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Scripture Reading: Phil. 1:19-21; 2:3-8; 3:6b-9; 4:8-9, 13
We have covered the indwelling Christ and Christ’s indwelling in the previous chapters. Now let us see how we can experience Christ’s indwelling. The entire Bible tells us a wonderful and mysterious thing, that is, that the Triune God desires to work Himself into His believers. He wants to abide in them to be their life. This is the revelation in the Bible. We have said that the mystery of the universe is God; God is the answer to all the mysteries of the universe. How wonderful it is that this God, who is the mystery of the universe, has entered into us to be our life.
Genesis chapter 1 says that God created the heavens, the earth, and all things. Chapter 2 says that God formed man from the dust of the ground. God created the heavens, the sun, the rain, and the air for the earth. The earth brought forth herbs and grains for man’s existence. God created man after He had finished His creation of the heavens, the earth, and all things.
In Genesis 1 we are told that God created all things according to their kind: fish according to the fish-kind and birds according to the bird-kind. Every living thing was according to its kind and belongs to its kind. But God created man in His image and according to His likeness (vv. 26-27). Therefore, man is according to God’s kind. Since man was created in God’s image, man’s image is God’s image; man is a photograph of God. For example, if you want your relatives to see me, but you are unable to bring me to them, then you can take a picture of me and bring it with you. Although this picture is not the real me, it can somewhat show them my outward appearance because it is my picture. The Bible tells us that man was created in God’s image. Man is just like a photograph taken according to the likeness of God.
On the one hand, the Bible says that God created man in His image, but on the other hand, it says that God is invisible. Furthermore, Colossians 1:15 says that Christ is the image of the invisible God. God is invisible, yet He has an image; this is truly wonderful. The image mentioned in the Bible does not refer to the outward appearance, which is visible, but rather to the inward nature, which is invisible. For example, we often say that a son looks like his father. If the father is round-faced, the son is also round-faced; if the father has big eyes and large ears, then the son also has big eyes and large ears. This is an outward resemblance. Another kind of resemblance is a resemblance in nature. If the father is meek and kind, so also is the son; if the father is soft-spoken, so also is the son. God created man in His image; this image refers not to the outward appearance but to the inward nature.
Colossians 2:9 says, “In Him [Christ] dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” According to the revelation in the Bible, the essential nature of the Godhead is, first, love; second, it is light; third, it is holiness; and fourth, it is righteousness. God is kind and God is full of brightness because God is love and God is light. Love and light do not have an image; they are divine attributes and characteristics. Love, light, holiness, and righteousness are the essential nature of the Godhead. God is God because He is love, light, holiness, and righteousness. Love and holiness are the nature of God’s essence; light and righteousness are the nature of God’s expression. In Himself, God is love and holiness. When He is expressed, He is light and righteousness. Furthermore, God is a thoughtful God, and He is also rich in emotions. He loves, and He also shows anger. He has feelings of joy, anger, sorrow, and delight. The Bible also tells us that God is a God of purpose and action; therefore, He is also a God with a will.
Now let us look at man. Man also has the same three aspects. Man is thoughtful, man has emotions, and man has a will. This means that man has God’s image. God is wise and thoughtful, God is rich in emotions, and God has a strong will. When God created man, He created man according to such an image. God has thoughts, so He created us with a mind; God has emotions, so He created man also with emotions; God has a will, so He created man also with a will.
Moreover, the conventional ethics that we profess are included in these four items of what God is—love, light, holiness, and righteousness. If your daily walk is full of love, light, holiness, and righteousness, then you are a perfect man. The conventional ethics defined by men are implied in these four items. We were created according to such an image of God. God wants us to be loving and kind; He wants us to be honest and upright; He wants us to be holy and uncontaminated; He wants us to be righteous, not practicing unrighteousness. Throughout the ages, in all lands, among all peoples, whether barbaric or civilized, anyone who steals will have a sense of shame and darkness. A person does not have to be educated to develop this sense, because it is inherent in his created nature. Children have a desire to honor their parents and to love and care for others because these qualities are inherent in the created human nature.
