People today have certain ideas about what the church is. These ideas have been shaped primarily by religion, history, tradition, and even society. Some think the church is a special building or place Christians go to worship on Sundays. Others think the church is an organization of people who agree with the teachings of Jesus. And others think it’s a group of people who carry out charitable works to benefit society.
But to find out what the church really is, we need to turn to the Word of God to see God’s thought concerning the church.
The church is a tremendous matter in the Bible that has many aspects; it simply can't be covered in a single post. Today, with help from notes in the New Testament Recovery Version, we’ll look at one aspect of what the church is according to God’s Word: the assembly of called-out ones.
The first time the church is mentioned in the Bible
When we read the Bible, it's a good principle to pay attention to the first time a significant matter is mentioned. This sets the stage for understanding its development in the rest of the Scriptures.
The first time the word church is mentioned in the entire Bible is in Matthew 16:18.
In Matthew 16, Jesus and His disciples left Jerusalem, the religious center at that time, and came to Caesarea Philippi. There, Jesus asked the disciples who people said He was, and they relayed what some had said about Him. Then Jesus asked them, “But you, who do you say that I am?”
In verse 16, we have Peter’s answer to this all-important question:
“And Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
In response to Peter’s declaration, Jesus said in verses 17-18:
“Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in the heavens. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church.”
Peter realized Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, because the Father revealed it to him. Then the Lord joined the revelation of who He is with the further revelation of the church.
Now let’s read note 1 on verse 18 in the New Testament Recovery Version:
“The Father’s revelation concerning Christ is only the first half of the great mystery, which is Christ and the church (Eph. 5:32). Hence, the Lord needed to reveal to Peter the second half also, which concerns the church.”
God’s will is a mystery. The apostle Paul speaks of this mystery throughout the book of Ephesians, and in 5:32 he tells us plainly:
“This mystery is great, but I speak with regard to Christ and the church.”
So Christ and the church together are the great mystery. Since Christ is the Son of the living God, the church must also be a living entity.
The meaning of the word church
So what is the church? To answer this question, we first need to see the meaning of the word church in Matthew 16:18. Note 5 on church in this verse in the Recovery Version begins:
“Gk. ekklesia, meaning an out-calling. This word is used in reference to a called-out congregation.”
This note tells us that in Greek—the original language of the New Testament—the word for church, ekklesia, means out-calling. So the church is the congregation, or assembly, of all the people who have been called out of the world by God.
The second part of this same note says:
“My church indicates that the church is of the Lord, not of any other person or thing; it is not like the denominations, which are denominated according to some person’s name or according to some matter.”
When the Lord Jesus mentioned the church for the first time, He said My church. As the note explains, this means the church is something that’s of the Lord Himself, and not of anything or anyone else. Since the church is of the Lord, it can’t be something formed by human organization, much less a physical structure.
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Who are the called-out ones?
So now we've seen that the church, the ekklesia, is the congregation of all those who are called out by God. But who are these called-out ones who make up the church?
Let’s read 1 Corinthians 1:2:
“To the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, the called saints.”
Note 3 on this verse in the Recovery Version explains how the phrases the church of God and those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus are related:
“To the church of God equals to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus. This strongly indicates that the church is a composition of the saints and that the saints are the constituents of the church. The two should not be considered separate entities. Individually, we are the saints; corporately, we are the church.”
The phrase the church of God tells us Paul was addressing the ekklesia, the assembly of called-out people. The phrase those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus tells us something about those called-out people.
Who are those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus?
Now let's look at 1 Corinthians 1:2 again, focusing on the second half of the verse:
“To the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, the called saints.”
Who are the sanctified ones that compose the church? To find out, let’s read note 4 on the word sanctified in this verse:
“I.e., made holy, separated unto God for the fulfillment of His purpose.”
The word saint is the noun form of the word for sanctify. So the believers are the called saints, that is, those who are made holy.
How were we believers sanctified, or made holy? We certainly didn’t make ourselves holy. The key is in the phrase sanctified in Christ Jesus. Note 5 explains what this means:
“In Christ means in the element and sphere of Christ. Christ is the element and sphere that separated us, made us holy, unto God when we believed into Him, that is, when we were brought into an organic union with Him through our faith in Him.”
When we believed in the Lord Jesus as our Savior, we were brought into a living, organic union with Him, just like a branch that’s been grafted into a vine. By being joined to Christ, we were sanctified, or set apart, unto God for His purpose and made the constituents of the church.
It may be very common to hear questions like, “What church do you go to?” or “What church do you belong to?” But today we’ve seen from these verses in Matthew 16 and 1 Corinthians 1 that the church isn’t a place we go to or something we join. The Bible shows us the church is the called-out ones who have believed in Jesus Christ, those who have been joined to Him and sanctified unto Him through faith.
We believers have been called out of the world and sanctified in Christ. We are part of this wonderful ekklesia that Christ treasures and that is part of the great mystery of God.
The church is a deep and great matter with many aspects, and we hope to have more posts on this tremendous and rich topic. In the meantime, we encourage you to order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version so you can read all the helpful notes on the verses mentioned in this post. If you live in the US, you can place your free order here. You can also download and read The Glorious Church by Watchman Nee from anywhere in the world here.
Human beings are complicated. Each one of us is unique; we come from various backgrounds and have different personalities.
But with respect to how God created us, we’re actually all the same. The Bible tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 that we were all created with three parts—a spirit, a soul, and a body:
“And the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly, and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In this post, we’ll read an extremely helpful note on this verse in the New Testament Recovery Version to help us understand these three parts.
The three parts of man
So let's take a look at note 5 on 1 Thessalonians 5:23 in the Recovery Version. Since it’s a lengthy note, we’ll read it in sections.
The first part says:
“This word strongly indicates that man is of three parts: spirit, soul, and body. The spirit as our inmost part is the inner organ, possessing God-consciousness, that we may contact God (John 4:24; Rom. 1:9).”
The human spirit is the deepest part of a person. By means of our spirit, we can contact God in the spiritual realm. This is how God can be realized by us. God didn’t create any other creature with a spirit; this makes human beings unique from every other living thing.
Now let’s read the next section of the note, which explains our soul:
“The soul is our very self (cf. Matt. 16:26; Luke 9:25), a medium between our spirit and our body, possessing self-consciousness, that we may have our personality.”
Our soul perceives things in the psychological realm. In Greek, the original language of the New Testament, the word for soul is psuche, which is the root word of psychology.
Our soul is our personality, who we are. With our soul we think, reason, consider, remember, and wonder. We experience emotions like happiness, love, sorrow, anger, relief, and compassion. And we're able to resolve, choose, and make decisions. All of this takes place in our soul.
Now let’s read the next section about our body and how our three parts are related:
“The body as our external part is the outer organ, possessing world-consciousness, that we may contact the material world. The body contains the soul, and the soul is the vessel that contains the spirit.”
