Let us read a few verses from each chapter of Ephesians. Verse 10 of chapter one says, “Unto the economy of the fullness of the times, to head up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth, in Him.” The Greek word for head up is the root noun for head formed into a verb. Christ is not only life, but He is also the Head, under whose headship all things will be headed up.
Verse 13 says, “In whom you also, having heard the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation, in Him also believing, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise.” In whom refers to Christ; in this One who will head up all things, we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise.
Verse 17 says, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him.” In this verse, spirit is in lower case. According to this rendering, it indicates our human spirit. However, it is hard to determine whether this is simply our human spirit or the Holy Spirit. We have to say that it is the human spirit mingled with the Holy Spirit; the two spirits mingle and twine together.
Verses 18 to 23 continue, “The eyes of your heart having been enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the operation of the might of His strength, which He caused to operate in Christ in raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavenlies, far above all rule and authority and power and lordship and every name that is named not only in this age but also in that which is to come; and He subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all.” In the phrase to the church, the little word to is very important. Whatever God has wrought in Christ and whatever Christ has attained is not only for the church but to the church, that is, transmitted to the church.
In chapter two, verses 5 and 6 say, “Even when we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) and raised us up together with Him and seated us together with Him in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus.” Then verse 10 says, “For we are His masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand in order that we would walk in them,” and verses 15 and 16 say, “Abolishing in His flesh the law of the commandments in ordinances, that He might create the two in Himself into one new man, so making peace, and might reconcile both in one Body to God through the cross, having slain the enmity by it.” Christ not only made, He created, in Himself one new man of two peoples, the Jews and the Gentiles. The Body in verse 16 is the church, and according to verse 15 it is also the new man.
Verse 18 says, “For through Him we both have access in one Spirit unto the Father,” and verses 20 through 22 continue, “Being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone; in whom all the building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in spirit.” At the end of verse 22 we do not have the article the in Greek. In spirit, therefore, should be rendered in lower case; it is our human spirit mingled with the Holy Spirit.
In chapter three, verse 4 says, “By which, in reading it, you can perceive my understanding in the mystery of Christ.” Colossians 2:2 speaks of “the mystery of God,” but Ephesians 3:4 refers to “the mystery of Christ.” The mystery of God is Christ, while the mystery of Christ is the church. Christ is the history, the story, that is, the definition and manifestation of God. In the same way, the church is the history, story, and definition and manifestation of Christ. Verses 5 and 6 continue, “Which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in spirit, that in Christ Jesus the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the Body and fellow partakers of the promise through the gospel.” Again in verse 5 there is not the article the before spirit, so this refers to our human spirit.
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