judgment of the great day (2 Pet. 2:4-5; Jude 6). After His death in the flesh, Christ in His living spirit went (probably to the abyss — Rom. 10:7) to these rebellious angels to proclaim, perhaps, God’s victory through His incarnation in Christ and Christ’s death in the flesh, over Satan’s scheme to derange the divine plan.
The prison in 1 Peter 3:19 refers to Tartarus, the deep and gloomy pits (2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6) where the fallen angels are kept. The word “proclaimed” does not indicate the preaching of the good news but the proclaiming of the triumphant victory. This proclamation was made to “those once disobedient” (1 Pet. 3:20). These are angelic beings, not human beings, and therefore are different from the eight souls also spoken of in verse 20. Thus, the spirits in prison do not refer to the disembodied spirits of dead human beings held in Hades, but to angels who fell through their disobedience at the time of Noah. Those angels left their own place, came down to earth, and used human bodies to commit fornication with the daughters of men, polluting the human race and producing giants (Gen. 6:4). It was to these angels, to these spirits, that Christ made a proclamation of victory.
Christ died on the cross for our redemption. But although He was put to death in His body, He was enlivened and empowered in His spirit, even before the resurrection. In this enlivened and empowered spirit He went to proclaim to the rebellious angels God’s victory over Satan, their leader. Hence, Christ’s death not only accomplished redemption for us, but also gained the victory over Satan and his followers. After His death and before His resurrection, Christ proclaimed to Satan’s followers God’s victory over the Devil through the crucifixion of Christ. This was Christ’s work in His burial.