Our body exists in and contacts the tangible things of the material world by exercising its five senses. It’s the visible, external part of our being. Our soul is contained in our body, and our spirit is contained in our soul.
Below is a simple diagram of three concentric circles illustrating these three parts, with the spirit as the innermost, hidden part:
God's intention for the three parts of man
Now let’s read the last section of the note, which explains God’s intention for all three parts of our being:
“In the spirit, God as the Spirit dwells; in the soul, our self dwells; and in the body, the physical senses dwell. God sanctifies us, first, by taking possession of our spirit through regeneration (John 3:5-6); second, by spreading Himself as the life-giving Spirit from our spirit into our soul to saturate and transform our soul (Rom. 12:2; 2 Cor. 3:18); and last, by enlivening our mortal body through our soul (Rom. 8:11, 13) and transfiguring our body by His life power (Phil. 3:21).”
God’s intention concerning us is that we would contain and express Him. But to express God, we need to be filled with Him. When we believed in Jesus Christ, we received Him and were regenerated, or born again, in our spirit. Now He as the Spirit is dwelling in our spirit. But the Spirit dwelling in our spirit is just the beginning.
1 Thessalonians 5:23 tells us, “The God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly.” He sanctifies us by spreading into and saturating our whole being. This process of sanctification starts from our spirit, continues into our soul, and eventually will include our body. Then we’ll be wholly filled with God in every part of our being.
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How we can cooperate
So how can we cooperate with God’s intention to saturate our whole being with Himself?
Exercising our spirit to contact God is the key. Not only does our spirit have the ability to contact and fellowship with God, it’s also where He dwells. This means we can turn to Him in our spirit to fellowship with Him at any moment as we’re going about our daily lives. We can pray simple prayers, ask Him how He feels about certain things, or simply call on His name and tell Him we love Him. We can also read and even pray with God’s Word to be spiritually nourished.
As we exercise our spirit to fellowship with Him, more of God’s divine life is added into us, and He spreads from our spirit into our soul. Our thoughts, feelings, and decisions will become one with His, and we’ll express God to everyone around us. This is how He sanctifies us, and how His eternal purpose will be fulfilled.
The New Testament Recovery Version has a number of other enlightening notes on 1 Thessalonians 5:23, including an important one on how God preserves our spirit, soul, and body complete. If you live in the US, you can order your free copy here. We encourage you to read these notes and the verses they reference to gain a fuller understanding of what we've discussed in this post.
The book The Economy of God is another invaluable resource on the subject of the parts of man and the role they play in God’s plan, which is discussed in detail in chapters 6 and 7. You can download this e-book for free here from anywhere in the world.
In previous posts, we saw that the Spirit is the essence of the Word of God, Christ Himself is its content, and God is its origin. Additionally, we discussed six major functions of the Word of God. The Bible testifies concerning Christ, makes people wise unto salvation, causes people to be regenerated, nourishes believers as spiritual milk, feeds believers as the bread of life, and makes believers complete.
In this post, we’ll use verses and notes from the New Testament Recovery Version to focus on one of those functions of God’s Word in more detail: to testify concerning the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Scriptures testify concerning Jesus Christ
Luke 24 tells us that after His crucifixion and resurrection, the Lord Jesus met two of His disciples as they were walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus. In verse 44, He said to them:
“These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all the things written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and Psalms concerning Me must be fulfilled.”
Jesus didn’t tell His disciples these books were written for them to learn to live a moral life, know interesting stories from the past, or anything else. He told them that they were written concerning Him, the living Christ.
Jesus spoke something similar before His crucifixion to some Jewish people who knew the Scriptures. John 5:39 says:
“You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that testify concerning Me.”
These Jews not only knew the Scriptures, they even searched them to find eternal life. Yet these “Scripture searchers'' didn't realize that the Scriptures testified of a wonderful Person, Jesus, who was standing right before them. And only He could give them eternal life.
In verse 40, Jesus continued:
“Yet you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.”
These knowledgeable Jews refused to come to the Lord Jesus because they didn’t make the connection between Him and the Scriptures they searched. Note 1 on verse 39 in the New Testament Recovery Version says:
“To ‘search the Scriptures’ may be separated from ‘come to Me’ (v. 40). The Jewish religionists searched the Scriptures but were not willing to come to the Lord. These two should go together; because the Scriptures testify concerning the Lord, they should not be separated from the Lord. We may contact the Scriptures, yet not contact the Lord. Only the Lord can give life.”
What does this mean for us today?
Understanding that the Word of God testifies concerning Jesus Christ will revolutionize our Bible reading. When we come to the Word, we’ll focus on and enjoy Christ.
The apostle Paul surely realized that the entire Old Testament testifies concerning Christ. In 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, he referred to the children of Israel’s experience of the Passover and related it to Christ. He wrote:
“Purge out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, even as you are unleavened; for our Passover, Christ, also has been sacrificed. So then let us keep the feast.”
These two verses open the account of the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread to us in a new way. Note 2 on Passover in verse 7 in the Recovery Version explains:
“This indicates that the apostle considered the believers God’s chosen people, who have had their Passover, as typified by the one in Exo. 12. In this Passover, Christ is not only the Passover lamb but also the entire Passover. To be our Passover, He was sacrificed on the cross that we might be redeemed and reconciled to God. Thus, we may enjoy Him as a feast before God. In this feast no leaven is allowed to be present. Sin and the redeeming Christ cannot go together.”
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And note 1 on feast in verse 8 reveals even more:
“The feast here refers to the Feast of Unleavened Bread as the continuation of the Passover (Exo. 12:15-20). It lasted for seven days, a period of completion, signifying the entire period of our Christian life, from the day of our conversion to the day of rapture. This is a long feast, which we must keep not with the sin of our old nature, the old leaven, but with unleavened bread, which is the Christ of our new nature as our nourishment and enjoyment. Only He is the life supply of sincerity and truth, absolutely pure, without mixture, and full of reality. The feast is a time for the enjoyment of the banquet. The entire Christian life should be such a feast, such an enjoyment of Christ as our banquet, the rich supply of life.”
These verses and notes help us see that when we read about the Passover in Exodus 12, we’re not just reading an interesting story or a historical account. Actually, Jesus is the fulfillment of this entire scene in Exodus. He’s the unblemished Lamb of God, the One who was slain for us and shed His precious blood to redeem us. Through believing in Him, we’re spared from God’s righteous judgment. And He’s also the reality of the unleavened bread to be our life supply. This detailed account in Exodus reveals so many aspects of Christ!
The Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread in Exodus 12 are just two examples that show the Old Testament testifying of Christ. Actually, Christ is the fulfillment of every positive item in the Old Testament. Realizing this fact will increase our experience and enjoyment of Him in many ways. Seeing Christ testified throughout the Old Testament will uplift and enrich our appreciation of Him when we read the New Testament.
