As the wife of Christ, the church comes out of Christ (Eph. 5:30). Just as Eve came out of Adam, the church as Christ’s counterpart comes out of Christ. Because Eve came out of Adam, she had the same life and nature that Adam had. This signifies that the church has the same life and nature that Christ has. This reveals that the church, the wife of Christ, is a pure product out of Christ. The church, therefore, must be one element-the element of Christ.
The church as the wife of Christ comes out of Christ to be one with Christ (Eph. 5:31). Just as Eve became one flesh with Adam (Gen. 2:24), the church becomes one with Christ. Christ and the church being one spirit (1 Cor. 6:17), as typified by Adam and Eve being one flesh, are the great mystery (Eph. 5:32).
Finally, the universal church is the new man (Col. 3:10-11). In Ephesians 2:15 we see that Christ created the Jews and the Gentiles in Himself into one new man. This new man is corporate and universal. There are many believers, but there is only one new man. All the believers are components of this corporate and universal new man.
The emphasis on the church being the Body of Christ is on life, whereas the emphasis on the church being the universal new man is on Christ as our person. For the Body we need Christ to be our life, and for the new man we need Christ to be our person.
The church as the new man is absolutely not of the natural man. After referring to the new man in Colossians 3:10, Paul goes on to say in verse 11, “Where there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, freeman.” This indicates that in the new man there is no possibility, no room, for the natural man. In the new man there is room only for Christ, not for any kind of natural person.
According to Colossians 3:11, in the new man “Christ is all and in all.” He is all the members of the new man, and He is in all the members. The word “all” here refers to all the members who make up the new man. On the one hand, Christ is all the members; on the other hand, He is in all the members. This indicates that Christ is all the members and that there is no room for the natural man. It also indicates that as members of the new man we continue to exist, but we exist with Christ in us. Therefore, Paul says that in the new man Christ is both in us and that He is us. In the new man Christ is everyone, and He is also in everyone. This means that the new man is a constitution of the mingling of divinity with humanity to make one entity. In this entity both the intrinsic and extrinsic elements are mingled into one because Christ is the members of the new man and is also in the members. This is the universal church.
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