In this message we will begin to consider the aspects of the experience and enjoyment of Christ revealed in Philippians. The subject and the controlling concept of the book of Philippians is the experience of Christ. The experience of Christ is the master key which opens this book to us. If we apply this key to every verse and phrase in the book, we will see that Paul’s concern here is nothing other than the experience of Christ.
In Philippians 1:11 Christ is revealed as the means for bearing the fruit of righteousness. In verses 9 and 10 Paul prays three things on behalf of the Philippians: that their love would abound in full knowledge and all discernment, that they would approve by testing the things which differ, and that they would be pure and without offense unto the day of Christ. The secret to these three matters is found in verse 11, where Paul speaks of being “filled with the fruit of righteousness, which is through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” According to grammar, verse 11 is a modifier related to the three items for which Paul has prayed. Having been filled with the fruit of righteousness, the Philippians could abound in love, approve by testing all things, and be pure and without offense. This indicates that being filled with the fruit of righteousness through Jesus Christ is a necessary condition for these three matters. In order for our love to abound, to approve by testing the things which differ, and to be pure and without offense, we must first be filled with the fruit of righteousness which is through Jesus Christ.
Verse 11 refers to the experience of Christ. Here we see that the key is the experience of Christ. We know that verse 11 refers to the experience of Christ because of the phrase “through Jesus Christ.” The fruit of righteousness is through Christ. It comes to us through our experience of Christ. From the Christ we enjoy and experience, we have the fruit of righteousness. The more we experience Christ, the more this experience will issue in the fruit of righteousness. The fruit of righteousness is the living product of the believers’ living a proper life by the element of righteousness, with a righteous standing before God and man. Such a life could be lived not by the believers’ natural man for their boast but through Jesus Christ as the believers’ life, experienced by them to the glory and praise of God. Through Christ we should be fruitful in the matter of righteousness; we should not be wrong with God or man in anything. Then we will have the rich fruit in the matter of righteousness. If we experience Christ as the means for bearing the fruit of righteousness, our love will abound, we will prove things by testing, and we will be pure and without offense.
Philippians 1:19-21 presents Christ as the bountiful Supplier. In Philippians 1:19 Paul speaks of “the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” The bountiful supply comes out of the Spirit of Jesus Christ; hence, Christ as the Spirit of Jesus Christ is the bountiful Supplier. The Greek word for bountiful supply in verse 19 refers to the supplying of all the needs of the chorus by the choragus, the leader of the chorus. The bountiful supply of the all-inclusive Spirit enabled Paul to live and magnify Christ in his sufferings for Him.
Christ as the bountiful Supplier is the Spirit of Jesus Christ. The revelation in the Bible concerning God, Christ, and the Spirit is progressive. The Spirit is mentioned first as the Spirit of God, in relation to creation (Gen. 1:2). Then He is mentioned as the Spirit of Jehovah, in the context of God’s relationship with man (Judg. 3:10; 1 Sam. 10:6); as the Holy Spirit, in relation to the conception and birth of Christ (Luke 1:35; Matt. 1:20); as the Spirit of Jesus, in relation to the Lord’s human living (Acts 16:7); as the Spirit of Christ, in relation to the Lord’s resurrection (Rom. 8:9); and here as the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
The Spirit of Jesus Christ is “the Spirit” mentioned in John 7:39. This is not merely the Spirit of God before the Lord’s incarnation but the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit with divinity, after the Lord’s resurrection, compounded with the Lord’s incarnation (humanity), human living under the cross, crucifixion, and resurrection. The holy anointing ointment in Exodus 30:23-25, a compound of olive oil and four kinds of spices, is a full type of this compound Spirit of God, who is now the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Here it is not the Spirit of Jesus or the Spirit of Christ but the Spirit of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Jesus is related mainly to the Lord’s humanity and human living; the Spirit of Christ is related mainly to the Lord’s resurrection. To experience the Lord’s humanity, as illustrated in Philippians 2:5-8, we need the Spirit of Jesus. To experience the power of the Lord’s resurrection, as mentioned in 3:10, we need the Spirit of Christ. In his suffering, the apostle experienced both the Lord’s suffering in His humanity and the Lord’s resurrection. Hence, the Spirit to him was the Spirit of Jesus Christ, the compound, all-inclusive, life-giving Spirit of the Triune God. Such a Spirit has, and even is, the bountiful supply for a person like the apostle, who was experiencing and enjoying Christ in His human living and resurrection. Eventually, this compound Spirit of Jesus Christ becomes the seven Spirits of God, who are the seven lamps of fire before God’s throne to carry out His administration on earth for the accomplishing of His economy concerning the church, and who are the seven eyes of the Lamb for the transfusing of all that He is into the church (Rev. 1:4; 4:5; 5:6).
We are not satisfied simply to have a doctrinal understanding of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. We must go on to experience the compound, all-inclusive, life-giving Spirit who is the processed Triune God as everything to us. By such a Spirit, Paul suffered for God’s economy and simultaneously enjoyed a bountiful supply that strengthened him in resurrection. Paul was an overcomer not because he had a strong will. He could be an overcomer because he experienced and enjoyed the all-inclusive Spirit with His bountiful supply dwelling in him to be everything to him. Paul realized in his experience that the Triune God was working Himself into his being. May we also experience and enjoy the Triune God supplying us and working Himself into us as the compound, all-inclusive, life-giving Spirit.
With the Spirit of Jesus Christ there is a bountiful supply. This supply is an all-inclusive drink containing many ingredients. Everything we need is in this divine beverage. When we pray in a genuine way and when we call on the name of the Lord, the compound ointment is applied to us in our situation, and we enjoy the riches of the bountiful supply of the Spirit.