So whenever we open our Bibles, let’s come to the Lord Jesus and focus on Him to see Him revealed throughout God’s Word.
To see more of Christ revealed in the Old Testament, we recommend reading The All-inclusive Christ, a book you can download for free from anywhere in the world. If you live in the United States, you can order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version here to read all the notes on the New Testament verses referenced in this post.
Daily, it seems, we’re besieged by harrowing reports of hatred and conflict among people everywhere, both on a local level and on a global scale. The increasing violence leaves us heartbroken, anxious, and unsettled.
In addition, it seems that economic upheaval and its accompanying hardships, environmental issues, and increasing social unrest are becoming a fixture of life today. The world’s problems appear to be insurmountable with no solution in sight.
How should we believers react to the enormous problems in the world today?
First, we need to see what the true source of all the terrible things in the world is, and secondly, we need to see that God specifically desires us to do two things today: pray and share the good news of the gospel with people.
The devil’s goal: to destroy mankind
The Bible reveals that God has an enemy: the devil, Satan, who actively opposes God and God’s will. Satan is the source of all evil.
The account in Genesis 1 and 2 tells us God created Adam and Eve and put them in a garden. In this garden was the tree of life, representing God, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, representing Satan.
God wanted Adam and Eve to partake of the tree of life so that they would share God’s divine life. By partaking of the tree of life, they would have God’s life and would be able to live by and express God. This was God’s heart’s desire.
But concerning the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, God warned them in Genesis 2:17:
“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, of it you shall not eat; for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Because Adam, who represented all mankind, was the focus of God’s heart’s desire, he became the focus of Satan’s efforts to prevent God from getting what He wanted. Through Satan’s subtle and deceptive influence, Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s command and took the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, becoming poisoned with Satan’s evil nature. From that one act, all mankind was polluted with sin, resulting in the fall of the entire human race. And because the holy and righteous God cannot tolerate sin, mankind was cut off from God.
Since then, Satan has been unceasingly and actively seeking to damage and even destroy mankind, which God so lovingly created for His purpose. All the terrible things that have happened throughout history have been instigated by the devil working within fallen human beings, and he continues that work today. In 1 Peter 5:8, we’re warned:
“Be sober; watch. Your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking someone to devour.”
God’s goal: to save mankind
Yet in the midst of this gloomy situation, there’s hope for all mankind. God became a man named Jesus. In John 10:10, Jesus said:
“I have come that they may have life and may have it abundantly.”
Life here in Greek, the original language of the New Testament, is zoe, which refers to the eternal, divine life. God’s original intention was for mankind to possess and share in His divine life. Satan may have interfered, but God never gives up. Whatever He plans, He fulfills.
But since fallen, sinful mankind was cut off from God, how could anyone have God’s divine life?
In John 10:11, Jesus continued:
“I am the good Shepherd; the good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
Jesus is the good Shepherd, the Almighty God Himself who became a man and lived a perfect, sinless life. He then laid down His own life for us, the lost sheep, to redeem us and bring us back to God.
Our Shepherd saved us from God’s judgment by shedding His blood for us. Then in resurrection, He became the life-giving Spirit, able to enter into and give life to anyone who repents and believes in Him.
The Lord Jesus did so much to save people and give them life, but many don’t know anything about Him. Others have misconceptions about who He is. They need to know this wonderful Shepherd who loves them and wants to give them life. They need to know everything He’s already done for them. How can they? We need to pray for them and to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to them.
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We need to pray for all men
The world’s worsening condition can easily cause us to be disheartened and discouraged. But in Luke 18:1, the Lord Jesus encouraged His disciples “always to pray and not lose heart.”
Then, in 1 Timothy 2:1-4 the apostle Paul wrote:
“I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings be made on behalf of all men; on behalf of kings and all who are in high position, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all godliness and gravity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of our Savior God, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the full knowledge of the truth.”
In the New Testament Recovery Version, note 1 on all men in verse 4 explains:
“We should pray on behalf of all men (v. 1) because God our Savior desires all men to be saved and know the truth. Our prayer is required for the carrying out of God’s desire.”
Certainly, God is almighty, but He needs us to cooperate with His desire for all men to be saved by praying for them. Our prayers give God a way to work in people’s lives so they repent and believe in the Savior. This is why we must pray for our relatives, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and even all men to be saved.
We need to share the good news of Jesus Christ
The second thing we must do is go and share the gospel, the good news of our dear Lord Jesus, with people.
In Matthew 28:18-20, the resurrected Jesus appeared to His disciples and commanded them:
“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and disciple all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you all the days until the consummation of the age.”
This command applies not only to the disciples who were with the Lord then, but to all believers. We must disciple all the nations, that is, proclaim the gospel to them.
What does it mean to go? It doesn’t exclusively mean to go forth as missionaries to a foreign country. Most of us may never have that opportunity. But each of us can go to our friends and relatives and tell them about the Lord Jesus. After all, how can they repent and believe in Jesus Christ if someone doesn’t speak to them about all He’s done for them? Romans 10:14 says:
“How then shall they call upon Him into whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe into Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without one who proclaims Him?”
People need the Lord Jesus, and God desires to save them. God has put the people around us in our lives so we can pray for them and proclaim the gospel to them. This is how they can be forgiven of their sins, receive the divine life of God, and be brought back to God’s wonderful purpose for them. May we all see this need and cooperate with the Lord to pray for all men and to proclaim the gospel.
If you would like to share the gospel with someone, we encourage you to visit our Share the Good News page, where you’ll find gospel tracts, videos, blog posts, and podcast episodes. All these resources can be easily shared with people you know and are praying for. Once they’re saved, you can also help them order a free New Testament Recovery Version here so they can begin to read and understand God’s Word.
In John 1:29, when John the Baptist saw Jesus, he emphatically declared:
“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
This precious title, Lamb of God, is full of significance. In this post, we’ll look at verses and notes in the New Testament Recovery Version that will help us understand why Jesus is called the Lamb of God. Seeing the meaning of this title will increase our love for the Lord Jesus and our appreciation for what He did for us.
Mankind’s fall in Genesis
To begin to comprehend the deep significance of Lamb of God, we must go back to Genesis 2 and 3.
After God created Adam and Eve, He put them in the garden of Eden, with the tree of life at its center. This tree represents the eternal, divine life of God. God wanted to share His life with Adam and Eve and be everything to them. By partaking of the tree of life, God would become their life, and they would express Him in their living. This was His plan for all mankind.
But there was also another tree in the garden: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This tree represents Satan, God’s enemy, as the source of death. God specifically warned Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, telling them that if they did, they would surely die.
Sadly, we know that Satan deceived Eve, and she and Adam disobeyed God and ate of that tree. As a result, they were poisoned with the sinful nature of Satan. And since Adam represented all mankind, the entire human race was included in that fall.
