In this message we will continue to fellowship concerning the way to receive, experience, and enjoy the all-inclusive Christ as the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit—the aggregate of the all-embracing blessing of the full gospel of God.
First, I would like to present something further regarding the matter, mentioned in the previous message, of our being identified with Christ in His death that it may be no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us (Gal. 2:20). To be identified with someone, we must first have a union with him. We cannot have communion, that is, fellowship, without first having union. In the Old Testament, the priests laid their hands on the sacrifices that they offered. This signified their union with the offerings. Actually, however, the priests were still the priests, and the offerings were the offerings. Union is not by a physical means; union must be by the Spirit. If the Lord were not a Spirit or if we did not have a human spirit, it would be impossible for the Lord and us to have a union. First Corinthians 15:45b says, "The last Adam became a life-giving Spirit," and 1 Corinthians 6:17 says, "But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit." To be identified with the Lord means to be one spirit with Him and even to be one entity with Him. To be one entity with the Lord means that we become Him and He becomes us, that is, that He and we become one. This is a deeper union than that of a husband and wife. A couple's union is not absolute; they can still be divorced. However, just as our body cannot divorce our head, it is impossible for us to "divorce" the Lord. We are one entity with Him.
We become one with the Lord by believing into Him. Certain verses in the New Testament, such as John 3:16, speak of our believing not merely in Christ but into Christ. Our believing into the Lord is a fact, not merely a saying. Galatians 3:27 says, "For as many as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." To realize that we have been baptized into Christ and have put on Christ requires the exercise of our believing ability. Many times when we preach the gospel to sinners we do not speak concerning deep spiritual matters because we believe that they will not be able to understand them. This is wrong. We should tell people, "Dear friends, today you can be in Christ, and Christ is waiting to enter into you. Let me tell you how this can be. God is a Spirit, and one day two thousand years ago this God became a man by the name of Jesus. This man lived on the earth for thirty-three and a half years. Then He went to the cross to die for you and for your sins. He was buried and was resurrected on the third day. Now I will tell you a wonder: on the third day this Jesus in His resurrection became a life-giving Spirit. In brief, Jesus became a Spirit. You might have heard the name of Jesus, but you probably do not know who and what Jesus is. Jesus is God the Spirit. He is in me, and I am bringing Jesus as the Spirit to you. While I am speaking to you, He is speaking. If you believe in Him and call on Him, you will get into Him and He will get into you."