However, after man fell, the evil element entered into man, causing man to have the evil nature. Consequently, man acquired a corrupted nature that was in opposition to the goodness in him from creation. The realization of the good nature of man, which came from creation, and the evil nature of man, which came in after the fall, divided the Chinese philosophers into two schools. One school believed in the innate goodness of man, while the other school believed in his innate evil. It is correct to say that man is innately good; this refers to God’s creation. It is also correct to say that man is innately evil; this refers to man’s fall. The goodness in man is God’s creation according to His image. Goodness is a part of man’s created nature. This goodness includes love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The sum of love, light, holiness, and righteousness is goodness. To love others is good, to be honest and upright is good, to be holy is good, and to be righteous is good. Conversely, to be unkind, dishonest, unholy, or unrighteous is evil. This evil originates from Satan, the devil.
We have to know assuredly that God created us with an innate goodness. Sometimes we may provoke our parents to anger, but when we calm down, we have a genuine sense that we have wronged them. This is what the Chinese refer to as the awakening of one’s conscience. As another example, a husband may have an exchange of words with the wife in the morning, but by the evening he feels sorry for his behavior. This is also the working of the conscience. We know that man is constituted of three layers: the outermost layer is the body, the innermost layer is the spirit, and the middle layer is the soul. Within the three-layered man, the innermost spirit includes conscience, intuition, and fellowship. The conscience is the natural goodness, the “bright virtue” referred to by Confucius.
According to God’s creation, man has a life that is good. For example, every time you help someone, you feel happy and glorious. However, if you take advantage of others, for example, by surreptitiously putting their belongings into your pocket, you may think it is profitable, yet within you there is a sense of dishonor and guilt. God created us with an innate goodness. Therefore, do not pay too much attention to the beauty in your appearance. Our appearance is not worth much. As the Chinese say, virtue surpasses beauty. Man was created in God’s image; this refers to virtue. This virtue includes a proper mind, a healthy emotion, and a strong will that are manifested through love, light, holiness, and righteousness.
One day God, the Creator of the universe, became flesh. He was conceived in the womb of a virgin through the Holy Spirit and was born to be a man, whose name was Jesus. The Bible tells us that all the elements of God were in this man, Jesus. All the fullness of the Godhead dwelt in Jesus Christ bodily (Col. 2:9). At the age of thirty, He came out to preach. All that He was and all that He did, every movement and every action, fully manifested the wisdom of His mind, the richness of His emotions, and the strength of His will. He was exceedingly sober in His mind and very rich in His emotions. In at least two instances in the Bible, it is recorded that He wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41). Moreover, He had a very resolute will. When He was going to Jerusalem to suffer death, even though many disagreed with Him and advised Him not to go, none were able to stop Him from going. With His face set like a flint, He went boldly to Jerusalem (9:51) and went to the cross to shed His blood and die on our behalf. His will was exceedingly firm. He is God, who possesses thoughts, purpose, and emotions. He lived out a life that was full of love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The life that He lived on the earth was the expression of love, light, holiness, and righteousness.
The four Gospels constitute the biography of the Lord Jesus in four aspects. There are many biographies of renowned men in the world, but there is none that is as inspirational and moving as the biography of the Lord Jesus recorded in the Gospels. Countless people, after reading the four Gospels, have been moved to tears and have even prayed to the Lord. There was a renowned French philosopher who said that if the Lord Jesus in the Gospels was a fabrication, then the fabricator was qualified to be Jesus. This statement is very reasonable. The stories in the Gospels are so marvelous, and the words are so mysterious; indeed, they cannot be the speaking of men. The Lord Jesus is not an ordinary historical character; He is God incarnated to be a man, and all that God is dwells in Him. God is thoughtful, and so is the Lord Jesus. God is rich in emotions, and so is the Lord Jesus. God is purposeful with a strong will, and so is the Lord Jesus. God is love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The Lord Jesus embodied all these four items in all that He was and all that He did, in every word and in every action.
In Philippians, a book on the experience of Christ, Paul says that whatever circumstances he was in, whether through life or through death, Christ would be magnified in his body (1:20). What Paul meant is that in his body Christ’s thoughts of wisdom, rich emotions, and steadfast will, as well as Christ’s love, light, holiness, and righteousness, would be magnified. Regardless of the degree of persecution and regardless of the circumstance, what Paul and the other apostles lived and manifested were thoughts of wisdom, rich emotions, and a steadfast will, as well as love, light, holiness, and righteousness. This is the meaning of Christ being magnified in Paul’s body.