God is righteous and holy; He must judge sin and the sinner. The judgment for sin is death. So Adam and Eve came under the sentence of death.
But God didn’t give up on His plan for humanity. Instead, we see in Genesis 3 that He made coats out of the skin of an animal to cover Adam and Eve. Of course, the animal had to be killed for this to happen. Based on the subsequent revelation in the Bible, that animal was probably a lamb.
That guiltless animal was killed and died for Adam and Eve, the guilty ones. Its blood was shed on their behalf so they could live.
From that time on, no one could come to God without offering an animal to Him to die in their place. This principle of an animal sacrificed on the offerer’s behalf continued throughout the Old Testament.
The picture of the Passover
We see a clear example of a lamb dying on behalf of fallen mankind in the story of the Passover in Exodus 12. After 400 years of bondage, the children of Israel were finally about to leave Egypt. God instructed Moses and Aaron to speak to all the assembly of Israel, telling them each household was to sacrifice an unblemished lamb. The blood of that lamb was to be put on the doorposts and lintel of their houses for God to see. In Exodus 12:12-13, God said:
“For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast. Also against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments. I am Jehovah. And the blood shall be a sign for you upon the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and there will be no plague upon you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.”
That night, the children of Israel did as God instructed and ate the sacrificed lamb inside their houses. God saw the blood on the lintel and doorposts and spared the lives of the firstborn in each house.
We might think the Passover is just a ritual of the Old Testament. But the Passover with the offered lamb is a vivid picture of Jesus Christ as the real Lamb of God. In the New Testament, the apostle Paul declared in 1 Corinthians 5:7:
“For our Passover, Christ, also has been sacrificed.”
Let’s read the first part of note 2 on the word Passover in the New Testament Recovery Version:
“This indicates that the apostle considered the believers God’s chosen people, who have had their Passover, as typified by the one in Exo. 12. In this Passover, Christ is not only the Passover lamb but also the entire Passover. To be our Passover, He was sacrificed on the cross that we might be redeemed and reconciled to God. Thus, we may enjoy Him as a feast before God.”
So the Passover, together with all the animal sacrifices throughout the Old Testament, pointed to the coming Christ, who would take away the sin of the world.
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The requirement for forgiveness
Hebrews 9:22 tells us why sacrifices to God are necessary:
“And almost all things are purified by blood according to the law, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”
Without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. This principle was seen in the Old Testament with Adam and Eve and with the children of Israel. In the New Testament, that same principle remains.
Let’s read note 1 on this verse in the Recovery Version:
“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Without forgiveness of sins there is no way for the requirement of God’s righteousness to be fulfilled that the covenant may be enacted. But Christ’s blood was shed for the forgiveness of sins, and the covenant was enacted with His blood (Matt. 26:28).”
In the New Testament, Christ is the true sacrifice who shed His blood to fulfill God’s righteous requirement upon us. Through His death and the shedding of His blood for us, we can experience God’s forgiveness.
Hebrews 10:9-10 tells us more about Christ, our true sacrifice:
“He [Christ] then has said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will.’ He takes away the first that He may establish the second, by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
Let’s read note 1 on first to understand the meaning of these verses:
“The first here refers to the sacrifices of the first covenant, the old covenant; the second refers to the sacrifice of the second covenant, the new covenant, which sacrifice is Christ. Christ came into the world that He might, according to the will of God, put away the animal sacrifices of the old covenant and establish Himself as the sacrifice of the new covenant.”
How was this possible?
Jesus, the Lamb of God
The eternal and divine Son of God became a man named Jesus. By putting on a physical body of flesh and blood, He could die for us as the unique Lamb of God.
In 1 Peter 2:22-24 we can see some details of His life and His death on the cross:
“Who [Jesus] committed no sin, nor was guile found in His mouth; who being reviled did not revile in return; suffering, He did not threaten but kept committing all to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore up our sins in His body on the tree, in order that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness; by whose bruise you were healed.”
Jesus committed no sin and lived a blameless, guileless life on earth. He alone was qualified to die for fallen mankind as the unblemished Lamb of God to fulfill the requirement of God’s righteousness. He shed His precious blood to take away the sin of the world. The guiltless Lamb of God died for us, the guilty sinners.
Details of the Lord’s death as the Lamb of God were also foretold in the Old Testament in Isaiah 53:5-7:
“But He was wounded because of our transgressions; He was crushed because of our iniquities; the chastening for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we have been healed. We all like sheep have gone astray; each of us has turned to his own way, and Jehovah has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him. He was oppressed, and it was He who was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter and like a sheep that is dumb before its shearers, so He did not open His mouth.”
Jesus was wounded because of our transgressions and crushed because of our iniquities. As He was being crucified, He bore the sins of all of mankind. What a heavy load was laid upon our dear Savior!
While Jesus was bearing the sins of the whole world, God judged Him as our Substitute. This is how Jesus accomplished a perfect and eternal redemption for us as the Lamb of God and brought us back to God. How can we help but love Him as we consider what He suffered on our behalf?
When we first repented and believed in Jesus, the Lamb of God, we were saved from God’s eternal judgment. We received Him as our Savior and were forgiven of our sins. And as we continue to go on in our Christian life, we should always remember that it’s only because the Lamb of God shed His precious blood for us that we can approach God and have fellowship with Him. Whenever we confess our sins to Him, His blood cleanses us from all unrighteousness.
The Lamb for all eternity
In the Old Testament, we see the picture of the Lamb of God. In the New Testament, we see Jesus as the reality of that picture.
Then in Revelation, the last book of the Bible, we still see Jesus as the Lamb of God. For instance, Revelation 5:12 says:
“Worthy is the Lamb who has been slain to receive the power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.”
And in speaking about eternity future, Revelation 22:1 says:
“And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street.”
This shows us that Jesus will forever be the Lamb of God.
Note 5 on this verse in the Recovery Version is a wonderful note about the throne. The first part says:
“The throne of God and of the Lamb, showing that there is one throne for both God and the Lamb, indicates that God and the Lamb are one—the Lamb-God, the redeeming God, God the Redeemer. In eternity the very God who sits on the throne is our redeeming God, from whose throne proceeds the river of water of life for our supply and satisfaction.”
Jesus, our Redeemer, is the Lamb of God for all eternity. The Lamb is on the throne, and we redeemed ones will enjoy the river of water of life flowing from that throne for our eternal supply and satisfaction. May our hearts be filled with thankfulness and praise to Him!
We hope this post has helped you see more of the significance of Jesus being the Lamb of God. If you live in the US, you can order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version here to read the verses referenced in this post with their notes to gain an even deeper appreciation for Jesus as the Lamb of God.
