Furthermore, the New Jerusalem is constituted with Christ as the new man with the divine nature and the divine life (Col. 3:10-11). According to Colossians 3:11, the new man is constituted with Christ because in the new man there cannot be any natural man. Not only is there no natural person in the new man, but there is no possibility, no room, for any natural person. In the new man there is only room for Christ. He is all the members of the new man and in all the members. He is everything in the new man. Actually He is the new man, His Body (1 Cor. 12:12). In the new man He is the centrality and universality. In the new man “there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, freeman, but Christ is all and in all” (Col. 3:11). Although the church as the new man is composed with people from many different cultures and races, Christ is actually everything in the new man. This is a matter of constitution. Christ was born into you at your new birth and from that time Christ is being constituted into your very being to transform you into Christ. Because a certain piece of furniture is made with wood and constituted with wood, we can say that it is wood or wooden. In like manner, because we have been born of Christ and constituted with Christ, we can say that we are Christ (in life and in nature). The Bible tells us that the new man, the church, cannot have the natural man and that what is in this new man is just Christ, not Christ by Himself, in Himself, or with Himself, but Christ in you and with you. Due to the influence and restriction of today’s traditional teaching, we have been very much limited and even we do not dare to say that we are Christ. However, I hope we would receive a heavenly vision to see that since we have been born of Christ and constituted with Christ, we are Christ.
We like to say that we live Christ, but many times we dare not say this because we have some realization that we do not live Christ all the time. The reason why we do not live Christ is because we are void of Christ’s constitution. What we are constituted with is what we live. Some saints told me, “To live Christ is wonderful, but I forget to live Him all the time. When I lost my temper, I remembered that I should have lived Christ and by then it was too late!” The reason why you forget to live Christ is because Christ has never been constituted into you that much. To live Christ does not need you to remember that you have to live Christ. If He has been so much constituted into you, you cannot forget to live Him. Our bad temper is “quicker than electricity.” If we do not have the constitution of Christ for us to remember that we need to live Christ, it is impossible to live Him. How much we live Christ depends upon how much Christ has been constituted into our being. According to our fellowship thus far, we can see that to say the New Jerusalem is a physical city prepared by God is absolutely absurd. There is no way to interpret the consummation of the Bible in this way. Because this city is new, it has been wrought with God and has God as its contents.
The title “Jerusalem” is composed of two Hebrew words— Jeru means foundation and Salem means peace. Paul tells us in Hebrews 7 that the King of Salem is the King of Peace (v. 2). Salem is peace and Jeru is something founded, something built, something laid as a foundation. Thus, Jerusalem means the foundation of peace. Jerusalem is something grounded, founded, and safeguarded in peace. The Bible indicates that peace is God Himself. In the New Testament are two titles—the God of peace (Phil. 4:9; 1 Thes. 5:23) and the peace of God (Phil. 4:7). Both of these titles indicate that God Himself is our peace. Also, Ephesians 2:14 indicates that Christ Himself is our peace. This peace is God into whom we have been grounded. This is not an outward peace, but an inward peace in which we are safeguarded. In eternity we will enjoy peace forever.
The Lord Jesus told us, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you” (John 14:27). Our Lord also said in John 16:33, “These things I have spoken to you that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have affliction, but be of good courage, I have overcome the world.” Since the Lord has given us His peace and left us His peace, today we should live in His peace. Actually, the Lord Himself is still here as our peace. Jerusalem is the Triune God to be our peace, to be our safety. The whole New Jerusalem will be an entity of peace. When we consummate in the New Jerusalem we will be in peace, that is, in the Triune God. The New Jerusalem will be solidly grounded and safeguarded in the Triune God as peace and safety and we will enjoy the Triune God as peace forever.