Moreover, in Philippians 1:21 Paul says that to him, to live was Christ. If a person is confused in his mind, muddled in his emotions, and indecisive in his will, he does not have the expression of love, light, holiness, and righteousness, and neither can he live Christ. Furthermore, in 4:8 Paul says, “Brothers, what things are true, what things are dignified, what things are righteous, what things are pure, what things are lovely, what things are well spoken of, if there is any virtue and if any praise, take account of these things.” To be true means not to be hypocritical and not to lie. To be dignified means to be worthy of respect and to invite reverence. To be righteous is to be right before God and man. To be pure is to be single in intention and action, without any mixture. To be lovely means to be lovable, agreeable. To be well spoken of means to be of good repute and to be attractive. In addition, there are virtues of excellence and things worthy of praise. These eight items are far superior to the principles of propriety, justice, honesty, and a sense of shame taught by the Chinese philosophers. When I was young, I felt it was rather strange that Paul speaks about living Christ in chapters 1, 2, and 3, and then in chapter 4, instead of speaking about living Christ, he speaks about living out these virtues.
In 4:9 Paul goes on to say, “The things which you have also learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace will be with you.” These things refers to the eight items that were previously mentioned. Paul seems to be saying, “I have lived out these virtues, and you also have to practice these virtues that you have seen in me. In this way the God of peace will be with you. If you live out these virtues, you will enjoy the God of peace.”
Then in 4:13 Paul says, “I am able to do all things in Him who empowers me.” All things refers to the virtues previously mentioned. When the young people read these eight items, the more they read, the more they will realize that they cannot do these things. They may say, “We have been saved for only a short time, and we are just ordinary people. How can we do these things? Perhaps only the older ones who have been exercised in these things for decades can do them.” However, Paul’s word here is a promise. He “who empowers me” is Christ, who is also the Spirit of Jesus Christ with a bountiful supply, as mentioned in Philippians 1:19. The Spirit of Jesus Christ is Jesus Christ Himself with a bountiful supply. He supplies and enables us to live out the things that are true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of, as well as any virtue and any praise. All we need is just to be in Him, and He will empower us to live out these virtues.
The phrase in Him who empowers me does not sound like proper Chinese. Consequently, the translators of the Chinese version of the Bible rendered this verse as “I am able to do all things by Him who empowers me.” They rendered in as “by,” as in, by depending upon. Suppose I cannot walk; then I have to walk by depending upon someone who gives me support. This is the meaning of by. But the Bible does not say “by Him” but rather “in Him.” This is hard to comprehend. Let me use electricity as an illustration. For example, there are electric lamps, telephones, and other appliances in a house. But if there is no flow of electricity, then the lamps will not light up, the telephones will not work, and all other electrical appliances will not operate. When the electricity is transmitted, then the electric lamps, telephones, and appliances will be “in the electricity”; consequently, the lamps will light up, the telephones will work, and the motors of the other appliances will begin to operate. Strictly speaking, the electric lamp lights up not by the electricity but in the electricity. Christ is like the electricity; He is the One who empowers us just as the electricity empowers the electrical appliances. We are able to do all things in the “electricity,” in Christ, who empowers us.
Now let us see how we can experience Christ’s indwelling. The Lord Jesus was thoughtful. He did many things, none of which was foolish. He spoke many words, none of which was unclear. Whenever He spoke, He spoke just the right amount, neither too much nor too little. His emotions were well balanced. He exercised His anger when warranted but with restraint, and His love was also tempered. Furthermore, His will was steadfast. All His expressions were love, light, holiness, and righteousness. He was true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of. Furthermore, He was virtuous and praiseworthy. He was the real goodness and the genuine beauty; He was God. In some ways, we are like Him. He has thoughts, and so do we. He has emotions, and so do we. His will is steadfast, and so is ours. Jesus loves, and so do we. Jesus is honest and upright, and so are we. Jesus is holy, and so are we. Jesus is righteous, and so are we. Although there is a difference in degree, we are of the same kind because we were created in His image.