Along life’s journey, no one can avoid worries, hardships, and heartache. When we’re hurt, discouraged, or grieving, we yearn for someone to understand what we’re going through. We may get some relief by opening up to friends or family, but sometimes they can’t fully understand. We still feel a deep need in our heart.
So who can we turn to? We may think Jesus can’t understand everything we’re going through. But He can! We can be assured of this fact based on God’s Word.
In fact, Hebrews 2:17 is a priceless verse in the Bible. It says:
“Hence He [Jesus] should have been made like His brothers in all things that He might become a merciful and faithful High Priest in the things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”
Today we’ll focus on three crucial phrases from this verse with help from notes from the New Testament Recovery Version. We’ll see that our dear Lord Jesus can genuinely understand and sympathize with us like no one else can, and that He alone can meet our deep inward need.
1. “Made like His brothers in all things”
First, what does it mean that Jesus was made like His brothers in all things? Note 1 on Hebrews 2:17 in the Recovery Version explains:
“The Son of God was made like us, His brothers, in that He partook of blood and flesh (v. 14). This was done for two purposes, one negative and the other positive. The negative purpose was to destroy for us the devil, who is in the flesh. The positive purpose is to be our merciful and faithful High Priest who has the human nature, that He may sympathize with us in all things.”
This note references Hebrews 2:14, which says:
“Since therefore the children have shared in blood and flesh, He also Himself in like manner partook of the same, that through death He might destroy him who has the might of death, that is, the devil.”
Why did Jesus, the Son of God, partake of blood and flesh? For two reasons: to destroy the devil in the flesh through His death, and to become a genuine man with human nature who is able to sympathize with us.
With this in mind, let’s consider Jesus’ life on earth.
Isaiah 53 is a great prophecy and revelation of Jesus in the Old Testament. It says that He would be a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. From being placed in a lowly manger at His birth to enduring a humiliating, agonizing death on the cross, Jesus experienced unimaginable suffering throughout His entire life. He grew up in a poor carpenter’s home in Nazareth, a despised region. He knew firsthand what hunger, thirst, weariness, and poverty were. He knew what it was to be rejected, misunderstood, mocked, and slandered. He experienced every facet of human life. As a man, He endured suffering we can’t even fathom.
The Gospels reveal that Jesus cared deeply for the human beings He came to live among and minister to. He healed the sick, cleansed lepers, and gave sight to the blind. He taught the truth and spoke tender words of compassion to those who were forlorn and miserable.
Jesus cared for every kind of person, no matter how vile. This caused those who didn’t appreciate Him to belittle Him by calling Him a friend of sinners. But how wonderful for all of us that He is indeed a friend of sinners!
Because of what He experienced in His life on earth, Jesus can understand anything we’re going through, no matter how terrible or distressing. We can be sure that whatever situation we’re in, He shares in our feelings, sympathizes with us, and cares for us. All this is possible because He was made like us, His brothers, by partaking in blood and flesh.
2. “That He might become a merciful and faithful High Priest”
Now we’ll look at the second important phrase in Hebrews 2:17: that He might become a merciful and faithful High Priest. Note 2 on High Priest in the Recovery Version explains:
“As the High Priest, Christ ministers God Himself and the riches of the divine life to us. As the God-man, He is more than fully qualified to be our High Priest. Here, merciful corresponds with His being a man; faithful corresponds with His being God.”
In the Old Testament, the high priest served God and made intercession on behalf of God’s people. The high priest in the Old Testament is a picture, and Jesus is the reality, the fulfillment of this picture. Jesus, our real High Priest, is both God and man. As a man made like us in all things, He’s merciful to us and able to understand us. We can come to Him and be assured that He sympathizes with us in our affliction.
What’s more, as God, Jesus is our faithful High Priest. When we’re suffering, He ministers God Himself and the unlimited riches of the divine life into us to meet our need. We may not even know what we need, but our faithful High Priest knows and ministers strength, love, hope, encouragement, endurance, joy, and so much more.
Speaking of the kind of High Priest Jesus is for us, Hebrews 4:15-16 says:
“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot be touched with the feeling of our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all respects like us, yet without sin. Let us therefore come forward with boldness to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace for timely help.”
How precious it is that Jesus is touched with the feeling of our weaknesses. We can come to our merciful, faithful High Priest with boldness, assured that we will receive mercy and find grace for timely help.
3. “To make propitiation for the sins of the people”
We come now to the third important phrase in Hebrews 2:17: to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
At some point, we’ve probably felt afraid to come to Jesus and pour out what’s on our heart to Him. Maybe we feel unworthy, or full of guilt that we’ve been away from Him for a while. Maybe we’ve experienced a failure in our Christian life.
But if this is our situation, we need to realize that the Lord made propitiation for our sins. Note 4 on propitiation in the Recovery Version explains:
“Jesus made propitiation for our sins, thereby satisfying the demand of God’s righteousness and appeasing the relationship between God and us, that God may be peacefully gracious to us.”
It’s impossible for us to make our sinful condition right before God in and of ourselves. But Jesus loved us to such an extent that He laid down His life for us. He resolved our problem of sin by fulfilling all the righteous demands of God through His death on the cross. This was true when we first believed in Jesus and accepted Him as our Savior, and it’s also true when we’ve sinned after we’re saved.
Of course, if we’ve sinned, we need to repent—that is, turn back to God—and confess our sins to Him. By turning to Him and confessing our sins, we can enjoy His propitiation and be forgiven and cleansed with His blood. Then we can come to the Lord without any fear or lingering guilt.
Hebrews 2:17 is truly a marvelous verse that shows us Jesus was made like us in all things so He could truly understand us. He is our merciful and faithful High Priest who can sympathize with us and meet our inward need, and He is the One who made propitiation for us.
No matter what difficult situation we’re going through, we can be assured that Jesus understands us fully and sympathizes with us deeply. And because He made propitiation for us, we can come to Him at any time.
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How do we experience the sympathy and ministry of Jesus?
Now let’s consider how we can experience the Lord sympathizing with and ministering to us in our daily lives.
First, we should realize that the Lord isn’t far away from us. When we were saved, Christ came to live in our spirit, our deepest part. He’s always available and accessible to us. Anytime, anywhere, in any situation, we can draw near to Him in our spirit.
Second, when our conscience makes us aware we’ve committed a sin, we should confess that sin to the Lord so we can be forgiven and cleansed by His blood. This removes any barrier between us and the Lord so we can come to Him freely.
Third, we can come to the Lord by fellowshipping with Him in prayer. It really helps to open our mouth and pray audibly to the Lord. We can speak freely to Him and pour out everything that’s on our heart to Him.
Many of us can testify that as we uttered what was on our heart to the Lord in prayer, we were soothed by His sympathy and tender care. Though our outward situation didn’t necessarily change, we were encouraged and enlivened because Jesus ministered something of God into our being, meeting our deepest need. Words can’t express how wonderful this experience is.
