First Corinthians is a foundation for the book of 2 Corinthians; therefore, 2 Corinthians is much deeper than 1 Corinthians. First Corinthians shows us that Christ is our divine portion (1 Cor. 1:2, 9, 30). He has been given to us as wisdom, including righteousness for us to be justified and regenerated, sanctification for us to be transformed and brought into a full realization of Christ, and redemption for us to be redeemed or transfigured in our body (1 Cor. 1:30). Christ has been made such a portion to us as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45) that we may contact Him through and by our spirit. We are one spirit with Him (1 Cor. 6:17). Now He is waiting for us to enjoy Him all the time. These are the basic points mentioned in 1 Corinthians. These points concerning Christ are the foundation for Paul to build upon in the second book. This foundation is Christ (1 Cor. 3:10-11) not only as our Savior, Master, and Lord but also as the portion given to us by God as wisdom, including righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.
As we look into the contents of 2 Corinthians, we must keep in mind the foundation given in 1 Corinthians. Second Corinthians 3:6 says, “For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” It is the Spirit, the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b), who gives life. Second Corinthians 3:17 says, “And the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” The Spirit here refers to the Spirit in verse 6. The Lord is the Spirit who gives life. Verse 18 continues, “And we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting as a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit.” The Lord Spirit may be considered a compound title indicating strongly that the Lord Christ is the Spirit and the Spirit is the Lord Christ. In 2 Corinthians 4:7, the treasure is mentioned: “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” Christ as the Spirit, the Lord Spirit, mentioned in 3:17-18, is our treasure, our unsearchably rich portion. How do we enjoy Christ as the treasure within us? We enjoy Christ by being in spirit. Even this word may be a doctrine to us. The condition among many in Christianity is not very powerful because there is too much knowledge apart from the living Person of Christ. This knowledge distracts people from Christ. God’s intention is not to give His chosen people doctrines, teachings, or gifts. God’s intention is to give His chosen people the living Christ Himself.
As human beings, before we were regenerated, we were born and raised by our parents to live by ourselves, that is, by the life in our soul. Some of us lived in a good way and others lived in a rather poor way. Regardless of whether our living was good or bad, we lived by ourselves. We lived by the self, the fallen soul. One day we were saved. To be saved means that we experienced God’s salvation which is Christ Himself, and Christ alone. God’s salvation is Christ Himself with redemption, forgiveness, justification, regeneration, and many other items. Things such as redemption and forgiveness are not salvation itself. Salvation is a living Person-Christ Himself.
After we are saved, we have two things within our being-our self and Christ. Following our being saved, God’s intention is that we live absolutely not by ourselves anymore, but by Christ. This is simple in teaching or doctrine, but it is not so simple in our daily walk. Many teachings in Christianity focus on different aspects of human life, yet neglect the central aspect of living by Christ (Phil. 1:21a). Our real need today is to live by Christ. If we are honest and faithful, we have to admit that we do not live by Christ from morning to evening.
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