There may be a bountiful spread on the dining table, a sampling of the riches of America. It is another matter, however, for those riches to be realized by us in our being. The same is true with regard to our enjoyment of Christ as the good land. The key to experiencing Him is to be found in the two spirits, which are mentioned in most of the verses given above.
Galatians 3:14 tells us, “In order that the blessing of Abraham might come to the nations in Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” The promise that God gave to Abraham, in the New Testament economy has come to us through Jesus Christ. What is this blessing that was promised to Abraham? It is the Spirit, as this verse clearly tells us.
But, you may ask, was it not the good land which was promised to Abraham? Yes, Abraham was surely promised the good land (Gen. 12:7; 13:15, 17; 15:18; 17:8). This promise was repeated to his son Isaac (Gen. 26:3) and to his grandson Jacob (28:13; 35:12). However, in Galatians 3 Paul interprets the good land as the blessing of the Spirit. The Old Testament promise was of the good land, but in the New Testament fulfillment the promise becomes the Spirit. Have you ever realized that the Spirit whom you have received is the good land?
“And because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father!” (Gal. 4:6). The Spirit sent by God is the blessing promised to Abraham for his descendants. We today in Jesus Christ are by faith the descendants of Abraham and the heirs of God’s promise (3:29). We may say, then, that the good land has been sent to us! What need is there for us to go to the Holy Land for a sight-seeing tour; the good land is within us! This is where we are walking and living.
There is a further inference of the Spirit as the good land in Galatians 5:25: “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” The good land was the type of the all-inclusive Christ, and Christ in His resurrection became the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b). This Spirit has been dispensed into our spirit. Here we receive life by Him, and we are to walk by Him. (See also Galatians 6:18, where we find that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is with our spirit.)
Ephesians speaks further of the Spirit and our spirit. In 1:13 we are told, “You were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise.” Earlier in chapter one it says that God has blessed us, or spoken well of us. The Spirit’s sealing of us is the reaching stage of God’s well-speaking of us. When a paper, for example, has a seal stamped upon it, this indicates that the paper has been reached by the seal. The Triune God is rich, but God did not reach us as the Father. Nor did He ultimately reach us as the Son. Yes, the Son came to us, but He did not come into us. It was the Spirit who entered into us. The Triune God reaches us as the Spirit. The Father, Son, and Spirit all reach us in the sealing with the Spirit.
A seal is fixed and lasting. Now that God has reached you, He remains with you and will never leave. When a seal has been affixed to a paper, the two cannot be separated; they become one. Do you realize that the Triune God has reached you in the Spirit and made Himself one with you?
The seal of the Spirit is also the good land. Corporations use a seal, which may vary in size, to authenticate their documents. What is the size of our seal? It is the size of the good land. No one can take the good land away from us, because it seals us, making us one with God and Him one with us.
In Ephesians 1:17 Paul prays “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him.” Spirit in this verse refers to the human spirit. On the one hand, the Spirit is within us, yet, on the other hand, our spirit needs to be enlightened. We need a spirit of wisdom and revelation that we may realize this sealing Spirit, who is the good land.
That you are saved I have no doubt. But, sorry to say, I do not have the confidence that you realize what you have received with your salvation. You have received the blessing promised to Abraham! This blessing is the good land; it is Christ as the Spirit, who has sealed you. For this to be real to you, you need the spirit of wisdom and revelation for which Paul prayed. Are you living in the good land? If you are, you are living in your spirit, enjoying the Spirit as the good land.
Home | First | Prev | Next