We hope you’re encouraged by the words in Hebrews 2:17 and the notes in the New Testament Recovery Version. No matter what we’re going through, we can come to the Lord in prayer and experience the loving care of our merciful and faithful High Priest. If you live in the US, you can order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version here.
By reading Romans 8 carefully, we see that the Christian walk is a matter not of endeavoring to live a faultless, ethical life but of walking according to the spirit. The Lord Jesus suffered death on the cross not only to forgive us of our sins, but also to become the life-giving Spirit in resurrection. When we believed in Him and were born again, He as the Spirit entered into our spirit. And when we walk according to the Spirit in our spirit, we spontaneously live the Christian life God desires us to have.
In this post, we’ll discuss the crucial role of the mind related to walking according to the spirit with the help of verses and notes in the New Testament Recovery Version.
The importance of the mind in Romans 8
Let’s begin by reading Romans 8:4-6:
“That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the spirit. For those who are according to the flesh mind the things of the flesh; but those who are according to the spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.”
So we see that immediately following verse 4, which speaks of those who walk according to the spirit, verses 5 and 6 both mention the word mind.
Let’s focus on Romans 8:6:
“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.”
Note 1 in the Recovery Version helps us understand the meaning of the mind set on the flesh. The first part of the note explains:
“Lit., the mind of the flesh. In vv. 6-8 the crucial item is the mind. The mind is the leading part of the soul, which is man’s personality, his person. The mind thus represents the soul, that is, the person himself.”
God created us with three parts: a spirit, a soul, and a body. And as the leading part of our soul, our mind represents our person.
Now let’s read the next part of the note:
“In this chapter the mind is neutral, being between the regenerated mingled spirit and the fallen body, the flesh. Chapters 7 and 8 show that the mind may have two different actions, by which it can cause us to be either in the spirit or in the flesh.”
Our human spirit, where the Holy Spirit dwells once we’re regenerated, is the deepest part of our being. To illustrate, let’s think of the three parts of our being as three concentric circles, as shown in the diagram below. The innermost circle is our spirit. The outermost circle is our body, which was changed to the flesh of sin in the fall of man. The middle circle is our soul, situated between our spirit and our fallen, sinful flesh.
Now let’s read the rest of the note, which shows us the very different consequences of setting our mind on the spirit or the flesh:
“If it [the mind] relies on and attaches itself to the regenerated spirit, which is mingled with the Spirit of God, the mind will bring us into the spirit and into the enjoyment of the divine Spirit as the law of the Spirit of life (v. 2). If the mind attaches itself to the flesh and acts independently, it will bring us into the flesh, causing us to be at enmity with God and to be unable to please Him (vv. 7-8).”
Our mind, being neutral, can go in one of two directions. What it relies on and attaches itself to determines whether we’re in our spirit or in our flesh.
The mind set on the flesh or on the spirit
Throughout each day, we have a choice to make: do we set our mind on the flesh or on the spirit? As Romans 8:6 tells us, setting the mind on the flesh results in death, but setting the mind on the spirit results in life and peace.
Of course, we would all say we want life and peace instead of death. But whether we enjoy life and peace all depends on where we set our mind.
Before we were saved, our spirit was dead and without Christ. We didn’t have the option of setting our mind on the spirit. We automatically lived in and walked according to the flesh and spontaneously committed sins.
The book of Romans was written to believers in Christ. And in Romans 8:6 Paul makes it clear that even after we’re saved, it’s still possible for us to set our mind on the flesh.
Experiencing death versus life and peace
In writing that the mind set on the flesh is death, Paul wasn't referring to physical death but to spiritual death. Similarly, setting the mind on the spirit results in spiritual life and peace. We experience both spiritual death and spiritual life through particular inward sensations.
Note 2 on Romans 8:6 in the Recovery Version sheds some more light on how we experience death versus life and peace. The first paragraph of this note says:
“Life and peace result from setting our mind on the spirit. When our mind is set on the spirit, our outward actions are in agreement with our inner man and there is no discrepancy between us and God. He and we are at peace, not at enmity (v. 7). The result is that we feel peaceful within.”
When we set our mind on the spirit, we feel peaceful, restful, satisfied, and even joyful inwardly; there’s no disagreement, no controversy between us and the Lord.
Now let’s read the first part of the second paragraph of this note:
“When our mind is set on the flesh and the things of the flesh, the result is death, which causes us to feel separated from the enjoyment of God. We feel uneasy and deadened instead of peaceful and living.”
So when we set our mind on the flesh, we feel spiritually dead and separated from the enjoyment of God. Consequently, we feel uneasy and weak. These negative feelings warn us that we’re not setting our mind on the spirit. In whatever we’re doing, thinking, or saying, we’re not living according to the life of Christ in our spirit.
Now let’s read the rest of the note:
“When we are minding the flesh and setting our mind on the things of the flesh, the sense of death should serve as a warning to us, urging us to be delivered from the flesh and to live in the spirit.”
So the negative feelings resulting from death, or the sense of death, are actually very helpful to us. They tell us where we are and warn us to stop what we’re doing.
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A practical example
In our Christian life, we’ve all experienced the negative feelings of death that come from setting our mind on the flesh.
As an example, let’s say we’re reading the news online. At first, we feel fine. Then, after a while, we click on another link and then another, and we end up reading all kinds of things. The Lord within us says, “Stop,” but we ignore Him and keep going. Then we begin to feel empty and uneasy, and we sense darkness within. These are all sensations of death that clearly indicate we’re setting our mind on the flesh.
Reading the news isn’t in itself sinful. But by not heeding the Lord’s speaking to stop, we set our mind on the flesh and end up experiencing spiritual death.
On the other hand, we’ve also experienced spiritual life and peace. We can surely recall fellowshipping with the Lord or reading His Word and sensing joy, peace, and inward light.
But how do we experience this in our daily life? Let’s use the example of reading the news again. But this time, when the Lord within us says, “That's enough. Stop here,” we obey this inward urging and stop reading. Then we immediately sense satisfaction, joy, and peace, and we feel strengthened and enlivened.
What a contrast between the sense of death and the sense of life and peace!
Practicing to set our mind on the spirit
Setting our mind on the spirit doesn’t mean we just sit around thinking about Christ all the time and neglect our work or studies. Instead, while we’re working, studying, driving, taking a walk—whatever we’re doing—we stay in contact with the Lord in our spirit.
Setting our mind on the spirit takes a conscious effort on our part. It’s not something we’re used to. And if we take a passive approach, our mind drifts and automatically becomes set on the flesh.
But there are a few things we can do to help us set our mind on our spirit every day.
One is to begin the day reading and praying with the Word of God. As we enjoy the Lord in His Word and partake of Him, we’re setting our mind on the spirit. Having this time in the morning can also help us set our mind on the spirit throughout the day.
