In this message, we will continue to consider Christ as the life of the saints.
In Colossians 3:5 Paul says, “Put to death therefore your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and greediness, which is idolatry.” In our sinful members is the law of sin, making us captives of sin and causing our corrupted body to become the body of death (Rom. 7:23-24). Hence, our members, which are sinful, are identified with sinful things, such as fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and greediness. In Colossians 3:6 Paul points out that because of these things “the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience.” In verse 7 he goes on to say that the believers once walked in these things when they lived in them.
In verse 5 Paul charges us to put to death our members which are on the earth. This charge is based upon the fact that we have been crucified with Christ (Gal. 2:20a) and baptized into His death (Rom. 6:3). We execute Christ’s death upon our sinful members by crucifying them, by faith, through the power of the Spirit (8:13). This corresponds to Galatians 5:24. Christ has accomplished the all-inclusive crucifixion. Now we apply it to our lustful flesh. This is absolutely different from asceticism.
Christ’s all-inclusive death on the cross is applied to us at the time of baptism. All those who believe in the Lord Jesus should be baptized. In baptism we not only recognize Christ’s death but also apply it to ourselves. Therefore, in baptism we are placed into the death of Christ and are buried.
According to Romans 8:11 and 13, putting to death the practices the body is an action carried out in the power of the Spirit. It is not accomplished by self-effort. Our attempts to put to death the practices of the body are nothing more than asceticism. We put to death the negative things in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. In order to do this, we need to open to the Spirit and allow the Spirit to flow within us. Through the Spirit’s flowing, we will experience the effectiveness of Christ’s death. This is not asceticism; it is the operation of the Spirit within us.
In Colossians 3:8 Paul speaks of putting away evil psychological things: “You also, put away all these things: wrath, anger, malice, blasphemy, foul abusive language out of your mouth.” If we compare this verse with the foregoing verses, we will see that Paul classified the things of the flesh in one category and the things of the fallen soul in another category. All negative things, whether of the flesh or of the fallen soul, must be put aside. We do this not by our own energy but by the power of the all-inclusive Spirit.
In verse 9 Paul goes on to say, “Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his practices.” This verse indicates that putting off the old man is like putting off an old garment. The total person of the old man must be put away. In this verse Paul tells us that we have put off the old man because we put off the old man in baptism. Our old man was crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6) and was buried in baptism (v. 4). First, we put to death the physical lusts, then we put away the psychological evils, and last, we put off the entire old man with his practices. This is not by our own energy but by the power of the all-inclusive Spirit.
When we live together with Christ, we can put off the lusts of the flesh, put away the evil aspects of the fallen soul, and put off the totality of our old being. Then, positively, we can put on the new man. By living together with Christ, by experiencing Him as our life and seeking the things which are above, we put away all the negative things and put on the new man.
In Colossians 3:10 Paul continues, “And have put on the new man, which is being renewed unto full knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.”
Putting on the new man is like putting on a new garment. The Greek word for new in this verse means new in relation to time, whereas the word used in Ephesians 4:24 means new in nature, quality, or form. Since Christ is the constituent of the new man, we, who are the new man, are one with Christ.
The new man is of Christ. It is His Body, created in Him on the cross (2:15-16). It is not individual but corporate. According to the clear vision in Ephesians 2:15, the new man is a corporate entity. This is proved by the fact that it is created out of two peoples, the Jews and the Gentiles. Furthermore, verse 16 indicates that the new man created out of these collective peoples is the Body of Christ. Hence, the new man and the Body are synonymous terms and may be used interchangeably.
The emphasis on the church being the Body of Christ is on life, whereas the emphasis on the church being the new man is on the person (1 Cor. 12:12; Eph. 4:4; 2:15; 4:24). As the Body of Christ, the church needs Christ as its life; as the new man, the church needs Christ as its person (Col. 3:4; Eph. 3:17a). The new man is the corporate God-man, with Christ—the firstborn Son—as the Head, and the believers—the many sons of God—as the Body. We need to live the life of a God-man for the new man as the corporate God-man.
In order to put on the new man in an experiential way, we need to take Christ as our person (v. 17a; Gal. 2:20). The church is the new man, and in this new man there is only one person—Christ (Matt. 17:5; Col. 3:10-11). The old man must be put off, and we must live by our new person (vv. 5-9; Rom. 6:6; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 4:22-24). When we live by taking Christ as our person, especially in making decisions, our living will be the living of the new man (John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38; Rom. 15:32; James 4:13-15).
Furthermore, if we would put on the new man in a practical way, we need to do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus (Col. 3:17). The name denotes the person, and the Lord’s person is the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17a). To do things in the name of the Lord is to act in the Spirit; this is to live Christ (Gal. 5:16; Rom. 8:4; Phil. 1:21).