The Lord Jesus is not only wonderful but also mysterious. When you open up your heart and receive Him as your Savior, He comes into you and dwells in you to be your life and everything. How does He come into you? The Bible says that He died for us, was buried, and was resurrected. Now He has become the life-giving Spirit. Today He is the omnipresent Spirit; He is everywhere. Whoever believes into Him and calls upon Him, He will enter into this one to be his life and content. This is the most marvelous thing in the world. The Lord comes into us to dwell in us, and this is what we refer to as His indwelling. The indwelling Christ is the embodiment of God and the life-giving, omnipresent Spirit. He has a mind, emotion, and will; He is also love, light, holiness, and righteousness. In the beginning we were created in His image, so we also have a mind, emotion, and will, as well as love, light, holiness, and righteousness. However, we were only an empty shell without the content and reality. We were just like the empty glove that was made in the form of a hand. One day God became flesh as the Lord Jesus. He lived the human life, died, resurrected, and became the life-giving Spirit. The life-giving Spirit is the Lord Jesus with His mind, emotion, and will and the God who is love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The Spirit enters into us like the hand that fits into the glove to become its content and reality. Thus, we are no longer those who are empty, without content. Our created human virtues are no longer merely a shell, because Christ is in us as the reality.
Second Timothy 4:22 says, “The Lord be with your spirit.” This Lord is the life-giving Spirit. When we pray and petition before the Lord, the Spirit comes into our spirit and dwells in us forever. Furthermore, He is waiting for us to love Him. He takes possession of us whenever we say, “Lord Jesus, I love You.” The more we love Him, the more we are possessed by Him. The last stanza of Hymns, #398 says, “O to be like Thee! While I am pleading / Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love. / Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling, / Fit for a life which Thou wouldst approve.” That we live a life approved by the Lord means that we take the Lord’s mind as our mind, take the Lord’s emotion as our emotion, and take the Lord’s will as our will. We also take the Lord’s love, light, holiness, and righteousness as our love, light, holiness, and righteousness. The Lord and we, we and the Lord, are completely one. We are just the same as He is, for to us, to live is Christ.
The ancient sages in China taught that man is innately good. This is correct. What God created originally was good. He created us with the bright virtue, the innate goodness, which needs to be developed. However, without Christ in us, everything is still a shell devoid of reality. We are just like an empty glove. When the hand gets inside the glove, then the glove has content and reality. Furthermore, the glove and the hand become one; they are a perfect match. This illustrates the oneness between God and man. God and man, man and God, are completely satisfied. If man does not have God, neither God nor man is satisfied; this is the root of dissatisfaction in human life. When man has God, both God and man are satisfied; this is the source of true satisfaction in human life.
Hallelujah! Christ wants to become your mind, emotion, and will. He also wants to be your love, light, holiness, and righteousness. Even the more, He wants to be in you that which is true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, well spoken of, virtuous, and praiseworthy. Then Christ can be expressed through your God-created human virtues.
Every one of us possesses the God-created virtues, the inherent human virtues. But it is very difficult to express these virtues by ourselves, and even if we were able to, the expression would be neither complete nor perfect. We need to be filled by Christ. Our virtues should be vessels that are filled with Christ to manifest the very essence of Christ. This is the highest, perfect virtue. This is the righteousness of God that Paul refers to in Philippians 3:9. Formerly, he pursued the righteousness that he worked out by keeping the law; eventually, what he pursued was the righteousness of God lived out through Christ in him. Formerly, he wanted the “glove,” but eventually, he wanted the “hand.” The hand in the glove is the content and reality of the glove. Eventually, the hand and the glove are one, and the glove becomes the expression of the hand. We are the glove, and He, our beloved Lord, is the hand. Our heart is filled with His love, and our life is one with Him. Thus, for us, to live is Christ.
Christ lives in us. He is our life, and we are His living; He is our content, and we are His expression. He and we, we and He, exactly match one another. He and we become one. This is the enjoyment of Christ, the living out of Christ. This is the experience of Christ’s indwelling.