For instance, let’s say that one morning you enjoy reading and praying with Ephesians 1:4:
“Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and without blemish before Him in love.”
You experience life and peace as you pray with this verse. But even afterwards, as you go about your day, part of the verse may come back to you: He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world. Wherever you are, you can pray: “Oh, Lord Jesus, thank You for choosing me! Lord, You chose me before the foundation of the world. Thank You, Lord.”
We can also set our mind on the spirit by talking to the Lord in a simple way throughout the day. As we’re driving to work, we can tell Him about any worries we might have and ask Him to lead us through them. We can thank Him for His provisions and fellowship with Him about anything that’s on our heart. And even simply calling on the name of the Lord Jesus brings our mind back to the spirit.
And whenever we sense death, we need to stop whatever we’re doing and immediately turn back to the Lord. We can pray, “Lord Jesus, I repent and turn again to You. I set my mind on my spirit right now!”
Like physical exercise, the more we practice setting our mind on our spirit, the more it will become a normal part of our life. We’ll develop a stronger taste for life and peace, and we’ll learn to turn more quickly from what causes us to experience spiritual death. The more we do this, the more we’ll grow in the Lord and live by the divine life of Christ in us. Then God will be expressed in our living to all the people around us, fulfilling His desire.
To find out more about this subject, we encourage you to read chapter 17 of The Economy of God here. You can download this book for free from anywhere in the world. And if you live in the US, you can order a free New Testament Recovery Version with its enlightening commentary here.
After we were saved, we probably had the realization that we should live in a different way than how we lived before. Certainly God wants us to express Him in our daily life. But how do we do that? What should our Christian walk be like?
Our walk involves our entire way of living: how we live, how we conduct ourselves, what we say, what we do, and where we go. In this post, we’ll focus on Romans 8:4 and helpful notes in the New Testament Recovery Version to see the walk God wants us believers to have.
What the New Testament says about how we walk
Romans 8:4 says:
“That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the spirit.”
This verse speaks of two different ways we can walk: according to the flesh or according to the spirit.
Walking according to the flesh
First, let’s see what the flesh is.
When God created Adam, he was sinless. But when Adam disobeyed God, Satan injected his sinful nature into mankind, and our God-created pure body was transmuted into the sinful flesh, full of lust.
Even after we’re saved and born again in our spirit, our flesh is still with us and remains just as sinful as it was before we were regenerated.
Many verses in the New Testament confirm this. In fact, Paul wrote the epistle to the Romans to the believers who lived in Rome, not to unbelievers. And in Romans 13:14, he strongly exhorts them:
“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts.”
Since Paul wrote this to believers, it shows that we still have the sinful flesh even after we’re saved, and we must be careful not to make any provision for it.
So although we’re saved, we can still be people who walk according to our fallen flesh. Of course, when we walk according to our flesh, we invariably sin.
Walking according to the spirit
Now let’s see what the spirit that’s mentioned in Romans 8:4 is.
In the Recovery Version, note 3 on spirit in this verse explains:
“It is difficult to discern the word spirit used in this chapter, in Gal. 5, and in other places in the New Testament, unless it is clearly designated to denote God’s Holy Spirit or our regenerated human spirit, as in v. 9 and v. 16 of this chapter. According to the usage in the New Testament, the word spirit, as used in this verse, denotes our regenerated human spirit indwelt by and mingled with the Spirit, who is the consummation of the Triune God (v. 9). This corresponds with 1 Cor. 6:17, ‘He who is joined to the Lord [who is the Spirit—2 Cor. 3:17; 1 Cor. 15:45] is one spirit’—one mingled spirit.”
God created us with a spirit that can contact and receive Him. Our human spirit is the deepest, innermost part of our being.
Here in Romans 8:4, walking “according to the spirit” doesn’t refer to our human spirit alone, nor to the Holy Spirit alone. It’s referring to our regenerated human spirit indwelt by and mingled with the Spirit of the Triune God.
This mingled spirit came into being when we repented and believed in Christ. That’s when we were regenerated, or, born again, and Christ as the life-giving Spirit came into our spirit to dwell there. Now His Spirit and our spirit are no longer separate and distinct, but are mingled together.
First Corinthians 6:17 says:
“But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.”
Through faith in Jesus, we were joined to Him. Our regenerated human spirit and the Spirit became one, mingled spirit.
So in Romans 8:4, to walk according to the spirit means we live and do everything according to this wonderful mingled spirit.
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The spontaneous result of walking according to the spirit
Christ did so much to enter into us to be our life. Now that He’s in our spirit, His desire for us is not that we would try our best not to make mistakes or be on our best behavior outwardly; He wants us to walk according to our spirit.
Romans 8:4 also shows us what happens when we walk according to the spirit:
“That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the spirit.”
The verse doesn’t say that the righteous requirement of the law is fulfilled by those who try their best to live a good Christian life. It says that the righteous requirement of the law is fulfilled in us, who walk according to the spirit.
Note 1 on fulfilled explains:
“Not consciously kept by us through our outward endeavoring but spontaneously and unconsciously fulfilled in us by the inward working of the Spirit of life. The Spirit of life is the Spirit of Christ, and Christ corresponds with the law of God. This Spirit within us spontaneously fulfills all the righteous requirements of the law through us when we walk according to Him.”
Christ lived the most excellent life on earth. He alone fulfilled all the requirements of the law. In all of His living, He expressed God.
And through His death on the cross, He redeemed us back to God. Then in resurrection, He became the life-giving Spirit; by believing in Him, we were joined to this wonderful Spirit in our spirit.
So when we walk according to our mingled spirit, the Spirit spontaneously fulfills the requirements of the law in us and for us. Our words, behavior, attitude, and actions have as their source the Spirit in our spirit. As a result, what people see isn’t a person behaving outwardly in an ethical, upright way. They see something much higher than that: God Himself expressed in our living.
This is how God is expressed through us, which is His heart’s desire.
How do we walk according to the spirit?
First of all, we have to see that our spirit is mingled with the Spirit. When we see this, we’ll appreciate how precious our spirit is and how near and available the Lord is to us.
Then we have to realize that to walk according to the spirit means we have to be in our spirit, and not in our flesh. Our spirit should be the focal point of our whole being. So we need to practice turning from the flesh to the Lord in our spirit all the time.
One very practical way to turn to our mingled spirit is to call upon the name of the Lord Jesus. This is something we can do anytime, anywhere, whenever we find ourselves not walking according to our spirit.
First Corinthians 12:3 says:
“Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking in the Spirit of God says, Jesus is accursed; and no one can say, Jesus is Lord! except in the Holy Spirit.”
Note 3 on this verse explains:
“This indicates that when we say with a proper spirit, ‘Jesus is Lord!’ we are in the Holy Spirit. Hence, to call on the Lord Jesus is the way to participate in, to enjoy, and to experience the Holy Spirit.”
By calling upon the Lord’s name, “Lord Jesus,” we’re brought into our spirit where we enjoy all that He is. As we enjoy Him in our spirit, we spontaneously walk according to our spirit, and the wonderful life of Christ is expressed in our walk.
In this post, we could only briefly discuss what it means to walk according to the spirit in Romans 8. If you live in the US, we strongly encourage you to order a free New Testament Recovery Version so you can read all of the insightful notes in this crucial chapter.
In a previous post, we saw that when the apostle Paul wrote, “Jesus Christ is in you” in 2 Corinthians 13:5, he wasn’t speaking metaphorically, but literally. It’s a wonderful fact that when we repented and believed in Him, Christ actually came into us.
Specifically, Christ came to dwell in our human spirit, our deepest part. The fact that Christ is in our spirit isn’t just something for us to know objectively; it’s something we can experience and enjoy all the time.
So in this post, we’ll discuss how we can experience Christ living in us in a practical way. We’ll read some verses and notes in the New Testament Recovery Version to help us.
A frustrating cycle
After we’re saved, most of us have certain ideas about how we should live the Christian life. We expend a great deal of effort to live up to certain standards. But as hard as we try, we usually fail.
Let’s use losing our temper as an example. We all have this problem, to one degree or another. We know it isn’t a good thing, so we struggle against it, trying again and again to suppress our temper as it rises in us. But when something irritates us enough, we blow up.
After a while, we calm down, and, feeling ashamed and convicted, we confess to the Lord and ask Him to forgive us. We experience His forgiveness and cleansing, and our fellowship with Him is restored. Maybe we then pray something like this: “Lord, please help me not lose my temper again. Please give me more patience.”
Yet the next day, or maybe even the next hour, we find ourselves reacting impatiently to another situation, and our temper flares up again. Even though we had prayed earnestly for patience, we discover we have no more patience than before.
So we find ourselves in a frustrating cycle, and we wonder why the Lord isn’t answering our prayers. What’s wrong?
The problem is this: the Lord doesn't want to help us control our temper. And He doesn’t want to give us patience. Actually, the Lord Jesus, who now lives in us, wants to be our patience.
Our union with Christ
It's not a simple matter for Jesus Christ to be able to enter into us and live in us.
On His side, Christ had to take some tremendous steps for this to happen: He became a man, died on the cross, and was resurrected. First Corinthians 15:45 says:
“So also it is written, ‘The first man, Adam, became a living soul’; the last Adam [Christ] became a life-giving Spirit.”
Before His death and resurrection, Christ could only be with people. He couldn’t be in them. But in resurrection, He became a life-giving Spirit, able to enter into all who believe in Him.
And on our side, we needed to repent and believe in Him. The moment we did, Christ as the life-giving Spirit entered into our deepest part, our spirit.
Not only so, 1 Corinthians 6:17 even tells us:
“But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.”
Now the Spirit and our human spirit are one. This is a marvelous fact!
And that’s not all. Colossians 3:4 says:
“When Christ our life is manifested.”
The Christ who came as the Spirit to live in our spirit is now our life. Note 1 on this verse in the New Testament Recovery Version helps us understand the meaning of this verse:
“That Christ is our life is a strong indication that we are to take Him as life and live by Him, that we are to live Him in our daily life in order to experience the universally extensive Christ revealed in this book [Colossians], so that all He is and has attained and obtained will not remain objective but will become our subjective experience.”
Christ didn’t go through so much to live in us just so He could help us live a good, ethical life. He doesn’t want us to merely ask Him for things like patience and love when we need them.
Instead, the Christian life is a life in which Christ lives and does everything in us, with us, and through us. He wants us to take Him as our life and live by Him in all our circumstances.
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How can we experience Christ living in us?
If we see that Christ lives in us, that we’re one spirit with Him, and that He’s even our life, we’ll realize He’s present with us in every situation and ready to be applied at any time. He wants to live in and with us in every instance. So how can we experience this?
Let’s return to the example of losing our temper. Let’s say something vexing happens again, and we feel our temper rising. We would usually, and unsuccessfully, try to suppress our anger.
But if we instead turn to Christ in our spirit right then and there, we’ll experience Christ, the uniquely patient One. He endured all kinds of ill-treatment and vexing situations throughout His life on earth. And He wants us to enjoy and experience Him being our patience and endurance. Then instead of expressing ourselves as we fight to control our temper, we express Christ as our patience.
It’s not a matter of mere outward imitation of what we think He would do. He wants us to live by Him in every situation. If we need patience, we can experience Christ being our patience. If we need hope, we can experience Christ as our hope.
A practical way to experience Christ in our spirit
One of the best ways to instantly turn to and experience Christ in our spirit is to call upon His name. By calling on the Lord Jesus, we contact Him as the Spirit dwelling in our spirit.
Depending on the circumstances, we may call, “Oh, Lord Jesus,” softly under our breath. Or if we’re alone, we can cry out to Him loudly. We may be very upset when we start calling, but as we contact Him, we experience Him quieting our being and becoming our patience.
As we call, we experience what is written in Romans 10:12:
“For the same Lord is Lord of all and rich to all who call upon Him.”
The Lord is rich to us in patience, in calmness, in long-suffering, in endurance—in whatever we need to face any circumstance. Calling upon Him is a simple way to contact Him in our spirit and enjoy all that He is to us.
By calling on the Lord and enjoying His riches, we also experience Romans 10:13:
“For ‘whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”
Saved in this verse refers not only to our initial salvation; it also refers to being saved from negative things in our lives after we’ve received the Lord. We all have to admit that every day we need to be saved from many things, including losing our temper.
Note 2 on this verse in the Recovery Version says:
“To be saved here means to be brought into the enjoyment of the riches of the Lord. The Lord is rich to both Jews and Greeks. All who call on the Lord’s name enjoy this rich Lord; as a result, they are filled with Him and express Him.”
On one hand, by calling on the Lord we’re saved from negative things; on the other, we’re brought into the enjoyment of the riches of Christ. And as we enjoy these riches, we’re filled with Him and express Him in our daily lives.
So instead of asking for a thing, such as patience, we experience a wonderful Person, the living Christ in us, as the real solution to our problems.
Experiencing Christ daily
It helps to begin our day by spending time to contact Christ in our spirit. During this time, we can confess our sins to Him, fellowship with Him about anything, and pray with His Word. The more regularly we do this, the more we’ll experience Christ living in us and the more we’ll enjoy Him.
Then throughout the day, we can continue to call upon the name of the Lord to experience Him in all the situations of our daily life, turning to Him in our spirit to be one with Him. Then we’ll express the Christ who is our life automatically and spontaneously. Praise the Lord, Christ lives in us!
If you live in the US, you can order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version here to read all the notes on the verses mentioned in this post.
